Dear World,

I’m a thirty-something woman living and working in the Pacific Northwest. Is it still the PNW if I live in Canada and it’s actually the Pacific Southwest for us? Well, I can tell you that the climate and the landscape are nearly identical to Washington and Oregon so let’s go with it. I love where I’m from. I hate the cost of living. What I love even more than evergreen forests and snow-capped mountain peaks are all things ancient. The UNESCO World Heritage Sites 6^th Edition is my Bible (although there is a 7^th now). Literally every cultural site in there is on my list of travel destinations. It’s just a matter of time and money.

All Things Ancient

I’m not sure when my love for the old and dusty was first sparked. Perhaps it was the 1999 blockbuster The Mummy with Brendan Fraser and Rachel Weisz. I would have been eleven and remember being enamoured by the artefacts they dug out of Hamunaptra. The work Evie did as a librarian and aspiring Egyptologist seemed like a dream job. I did end up earning a Bachelor of Arts in History, however, I work in the public sector and only occasionally get to flex my mental muscles and usually no one has asked for this expertise ;). Through my employment I have come to learn a great deal about the First Peoples of Canada. I’ve developed a great deal of respect for their culture and history.

The Spirit of British Columbia

For years I got to create cultural packages for youth aging into adulthood that summarizes their bands cultural practices, history, spirituality, and hardship. I think because of these reasons I have a new found admiration for the unceded land I was born on. Prior to this, my travel aspirations only included old and ancient sites in Europe, Asia, Africa, South America, and the Middle East. My province is vast. Its First Peoples built in wood and there is little left to see of what they created. However, in many places they are still the stewards of the land and you can feel their ancestor’s presence when you visit.

Expect Great Things

I hope that you’ll enjoy reading about both my love for old and ancient places but also my home. Where trees grow so wide you need several people linking arms to hug them. Hiking a mountain and paddle boarding along the Pacific Coast can be done in the same day (I mean you’ll be tired but you COULD do it). The wine culture is strong and our vineyards produce a vintage I sometimes prefer to anything European I’ve tasted. The breweries ain’t half bad either. Actually if you’re looking for craft beer they’re some of the best in the world. To Olympus and Back means my inspiration will always be somewhere ancient but I always find my way back here, Beautiful British Columbia.

All my relations,
Shauna