Happy Tuesday everyone, I hope your week is off to a great start.
This is just a quick little post to let you know that I’ve just added a bunch more items to my new Redbubble store. You’ll find a selection of some photography I’ve taken from my travels, and a seemingly endless number of products to put them on and order!
A screenshot of my redbubble shop
This whole thing started because I wanted to print a photo I took of the Royal Liver Building in Liverpool, England as a keepsake for my time studying abroad at the University of Liverpool. I ordered my photo on the extra small glossy metal print, and hung it up on my wall along with a scarf and my original boarding pass. (A little cheesy, I know.)
I’m incredibly happy with how it turned out:
My order straight out of the boxMy order hanging on the wall, paired with a Liverpool F.C. scarf
I’d appreciate you taking the time to stop by and see what there is on offer at my Redbubble store. You’ll find everything from traditional canvas and metal wall art, to stickers, magnets and postcards, and even phone cases, throw pillows, clocks and more! I’ll be continually adding more items to the shop periodically, so if you’re interested keep checking back for a continually growing collection.
Enjoy the rest of your week!
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming content! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Redbubble, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Enter your email address below to stay up-to-date on my latest posts!
For the first time in 36 years, Canada will finally play a match at the World Cup when they face off against Belgium today in Qatar.
It’s obviously an exciting moment for me, and many Canadians across the country. My family was able to attend several matches during the CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying, and the energy surrounding this team is just intoxicating.
Now, although we finished as the top seed in qualifying ahead of the USA and Mexico, I’m not oblivious to the fact that we have a massive challenge ahead of us in Belgium, Croatia, and Morocco in Group F. In all honesty, win or lose, I’m just happy that Canada gets to be apart of it all this time around.
In honour of Canada’s World Cup journey, and specifically their opening match against Belgium, I thought I would share a few photos from my travels to Brussels and Ghent back in April of this year.
Enjoy, and ALLEZ LES ROUGES! 🇨🇦
The Grand Palace, Brussels. One the most impressive squares I’ve ever been to.Jardin du Mont des Arts, BrusselsPicturesque storefront in BrusselsYou can’t go to Belgium and NOT get wafflesLes Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert, Brussels
Advertisements
The famous Manneken Pis, BrusselsHalle Gate, reminant of the second city walls of BrusselsOutside the European Parliament, BrusselsEuropean Parliament HemicycleParc du Cinquantenaire, Brussels
Advertisements
Inside the Royal Museum of the Armed Forces and of Military History, BrusselsThe Atomium, BrusselsBicycles stacked up outside Ghent Train StationScenic view of the river running through the heart of the city of GhentGravensteen Castle, GhentAnother angle of the river running through Ghent. I must have sat looking at this view for over an hour.
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming content! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Redbubble, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Enter your email address below to stay up-to-date on my latest posts!
1. Liverpool Metropolitan Roman Catholic Cathedral
Quick Facts:
Height: 84.86 m (278.41 feet); Diameter: 59.43 m (195.98 feet)
Construction began in 1962 and was completed in 1967
The cathedral is made of conrete and features an aluminum covered roof
The Steps leading to the main entrance of the Metropolitan CathedralThe view from the top of the steps (Hey, I can see my residence from here!)
The Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic church in Liverpool. It’s located in the Knowledge Quater of the city, about a 10 minute walk from Liverpool Central Station. I got to know this cathedral very well as it was directly across the street from my student residence at the University of Liverpool while I was on my international study exchange.
I only ever went inside once, hense the rather limited pictures below, but it served as a beacon to lead me home anywhere I was in the city. Although exactly what you would expect of architecture from the 1960s, the exterior of the building is rather unique for a religous construction of this size, at least in my experience.
The interior of the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral is a massive circle. Your immediate attention is pulled to the height of the ceiling, and the stained glass windows high above your head. There are 13 chapels lining the circumfrence of the main room, and an endless sea of pews leading to the alter at the front.
Inside of the CathedralStained glass windows in the roof of the cathedral
The most memorable part of the cathedral for me were the bells and their ability to disturb my sleep on many mornings over the course of 5 months living across the street from them. While they sounded great, the bells had a tendency to go on for a very long time, and at very inconvenient times in the morning.
Entrance is free, although donations are encouraged. If you’re visiting Liverpool and happen to be in the area, definitely take the time to visit the Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral. Otherwise, in my opinion and as you’ll see below, the Liverpool Cathredral is worth more of a visit and your time.
