Much of the west coast of the USA likes to fashion itself as different, edgy, hip, wild, unpredictable and not the norm. And, living in Vancouver as we do, we can certainly attest to that ethos. As ever, why be normal? Normal is boring and life should be full of surprises -…
Adventure
If you're a regular reader, you'll know how much we love old. Old buildings, ancient sites, historical locations. When you think of how many of these incredible places are hundreds of years old, and they still function, live and thrive. And then, give a pause to those that were destroyed or simply…
Mother Earth is still fighting the good fight, despite so many of us giving her a hard time. She keeps warning us, but many of us are still not listening. And if things keep going the way that they are, there won't be any rooms where she will send us when we've misbehaved:…
The force is strong, young one. It’s been 45 years since the first Star Wars blew us all away in theaters, and the impact and memories of that first film (and many of the others) are an embedded part of the psyches of most generations, worldwide. Classics do not pay justice to the film franchise.…
By Patricia Filipovic, Senior writer So, you're going on an international vacation! You've figured out your budget and picked a place that should fall within said budget. Planned the itinerary and set a date. What else needs doing? What can you do beforehand to prepare?My travel mantra: Prepare for the unexpected. But mitigate wherever…
One of the things we like to expose and promote here is interesting architecture and its even more interesting usage. With the elastic and durable materials that architects have at their fingertips now, the sky is the limit. In this case - literally. We imagine that many of you were terrified when you…
Not to pick on any particular travel company: if you think about it, can you imagine the logistical nightmares that airlines and cruises have to contend with on a daily basis? Sure, most have been doing this for years, but can they really plan for each eventuality, especially when there are so many moving…
If you've never done it before, it can be daunting to take your first solo trip in your 40s, but plenty of people are doing exactly that. The stereotypical image of the solo traveller may be the pre-university gap year student, but these days the biggest solo travel growth demographic is the over-35s. We've spoken…
The Sixties were a wild time. Free love. The Beatles. International travel and intrigue. Modern art. Groovy personalities. Two of which we feature here: Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton. Arguably among the top ten stars during that spectacular decade, they made the world their oyster. One of their best…
In ancient Rome, thermae (from Greek θερμός thermos, "hot") and balneae (from Greek βαλανεῖον balaneion) were facilities for bathing. Thermae usually refers to the large imperial bath complexes, while balneae were smaller-scale facilities, public or private, that existed in great numbers throughout Rome.[1] Most Roman cities had at least one – if not many – such buildings, which were centres not only for bathing, but socializing and reading as well.…
We love history. We love trains. We love France. We love you! What a combination, bien sur. OUIGO has been preparing a nice surprise for you for several months now: trains on the classic line, with great prices. SNCF Voyageurs launched its first Ouigo Train Classique low-cost passenger services…
People often gasp when they visit British Columbia (BC). Visit places like Vancouver, and you will see a shiny new metropolis bursting with energy, diversity, world-awareness and history.
This article is about some of the history.
Fishermen still ply the seas. The amount of timber in BC is sometimes hard to fathom - it just goes on…
Say what you will about Social Media, one thing that it's done (well) is to open our eyes and minds to places that we may not have heard of, or perhaps have heard of but have not seen. Even if you consider yourself well-travelled, you can be sure that you've probably just scratched the…
This one is going to be hard to resist, we think. Who doesn't want to rub elbows with the rich and famous, even if we have no idea what to say to them? We watch the movies and see them in the tabloids and all over social media. Nice work if you…
Even Einstein failed... You might be on holiday, and perhaps things are not going the way you wanted them to. You've been waiting for years to get into the Prado or the Louvre. But, on the day, things just start to go south. Maybe it's raining. Maybe the queues are too…
We love history, here at Matouring, especially when you can touch it. And we're grateful to large companies when they spend the time and the money to maintain their history, even if it entails spending a rather large chunk of money. And, some companies actually take the time to do it properly, where…
Nothing like walking along a beach and then - hey presto! - finding out that it's for nudists. That happened to us here in Vancouver, of all places. Luckily, our sunglasses were in place and covered our eyes even if they didn't hide our embarassment. We're not prudes, by any stretch -…
Please welcome our newest team member, Trish Filipovic. Whereas your editor jerks from one topic to another, Trish will focus on lengthy and content-rich articles. She's been all over the globe and knows what she's talking about. Get yourself a coffee, sit down and have fun. With a seemingly diminishing Covid 19, Post-Pandemic seems to…
If you read our website fairly regularly, you'll know that we're in love with the old fashioned. Historical buildings, timeless locations, options to not just read about the past, but to also be able to see it, touch it and feel like "we were there." In every country, there are countless opportunities to…
Camping is one of those love it / hate it propositions. Most of us are not in love with mosquitos. And, even in the summer, sleeping on the ground in a tent can be a lumpy and cold prospect. But, to be sure, the outdoor locations are usually mind-bogglingly beautiful, and you…