Castle Howard

On December 19 we left Stirling, Scotland by train for York, England and for a third time stayed three nights in our favourite flat at Emperor's Wharf.

Stirling, Robert the Bruce & William Wallace

Upon completion of our Edinburgh housesit we took the train from Waverley to Stirling - home of Stirling castle (below) and land of Robert the Bruce and William Wallace. 

Highland Lochs, Glens & Whisky

On our final full day in Edinburgh we took a one-day (10-hour) bus tour of Scotland's "Highland Lochs, Glens and Whisky" with Rabbies. 

Edinburgh Third Time Round

Today marks the end of our latest housesit in Edinburgh with Charley and Bobby.

Giant Lanterns of China

We're into week two of our Edinburgh housesit and were fortunate to view the Giant Lanterns of China exhibit at the Edinburgh zoo.

Berwick-Upon-Tweed

After a smooth overnight Westjet flight across the pond we had another full day's travel from Gatwick to London and onto Berwick-Upon-Tweed in Northumberland. 

Courtesy of http://www.ness-st.co.uk/aerial_photographs.html

Off to a UK Christmas

While we love warm temperatures and sunshine John and I are excited to return to Britain this week. We're looking forward to the holidays in spite the the short, cool and rainy days we'll no doubt encounter.

Campbellville With Chimo and Nukka

We're often booked months in advance for a housesit and our recent Campbellville sit is no exception. Last February Gloria and Bob posted their dates on TrustedHousesitters.com and John and I applied. A few emails and a Skype chat later plans were made for us to meet in person in mid June. We had a lovely afternoon with lunch, laughs and of course wine, and that same day we met Nukka and Chimo.

L to R: Nukka, Chimo

Charlottetown, PEI to Campbellville, ON

In mid-October we travelled 1750 kilometres from Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island to Campbellville, Ontario to begin our next housesit. While the journey can be completed in a relatively short period of time we took our time, stretching it out over four days and seeing a few of the sights along the way. 

Charlottetown, PEI

Upon completing our Dartmouth, NS housesit on Thanksgiving weekend, we headed to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island via the 12.9 km long Confederation Bridge that connects PEI to New Brunswick. It is the longest bridge in the world that crosses ice-covered water.

Art Gallery of Nova Scotia

While in Halifax we visited the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia. It's conveniently located downtown a short walk from the ferry terminal.

Halifax

Just a short ferry ride from our Dartmouth housesit is the capital of Nova Scotia, Halifax.

Mahone Bay, NS

One of our most memorable discoveries during our Dartmouth, Nova Scotia housesit was the small town of Mahone Bay. We were unaware of it prior to our arrival in Lunenburg, but upon hearing glowing reports from other travellers we decided to take a look-see. 

Easy, No Knead, Crusty Bread

We're thankful for good friends we've known almost three decades and surprise, surprise they enjoy travelling as much as we do! Whenever we get together the conversation always includes updates on each couples latest escapades and more often than naught includes wine and a home cooked meal. 

Lunenburg, NS

Another location we visited while housesitting in Nova Scotia is the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Lunenburg.

Peggy's Cove

While housesitting in Dartmouth, we visited the picturesque fishing village of Peggy's Cove.

Evergreen House

Small, local museums are often overlooked due to time restraints, but when we're in an area more than a few days we often find they are a great resource in getting to the heart of a community. Dartmouth's Evergreen House is one such place.

Dartmouth, NS and Murphy

Each housesit is an opportunity to get to know an area and live like a local. When an opportunity arose near Halifax, we jumped at the chance and are grateful to Colin and Laura for making it become a reality. Their cozy, comfortable home in Dartmouth is a short fifteen minute walk to downtown and the harbour.

Along the Cabot Trail

After visiting Louisbourg we drove along the Cabot Trail that circles Cape Breton Island.

Fort Louisbourg

When we set out on our Atlantic Canada adventure in August we had two must-see destinations in mind. One was the Viking settlement in L'Anse aux Meadows in Newfoundland and the other was Fort Louisbourg on Nova Scotia's Cape Breton Island. 

Dauphin Gate

St. Anthony to Port aux Basques

Our final two days in Newfoundland we were mostly on the road, travelling south from St. Anthony to Port aux Basques to take the ferry back to North Sydney.

Cow Head, Newfoundland

L'Anse aux Meadows

One thousand years before the Europeans arrived in North America Norse expeditions travelled from Greenland and established a settlement on the tip of Newfoundland's great northern peninsula. 

St. Anthony

We stayed three nights in St. Anthony as the Snuggle Inn self-catering cottage. Our unit is on the lower level of the orange house with the red roof, shown in the centre of the photo below (to the far right of the orange airplane).

The Long Road from Rocky Harbour to St. Anthony

Our next destination, St. Anthony, is 347 km north of Rocky Harbour. 

Western Brook Pond Boat Tour

When friends heard we were planning a trip to Newfoundland the number one suggestion of absolute must-see destinations was Bontours Western Brook Pond Boat Tour.

