Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (3. Seattle: Amtrak, Space Needle, Chihuly garden and glass, Public Market place, Underground city tour, etc.)

Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (3. Seattle: Amtrak, Space Needle, Chihuly garden and glass, Public Market place, Underground city tour, etc.)

We took a train from Portland to Seattle. Metropolitan lounge is accessible free of charge if you are a business class ticket holder in Portland Union station. Relaxed sofas, seats, and some beverages are available in the lounge while waiting for the train to arrive. 

Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (2. Oregon Nature: Mt Hood, Trillium Lake, Columbia River, Multnomah Falls, roses)

Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (2. Oregon Nature: Mt Hood, Trillium Lake, Columbia River, Multnomah Falls, roses)

We rented a car for a day to have a look around further from the Portland area. Mt Hood. It was so high that clouds hung at the top of the mountain often and on the way to the top we went through a foggy 

Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (1. Portland & Restaurants)

Portland-Oregon Nature-Seattle (1. Portland & Restaurants)

Portland has many good restaurants and cafes. Afuri : We’ve been to the one in Tokyo Japan. I don’t remember if it were this salty in Japan but it was close to the authentic taste. Authentic Japanese ramen once in a while is a soothing 

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (Fin. Souvenirs from Canada)

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (Fin. Souvenirs from Canada)

Jakeman’s maple cream cookies: I should’ve gotten more than two boxes. Great with any hot tea. Jakeman’s maple syrup: Given out to friends and they liked it. Jakeman’s maple leaf candy: I felt like it has a little hint of a burnt maple taste/deep concentrated 

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (4. Pittsburgh)

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (4. Pittsburgh)

The things I liked about this hotel, Embassy Suites by Hilton Pittsburgh Downtown, is that it is located in the city center easy to go around and they have a lounge/breakfast buffet place/other common facilities on the top floor so you can enjoy the view 

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (3. Tronto and around)

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (3. Tronto and around)

Walker’s country market and the smallest church in the world. People were lined up to take a picture in front of the chapel building. This is how it looks inside the chapel. The ice cream sold here is absolutely delicious! Try if you are dropping 

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (2. Canada Niagara)

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (2. Canada Niagara)

The process was easy and smooth for us to pass the immigration checkpoint. We registered our passport and other necessary information on Canada’s immigration app in advance. Other people who didn’t register in advance or had some issues took a long time thus making us 

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (1. The US Niagara)

Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh (1. The US Niagara)

I planned a long driving journey to Niagara-Toronto-Pittsburgh. First, we went to the US side of Niagara Falls. We decided to go for the Cave of the winds walking experience instead of the ship because we tried the ship like 10 years ago. If you 

Getaway and Shenandoah

Getaway and Shenandoah

Beautiful fall foliage and cozy camp site in Shenandoah, late October 🙂 Getaway is one of the most convenient places to enjoy camp fires in the mountain woods in Shenandoah, I love this place.

Mexico – Cancun

Mexico – Cancun

Thank God we were able to enjoy the year end and new year time in Cancun in this Covid pandemic. Although we had a fuss extending one more day due to the flight cancellation caused by snowstorms in the US, overall it was a relaxing