The harbor city of British Columbia, Victoria!

Victoria is a unique harbor city which holds a significant historical background. Somehow the name of the city itself fascinated me to visit the Victorian settlement. We traveled to Victoria from Seattle in about two hours by a high speed ferry called the Victoria Clipper. It might not be the cheapest way to get to Victoria but it definitely saves a lot of time and is very convenient in terms of location.

As soon as we reached at the harbor of Victoria, we could spot our Hotel Fairmont Chateau which was in the heart of the city. With the hustle of the musicians, horse carriage rides and fresh smoothie stalls. the harbor city looked just lovely and bright. While we enjoyed sipping on our fresh orange juice, the friendly people in the city guided us all about things to do out and about the city.

The season being spring, Victoria blossomed with all kinds of wild and fragrant flowers. All we did was walk, walk and walk to explore the city. We walked through scenic trails which led to the cute little Fishermen’s wharf, where the colorful floating houses welcomed us right in. The picturesque scenes with guitarist playing melodious tunes is still vivid in my memory. While we enjoyed our fresh seafood tacos at one of the restaurants in the floating deck, the private jets landed on the harbor. We had a great time just soaking in this mini Venice.

We did try out the street food in Victoria and they turned out delicious. The mouth watering falafel wraps and scoops of chocolate ice-cream just spoiled us even more. As we walked through the city, the parliament on one side and the Hotel Fairmont Chateau on the other with harbor right in the center just looked lovely. As we stopped by at the parliament, we could see graduate students line up at the stairs for pictures.

Out of nowhere, we ran into the glistening blue pacific coast. Covered with lovely wild flowers and waves, the pacific ocean looked indescribably pretty. I did step into the rocks of the shore to get closer to nature. Being closer to nature has always bought me a sense of satisfaction and happiness. It has always helped me achieve a balance in life. After walking through the neighborhoods along the coast, we made our way to the harbor to catch the ferry back to Seattle.

Our trip was short but full of lovely memories to cherish. The city of Victoria surpassed my expectation and I would definitely recommend this little harbor city for a perfect weekend getaway.

Napa and Sonoma Wine County in Spring!

After reading from several resources about Napa and Sonoma being the most beautiful in the month of April, I so wanted to visit the wine country in the spring. With purple wisteria in bloom across the Sonoma streets and the lush green vineyards all across the valley, spring turned out to be just perfect time to visit the wine country with friends. The highlight of our trip was the super fresh food served in the farm to table style restaurants. Everything including salads, juices and soups were freshly made from the vegetables and fruits harvested from their own farms. My two recommendation of these kind of restaurants would be Farmstead and Harvest Table. The dishes served were very flavorful and very well blended together with impeccable service. All we did was eat, eat and eat!

My most awaited part of the trip was the Tuscan style castle and winery Castello Di Amorosa. The winery was built in the 13^th century and is located on a hill surrounded by valleys covered with grape vines. The inside of the castle is beautiful and there are dark cave like entrances with wine tastings in every corner of the castle. We really enjoyed the different kinds of wine tasting. My personal favorites were the smooth sweet wines Sympatica and Moscato. The other winery that we really enjoyed was the Mumm Napa which had a beautiful patio serving wine with snacks overlooking the huge vineyards.

Both Sonoma and Napa downtown seemed to be laid back and relaxing with soft country side music that fabulously complimented the wine. We spend our evenings strolling by the outdoor bars and restaurants and would sit down to hear the music which was absolutely soothing for the mind. It helped us unwind from the day to day hustle and bustle of the city. The other restaurants that I really enjoyed was the rustic bistro “Girl and the Fig” as well as the Spanish eatery “Bravas Bar de Tapas”. Our hotel Double Tree By Hilton near the Sonoma valley also offered a free wine and cheese hour every evening accompanied with live piano music in the background. It was a great way to sit back and relax after a day of exploring the valley. I also enjoyed driving along the rolling meadows and hills covered with roses and grape vines and it was difficult to leave such a beautiful place, but our next destination Sausalito was waiting for us 🙂

Cherry Blossom Festival, Washinton DC!

