I made it seem like I was done posting about our summer road trip through Canada with that last one, didn’t I? Well, sorry about that. As I mentioned, we built the latter part of our travels around going on a whale watch in the Bay of Fundy and logistically, that brought us to beautiful St. Andrew’s.

I tend to avoid ‘bucket lists’ or setting ‘travel goals.’ They add anxiety to my already wound up existence and I can’t take the pressure imposed upon myself despite the fact that I’m driven by discipline and goals. I just can’t bring that dark side of me to my travels. [Yes, that's a taste of what it's like to be in my head, have I scared you off yet?]

If I had to name one ‘soft’ goal, though, it would be going on a whale watch in the Bay of Fundy. The opportunity to see such a diversity of creatures and hopefully, right whales, is something that has always been in the back of my mind. Sadly, we didn’t see any right whales, but that doesn’t mean I look back on my trip with dismay. We saw whales and had an amazing experience. Plus, the New England Aquarium does a good job of providing me updates on what’s going on up there with their Right Whale Research Blog, so that sometimes makes up for it. Check that out, you’ll be blown away by some breathtaking photos and videos.

For the trip, we chose the Fundy Tide Runners because they take you out on a zodiac, a speedy raft that would bring us up close and personal with the whales. Also, it’s what they use in Whale Wars to pester the Japanese whaling fleet and I’ve always wondered what that’s like (disclaimer: we didn’t pester Japanese whaling fleets on this tour).

Fundy Tide Runners also have you wear a full blown life jacket that will make anyone look badass, which my father accomplished quite successfully with his token Bruins hat and sunglasses. His sarcasm coupled with his Boston accent and banter with Dave, our witty captain who had a love/hate relationship with Boston, also helped.

Once we got out onto the water it became clear that the Bay of Fundy is a special place. I’ve been on a lot of boats, swam and paddled through many bays, but there was something about this place that I’m having a hard time pinpointing. The smell was different, it was fresh and crisp. I’ve never seen such a boldness of color in the blueness of the ocean and the dark green trees hugging the bay. The water at times, looked like glass.

At one point during the trip, we even had a little biology lesson. David’s little girl (who was about ten, very talkative and absolutely adorable), spotted krill in the water and snatched it up so we all could take a close look.

Obviously, I couldn’t get my camera to focus on the right thing here, but you get the idea.

After a series of communication with some of the other whale watching boats out in the bay, we began tracking signs for a good sighting. What was great about being in a zodiac was our ability to speed to wherever the last spotting was to catch a glimpse of a whale before they departed.

I didn’t take many photos because I’m not very good at catching a moving target, especially while I’m moving. So I kept my camera on video mode hoping that I would capture something. In this video I found a whale that had sadly lost part of its dorsal fin.

Have you ever gone whale watching in the Bay of Fundy?

This exhibit, which extended throughout the airport, successfully stopped me in my tracks. It’s the Recycle Runway Collection, a traveling exhibition installed in airports, shopping malls, museums and other public locations displaying recycled fashion designs.

I’ve been in love with the idea of sustainable fashion ever since discovering Jute  & Jackfruit at Design Hive in Cambridge. And what I loved the most about this exhibit went way beyond the design. What I loved most was the message… “waste does not exist, only wasted resources.”

Brilliant.

Have you had the pleasure of traveling through Recycle Runway?

Our first stop was the Museum of Natural History and one of my favorite parts was meeting this little guy, who sits near the entrance keeping watch on the visitors.

My second favorite exhibit was of course, the whales. I love whales and I have since I can remember. You’ll see in a few posts that I continued to integrate that into our trip later on.

We also checked out some other nautical specimens, including this gigantic lobster. I’m standing there for scale, I’m five feet tall.

This ugly little guy, a native of Canada, has been creeping down south and today can be found in the New England area reeking havoc on domestic cats, chickens, turkeys, rodents, you name it. It’s a fisher cat. My parents have seen a couple of them while walking my sister and her husband’s dog in a suburb outside of Boston. Though it doesn’t seem so big, that thing would eat their little pug in one bite if it had the chance.

Next we made our way to the Halifax Citadel. Today they maintain some of the routines from when it was in operation, like firing canons every day at noon (except Christmas) and drills. It’s always cool to get a history lesson from another country’s perspective.

