Hello everyone!  

We hope you had a great Easter weekend and are ready for summer.  With the recent snowfalls for our friends and family in Canada, it may not feel like summer is ready for you.

We just hit our 6 year mark in the Middle East and are still loving every bit of it!  Hard to believe it has been 6 already.

Most COVID restrictions have now lifted, which is great news for people like us who want to travel more and not have the hassles and restrictions!  Dangerous on the pocket book however!

Some news we are so excited about...we are getting our first visitor to Saudi!!!  Our friend Anita will fly back with us from Canada in July, get to experience our Saudi life for a couple weeks, and then will join us in Africa.  You can not even imagine how pumped we are to host our first guest here!!!

This blog shares some of our spring 2022 highlights - Dubai a couple of times, an awesome T&A trip to Cabo San Lucas, Miami, and lots of fun in Saudi & Bahrain.

Enjoy the pics and videos...

We had a great time bringing in New Years in Bahrain.  We did a brunch at McGettigans with friends Devin & Michelle.  Food and drinks were flowing....a great way to kick off 2022 in style!

Spring in the Middle East is beautiful weather so it's nice to get out and enjoy times with friends.  Here are pics from some brunches, and amazing hat, an outdoor nursery in Saudi, and cuddles with the cat!

We went to Dubai for a long weekend in January and had an amazing weekend.
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The weekend started off with a rooftop patio, dinner and drinks with friends Nigel & Jayne.  Once again, it is amazing how you meet the best people.  Met them at a Maldives resort in October 2020 and have been able to connect a few times since.  Great people with amazing stories after living in the Middle East for 20+ years!

We spent a day at the Expo 2020 - amazing job with this Dubai!  WOW!  Incredible pavilions from every country - the architecture is stunning.  The place is massive (check the video below) so could not even come close to seeing everything.  Had to come back for another day - see the March section in this blog.

We went out for a brunch at STK...quite possibly the best brunch we have ever been to - great food and drinks and an awesome vibe!  After that, we met up with friends Frank & Sherri (Americans in Dubai) and ran into Gabriel & Dorina (met them on the Croatia cruise in 2021...they are a fun couple from Montenegro).

​Dubai...we can't get enough of you!

T&A 2022 went back to where it all started...Cabo San Lucas on the west side of Mexico at the southern tip of the Baja Peninsula (south of California).  Our hotel was the Riu Palace Baja California.

2022's cast of characters included us, Mark & Gayle, Meghan & Joe, Marilyn, and a newcomer - Marilyn's sister Stephanie.  
There was also a special guest appearance by Kevin, better known as "KP", who we both worked with in Winnipeg.  Great to see him again after many years!  For anyone who was at our wedding 15 years ago in the Dominican, you will most likely remember KP as the person giving my aunts "sexy rides" in the pool.

There were the usual shenanigans - pool drinks, dance parties, Super Bowl parties, threats from security after "borrowing" a bike, and crashing a wedding.  Well, actually crashing the first dance.  Whoops.  

We did a fun excursion - whale watching, boat trip, pub crawl in Cabo, and then a few beach bars, before a rowdy water taxi ride back to our hotel (check the video below for some Grammy award winning performances).

Once again, the bartender foiled any sexy Valentine's Day plans by getting Lisa drunk.  She went to "sleep" early so Jeff flew solo for Valentine's Day dinner....or did he?  
​Luckily, he found a date (a huge piece of bark from a palm tree) that Joe brilliantly named "Leafsa".  So Leafsa joined Jeff for dinner, did a photo shoot with her new man, and had shots with Steph (video is below).  Lisa was quite surprised to wake up with Leafsa cuddled up next to Jeff.  If I recall, the words were "What the fuck??"  And then Leafsa was gone.

Always a great time seeing the T&A gang.  Hoping we can get more out for the next T&A adventure in spring '23.  Stay tuned for details...

Off to Miami.

We stopped in Miami for a few days on our way back to the Middle East.  Always a great time in this city, as we love the beaches, the food and drinks, the shopping, and the overall vibe.