Year after year Washington DC celebrates Spring Cherry Blossom festival in the honor of the 1300 Cherry trees gifted by the Mayor of Japan to the city of Washington DC to represent cordial relationship between the two countries hundreds of years ago. I personally think it is such a beautiful gesture and wanted to experience this phenomenal event of watching pink bouquets of flowers all over the city for a long time now. Finally my yearning came to an end when I recently visited the green and clean architectural capital of United States with my friends.

Library of Congress

US Capitol

Washington Monument

The historical and architectural vibe of the city made me fall in love with it the moment I stepped in. We started our day at the US Capitol and mostly explored the city by foot. Strolling around the colorful tulips and pink/white cherry blossom trees along the streets, we made our way to the enormous Washington Monument. As a part of the spring festival, kite festival was being observed at the Washington Monument over the weekend that we were there. We were amazed to see hundreds of people flying vivid kites around the monument. My favorite ones were the Kung fu Panda and the Minions, those were the most adorable ones 🙂

Floral Library

US Capitol

The White House

Right across the road from the Washington Monument stands the World War 2 Memorial with pillars embedded with all the States of the United states surrounding the magnificent water fountain. Walking all day and exhausted at the end, we relaxed by the refreshing breeze of the water fountain for a while and then headed to the tidal basin which has rows of cherry blossom tress with the backdrop of Jefferson Memorial. The floral library by the tidal basin had beautiful tulips at its peak bloom and plenty of tourists around to get a picture. The sun was setting and the day ending while my heart was greedy and wanted some more of it.

The Reflecting Pool

Cherry Blossom by the Tidal Basin

Lincoln Memorial

Cherry Blossom

Next day we visited the Alexandria Old town which is a cute little neighborhood in Virginia. After our slow day spent there sipping on coffee and munching some fine dining, we headed towards the White House which is definitely a spot not to be missed in Washington. The White house was well surrounded with security and we managed to get some beautiful pictures with the security guard of course. We also went back to the Lincoln Memorial to catch a view of the Washington Monument in the reflecting pool. During sunset , the reflection looked spectacular. After a long day, we chit chatted and relaxed by the serene reflecting pool. My favorite part of the trip was the walk from the Lincoln memorial to the World War 2 Memorial. There was something very romantic about the site with the benches surrounded by lanes of lush trees. I had a great time strolling by that area and could sit there forever.

Overall I loved my short trip to Washington DC and would definitely recommend to take this trip during spring to make it all the more beautiful. Is Cherry Blossom one of the items in your bucket list? Do share 🙂 I would love to read.

My lovely little Garden :)

I have always loved gardening since my childhood. I adore flowers and greenery more than anything else. Now that the sun is out and the weather is warm, the perennial plants in my pots are starting to grow. My little garden has both annual and perennial flowers. I usually plant some new annual flower plants every year to have a mix of different colors. I combine creepers and flowers in a pot together as they flawlessly complement each other. The creepers make their way up the railings and look perfect as a backdrop to the lovely flowers.

I also have fondness for indoor plants that help purify the indoor air. English Ivy, Boston Fern, Golden Pothos and Peace lily are some of the plants that help in filtering and cleaning the indoor air. I have all of these plants sitting either in my bedroom or living room. The best part of the indoor plants is that they need very little care. I also happen to have the “Tulsi” plant which is a symbol of Goddess in India and possesses great medicinal qualities. Here is a recap of the pictures from past three years that I have enjoyed gardening and I look forward to enjoy more of it in the coming years.

After all life is all about finding out one’s passion and enjoying it to the fullest. What are your passion and hobbies ? I would love to know 🙂

Year 2013

Year 2014

Year 2015

Spring Getaway to the Japanese Tea Garden, Rockford Illinois!

Spring is finally here and it feels so wonderful to be out in the sun under clear skies. Over the weekend, we decided to treat ourselves with the bliss of the beautiful season and headed towards the Japanese Anderson Garden in Rockford, Illinois. The Japanese Anderson garden is rated as one of the finest tea gardens in North America. We were fortunate to visit the garden on the opening day for this season which also happened to be Children’s day in Japan.  It was great to watch the Japanese performers play the Koto stringed instruments, Taiko Drum and dance to the beats of their authentic music right in the heart of the spectacular garden.

