The Pursuit of Pura Vida with Sunwing Vacations

Recently I had the opportunity to join 8 other Canadian journalists from across the country to explore Costa Rica, and stay at the brand new Planet Hollywood Beach Resort for 5 days, with Sunwing Vacations. Starting in December 2018, Sunwing began offering DIRECT flights from Vancouver to Costa Rica for their Sunwing Vacation Packages – and now that the winter is here, I am thinking it’s time to head back.

Sunwing currently flies to Costa Rica from 7 airports in Canada. One of the things I love most about Sunwing Vacations is that they include flights, hotels and hotel transfers within their cost, streamlining the booking process so you can spend more time getting excited about your trip. I flew out a night early from Vancouver so I could get to Toronto and meet the group, before flying together to Liberia, Costa Rica on our Sunwing Flight the following morning. I wanted to make sure to showcase everything we were lucky enough to experience, so come along on my travel diary with me!

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HOLIDAY GUIDE: How to Eat, Drink and be Merry in Vancouver this Christmas

The Christmas season is upon us, which means drinking all the holiday beverages while navigating the logistical chaos of it all. One of the things I love about living in Vancouver during the holiday season is that there is such a wide range of activities to do (which is why I will always recommend that if you are thinking of moving that you come here – you can even check out these new construction homes in North Vancouver if you wanted). For those wanting to take in the sheer beauty of the west coast there’s skiing in Whistler or checking out the light installations at Capilano suspension bridge. As well as a ton of more urban activities in the city, from The Goh Ballet’s ‘The Nutcracker’, The trolley karaoke Christmas tour, and Santa Claus day parade. I also love taking my younger brother to “Fly Over Canada” because they do a Christmas themed ride, where you fly with Santa and his reindeer across Canada and then land on the North Pole.

December is also the busiest month for events, including holiday parties (in my case, my birthday), finishing up all the work for the year, and trying to get my holiday shopping done. As of the time of this article being published, I haven’t even started yet. Send Starbucks.

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The Secret Ingredient is Always Love

Some of my most cherished memories as a child revolve around cooking and baking. Growing up with a single mom that worked full time, raising two kids on a very fixed budget – so to say it wasn’t easy would be a understatement. As a single mom raising two growing boys with an insatiable appetite, she had to be very innovative in what she made, and savvy in how she shopped.

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Toronto Has A Temporary Rat Infestation, And It’s All Banksy’s Fault

TORONTO – Yorkville Village in collaboration with StART [StreetART Toronto] presented by AURORA and curated by Substance Art Collective has created a free public exhibit featuring one of Banksy’s most iconic pieces along side pieces from LA Artist RISK and local toronto artists. The Banksy piece featured is “HAIGHT STREET RAT” which was one of the pieces saved by art collector Brian Greif during Banksy’s “Tour de San Francisco in 2010. During Banksy’s time in SF he completed 6 large pieces, most of which would be tagged over, ro painted over by the city or building owners. This is due to a strict graffiti removal ordinance that requires building owners to paint over any graffiti on their buildings within 30 days, or be fined $500 by the City of San Francisco for them to remove it. The controversial nature of obtaining this piece would become the subject matter of the documentary “Saving Banksy”, which was also executive produced by Brian Greif. In “Saving Banksy” we see the struggles that Brian Greif went through to preserve this piece of art, so it could be appreciated by the public [The way street art is intended] and not just sold on the auction block, or worse yet painted over. Brian Greif to date has turned down countless offers to sell, with offers up to 3 million dollars. Continue reading “Toronto Has A Temporary Rat Infestation, And It’s All Banksy’s Fault”