We thought we would do a few things we had never done in Miami before:
- Hop On, Hop Off Bus - saw some new areas of Miami, including a new area that looked really cool (Wynwood...more on that later), went to a favorite of ours - Bayside Marketplace for mojitos, and then ended in Little Havana for drinks, shopping, and some Cuban food (Lisa LOVES Cubano sandwiches).  It was so cool to enjoy drinks there while listening to Cuban music and seeing the cigar making shops.
- Wynwood Marketplace - after driving past it on the bus, we went back to this very cool area of Miami.  It is the arts district and has amazing signs and painted buildings plus the incredible Wynwood Marketplace, a 60,000 square foot outdoor complex with art, shops, food trucks, and bars.  Great music all over.  (see the video below).
- Hollywood - we cabbed to Hollywood, just north of Miami to check it out.  Found a cool little restaurant (Le Tub Saloon) that had a cool vibe, amazing burgers, and was along the water.  

The rest of the time we spent in South Beach, enjoying the bars (the Clevelander still rocks!  See videos below), restaurants (Havana 1957, Sandwicherie...yum!), shopping, and the great beaches!

Can't wait to get back to Miami!

We went to Dubai for a March long weekend with a bunch of our friends (appropriately named "The Shitshow") from Saudi for another fun weekend.

We met up with Ian & Nikki (our Portsmouth friends that we met in Bangkok), who were on their way to Maldives.  Kept them out drinking until 3am and they had to leave for the airport at 5am.  Ouch!  (or did they keep us up drinking??)

We spent another day at Expo and saw a few more pavilions.  It was so hot and busy so spent most of our time having cold beers.  A really cool thing - our friend Nicky got a pic from the Ukrainian pavilion showing memos from visitors showing support in their fight vs the Russians (see pic below).

Had some live music, pool time, and a great brunch with the Shitshow gang....also great to see Frank & Sherri again!  Videos are below.

Here are some of the dates for upcoming travel...always happy for anyone to come and join us!  Stay tuned for pics, videos, and more stories...

April 29-May 4 - Maldives.  Heading to Hard Rock Maldives for a few days.
June 2-6 - Cyprus...checking out Ayia Napa - supposed to be the 2nd wildest European party place next to Ibiza...let's do it!
July 8-18 - Canada...back home for a few days to see friends and family.  Also get to see the Zac Brown Band and Calgary Stampede.
July 31-August 10 - Zanzibar and Tanzania ... so excited for this trip with Anita.  A few days all-inclusive on the beaches, then safari in the Serengeti with the Great Migration.
September 11-October 5 - Spain.  excited to visit Ibiza and then spend a few weeks visiting cities along the coast of Spain.
November 9-14 - Berlin.  Going to see Alan Doyle play in Germany!  (only 27 euros per ticket!)

Spring 2023 - T&A trip ... details coming soon!

As you can see, we've had a busy spring...looking forward to what summer has in store for us.  
Looking forward to seeing everyone back in Canada in July.

We will update the blog after the Maldives and Cyprus trips.

Ending off with a few pics, including an awesome wall sign our friends Jeff & Sara gave to us. 
6 years..."What an Adventure"

​Love from L&J...

Hello everyone and Merry Christmas!

We hope you are enjoying the holidays with friends and family and hopefully the worst of this pandemic is behind us.

This blog will focus on a "Plan B" trip we had to Las Vegas...story to be told below.

But first...off to a road trip at the very unique cultural museum near our house.  

Enjoy this session of the blog...

Jeff's work team took a trip to Ithra, the King Abdulaziz Centre for World Culture.  This impressive structure has been listed by Time magazine as one of the world's top 100 places to visit and had over 1 million visitors in 2019.  The building has incredible architecture throughout it's 80,000 square meters.  There are many cultural exhibits, some rotating exhibits like the optical illusion art, a few restaurants, and many halls and auditoriums that host music events.

Enjoy some of the cool items we got pics of.