Advertisements
2. Liverpool Anglican Cathedral
Quick Facts:
Construction began in 1904 and didn’t finish until 1978
Height: 100.8 m (331 ft); Length: 188.67 m (619 ft)
Among a number of records, it is the longest cathedral in the world, and the largest Anglican cathedral in the world. It is also the fifth largest by volume in the world.
Liverpool Catheral as seen from the parking lot
I visited the Liverpool Cathedral 3 times during my time living and study at the University of Liverpool. Once by myself and another 2 times with visiting family and friends. Built in the gothic revival style of architecture, I think it’s fair to say the Liverpool Cathedral is a much more impressive structure than its Roman Catholic counterpart. The sheer scale of the building dominates the surrounding skyline, and the interior of the building is just as grand.
There’s lots to explore inside, including your typical religious artifacts, tombs, ornate stained glass windows and a grand altar. Tucked away within the back corner of the main cathedral is The Lady Chapel, the first part of the structure to be completed. There’s also a cafe with plenty of seating available in the centre of the building, and a small gift shop as well.
The exterior’s impressive gothic archesThe interior of the cathedral. The cafe can be seen in the left of the pictureLooking down the centre of the cathedral towards the altarThe Cathedral features towering stained glass windowsA close up view of the altarThe Lady Chapel, the oldest part of the Cathedral
Outside Liverpool Cathedral you’ll find St. James’ Gardens. Originally used as a cemetary with more than 57,000 burials, it was closed in 1936 when the land was deemed full. It was then converted into a public garden and greenspace in 1972, meaning all the gravestones had to be relocated. Many of these gravestones now line the exterior perimeter of the park and date back to the early 19th century. I found it really interesting reading the inscriptions, the names of the deceased, and when they lived and died. With the backdrop of the massive cathedral looming overhead, it really is a unique place to visit and go for a walk.
Entrance to the Liverpool Cathedral and St. James’ Gardens are free, although donations are encouraged. It is located in the Georgian Quater of the city, and while it is a 17 minute walk from Liverpool Central Station, (a little futher away from the city centre than the Roman Catholic Cathedral) it is most definitely worth the walk to come and see.
A view of St. James’ Gardens with Liverpool Cathedral in the backgroundGravestones line the entire exterior boundary of St. James’ GardensThere is a looped walking path that winds its way around the gardens
Advertisements
3. Honourable Mentions
No cathedral tour of Liverpool is complete without at least mentioning the hallowed grounds that each of the city’s beloved football teams play in and call home. I’m of course talking about Anfield and Goodison Park, the respective stadium’s of Liverpool F.C. and Everton F.C.
Anfield Stadium, Home of Liverpool F.C.Goodison Park, Home of Everton F.C.
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming content! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Redbubble, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Enter your email address below to stay up-to-date on my latest posts!
A short clip from my visit to one of the most photographed place in all of Canada: Lake Louise, Banff National Park. Video taken in September 2021.
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming content! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest, as well as my store on Redbubble for wall art, custom phone cases, stickers and more!
Travel days tend to turn into one giant blur, filled with excitment, confusion, and exhaustion; my journey from Toronto to London was no exception.
It all started with a 10:30 a.m. wake up call to do the last of the laundry and packing, as well as to get all of the necessary documents and affairs in order needed when leaving for a 5-month trip abroad. A ride to the airport, a starbucks coffee, and a few emotional goodbyes later and I found myself sitting in front of gate E70 at Pearson International Airport waiting to board my Air Canada Boeing 787-9 to London Heathrow at 8:30 p.m. Of course, the one time I decided to be a responsible adult and not buy overpriced snacks for the plane, there was a problem with the aircraft’s auxillary power unit meaning the pilots were unable to get the engines started. As a result of this misfortune, I sat in snackless agony for almost 2 hours while mechanics assessed the situation and fixed the problem.
Sitting at the gate, Pearson International Airport
Sunsrise over the Atlantic Ocean
Fortunately, I had an entire row to myself which allowed me to sprall out and get comfy. While I never managed to get some sleep, this was the first time I’d been able to lie flat on an airplane, and lord was it glorious. After just over 6 hours in the air, the flight touched down in England at 10 a.m. local time. While the delay was a tad frustrating, in the end it worked out for the better as we arrived inbetween peak arrival times, meaning customs and immigration took a mere 10 minutes from deplaning to luggage collection.
