prairie girl musings

Category: Photography

Saskatchewan the Great

Much of this blog has been dedicated to highlighting international travel destinations. With this photo essay, I’d like to demonstrate the stark beauty of my home province. For my own selfish reasons, I’d like to encourage those who may not consider the prairies a worthy travel destination to look beyond their initial reservations.

Growing up in Saskatchewan, suffering through extremely cold winters and scorching summers, I always dreamt of travelling to faraway places. I devoured guidebook after guidebook of destinations far more exotic than my home province.

For a long time, I struggled with being from Saskatchewan when talking to friends from big cities, whom I perceived as more cultured and interesting than myself. I failed to appreciate the incredible opportunities that existed for me and the important relationships I had formed throughout my first eighteen years. Some of the most captivating people I’ve come to know live right here in Saskatchewan. I regret my urgency to escape, but as they say, we need to leave in order to appreciate what we have.

I’ve since come to marvel at all the beauty that surrounds me. As an avid and amateur photographer, I seem to take the majority of my photographs in the prairies. From the grain elevators, golden fields, and breathtaking sunsets, Saskatchewan will always be home.

There’s a certain tenacity that Saskatchewan people exhibit. Maybe it’s enduring six months of winter or the unexpected vigour that comes from living in a less populated region. In observing different cultures around the world, I’ve also noticed that Saskatchewan people tend to be gracious, genuine and appreciative, regardless of their circumstances.

While Saskatchewan isn’t necessarily the first place that comes to mind when considering where to spend your hard earned holiday, those who make the trek are always happy they did.

“And the danger is that in this move toward new horizons and far directions, that I may lose what I have now, and not find anything except loneliness.” -Sylvia Plath

October 19, 2015
Why Boston is one of the greatest American cities

As one of America’s oldest cities, Boston has certainly retained its beauty. It is the antithesis of Toronto, incredibly well-kept with no urban sprawl. It’s a compact, walkable city, with something to take in at every corner. There’s no pollution or smog, in fact, it makes Toronto look like a sewage dump. It also probably helps that their mayor doesn’t casually smoke crack. With its well-educated population, and British sensibility, I thoroughly enjoyed my time in Boston. Here are 15 reasons to visit this great American city.

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November 28, 2013
“She’s mad but …

“She’s mad but she’s magic. There’s no lie in her fire.”

– Charles Bukowski

July 4, 2013
ZA: Into the Wild

Natalie, my younger sister, is a talented photographer. She took all of the photographs of our South African adventure last month. I’d like to share with you, in a series of posts, some of the amazing photographs she took. On our Kruger Park safaris, we (like all international tourists) were obsessed with spotting the BIG FIVE. Luckily, after four days of intense safaris, we saw several lions, buffalo, elephants, leopards, and rhinoceros!

Kruger National Park:

(Zebras and giraffes are not among the big five, but still such stunning animals!)

The white rhinoceros is extremely difficult to find due to illegal poaching.

February 1, 2013
Kuala Lumpur, Man vs. Nature

Having lived in New Zealand for two and a half years, I finally ventured to Southeast Asia this April with my cousin, Lucia and a friend from British Columbia. We all fell in love with the sights, sounds and smells of Malaysia and Indonesia. The following are some of our favourite aspects of exploring Kuala Lumpur.

1. Kuala Lumpur’s delicious and enticing street markets:

During our four nights in Kuala Lumpur, we couldn’t seem to get enough of the Petaling market, which takes place every night in the Chinatown district. The options for stir frying were endless, and we ended up having barbecue vegetables nearly every night! The outdoor dining was second-to-none, as most of the stalls were accompanied with picnic tables and various seating options! As we’ve come to accept, Chinatown also featured an array of “Genuine Fake” Longchamp totes, carryalls and Ray Ban sunglasses. Luckily, there were enough culinary options to keep us occupied for the duration of our travels!

2. Kuala Gandah Elephant Sanctuary

Visiting the elephant orphanage was a definite highlight of our trip to Malaysia. All three of us loved the day long excursion to Kuala Gandah, which is approximately three hours from Kuala Lumpur. The sanctuary strives to help endangered elephants. What really caught my eye, in the elephant holding area, where we had lunch prior to feeding the elephants, were the little ones! After speaking to the handlers, we realized that these elephants we thought of as babies were actually adolescents. After the feeding, we stayed around to go on a brief elephant ride.

3. Our fantastic accommodation at Reggae Mansion:

Thank goodness for our travel agent at Student Flights (NZ), Pauline! Not only did she book us several incredible tours throughout our two-week holiday, she also managed to find the most amazing (and affordable) hostels. A highlight was Reggae Mansion situated in downtown KL. It’s the ideal spot to meet like-minded tourists, especially young travellers. The hostel features a rooftop patio bar, along with a cafe and restaurant in the lobby. The rooms are air-conditioned (a big MUST due to KL’s record-high temperatures and humidity!) We engaged in various social activities during our stay, organized by the hostel owners and I’d highly recommend a stop at Reggae if you are ever in KL!

4. Shop ‘Til You Drop!

Kuala Lumpur is a shopper’s paradise, with its sky-high malls and monumental towers featuring shops to suit every taste and budget! Many visitors are surprised by the modernity and man-made glory of Kuala Lumpur. Others are convinced KL is the prime example of man versus nature. We appreciated both aspects of our visit, and couldn’t conceal our excitement with both the Bintang Bukit and Pavillion Malls, which featured an array of restaurants, high street stores and ridiculous architecture.

5. The famously beautiful Batu Caves

You cannot plan a trip to Malaysia and not visit the Batu Caves. Standing at 140 feet, the world’s tallest statue of Murugan, a Hindu deity, is located outside the Batu Caves. The venerable, visually-stunning monument is a breathtaking place for worship. The trek up to the temple consists of nearly 300 steps, lined with monkeys who like to tease the visitors. The caves are a top tourist attraction bringing international guests to KL’s suburbs.

Part II, coming soon! It will feature some highlights of our Bali trip!

Until next time,

Vanessa

August 14, 2012