We had planned a 2 week vacation at the end of November/early December to go to Vienna, Austria for a week and Budapest, Hungary for a week.  We had booked an orchestra in a famous Vienna church, a "Sparty" (spa party) in Budapest and were so excited to meet Anita for another couple weeks of shenanigans.

Then we went to some friends place for a US Thanksgiving dinner and heard "Austria is locking down Monday!"  This quickly detoured our plans.  We tried to focus on enjoying the night, then spent Saturday rallying to cancel plans, get refunds, work on other travel plans.

Figuring out travel ideas during the pandemic is a bit tricky - "where can we go?", "what is their quarantine?", "what is the risk?"....but it's the risk for trying to travel I guess.

Sunday morning..."what do you think about Disneyworld?"  "We've never been there!"  
Wait..."How about Vegas - Disneyworld for adults???"

Now, we have been to Vegas many, many times.  This was not new.  But we were both so excited to get there, walk the strip, people watch on Fremont Street in old Vegas, see some NHL, see some NFL, maybe some shows.  All booked.

The National Rodeo was on so that meant that every major country star was playing, as well as Rodney Carrington, one of our favorite comedians.  Booked!  The Calgary Flames were playing the Golden Knights and we heard their atmosphere is amazing.  Booked!  "Can we go to the Neon Museum where they take all the old neon signs?"  Booked!

"Anita, want to join for Plan B?"  Booked!

Blue Man Group.  Booked!

Here are a few random pics of a great 8 days in Vegas.

Neon Museum

The Neon Museum was founded in 1996 as a nonprofit organization dedicated to collecting, preserving, studying, and exhibition iconic signs.

Trivia Fact - Great Big Sea filmed their music video for "When I Am King" here! (video link is here - https://vimeo.com/21923377)

A very cool walk and lots of pics before heading to nearby Fremont Street for drinks and people watching.

Glad we took the time to see it!

Blue Man Group
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We’ve always heard great things about this show but didn’t know much about it. Pretty unique show. Mysterious, yet funny. Such an impressive display of choreography, sound, and lighting!

NHL - Vegas Golden Knights vs. Calgary Flames
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We started the day with a “hangover lunch” of Crackshack chicken, then found a pub (Beerhaus) to watch our Riders lose in the CFL western final (congrats Bomber fans!).

The city was alive as the NFL Raiders vs. Washington game was live nearby.  Then the hockey fans started arriving.
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Amazing outdoor and indoor atmosphere at T-Mobile Arena for the game!

While all of our friends ventured home to see friends and family, we stayed back in Saudi but did cross over to Bahrain for Christmas.  Christmas Day tradition at home will be some perogies with bacon and onions.

Bahrain is alive with many brunches -  around $80 USD for all you can eat & drink for 4 hours.  Merry Christmas!  Afternoon brunches on the 24th, evening on the 24th, afternoon on the 25th, and then New Years Eve.

Here are a few pics...

Feb 10-17 - T&A 2022 visits Cabo San Lucas - we finally get to see our T&A friends after missing 2021 (F You Covid) and skipping 2020 when they went to Costa Rica.  Can't wait to see everyone in the birthplace of T&A on the west coast.  So far, we have the following trouble makers meeting us down there - Mark, Gayle, Vern, Noreen, Anita, Joe, and Meghan.  Hope Santa brought tickets for a few more of you! 

Feb 17-22 - South Beach Miami.  Been here many times.  Love the people watching, beach, shopping, restaurants, and bars.  Excited to get back.
April 29-May 4 - Maldives or Seychelles?  Not sure yet.​
July 8-17 - Canada
August 1-10 - Tanzania and Zanzibar possibly ...safari and beach time
Sept 12-Oct 5 - Spain
Nov 9-14 - No plans yet

Well, this blog closes out 2021.  Even though it wasn't back to normal, things seemed a lot more normal than what we dealt with in 2020.  We are very grateful to have made it through the year healthy and to be lucky enough to have travelled and seen friends & family.

We hope you all had a great holiday season...wishing you all the best in 2022! 

Love from L&J
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Hello everyone and thanks for checking out another edition of our blog.

Here is a quick update on what we've been up to in October & November since our trip back to Canada in September.