Advertisements
This meant plenty of time to activate my sim card, buy train tickets into the city centre, and even get a Covid test at the airport. (I tested negative) The downside? I wasn’t due to check into my Airbnb until 2 p.m. so I had a lot of time to kill. I decided to take the short walk from London Paddington Station to Hyde Park, and spent the late morning and early afternoon people watching and hanging out in nature.
London Paddington Station
Streets of London
Hyde Park
Hours later, after checking in and taking a much needed hot shower and a quick rest I made the 45 minute walk to Buckingham Palace. I’ve been twice before, and both times were in peak season with large crowds of people so it was an interesting contrast seeing this major tourist destination relatively free of crowds.
Aside from a quick stop for groceries and dinner, the trek back consisted of my body screaming in full revolt after just over 21 km of walking on little to no sleep in the past 27 hours. I’m looking forward to getting some rest, but excited for the next few days spent in London before journeying elsewhere in the week before I begin my studies in Liverpool later this month.
Buckingham Palace
Advertisements
Queen Victoria Memorial
Kensington Gardens
Wellington Arch
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Last year, I announced that I was going on a student exchange to Melbourne, Australia for the 2022 winter term. Unfortunately, this is no longer happening. Local travel restrictions, varying vaccination rollouts, and most importantly the increasing case counts due to the rise of the Omicron variant have squashed any hopes of studying in Australia.
While I’m disappointed, it’s not all bad news because a shift in travel plans and applications means that at the end of January, I will instead be moving to the United Kingdom to study at the University of Liverpool for 5 months! While the plans are concrete now, this wasn’t always a guarrantee. After I was informed that my university was cancelling my exchange to Australia, I was offered to apply to a new host school. After some deliberation, I decided that my best chance to study abroad would be in the U.K. Of course, this was before the Omicron variant was discovered which threw everything into jeopardy.
Gatwick International Airport (ca. 2019)
In part due to my own university’s pandemic policy and the Government of Canada’s official travel reccomendations, my exchange with the University of Liverpool has been cancelled and reinstated almost 3 times. Thankfully, after some deliberation I was given the opportunity to continue with my semester abroad as long as I gave the powers at be my informed consent and proved that my health insurance would cover any possible complications due to Covid-19.
And so, after a couple months of planning I’ve found myself in the final few weeks before setting off for England. Flights are booked, accomodation is lined up, courses are chosen, and new travel accessories have been purchased. (Several of which I will be making a review of)
While the main focus of this adventure will be on completing courses required to obtain my degree, I’m obviously going to be doing as much travelling and cultural immersion as possible. As the pandemic still leaves a cloud of uncertainty, the amount I will be able to do remains to be seen but I’m hopeful I’ll be able to make the most of this experience. (and write about it!) If you have any reccomendation for things to do, or places to see in the U.K. or the rest of Europe for that matter, please leave a comment below and let me know!
Durham, England (ca. 2019)
Advertisements
Now, I realize that many people who have had the chance to study abroad tend to pick non-english speaking countries or distant exotic locations. I considered this, but chose England for a few reasons. First, the United Kingdom is one of my favourite countries. I’ve been twice before: once in 2006, which to be fair I don’t remember too well, and then again in 2019 when my family did a whirlwind tour of the country from the northern tip of England diagonally across the midlands before finishing in London. The pubs, the architecture, the football, and more all strike a chord with me.
Secondly, in order to obtain my university degree my program presents the opportunity to partake in a 8-month work term in a developing nation as part of my final year. This means I’ll have the opportunity to immerse myself in a more foreign culutre and lanuage down the road. Studying in England allows me to live abroad and experience a different country, but in a more or less familiar setting to Canada. This exchange semsester will serve as a way to ease into life away from home in preparation for what’s to come.
Finally, I chose the United Kingdom because of the uncertainty of the pandemic. Aside from being somewhere that’s still accepting foreign students, the U.K. has a strong healthcare system, speaks the same language, and the British and Canadian governments have a close relationship. All of this is in place in the event that I get sick. (Fun fact, it’s written in every Canadian passport to visit a British embassy/consulate in the event you need help somewhere a Canadian embassy isn’t available) While health considerations aren’t the driving reason for studying in England, it’s nice to have that peace of mind.
Alnwick Castle, England (ca. 2019)
I’m both incredibly excited and very anxious to get started, and happy that after all the uncertainty my exchange term is actually happening. I’ll be writing about my time in the Liverpool as regularly as I can so keep checking in to follow along.