Rocky Harbour

Twillingate to Rocky Harbour is a 425 km drive. In the centre of the header photo (above) is Gros Morne mountain (807 metres or 2648 feet high). 

Twillingate

Our next stop after Bonavista was Twillingate. 

Bonavista's Mockbegger Plantation

The Bradley House within the Mockbegger Plantation was constructed in 1871 and owned by the wife of F. Gordon Bradley who was a prominent lawyer, politician and advocate of confederation. 

Elliston, Maberly, Sealers and Puffins

A short drive from Bonavista is the small community of Elliston (308 permanent residents) and the even tinier hamlet of Maberly with 20 full-time inhabitants. 

Cape Bonavista's Lighthouse, The Dungeons & John Cabot

Cape Bonavista's Lighthouse captured John's attention the moment he learned one of its lights came from Scotland's Inchcape Rock made famous by Robert Southey's poem of the same title. 

Bonavista, John Cabot & the Matthew Legacy

When Italian explorer Giovanni Caboto (John Cabot) first spotted the North American coastline in 1497 he declared "O buono vista" and more than five centuries his statement holds firm. The town and area around Bonavista is glorious in every language.

Dildo, Cupids and Brigus

It's no secret Newfoundland communities often have unique names and three we recently visited on the Avalon peninsula are Dildo, Cupids and Brigus. 

Clarke's Beach Housesit

We'd dreamed of doing a Newfoundland housesit for a good many years and in late August it became a reality. We arrived in Clarke's Beach, a small community about one hours drive from "town" (which in Nfld means St. John's as it is consider the ONLY town) and were greeted with open arms by homeowners, Antje Springmann and Dennis Minty.

St. John's, NL

Think St. John's and one immediately thinks of colourful jellybean row houses perched on steep hills rising up from the bay.

Ferryland, Cape Spear and Signal Hill, Nfld

The warm summer temperatures and brilliant sunshine during our four days in St. John's prompted us to hit the road on day one and see the coastal communities. Our first stop south was Ferryland. It was here in 1621 that George Calvert (aka Lord Baltimore) founded a permanent settlement. Prior to this it had been used as a station for migratory fishermen from France, Spain and Portugal. 

Levis, Qc to St. John's, Nfld

After leaving Levis we stayed overnight in Grand Falls, NB specifically to see the falls, but sadly, they were bone dry. 

Vieux Quebec

Our first visit to Quebec City took place twenty years ago and when we returned this week I had to wonder why it took so long to return!

Pelee Island

Pelee Island had been on our list of places to visit for a number of years and as this is Canada's 150th birthday we decided to spend a week there June 10-17. Our rental cottage was basic, but adequate and its best feature was the huge deck overlooking Lake Erie.

Springtime in North Bay

Immediately upon our arrival in Canada mid May we headed straight to North Bay for a return housesit with Keegan.

Vence, France: Part 2

Welcome to the final instalment of our time spent in the lovely medieval village of Vence, France.

Vence, France: Part 1

Tourists flock to Vence to visit Matisse's "masterpiece" the Chapelle du Rosaire, yet this medieval hilltop town has so much more to offer and worthy of a visit on its own accord. 

Food, Glorious Food!

One of the joys of travelling is sampling the food of each region and while we were in Europe this past winter and spring we did just that - in three countries: Portugal, Spain and France - and we began our culinary adventure as soon as our feet hit the ground in Lisbon.

Ristorante Caffetteria Museu Nacional do Azulejo, Lisbon

Matisse's Chapelle du Rosaire

French artist Henri Matisse considered the Rosary Chapel in Vence the accomplishment of his life's work. "It demanded four years of exclusive and assiduous work," he said, "and it is the result of all my active life. Despite all of its imperfections, I see it as my masterpiece."

Renoir Museum in Cagnes-sur-Mer

During our incredible 5-week housesit in Nice we were fortunate to be able to return to Cagnes-sur-Mer a second time to tour the Renoir Museum. 

Haut-de-Cagnes: Part 2

As mentioned in Haut-de-Cagnes: Part 1 this is our favourite medieval village in France. The reasons are many, but the main being it continues to be a vibrant community. Ordinary people work and live here. They raise their families here. Haut-de-Cagnes (literal translation is the 'top of Cagnes') is not simply a tourist destination filled with art galleries, shops and restaurants - although it does have a few of each including one or two hotels.  

Haut-de-Cagnes: Part 1

Of all the historic villages we were fortunate enough to explore while at our Nice housesit this past spring Haut-de-Cagnes is our favourite.

Marc Chagall Museum

The Marc Chagall Museum is a short walk from our port-side housesit in Nice, France. Dedicated to this Russian born Jewish artist, it was a must see while we were in the city.

Jean Cocteau Museums, Menton

Our five-week housesit in Nice, France allowed us ample time to explore the surrounding area. One day we took the #100 bus (sixty minutes each way) from Nice to Menton which is the last town on the French Riviera before the Italian border. 

Exotic Garden of Eze

The town of Eze is perched high above the Med while its Exotic Garden straddles the zenith even higher still. 

Eze

Eze is another medieval town not far from Nice.