Travel

Chef Jesse Vergen in Chefs #LoveCDNBeef

Chef Jesse Vergen in Chefs #LoveCDNBeef

Chef Jesse Vergen was one of the first Chefs I invited to join the Chef’s #LoveCDNBeef series and I’m so happy to be introducing you to him now. Chef Jesse Vergen is the Executive Chef at the Saint John Ale House, the owner/operator of the Smoking Pig BBQ — one of the few food trucks in New Brunswick, and an organic farmer who owns the last working farm in Quispamsis, New Brunswick. Jesse and I share a lot of things. Our culinary perspectives have been influenced by the farmers, fishers and forests of New Brunswick. We grew up along the…

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Instagramming My Week

Instagramming My Week

I have recently started using Instagram more.  After balking the trend and lamenting loudly, and frequently, about Instagram’s lack of collaborative, community-building and searching tools, I finally caved.   I blame the Food Bloggers of Canada conference. Well, that and Instagram’s slick and quick interface which makes it so easy to share a photo and push it out onto my social spaces. (Where I can collaborate and build communities). Since I’m just getting rolling with Instagram it’s one of the few (only?) social media spaces where I have less than 500 followers AND where I have a higher follow-to-follower ratio.…

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Leg 5 – Storms, Puppy, Snow, Fires – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Leg 5 – Storms, Puppy, Snow, Fires – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Prepare yourself.  I have left you waiting for the continued adventures of Lex Go Further – A Ford Escape for far too long.  It is now time for photos of the puppy interspersed with snow, food and a couple of tweets.  But mainly industrial-grade puppy cuteness. When last we spoke, I had just gotten onto a skidoo for the first time in my life to be whisked away to the island which has been a part of my life since I discovered it and claimed it for my own when I was 3. Here’s a quick summary of what was…

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Leg 4 – Hampstead to the Island – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Leg 4 – Hampstead to the Island – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

This leg of the trip was more leisurely than I expected. I had arrived at Dani’s after her girls had gone to bed, so I expected to wake up at the crack of dawn to the sound of a household of young teens getting ready for the early bus to school. I expected to get a little tiny amount of bustling time with them before they got on the bus and I got on the road for the island. And most of that happened, but rather than staying up Dani was kind and suggested I go back to bed. So…

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Leg 3 – Saint Jean Port Joli to Hampstead – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Adventure

Leg 3 – Saint Jean Port Joli to Hampstead – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Adventure

Now it’s time to hit the road for real, since Saint Jean Port Joli where I stopped for an already late lunch is only about an hour outside of Quebec City and I have to make it to my friend Dani’s in Hampstead tonight.  I’ve already emailed ahead saying not to hold dinner and bought some treats since I know I’ll be getting in late and not getting much visiting time in. So for this leg, I’ll show you photos because really that’s what I did. Drove and took photos. A stop in Kamouraska It was beautiful and lovely, but…

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A Study in Full and Empty – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

A Study in Full and Empty – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Finally, I’m was on the road and it was much later than I would have liked. I was finally feeling like I was on a road trip and excited about all my planned stops and I wanted to keep moving until I reached them. Unfortunately, I hadn’t filled up on gas in quite some time and I had also had a lot of coffee and water at breakfast.  While the Ford Escape has an excellent Low Fuel Warning system, my bladder warning system is not as good, and I was pushing both to their limits.  This was, in part, because once…

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An Evening in Vieux Quebec – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Adventure

An Evening in Vieux Quebec – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Adventure

Quebec City is beautiful and romantic in the winter, even if you are alone.  I love wandering through on a warm summer day. But for me, winter is the time to visit Quebec City. The Old City especially feels designed for snow, and takes on a special kind of intimacy and warmth when it gets cold. I always find myself drawn to the Old City and have only once stayed outside the gates. I’ve been lucky that even when staying with friends, they lived just inside the gates. Perhaps drawn like I am to the history and the magic of…

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What to See and Do in Quebec City – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

What to See and Do in Quebec City – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

I got a lot of recommendations, many from my sponsor Tourisme Québec, about places to see and eat while driving from Toronto through Quebec and into New Brunswick on #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape.  More than I could use in one trip, but I though it might be helpful for other people doing the same drive, and for me on future road trips east. Recommendations on What to See and Do (and Eat) in Quebec City From Julie Tyrios My reco: Le Lapin Sauté in Quebec City. Divine. http://www.lapinsaute.com/  #LexGoFurther You must go. MUST. It’s too bad it’s cold for…

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Leg 2 – Kingston to Quebec City – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Leg 2 – Kingston to Quebec City – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

My plan as I headed out onto the road for the first big chunk of this road trip was to take it slow and steady. I’d never driven this distance by myself before, I’d always had someone to spell me off, and I’d never driven this long alone ever. Plus, this was February.  You never know what weather is going to blow in. It could be sunny and warm, it could be blistering cold with hailstorms and, given the distance I was driving, it could be all that and more. My first priority was making sure I was awake, alert…

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Leg 1 – Toronto to Kingston – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Leg 1 – Toronto to Kingston – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

The first step of Lex Go Further – a Ford Escape was picking up the Ford Escape. Rannie was there when I got it to give me a run down on the Sync & MyFord Touch,  Hands-free Lift Gate, and specifically the Active Park Assist Feature  which I can’t imagine anyone wanting to try their own for the first time!  (But more on that later).  I got the car around 1pm, did the run through with Rannie and headed back downtown. That left me calculating the best times to hit the road in order to avoid rush hour traffic. Sounds…

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My travel companions for #LexGoFurther–A Ford Escape

My travel companions for #LexGoFurther–A Ford Escape

For the most part, I was alone while on this trip, but I did have some companionship during the trip. Gerry joined me for the warm-up leg from Toronto to Kingston, which meant once I got the car I had to wait for him to finish up his day before we could hit the road… waiting waiting waiting… I’d say I was patient, but I’d be lying. The Ford Escape itself was definitely one of my travel companions, too but I’m not much of a namer so it/she will be referred to as “the car”, the “Ford Escape”, “it” or…

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Solo Road Trip – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

Solo Road Trip – #LexGoFurther – A Ford Escape

It’s hard to believe that at 48, after doing road trips all my life and traveling alone since I was 5, that I have never, ever been on a long-distance driving trip alone.  Never just gone where and when the road took me, stopping, exploring, turning left whenever the mood strikes. I’ve always had someone with me who’d say, quite reasonably, “aren’t we going that way?” I love driving and every time I get behind the wheel of a car, I get an overwhelming burst of wanderlust. But I have never owned my own car and every time I have…

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