In terms of the second half of 2022, my plans remain wide open. I’d like to return to work in Algonquin Park for the third straight year, and I’ve started to throw around the idea of working in western Canada this summer, but some things need to fall in place before either of those happen. Regardless, I’m excited to get back out there and continue exploring the wilderness, go camping and do lots more hiking. My goals for Seeking Saudades include posting here at least once a week and creating new content for my YouTube channel. I’m excited for 2022 and I hope you’ll follow along with me!
Thanks for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Earlier this month, I had the absolute pleasure of visiting one of the most beautiful places in the world: Moraine Lake, located in stunning Banff National Park, Alberta.
This visit was part of a cross-Canada road trip that spanned 9-days, 5 provinces, 7100 kilometres, and 75 hours worth of driving from my home province of Ontario to British Columbia. Looking back on this photo, and others from my time in the country’s oldest national Park, it’s still hard to believe that this was a real place.
The mountains seemed like they were CGI’d into the background, the water looked as though it was scooped up and delivered straight from the Bahamas, and the trees seemed to go on for eternity. I was only able to spend 24-hours in Banff before having to turn around and begin the long drive home, but it was worth every single second and penny that it took to get there…
…including the $1,300 emergency brake job I had to get in Moose Jaw, Saskatchewan, but that’s a story for another time.
See you next week!
Moraine Lake, Banff National Park, Alberta, Canada (ca. Sept. 2021)
Thank you for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
This week, I’m sharing a video I took of one of the many (46 thus far!) moose encounters I’ve had in Algonquin Provincial Park this summer.
Taken in June 2021, I was lucky enough to have spotted a cow and her calf munching on some leaves for a midday snack. From where I was standing, the moose couldn’t have been more than 25 feet away, one of the closest encounters I’ve had to date.
Of course, moose can be extremely dangerous, especially if they feel threatened or are protecting their young. However, I was calmed by knowing that this particular mother had been raising her calves in the busy campgrounds of Algonquin Park for years, and had become relatively unbothered by humans in her presence.
While they may seen like elusive animals, spotting a moose in Algonquin Park is far easier than it may seem. I’ve encountered upwards of 70 in the past 2 summers! If you’re looking to see some moose of your own, be sure to keep an eye out for my Algonquin Park moose spotting guide here in the near future!
Thank you for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
This week’s picture was taken at the lookout on the Track and Tower Trail, located in Algonquin Provincial Park, Ontario, Canada last month in June 2021.
The longest hike I’ve done this year, and certainly the most interesting, the Track and Tower Trail had a wide variety of historical stops, wooded paths, river crossings, and scenic lookouts. Keep an eye out for a full trail report here on seekingsaudades.com in the coming future.
In un-related news, I’ve finally received my second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, which means I’m fully vaccinated, Canada is closer to completely reopening, and international travel isn’t too far away either.
Exciting times ahead!
Track and Tower Trail, Algonquin Park, Ontario, Canada (ca. June 2021)
Thank you for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
One of the most memorable places I’ve been throughout my travels is Phang Nga Bay, Thailand. I visited here in February 2020 as part of a boat tour operated by a company called John Gray’s Sea Canoe, more specifically their Hong By Starlight experience. I’m definitely going to dedicate an entire post to this boat tour, because it’s one of those trips that sticks with you forever, but all you need to know for now was that it was absolutely incredible, and a must-do for anyone visiting Phuket.
For those unfamiliar with Phang Nga Bay, I like to think of it as Thailand’s version of the world famous Ha Long Bay, found in Vietnam. Stunning rock islands, sweeping ocean views, and amazing sunsets are all on the features list. It’s a magical place, and the scenery there is about as far away from what I’m used to seeing here in Canada, in the best way possible.
I can’t wait to go back someday.
See you next week!
Phang Nga Bay, Thailand (ca. February 2020)
Thank you for reading! If you’ve made it this far please consider liking the post, sharing it with your friends, and hitting the follow button so you don’t miss any of my upcoming material! If you’re looking to connect, make sure to follow me on YouTube,Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Pinterest!
Enter your email address below to stay up-to-date on my latest posts!
Join 261 other followers
Looking to start a blog? Earn a $25 credit towards a wordpress.com plan when you sign up using the affiliate link below!
![[NEW VIDEO] Lakeside at Lake Louise, Banff National Park](https://seekingsaudades.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/lakelouisethumb.jpg?w=672&h=372&crop=1)
Seeking Saudades 