Month: July 2019

Red Rock Canyon is a recommended destination when visiting Las Vegas, Nevada. It is a quick drive, just a few miles west of Las Vegas. According to the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area website, the canyon encompasses 195,819 acres within the Mojave Desert. We had purchased a America the Beautiful – National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass: Annual Pass for $80, which gave us access to most National Parks in the US. There are other options as well including a $15 day-pass per vehicle/truck.

For this trip, my fiance’s parents had joined us. It was their first time in Las Vegas and during the hottest weekend of the summer. Of course, during this time, the air conditioner in my SUV stopped working and we ended up renting a vehicle to get around. There is much to explore at Red Rock Canyon. We had spent the whole day (morning and afternoon) there and prepared by packing plenty of water and a picnic lunch.

We had stopped at each overlook and had a nice picnic lunch at Willow Spring Picnic Area. We did the Petroglyph wall trail, and hiked the Pike Creek Canyon Trail for several hours. We are all not in the greatest shape so the Pike Creek Canyon Trail was a good challenge for us. The heat was also getting to us, so we limited our hike to around 2 hours.

What I found amazing about Red Rock Canyon is the complex geological history. Being a mining and geotechnical engineer, I found studying geology quite fascinating. The rock in the Red Rock Canyon is Aztec Sandstone, which is fossilized core of sand formed during the early Jurassic Period. This sand slowly changed to sandstone and the subsurface water deposited iron oxide and calcium carbonate in the sandstone. The oxidation of the iron minerals in the sediments is seen in the red colors of some of the rocks. There are also formation of petrified wood in the area.

I would highly recommend spending a day here. Maybe not on the hottest weekend of the year, but it was worth it for us. It is important to pack and dress accordingly to the the weather. Below are some photos from our visit.

Vancouver Island, Canada is a magical place. I had lived on Vancouver Island in Campbell River, BC for 5 years and had met my wife and proposed on Vancouver Island in 2016. One of my favorite places on Vancouver Island, Canada is Cathedral Grove, which is in the MacMillian Provincial Park. This park is located 16km east of Port Alberni. Every time that I travel to Tofino, BC or Coombs Old Country Market, I make a trip and walk through Cathedral Grove.

Cathedral Grove is known as one of the oldest growth forests in Canada. The largest trees are over 800 years old but most had sprouted when a fire opened the forest about 300 years. In the forests consists of large Douglas fir, Western hemlocks and Red cedar. These trees soared towards the sky and full of life. The indigenous peoples, First Nations of K’omoks, Tseshaht and Te’mexw had cared for this treasure for over 1000s of years. The trees have a great spiritual significance as Cedar trees and their multiple uses and healing and health properties, providing the First nations people also with transportation, shelter, tools and clothing. The trees would be harvested fully putting each part to good use.

I would recommend visiting Cathedral grove and hiking both sides of the highway. There are definitely many routes and paths to take. The fresh air makes it very peaceful and the forest shows that it is full of life both on sunny and rainy days. Things to note when visiting are that entry to Cathedral Grove is free and there is limited parking which is the two sides of Highway 4. There is talk of improving parking as it has been very congested and dangerous on the highway through that spot. Also there is are outhouses but no other facilities in the park.

There are maps for the trails and one could walk some of the shorter trails in 20 minutes. I could spend hours walking and enjoying the forest. The walk through the forest full of Douglas Firs and along the water. I stand in awe of the wonderful nature that God has created. I am thankful for these experiences. Until next time, Vancouver Island.

In 2008, I visited Egypt, joining a Contiki tour for my travels. At that time, I was completing a work/study in Sweden and it was perfect timing to travel and explore Egypt, which was on my bucket list. The tour consists of 8 days which included Cairo, Giza, Aswan, Edfu and Luxor. Throughout the 8 days, the tour crammed in as much history and landmarks a tourist can take. It was great for a young adventurer like myself. There was also great food and entertainment such as belly dancing.

The trip started off rough. Upon arrival, my luggage was lost at the Cairo Airport. I ended up sitting at the customs and baggage area for over an hour while they called the airline looking for my baggage. During this time, the officials had also taken my passport for some sort of verification. I had received my luggage a few days later and had to make due with wearing souvenir clothes etc.

