DISCLOSUIRE

To view our Privacy Policy, please click here.

Note: The views expressed are independent. All the products listed on the blog are my personal tried and true recommendations. They may contain affiliate links.

IMPORTANT

The information was accurate when published but can change without notice. Before planning your trip, please confirm all rates and details directly with the organizations in question.

Category: Places I Love

Am I a Travel Snob… or Just a Montreal Snob?

Posted on by Roberta Hill

I’ve been asking myself an uncomfortable question lately. Am I one of those travellers who quietly rolls her eyes at the obvious? The ones who say, “Oh yes, the main square is fine… but have you seen the real neighbourhood?” Or am I simply defensive about my own city? Here’s the thing. The first time I visit any city, I am unapologetically a tourist. I want the postcard. I want the view. I want the thing I’ve seen in movies. And yes, it is 100% touristy. I say that without judgment. Touristy places are touristy for a reason. They’re beautiful….

Read more

The Long Game: Money, Priorities, and the Luxury of Time

Posted on by Roberta Hill

There’s a peculiar thing that happens somewhere in your early seventies. You begin to realize that money is no longer about accumulation. It’s about allocation. I used to think longevity was about green smoothies and 10,000 steps. Now I think it’s about optionality. The ability to choose. Where to go. How long to stay? Whether to upgrade the seat or take the train and watch the countryside unroll like a favourite novel you’ve read twice before. As a senior traveller, I’ve stopped asking, “Can I afford this?” and started asking, “What does this cost me in time?” Because time is…

Read more

Quebec City Knows How to Do Winter

Posted on by Roberta Hill

The Largest Winter Carnival in the World (And It Knows It) The carnival itself has been part of Quebec City’s story since 1894, though the modern version took shape in 1955 as a way to brighten the long, dark season and attract visitors brave enough to visit in February. It is, quite frankly, a brilliant act of defiance. If winter insists on staying, Quebec throws it a party. There are ice canoe races across the St. Lawrence — a tradition rooted in how early settlers and Indigenous communities crossed the frozen river. There are night parades with glowing floats. There…

Read more

Why returning to places we love isn’t a failure of imagination

Posted on by Roberta Hill

There’s a saying we all know: you can never go home again. It gets trotted out whenever someone admits to revisiting a place they once loved, usually with a sympathetic tilt of the head, as if disappointment is inevitable and nostalgia is a rookie mistake. People apply it not just to childhood homes, but to cities, cafés, beaches, and whole chapters of travel. I’ve never fully bought into that. Or rather, I think it’s incomplete. Yes, places change. Sometimes dramatically. Skylines bulk up, neighbourhoods smarten themselves into sameness, and crowds appear where silence once lived. But to say that returning…

Read more

Living in Well in Wellington, New Zealand

Posted on by Roberta Hill

If I couldn’t live in Canada, I would definitely settle in New Zealand. The people, the scenery, and the lifestyle are the best. Living in New Zealand is Rewarding, Exhilarating, Frustrating (and Surprisingly Expensive) When I moved to New Zealand, it wasn’t just a change of address — it was like stepping into a postcard: mountains, beaches, rolling green hills, and skies that seemed to stretch forever. The four years we lived there were some of the most grounding and awe-inspiring of my life. Rewarding? Absolutely. Exhilarating? Every single road trip. Frustrating? Yes, especially when you realize how far you…

Read more

I love Paris in the – Anytime of the year

Posted on by Roberta Hill

Paris 2010–2016: Rewarding, Exhilarating, Frustrating (and Yes, Expensive) I lived and worked in Paris from 2010 to 2016, and those years remain some of the most rewarding, exhilarating, frustrating — and expensive — of my life. Paris was everything at once: a dream made real, a challenge that kept me on my toes, and a city that spoiled me with art, food, and travel I’ll never forget. Rewarding Paris rewarded me in ways I didn’t anticipate. Professionally, I had to navigate multilingual workspaces where a single meeting might shift from French to English to a hybrid of both, known as…

Read more

What Makes Eastern Canada So Special

Posted on by Roberta Hill

Eastern Canada doesn’t shout for your attention—it lingers in the salt air, the lighthouses, and the conversations that stretch longer than you expect. From Québec’s heritage villages to the sweeping coastlines of the Maritimes, this region offers intimacy, history, and natural beauty in a way that feels both timeless and deeply personal. Landscapes That Tell Stories Some places overwhelm; Eastern Canada draws you in. Drive the Gaspé Peninsula, where cliffs tumble into the Gulf of St. Lawrence, or walk through Forillon National Park, a landscape that feels like the end of the world. Wander Prince Edward Island’s red-sand beaches—so familiar…

Read more

Finding Home After a Lifetime of Motion

Posted on by Roberta Hill

The Shape of Home Home is a funny word. One syllable, four letters—yet it holds entire lifetimes. Ask ten people what home means and you’ll get ten different answers: a street, a voice, a feeling, or maybe just the smell of something cooking on a Sunday afternoon. For some, it’s a place to return to. For others, it’s a person. For a few of us, it’s a question we’ve been trying to answer for years. The Pull of Where We Began There’s something magnetic about the landscapes of our youth. Even after decades away, a part of us still remembers…

Read more

The Birdhouse City: A Whimsical Detour

Posted on by Roberta Hill

I can’t believe I’ve never actually driven to and visited Prince Edward County. It is between Belleville and Kingston, south of the 401 highway. This is an area I’ve driven through countless times. We spent four days there last week, and it was terrific. The objective of the trip was to visit the Sandbanks National Park. I certainly understand why it is so popular. It is this long, beautiful stretch of white sandy beach on the shore of Lake Ontario; geographically, it’s an unusual formation. Additionally, the area is home to many wineries, and we spent a day exploring them….

Read more

Paris from someone who has lived there

Posted on by Roberta Hill

We lived in Paris for six years, and I’m going to share with you the places we revisited many times, as well as those we had no interest in seeing again. Let’s start with the places you shouldn’t waste your time on. We must have walked past and around the Eiffel Tower countless times on our way to various destinations, but we only went up twice, both times due to visitors. In my view, it’s not worth the money, not worth the wait, and not even worth the view.   Before I did any more damage to the city I…

Read more
←
Verified by MonsterInsights