Next we visited the Maritime Museum of the Atlantic.

The Titanic exhibit might have been my favorite part. It was incredibly moving and it brought to light a piece of history that isn’t too commonly known – Halifax’s integral role in the aftermath of the disaster.

In addition to relics from the ship, the exhibit recreated passenger rooms that offer a tiny peek into what it was like for first, second and third class passengers. There is also a beautiful piece of artwork painted on the walls in the exhibit honoring Titanic passengers.

Have you ever been to Halifax? What was your favorite place?

Below is just a snapshot of the evening and I’ll be posting these photos and more to the Share Our Strength Boston Facebook page later today. But the PR team – including Bethany, Shannon, Ann and Lindsay – brought in some fabulous Boston food bloggers, many of whom have already shared their amazing recaps of the event: Fun and Fearless in Beantown, We Are Not Martha, A Boston Food Diary, Delicious Dishings, Travel, Wine, Dine and Confessions of a Chocoholic.

My quick stroll began with a visit to Chef Richard Garcia and Mike Rosa of 606 Congress…

I was also able to steal a shot of Chef Garcia’s asparagus soup…

Next up, I recharged with some macarons from Levy Restaurants, which were light, crunchy and delicious…

Toward the end of the night I was also able to try a hobnob cookie with PB and homemade plum jam from Craigie on Main…

I of course had to make a stop at Whole Foods, who are always huge supporters of the event! They had a delicious, one hundred percent sustainable spread that included a smoked smelt, mini potato latke with creme freche, american sturgeon caviar and farming turtle micro greens…

Plus, a vegetarian option – yucca chips with grillos pickles…

I was also able to quickly catch up with some Boston Bloggah buddies… Becca of Girls’ Pint Out and Peter!

I say this every year, but I can’t stress enough how proud I am of this event. 100 percent of ticket sales and proceeds support Share Our Strength’s efforts to end childhood hunger. To get involved you can take the No Kid Hungry Pledge and also find out if there is an event in your city.

Have you ever attended a Taste of the Nation event, in Boston or elsewhere?

In this post, Alexis shares a fantastic tip about traveling light, and traveling green – two things I know I’d like to get better at. Enjoy….

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Packing light, leaving the laptop behind, and braving the world sans eye shadow have given me a sense of independence and freedom I hadn’t known before I’d heard of the concept of minimalist packing. 

There’s a confession here, though: the last phase of my travel habits to go minimalistic was hygiene.  It got to the point that my toiletry bag took up more space in my backpack than did my clothing and shoes, which I’d narrowed down to 3 shirts, 1 pair of pants, and flip flops.  Most of my friends were getting away with a single bar of soap in Vietnam, and since half of them were girls, I couldn’t use the “Hey, I’m a girl” excuse.

I’m proud to announce, however, that I’ve finally overcome my obsession with being clean.  (No, this doesn’t mean that I’m “that girl” on the airplane that makes the whole row smell like B.O..  Shivers.)  Instead, my answer to packing light on toiletries coincided with new insights made in being eco-friendly.

Dr. Bronner’s, I love you.

A friend of mine who travels to India annually suggested Dr. Bronner’s liquid castile soap to me last year, citing its vegetable-based, fair-trade, organic, and biodegradable properties as perks.  To boot, the bottles are 100% post-consumer recycled (the paper, too!), and you won’t find any funky foaming agents or preservatives in a single one.  The basic ingredients are as follows:

• Water
• Saponified organic coconut, organic palm, and organic olive oils (with retained glycerin)
• Organic hemp oil
• Organic jojoba oil
• Essential oils
• Citric acid
• Vitamin E

After learning about the potential ill effects of parabens, PEGs, sodium lauryl sulfate, and other ingredients commonly found in cosmetics, I began making my own shampoo and body wash using Dr. Bronner’s liquid soap as a base.  The soap is multi-purpose, and because it comes infused with beneficial oils (as well as essential oils like lavender, almond, rose oil, and more), it doesn’t strip my skin or scalp of protective moisture.

Generally, I like to have at least two types of Dr. Bronner’s soaps with me when traveling.  I buy a big bottle of the stuff and pour it into one or two travel-sized bottles, depending on my schedule.  To use, I dilute it with one part water for each part soap and use for anything between the shower and the washing machine (well, the sink).