There were many highlights for the trip:

1. Haggling with merchants in the streets and bazaars. I am not use to these customs and it took me some time to get in the groove for bargaining for a fair price. What is interesting is the merchants will chase you down the street if they see that you are interested. I had probably gotten ripped off several times but it was fun.
2. Abu Simbel- If you have a chance to go to these temples, it is definitely worthwhile. According to internet historical sources, the twin temples were originally carved in 13th century BC during the reign of Pharaoh Ramessess II serving as a monument to the king and his queen Nefertari. We had to take an extra flight to get to Abu Simbel.
3. Nile River Cruise- it is fascinating seeing it first hand, having read about the Nile river in the Bible and its significance. It was a hot day and I had jumped into the river for a quick swim, which may not have been the wisest choice as there may be danger.
4. Camel Rides- We had camel rides at the Pyramids of Giza and around the sugar cane plantations in Luxor. I enjoyed these rides as it was quite relaxing and I am able to sit and enjoy the wonderful scenery.
5. Valley of the Kings were hidden underground mausoleums (tombs) of the great Pharaohs which were located on the Nile’s west bank near Luxor. Amazing experience as we were able to view the mummy of King Tutankhamun (Tut) and other Pharaohs’ tombs.
6. The Temple of Edfu is an ancient Egyptian temple located on the west bank of the Nile. The hieroglyphic there were very well kept as it is one of the best preserved temples in Egypt.

Overall, I had a wonderful experience in Egypt. Contiki had done a great job in arranging the tour and travel. There were no dull moments and I did not feel compelled or harassed to buy things. Feel free to comment. If you’ve been to Egypt, what are your favorites?

Many people ask what there is to see around Elko, Nevada. It is a mining town in Northern Nevada, what does it have to offer? One of my favorite places to explore is Lamoille Canyon, which offers several several activities years round.

Lamoille Canyon is part of the Humboldt- Tolyabe National Forests. In the summer, there is camping available at Thomas Canyon and Terraces Campgrounds, hiking trails to several lakes, horse trails, and fishing in Lamoille Creek. In the winter time, many locals drop by for hiking, snowshoeing, cross country skiing and snowmobiling in the canyon. Unfortunately last year there was a fire that started September 30th, 2018 and burned 9,000 acres in one day burning across Seitz Canyon entering Lamoille Canyon, spreading up canyon.

It was a sad day for the locals in Lamoille, Spring Creek, and Elko. The lower part of Talbot Creek Trail had burned and Lions Camp cabins and upper slopes and bottom burned. This included the old lodge building. The fire had stopped further up the canyon and across the main road, Thomas Canyon Campground and the tall cottonwoods and aspens trees remained intact.

Today was the first time I have driven to the canyon since the fire. We planned a short trip as it is our first hike with our 6-week old baby. Driving up the canyon, we saw the burnt areas. As we drove further up the canyon, the color’s changed from black to deep green and full of life. The area was so peaceful as the waterfalls and creeks flowed. through the canyon. We had stopped in several areas to relax and take pictures.

The area that we stayed the longest was at the end of the road, which was the Scenic Byway. There we went for a quick hike along the Lamoille Creek, picnic, and quick soaking of feet in the Lamoille Creek (only the wife). Below are some of the pictures of the beautiful area. Next trip up the canyon, I hope to have photos of the lakes in the Upper Canyon.

If you are ever stop through Elko, Nevada, a trip to Lamoille Canyon is worthwhile and breathtaking. The canyon will continue to recover and welcomes you.

Beijing also known as Peking is the capital of China. It has a 21.5 million population (2018) and is the second largest city in China to Shanghai. We had joined a bus tour in Beijing prior to heading Xi’an. With the bus tour, were able to visit the following sites: Great Wall, Ming Tomb, Forbidden City, Temple Heaven, Summer Palace, walking tour of Beijing Olympic Park.

Being fascinated with history, I enjoyed the scenic landmarks in Beijing. I had read the history when I was young on the Tienanmen Square massacre. Standing right there with thousands of tourists, gave me a perspective on how many people were actually there and the large space the square actually was. I had enjoyed visiting the Forbidden City which was the former Chinese Imperial Palace from the Ming dynasty to the end of the Qing dynasty. The roofs were interesting as each were different and had mythical animals perched on each corner of the roof. Explanation was given that they were standing guard and intended for protection. The number of animals on the roof corners indicate the power of the one living below. Thus, the higher the number, the more powerful it is. The pavilion of the supreme harmony has the most mythical animals (10) guarding as it is the Palace of the Emperor.

Other notable favorites was the Summer Palace which was created in 1750, originally as the Emperor’s garden retreat in the Qing Dynasty. It was called Qingyi Garden at first, which was destroyed by British and French troops during the Second Opium War in the 1860s. In 1888, the Empress Cixi rebuild a similar garden, for luxury and pleasure in summer time, called it the Summer Palace.