​Stay tuned for some stories, pics, and videos...

Our October included many fun weekends in Saudi and Bahrain...BBQ's, some golf, our first Escape Room (and yes, we did escape...with 7 seconds left!), brunches, an 80's costume party, a kick ass Halloween brunch on the beach, and of course, a few pool cocktails! 

We added a couple extra days to our November long weekend and had planned to go to Amsterdam, but KLM suddenly cancelled our flight.  They put us on another flight a day later but we didn't want to lose a vacation day so instead booked London for a few days.

The best part about it - we threw out the invite to a few people and Anita decided to fly from Canada to meet us.  This is awesome, especially since she is already booked to join us in Austria and Hungary later in November.

We did some touring around London.  Mainly pubs.  But also saw some of the key touristy places and enjoyed the Christmas vibe that was coming alive throughout the city.  Found a very cool old hidden bar in Milroy's Whiskey Bar in Soho (thanks for the recommendation Jason G.!). See the video below.  Also, found one of the best Irish bars we've ever been to, Waxy O'Connor's (great recommendation Big H!).  In fact, stumbled into it at least 3 times. 

Jeff planned a meet up with Ian and Nikki, friends from Portsmouth, UK.  We originally met them drinking on a patio in Bangkok a few years ago...great drinkers, funny as fuck, and amazing people.  Planned a surprise with them meeting us at an Irish bar.  Had many great laughs, especially as we stumbled downstairs for a drag show in a gay bar.  Awesome times!

Had some awesome food and drinks at Borough Market and Camden Market.

Day Trip to Richmond - film site of Ted Lasso

As fans of the TV show, Ted Lasso, we decided to take a train to Richmond, on the outskirts of London, to go to the pub where the show does some filming.  Very cool.  Took the opportunity to visit a few other Richmond pubs, thanks to the recommendations from our friend Hayden, who has been rumoured to frequent a few of these spots.

Come From Away

While in London, we went to see a great Canadian-produced show called Come From Away.  It us a great production that tells a cool story of 90+ planes getting stranded in Gander, Newfoundland during 9/11.  Strongly recommend it!

Hope you enjoyed some of our October & November experiences...will be back soon to share stories from our Austria and Hungary trip (...or will we!)

Enjoy your December everyone!

​Love, J&L

Hello everyone!

We finally made it home - yep, back to Canada ... our first time since 2018.  It was so awesome to see friends and family across Alberta, as well as to do some sightseeing, and also visit some of our favorite pubs and restaurants.

We will cover the details in 3 sections - Edmonton, Lake Louise/Banff, and Calgary as we go.

This video sums up the visits with our kick ass group of friends!

Edmonton
After running into our friends, the Coppages (returning from their holidays in the US and coming back to KSA), in the Amsterdam airport, it seemed fitting to kick off vacation properly - with several airport beers.

We woke up on the plane, landed in Calgary, and drove up to Edmonton.  Due to Covid, there weren't any direct flights to Edmonton at that point.  After checking into the airBnb, it was off to the Canadian Brewhouse for a lengthy shift with some great friends (Anita, Chris Reid, Dennis, the Gowers, and the Serights) who came out.

We spent the next day visiting some family in St.Albert, getting to visit with aunts Sue & Lynn, cousins Lana, Glen, Brad, and their kids.  Great to see everyone!  Thank you for arranging this.

Ran into our first cannabis shop in St.Albert - huge business in Canada and legal since we have been back.  Time to support the local economy I suppose.

We met up with the gang and Jason W. on Whyte Ave for a special night of Bulldogs at Julio's Barrio.  The night unravelled quickly and we ventured down the street to the Black Dog and Blues on Whyte.  We love Edmonton!

Our last night was a special one, as we attended an outdoor concert with Anita, Dennis, and the Gowers.  Captain Tractor, the Dead South (fucking unreal!), Alan Doyle, and Blue Rodeo lit up the stage as we drank, sang, and danced!  Just watch Lisa's singing on the Lost Together video below.  Amazing to be back at a concert!  No cabs available so we rode home in a limo (under the negotiation that the driver would stop to get us beer and burgers, and that we could listen to DJ Chunky Luv on his stereo!).

