Category: travel

Trans Canada Highway Shut Down

Post author By Jeff Milner
Post date June 21, 2010
No Comments on Trans Canada Highway Shut Down

On Friday I took a little trip to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. When we noticed the sign warning us of a police barricade ahead, we thought we might have to wait for an accident to be cleared.

It turns out that due to all the rain, the highway was “washed out”. It ended up not really affecting our trip, we just turned north sooner than we had planned, but I understand the flood waters have been very terrible for the people in Maple Creek and Irvine (among other places).

Here’s some footage of the “wash out” on the highway. I had no idea.

(Thx, Kim)

Tags flood, trans canada

travel

Grand Canyon Skywalk is a Sham

Post author By Jeff Milner
Post date April 26, 2010
1 Comment on Grand Canyon Skywalk is a Sham

Some people don’t love the experience at the Grand Canyon Skywalk. The folks at travelonthedollar go so far as to call it a sham. They have a list of reasons why it’s not all it’s cracked up to be. Here are a couple:

2. Parking at The Skywalk is provided but access to the Skywalk is only permitted by supplied coach buses. The cost of the coach ride $30, which will take you the Skywalk and two other viewing areas. There is also an additional fee of $45 for being on Hualapai land making the total cost $75 per person.

3. No personal equipment is allowed on the Skywalk and lockers are provided. No photographs may be taken by visitors on the Skywalk! However, up to three photography stations are installed. Photographs taken may be purchased in the gift shop at $29 each.

No photos is a deal breaker for me.

(previously)

Tags Grand Canyon, skywalk

life travel

Punta Cana

I’m leaving for Calgary in about an hour and then tomorrow I’m off to Punta Cana, Dominican Republic. There’s not likely to be much action around here in the meantime.

Update: I’ve got some photos from my trip up at Flickr.

Tags Punta Cana

life Photography travel

Viva Las Vegas

I realize it has been a long time since I’ve posted anything here, but I’ve been busy!

Most recently I’ve found myself down in Mesquite, Nevada getting ready to watch my brother-in-law compete in the World Long Driving Competition.

Today my family and I drove to Las Vegas to take in the sights and sounds of the notorious city. I’d share everything that I did, but you know what they say about what happens in Vegas.

If you’re so inclined, you can check out and comment on some of my flickr photos from today’s travels.

Tags Las Vegas

travel

Interview with David Sedaris

Post author By Jeff Milner
Post date May 20, 2007
No Comments on Interview with David Sedaris

David Sedaris, author of “Me talk pretty one day”, a book about learning to speak French, shares some tid-bits about life in France in an interview with Franceguide, the official website of France Tourism.

Tags David Sedaris, interview

travel

Skywalk at Grand Canyon

As previously mentioned here, the Grand Canyon Walkway is not an urban legend, and recently it celebrated its unofficial opening. Check out the photos from CNET. The plexiglass walkway is part of aÂ tourist park, and will be open to the public on March 28th, 2007.

Update: some of the reviews have been less than favorable.

Tags skywalk

life travel

Downtown Calgary and SF

Post author By Jeff Milner
Post date January 22, 2007

My trip to San Francisco was pretty awesome and I think it’s my new favorite city—in the United States anyway. Here’s a photo I took from the plane coming into Calgary. And here’s my San Francisco Flickr Set (it’s a work in progress as I continue to sort through the nearly 500 photos from last week).

I’ll write more about my trip later including a glimpse into the Social Media Club event where we were lucky enough to meet Jimmy Wales and listen to him speak a little bit about social media and Wikipedia. (Also thanks for the t-shirt SMC). I also really enjoyed trying out the The World Café format, a way in which the best ideas in the room can be shared with everyone through smaller discussions that leads to one large one.

It was disappointing to have to leave so soon, but I’m sure another adventure is just around the corner.

life travel

As Pretty as an Airport

I’m down to my last two exams before I’m officially done here at Laval and that’s probably a good thing because I need to get home where I can get some rest.

I’ve been keeping busy this last week. On Monday a few hundred students here in the French immersion program took a ride down the St. Lawrence on the Louis-Jolliet. The folks here sure know how to fill up a boat. (photos)

Tuesday night was spent chilling out with my host family and eating, quite possibly, one of the best meals of my life. Definately top 10 anyway.

Yesterday I had lunch at a Pub in Vieux Quebec with my classmates and afterwards I took a bunch of photos of a couple of the girls.

Last night was the Spectaculaire, a talent show with vaudeville style acts. After the show, and the souvenir video, we had some of the best cake I’ve ever eaten followed by an evening of dancing and partying at the campus pub. Not everything was exactly perfect, as was previously alluded to, but on the whole I did have a good time. Oh, and as a splendid little cherry on top I ended up walking home alone in the rain for an hour and got home 3:30 in the morning—nice.

I don’t remember even talking to my roommates this morning at our 7:00 breakfast. I barely remember grabbing a couple slices of bread and washing it down with OJ—oh breakfast of champions. I think they realized I was not in my finest form. Luckily the written test this morning was not too tricky.

Saturday is rapidly approaching and in addition to the fact that I really like it here, I am not overly excited for my trip with Air Canada’s infamous service. If the voyage here will be of any indication then I wouldn’t make any bets on when I’m going to arrive. If you’re reading this in Lethbridge, don’t wait up—I’ll be home when I get there.

In honor of my air travel here is a quote about airports:

It can hardly be a coincidence that no language on Earth has ever produced the phrase, ‘as pretty as an airport.’ Airports are ugly. Some are very ugly. Some attain a degree of ugliness that can only be the result of a special effort.
-Douglas Adams

I think the same can be said about Air Canada’s service—a kind of carefully refined treatment that can only be achieved with a lot of practice and determination.