What I found beautiful was the artwork in the long corridor. It is said that it is the longest corridor in Chinese classic gardens, stretching from east to the west, between the southern foot of Longevity Hill and parallel to Kunming Lake with a total of 728 meters in length. These artworks are hundreds of painted stories inside the Long Gallery, and the themes taken from historical figures, flowers, landscapes, and birds.

Overall, similar to my Xi’an blog post. My recommendations are to pay more and take a smaller tour or a private tour. Again, we were convince to join the inexpensive “shopping” tour and found that much of our time was spent at different shopping outlets such as tea shops, silk shops, medicine shops, jade shops. We spent much time at these outlets instead of enjoying the sites. An example, we only got 45 minutes to walk around Olympic Park. Being a competitive swimmer, I would have loved to have a quick swim at the Beijing National Aquatics Center (The Cube). The swim will have to wait and put on the to do list for a second Beijing trip.

In 2014, I had the opportunity of touring China with my mom. This was an exciting trip as both my mom and I have never been to Beijing or Xi’an, China. My parents were both born in Hong Kong and immigrated to Canada in the late 1960s. Being of Chinese descent, this trip to China was a good way to help improve my knowledge of the Chinese culture and explore several wonders of the world. I was born in Toronto, Canada. At home, I had spoken Cantonese (a chinese dialect) but was not exposed much to my Chinese heritage.

We headed Xi’an after touring Beijing for a several days. I found this trip was much more enjoyable as the tour was more relaxing than Beijing. The best of Xi’an included the Terra Cotta Warriors, sculptures depicting the armies of Qin Shi Huang, the first Emperor of China, the Wild Goose Pagoda which was built during the Tang dynasty, the City Wall which was started during the Ming Dynasty, and the Muslim Quarter which had lots of good food shops and street foods. In the evening we enjoyed an amazing dumplings feast and watched an entertaining Tang Dynasty Cultural Show.

For our tour, we had also made a trip out to Mount Huashan, which was 120km from Xi’an. As the mountain is quite dangerous to climb, we had taken the cable-car up the mountain to the North Peak and hiked to the west and south points. Having grown up watching Chinese Kung-Fu movies in the Wuxia community, this mountain was the famous mountain that Kung Fu heroes gather to fight displaying their best swordplay skills to be the top swordsman of Wulin. The competition is called “Hua Shan Lun Jian”.

My suggestion for touring Xi’an is to pay more and take a smaller tour or a private tour. We had booked an inexpensive “sale” advertised tour and found that much of our time was spent at different merchandise outlets such as tea shops, silk shops, medicine shops, jade shops. They would bring us tourists there for hours, staying as long as necessary to generate sales.

You are planning on going somewhere longer than 1 month. If you are visiting relatives, you are all set! They’ll take you in and drive you to get what you need. But what if you are backpacking? Or have a return ticket in a few months or better yet, an open-ended ticket which could mean endless possibilities! This is assuming that you have a reasonable budget to work with! Below are some quick tips and an essential pack-list for such an occasion.

Dave’s Tips

1. Make sure that you have researched your first few destinations and have a plan or tickets going somewhere. Some countries require a visa to enter. Be prepared as some countries issue visas on arrival and other countries like China, may require visas that may take several days/weeks to get. Also, some countries require that you show return tickets leaving the country before they grant entry.
2. If you are planning on using a cell phone on your trip, make sure that you have a travel phone plan and/or an unlocked phone to be usable with the local sim cards. These days, your life will be that much easier if you are able to use your smart phone during travels. As you can continue your social media posts, communicate, make travel plans on the go, and research places to eat, stay, visit.
3. Money and credit cards. I tend to carry both cash and credit cards. For cash, I would get various denominations. I make sure I have an assortment of small bills, especially $1 bills for tips. If you have several credit cards, it may be beneficial to carry one of each (Mastercard, Visa, American Express) for convenience. There are travel specific credit cards that have no foreign transaction fees. Some credit cards also require calling them to notify and informing them of your upcoming trip.
4. Make sure you have all the travel vaccinations needed for the countries you plan on visiting. For some vaccinations, this is required months in advance.
5. Travel Insurance. As you are travelling for a longer period of time, it may be beneficial to get some travel medical insurance, if you don’t already have some.
6. Decide on how many bags you want to carry around on your trip. After you decide that, a pack-list can be made. Remember to leave room in your suitcase or an option to buy another check-in bag for items purchased during the trip. If possible, check your bag weight making sure you are not over the limit. Also, as you are travelling for an extended period of time, make sure your go-to bags are in order, rolling well, light, and convenient.
7. Have a spot where you keep your main 3 items– Passport, Wallet, Phone- These items can go missing quick if you leave them lying around and don’t secure them well. Have a spot for each and put them away when not needed.