An amazing few days in E-Town...miss this place....miss these people!

Lake Louise & Banff
We drove south from Edmonton and cut over to the mountains in the west, staying in a remote mountain lodge one night, doing some hiking and trying to avoid the bears.

Made it to the beautiful Lake Louise (at 2 degrees Celsius), as this was Lisa's first time to see the iconic Canadian lake.  So beautiful.  Got some pics, but beers (and warmer temps) in Banff were calling so we hit the road.

Managed to stop and see cousins Warren and Jenna (and their kids) for a couple drinks, as they were camping along the lake just outside of Banff.  Was great to catch up in such a beautiful spot!

Met up with lifelong friends, Layne (better known as Vin) & Glenice, in Banff.  It was amazing that they took time away from work to come see us and party together in Banff.  We caught up over drinks, some mountain golf (beautiful!), and walking around one of the most beautiful places on Earth.  Even stopped (for the first time) in Canmore for lunch and a couple pints!

If you ever visit Canada, DO NOT leave without seeing the Canadian Rockies!
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On to our final stop - Calgary!

Calgary
We made it to Calgary and were immediately invited to Avi's new house to see some old friends (Avi, Michele, Nicole, Jr, Vin)and their kids (holy shit, have the kids grown up!). Same old shenanigans, even including a nap from the host!

Calgary included visits to our favorite restaurants, visiting some breweries, doing some hikes at our favorite locations, running errands (Yes, Lisa finally got her drivers license renewed!)

Lisa's mom and Jeff's Dad & Joan arrived so we were able to catch up and enjoy some time with them.  Great to see everyone doing well and to see that they still love their cards!

We took a day away from everyone to rest up for the upcoming days.  That plan failed, as we hit the pub , ran into another friend, Stu, and the night quickly derailed - see the videos below.

​Had a chance to golf with Vin, Jr, and their dad Lynn....this one got a bit wild as it was Lynn's birthday so it just made sense to indulge.  Finally got to see Vin & Glen's new house (a beauty!).  Ended the day at a gem of a place called the Beer Hall...damn good pizza!

We had a chance to catch up with another great friend, The Big Daver, at the Kilt & Caber for a couple drinks...great to catch up with him and see that he is doing well! 

The final encore was the Labor Day game between the Riders and Bombers, hosted by Avi once again (this guy is a hosting machine).  First things first, the Riders got their asses kicked.  But honestly, the game was secondary compared to the celebration of seeing everyone in one place.  Gowers and Dirty Den came from Edmonton, Hautas came from their lake, and a shitload of people came out from Calgary.  It was so cool to see everyone saying to each other "we haven't seen you in so long"....so happy this event could connect the gang again!  Avi and Michele had a taco bar that was outstanding, we played games, we drank, we hugged, we drank more.  Then we paid the price the next day.  All worth it and would do it again in a second!

Final day tradition - Keg dinner with friends.

And we are off.  Miss this group!

We have a couple long weekends coming up in September and October - will most likely just visit Bahrain for some golf, brunches, and pool time.  Saving it for November,

November 10-15 - Amsterdam...can't wait to get back and have some fun here!

November 29-December 8 - Vienna and Budapest.  We are excited that Anita is flying out to travel with us.  Should be some amazing excursions, Christmas markets, and a Sparty fun Budapest (videos to come!)

2022 vacation requests are due soon.  Still to be determined.  
​Hoping to make it for the Feb 12-19 T&A trip in Cabo san Lucas, Mexico.

Stay tuned for more...

We have been so lucky to have such an amazing summer - 3 weeks in Croatia, 4 weeks with everyone in Canada.  We are blessed and so grateful after everything in 2020.

THANK YOU to everyone who came out to see us while we were back in Canada.

​Sending you all love....hope you all have an awesome fall season.

​Love, J&L

This blog will highlight one of the most amazing trips we have had.  
​You can click on pictures to enlarge them.