Flowers

Japanese Performance

Bridges

We spent the day leisurely walking through the scenic waterfalls and koi ponds, climbing through the rocks into the bridges over the streams of running water. We wandered for about 3 hours in the garden taking photo breaks every now and then. There were gravel pathways and picturesque flowers through out the garden. I really enjoyed watching the colorful large fishes swim by in the koi pond fearlessly with the huge ducks. The perfect weather after such a long time made it even more enjoyable.

The best time to visit the garden is Spring and Fall. I was lucky to visit it during the spring and definitely plan to return back and check out the lovely colors of fall. All in all, it was a very peaceful and relaxing getaway from the everyday city life and I will recommend it to all the nature lovers. Have you ever been to the any of the Japanese tea gardens yet? If yes which one and if no, is there one in your list that you want to visit?

Waterfall

Red Bud

Double Rock Rose

Fishes in the koi pond

Stream of water

Amsterdam, My first city in Europe as a traveler!

My first European city as a traveler, Amsterdam will always be a remarkable venture for me. Both intimidated and excited at the same time, I landed in the city to begin my incredible journey. To my surprise, it was just so easy to embrace the culture and uniqueness of the city. I was overwhelmed with the warmth of the friendly and fun-loving people in Amsterdam. The canal, cruises, bicycles and coffee shops, there is just so much that sets this extra ordinary city class apart from the others.

The most popular means of commute in Amsterdam is biking. Myriads of people can be seen biking through the city in the bike lane. Renting a bike to explore the city and experience the culture at the same time is definitely a great idea. Since all the landmarks in the city such as the Rijksmuseum, Dam Square, Central Station are so close to each other, it is not even tiring to bike around the city. Personally I love to walk and explore, that way I don’t have to care about the bike’s safety, but biking is fun too.

Holland is famous for its bulb flowers, particularly the tulips. One of things that was always in my bucket list was to visit the tulip garden fields in Holland. I finally got to see the Keukenhof garden which is the second largest tulip garden in the world. The striking colors of the tulips, orchids and lilies planted and arranged creatively in different patterns was really a breathtaking view. The garden is open for three months from March to May and I was lucky to be in Holland during the spring season.

Lilies

Orchids

Flower Show

Fresh Flowers

Tulips

Outdoor Garden

Amsterdam is known for its elite night life across the world. Leidseplein is the neighborhood in the city known for live entertainment, music, bars, restaurants and casinos. We really enjoyed the delicious street food there. Every evening, we would wander in different streets to experiment new smoky appetizing cuisines. One that I enjoyed the most was Turkish cuisine Donor Kebabs which is halal chicken stuffed in pita wraps which was inexpensive yet so delicious.

In short, Amsterdam is a spectacular and friendly city with delicious food, rich history and great night life. What’s your first European city as a traveler?

I am sterdam

Canals and bikes

I am Amsterdam

Dam Square

Biking

New York City!

New York is one of the few cities with very diverse reviews. Some people love it while the others detest it. Being a nature lover I definitely fall into the second kind but for all you city lovers, it is certainly the best city to explore. The best bet to go around the city in a short span of time is the hop on off double-decker bus which takes you around both upper and lower downtown. Take a peek at the Brooklyn Bridge, Statue of Liberty, Times Square,Central Park and many more prominent destinations in your ride.If you happen to visit in the spring season,enjoy the beautiful Sakura flower blooming in the Central Park. Take a carriage ride by the central park area to explore the neighborhood.

Savor the delicious smoky street food in the middle of the city swarming with people.”Halal guys” is one of the most delicious street food with mouth watering chicken bowls and wraps. Experience the extravagant shopping in Manhattan and Soho. Walk through the streets of Time Square to watch the theater,street plays and most importantly the myriad of people.

Drive for a couple of hours to Atlantic City in New Jersey to explore the famous board walk and casinos across the Atlantic Ocean!