Pack-list essentials

1. Main 3 Items -Passport, Wallet, Phone with charging accessories.
2. Clothes– Match the clothes to the climate you will be in:
   -1 weeks worth of clothes is what I would bring (7 pairs of socks, 5 pairs of underwear, 5 shirts, 1 sweater, 1 jacket/windbreaker, 2-3 pants, 1-2 pair of shorts), Is there a need for a fancy outfit? During the week, you should be able to use the laundry to wash some items.
3. Shoes– match your shoes to your travel area (you will have your main pair of travel shoes + hiking shoes? + sandals? + dress shoes?
4. Toiletries– this varies for each person. Remember to pack your liquids and gels in the check-in luggage. Depending on where you are going, some lotions and sunscreen can be very expensive.
5. Meds- Do you get sick easily? Headaches? Nausea? Any meds that can help alleviate discomfort and you need easy access to? Some might find it useful to pack Gravol (treats motion sickness). I usually pack some Advil and Benadryl just in case.

These are my go-to tips and essentials. I’m sure that there are other tips I had missed. Feel free to comment as I look forward to knowing your tips and pack essentials.

The Cu Chi tunnels are a network of connecting tunnels located approximately 75km from Ho Chi Minh City. These tunnels were used by the Viet Cong soldiers during the Vietnam War. They served as shelter, communications, and supply chain for food and weapons and were a great importance to the Viet Cong in their resistance to American forces. Now it is a tourist designation and a popular place to visit.

If you are in Ho Chi Minh City, the Cu Chi Tunnels should definitely be on the to-see list. I find the tunnel system fascinating and the history behind how the Viet Cong lived, and underground system, and their tactical maneuvers against trespassers. Below are some photos from the Cu Chi Tunnels when I went in 2012.

I would encourage joining a tour to see the tunnels. My experience going there without a set tour was somewhat disastrous and stressful. At one point, I felt my life threatened and I was ready to jump out of a moving vehicle.

Leading up to that adventure, my friend and I had arrived very late in Ho Chi Minh City and did not inquire about tours. The next morning, we started our day finding out that we missed the morning tours. We ended up booking activities for the afternoon and the next day. We were told by the hotel front desk that we could easily get to the Cu Chi Tunnels by taxi, which would cost us 20-30 USD each way and that we did not need a tour guide as the Cu Chi tunnels have their own guides. We were warned not to get the taxi to wait for us to finish, as it would be much more expensive.

The tour at the Cu Chi tunnels was fun, we spend a few hours and even shot rifles, AK47s and other guns. When we were ready to leave to go back to the city, there were no taxis in sight. We had asked around to share accommodations back to the city but each visitor we approached was either on a bus tour or a private tour.

We went to the ticket booth to request a taxi. They told us taxis don’t usually come around, but they will call to get us a ride back to the city. A guy in a black cargo van with tinted windows came to pick us up. He smiled and was very friendly, knowing the hotel we wanted to return to. What was not mentioned to us was that he was a messenger and had to make several stops around the nearby villages. Each stop we made, people handed him rolls of cash. He explained, “this is my friend, he give me money”.  After 5 or 6 money stops, we were told to exit the car. He told us to go with his other friend, who drove a 1990’s Toyota Corolla. The man with the van handed our new driver some money and had a conversation before we headed off. When leaving, from the car window, our previous driver was smiling and waving goodbye.

Our new driver was quiet and the drive was dead silent. Suddenly we had turned onto dirt roads and were in the middle of nowhere. The area was unrecognizable as we never passed this area on the way to the Tunnels. My friend and I looked at each other not knowing where we were heading. We asked the driver, “Are we heading back to Ho Chi Minh City?” he quickly glanced at us without a response. We asked again if we were heading back to the city and the hotel, and if he spoke English. Glancing back again, he paused and said “Noooo…. Hahahah” laughed and turned around.

We became worried at this point, as we were on a dirt road and it didn’t seem promising that we were heading the right direction. My friend had his phone and decided to turn it on, but there was no cell signal. At that point, we discussed the options, to jump out and run or stay and fight as it was two against one. We decided wait and keep calm.

10 minutes later…. the driver got back on the highway back to the city and we were relieved. We found that the guy did not speak English, thus the silent treatment. Finally, we had made it back to the hotel in one piece. Thinking back on this experience, the outcome could have been very different. Next time, I am hoping I can avoid these situations.