The tea tree oil soap does good things for my face and body, which can break out due to travel stress (I absolutely detest flying).  Meanwhile, the eucalyptus variety clears my sinuses when I use it as body wash or shampoo.  If you’re not too crazy about essential oils, you can try the baby mild version, which has no fragrance.

Terengganu, Malaysia has a long stretch of large, flat beaches that make for a perfect turtle nesting environment. Today though, large stretches of the beach are no longer surveyed for turtle nests because nesting populations are so low it’s not financially viable to survey all the beaches – there is too much man power required.

To solve that problem, some amazing people formed the Walk for Turtles. Beginning in 2010 the annual walk began on World Sea Turtle Day (June 16th) on a small scale in which a 10 day survey was conducted that covered over 200km and 10 islands. This year, the walk will expand to cover the entire length of Terengganu and will cover 300km of beach. Throughout the walk the team will visit six primary schools and teach the children about sea turtles and the impact of litter on their environment.

Also new to this year’s Walk for Turtles is that suitable stretches will be made open to the general public – which is a fantastic opportunity for travelers who don’t just want to travel, but also want to put their valuable time and effort behind a meaningful cause.

To learn more check out the site and download a brochure. And if your company would like to sponsor the walk take a look at the sponsorship brochure.

In the least, do yourself a favor and follow the walk via:

Facebook – www.facebook.com/helpourpenyu

Twitter – www.twitter.com/helpourpenyu

Blog – blog.helpourpenyu.com

I promise you’ll be both impressed and inspired…

His latest note came from Inhabitat. Jenny Tranter found a fabulous line of vintage map-themed cushions printed on 100 percent GOTS certified organic cotton. My Bearded Pigeon has maps of locations around the world and I love all of them.

[Photo from My Bearded Pigeon via Inhabitat]

Talk about a conversation piece.

Have you come across any bits of travel inspiration like this lately?

This is significant because almost 1 billion people around the world don’t have access to clean, safe drinking water. And in Uganda, and many other countries, young girls and women are tasked with traveling many miles by foot to obtain water and often times it’s not even clean. While making their long treks these girls miss out on proper education and are also subject to assault.

So, with the difference that Three Avocados makes, why wouldn’t you buy their coffee?

If you’re thinking about the taste or quality, that’s not a problem. Our order arrived yesterday and this morning Mike and I had our first taste.

If you’ve been reading for a while, you know that I don’t settle when it comes to coffee.

The beans are  100 percent Arabica from Mt. Elgon in Uganda in an area that is known for amazing coffee – and it shows. The coffee is bold, but not overpowering, and it’s incredibly rich and smooth. I liked it so much that I filled up a thermos and brought it to work!

One bag is about $9 and if you order three or more bags, shipping is only $2.95. You can find Three Avocados on Facebook, Twitter and of course, at their site!

What are some of your favorite products that give back?

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Three Avocados did not ask me to endorse their product, nor did I receive it complimentarily. The cause, the taste and what the organization stands for, compelled me to buy and review.

We had no clean water.

The break affected service to 700,000 households and 64 million gallons were lost before the problem was fixed. For four or five days we couldn’t drink water that wasn’t boiled or bottled. We couldn’t brush our teeth if the water wasn’t boiled or bottled, and many of us second-guessed washing our hands if the water wasn’t boiled or bottled.

Today is Blog Action Day, an annual event that unites bloggers around the world in posting about the same issue on the same day. This year, we’re talking about water.

I was both inconvenienced and enlightened by what happened in the Boston area back in May. So many people across the world lack access to clean water.

In fact, nearly 1 billion people do.

What was just a couple of days for a tiny fraction of the world compared to something bigger?

Did you know that…

- African women walk over 40 million hours each year carrying cisterns weighing up to 18 kilograms to gather water, which is usually still not safe to drink. And there’s more.

- Every week, nearly 38,000 children under the age of 5 die from unsafe drinking water and unhygienic living conditions. And there’s more.

- Many scholars attribute the conflict in Darfur at least in part to lack of access to water. A report commissioned by the UN found that in the 21st century, water scarcity will become one of the leading causes of conflict in Africa. And there’s more.

That’s just a snapshot…