We spent 3 weeks in Croatia, known as Hrvatska to the locals.  It is in Central/Southeast Europe along the Adriatic Sea and is just east of Italy, south of Slovenia, west of Bosnia, and north of Greece.
The country has a population of just over 4 million and was part of Yugoslavia until 1991, so you will see many amazing old forts and churches in this blog.  

Overall feel of the country - you couldn't find a bad picture, bad food, bad wine, or bad people.  They rely on tourism and you can see why.  The country is extremely scenic with turquoise water, beautiful trees and mountains, and the historic cities.  We will discuss some of the incredible food as well!

Masks were optional the entire stay, unless you went into a shop.  A refreshing 'escape' from Covid!
​
Here we go...

We flew through Frankfurt into Zagreb, Croatia, then spent 5 days in Northern Croatia before driving south to Split for a 7 day cruise and then a few more days in Split.

​There are many amazing pics and videos to share the story...enjoy! 

We spent 5 days in Istria, the northern part of Croatia located just south of Slovenia and a couple hours from Venice.  We had a great resort just north of Rovinj.

We visited Pula on the south side to see the Pula Arena, a Roman amphitheatre built out of limestone between 27BC and 68AD.  In fact, they still use it and were taking down the stage from an opera show the night before.  Quite a sight to see!

Rovinj is a small coastal town with about 15,000 people.  There is an awesome old town area filled with shops, restaurants, and many boat excursions (many dolphin tours!).  Incredible people watching.  We enjoyed the hike up the hill to St. Euphemia's Basilica which can be viewed from high above.  Was interesting to see the remnants from the previous night, with vodka and orange juice at the entrance to the church!

We will be back to this area!

Day 1: Split Arrival,  Saturday 
We packed our bags and went to the port to drop them off to be loaded onto the Bella yacht.
Then off for drinks to get prepared before boarding at 1PM.  Got settled onto the boat for unpacking, then drinks and a Welcome Dinner with everyone.  

We had 40 people on board plus the crew:

• Cruise Manager - Inga
• Captain - Nino
  
• Servers/Bartender - Antonio and Filipa
  
• Housekeeping - Katarina
• Boat crew - Tino and Djur
• Plus 2 chefs, who we never really met

The boat was amazing - lots of space, great bar & dining area, a plunge pool, and a hot tub.

We have been on 3 large cruises before - they often port at 7am and leave between 4-6pm.  We were really excited that this trip would be different, as we would be getting stops in small towns, swim stops, stops at national parks, as well as being able to enjoy the evenings, as the boat would not set sail until 7am on most mornings.

​The pics will tell the rest of the story...

Day 4: Korčula to Dubrovnik, Tuesday In the morning sail to Dubrovnik, the “Pearl of the Adriatic”, a UNESCO World Heritage site. Upon arrival in Dubrovnik, you will enjoy a guided tour of the magnificent Old Town with a panoramic bus ride above the Old Town. After the panoramic view, we will arrive at the historical centre of Dubrovnik, walk through STRADUN – both a street and a square, the most famous place inside the town walls, the famous city enlisted as UNESCO’s World Heritage site, where your guide will show you the most interesting sights of Dubrovnik. After city tour, you will be left on your own to explore the city, visit City Walls, the Franciscan Monastery with Europe's second oldest pharmacy, the Rector's Palace and the Cathedral, take a boat ride to Lokrum island or take the cable car to the top of the Mount Srđ. Overnight in Dubrovnik.

Had a beautiful swim stop on our long trip to Dubrovnik.  Lisa enjoyed the stand up paddle boarding.

Dubrovnik was an amazing city we wished we could have spent more time in - a medieval fortress from the 7th century that is incredible to see ... pictures do not do justice!

Had a great tour and then wandered to see some bars on our hit list - Buza Bar on the cliff, Katie O'Connors Irish Pub, and the Cave Bar at Hotel More.  Also had a great pizza at Pizzeria Oliva!

Hope to get back to see more of this city!

Day 6: Mljet to Vela Luka (Island of Korčula) to Vis, Thursday Morning we sail north towards the island of Vis, stopping in Vela Luka on the island of Korčula, the birthplace of Olivera Dragojevic, a famous Croatian singer. Vela Luka is a quiet Mediterranean town, facing traditional agriculture, fishing, and tourism. At lunchtime we continue towards Vis once a strategic naval Yugoslav base and closed to the public. Due to this isolation, Vis has a special charm – “the Mediterranean as it once was” making it really interesting to visit. Upon arrival in town of Vis join the walking tour to visit the remains of the Roman thermal place and views of the beautiful Villae Rusticae situated along the waterfront. Overnight in Vis.  Tonight enjoy Captain’s dinner onboard.

We enjoyed our stop in Vela Luka, a quiet place with a very nice marina area.  The swim stop was nice, especially with the big naval ship.  Then over to Vis Island.
We cabbed across from Vis town to Komiza, on the west side of the island.  Beautiful old town along the water.  Then back to Vis, where we came across the very strange practice of the Hash House Harriers (see the video!).  Enjoyed a few drink stops, and then back on board for the Captain's Dinner.

Day 8: Split Departure, Saturday 
After breakfast, it’s time to disembark. Said sad goodbyes to the crew, and friends we met from the US, Switzerland, Denmark, Hungary, Albania, Slovenia, and Croatia.

AN AMAZING TRIP!

And it isn't over yet.

Took a cab to our hotel, chilled at the beach (with 1L mojitos), then off to an Irish Pub to watch the Lions/Springboks rugby match with Hayden & Christy.

We took a day tour to Plitvice Lakes national park, which is one of the oldest parks in Croatia and became a UNESCO Heritage Site in 1979.
It is at the top of the list of "things to see/do" in Croatia.  And we can see why!

An amazing hike around the 16 lakes that cascade via 90+ waterfalls.

The pics and videos will do the talking...

We took a pirate boat on our last day with Hayden & Christy, sailing to Necujam, Maslinica, Ciovo, and the Blue Lagoon.

The trip included many drinks and many swim stops.  The sea legs were a bit wobbly afterwards - not sure if it was from the water or the pirate cocktails!

Afterwards, we enjoyed a cheese-infused steak and a tasty pizza at Bakra. Great place!

Spent our last day in Split doing some shopping, some beach time, and an early night sleep for our 3am wake up call to head to the airport!

August 18-September 8 - Canada
Finally, we are getting a chance to get back home to see friends and family!
Game plan:
Aug 18-22 - in Edmonton.  Visiting with everyone...and an outdoor Alan Doyle & Blue Rodeo concert!
August 22-24 - driving the Jasper to Banff highway along the Rocky Mountains (we have never done this!)
August 24-Sept 8 - in Calgary - excited to have Lisa's mom join us, as well as Jeff's dad (hopefully!).  And a great chance to connect with friends in "our last Canadian home"
CAN NOT WAIT to see you all!!!

Sept 23-25 - long weekend - no plans yet ... maybe Doha or Dubai
Nov 11-15 - no plans yet
November 29-December 8 - no plans yet
December 29-January 3 - no plans yet

Thanks for joining our Croatia journey via the blog...hope to see you can join in person when we go again next time.

Stay safe everyone...see you soon!

Love, 
​L&J

A quick update from a great trip in May and June.

We're very excited to see much of the world opening back up thanks to all the vaccinations.  Hopefully that will be good news for summer travel - more on that down below.

We went to the Maldives in May for a quick break and spent time here for the remainder of May and June.  We enjoyed an 80's party to celebrate a couple friend's birthdays this past weekend.

​Lots of great pics & videos.

​Enjoy...

We took advantage of the Eid break to go to the Maldives with Hayden, Christy, Waco, Tosh, Wayne, Hayley, Wally, & Shendy.

The trip started off pretty wild, as Lisa decided to tap into the overnight free alcohol on the plane (after 4-5 hours in the Doha lounge!).  

The resort had amazing food, top notch drinks, a gin bar, and a really cool underwater restaurant.