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From Tea to TBEX

By on May 24, 2013 in News/Events
Travel Tweetup in Toronto

Janice, Evelyn, Mariellen and Nora meet in 2009

From humble beginnings, travel blogging in Toronto is now exploding!

With just days to go before the Travel Bloggers Exchange (TBEX) rolls into Toronto, I wrote this post all about how I started Breathedreamgo, co-founded the Toronto Travel Massive and watched travel blogging grow, evolve and now, with TBEX coming, explode!

It was the summer of 09, the summer of change. This was when it was becoming clear to me that my future as a freelance writer, and my dreams of becoming a travel writer, were in jeopardy. Magazines were shrinking, newspapers closing, writer’s fees dropping, contracts becoming untenable.

I went to the annual Canadian authors and publisher’s conference, MagNet, in June 2009 with hope in my heart. However, the atmosphere was gloomy, turning to downright nasty at the end of the second day when a newspaper editor said they would were no longer paying writers for the essay that appears daily on the back page. Everyone else was still getting paid, from the editor to the printer, to the illustrator to the delivery person. Everyone but the writer. Continue Reading →

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Top spots in Toronto’s India Bazaar

By on May 17, 2013 in Canada, India, Travel Tips

Little India, Gerrard St Bazaar, Toronto, CanadaA taste of India in Toronto

When I feel the need to experience India, and I’m stuck in Toronto, I head to the India Bazaar on Gerrard Street East. It’s a one-stop shopping destination for “all things Indian” and a visit there can make for a fun afternoon. India Bazaar is lined with Indian stores bursting with colourful finery, restaurants that feature authentic north and south Indian cuisines and stalls offering streetfood favourites like grilled corn, fresh sugar cane juice and golgappa (dumplings with sauce). Here are my favourite stops. Continue Reading →

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Hyper-local photo essay: Cherry Blossoms in High Park, Toronto

By on May 12, 2013 in Canada, Responsible Travel

Cherry trees, High Park, Toronto

When the cherry trees bloom

Each year, those of us who live near High Park in Toronto watch in anticipation for those few short days when the cherry trees burst into glorious bloom. The trees were a gift from the Japanese ambassador to Canada in 1959 and there are two places in the park with a high concentration of them. When cherry trees blossom, they look like fluffy pink clouds. A small miracle that expresses happy truths about the beauty of nature. They are not only delightful to behold, but they carry cultural significance for the many people in Toronto of Asian heritage (especially Japanese, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese) and they are an augur of spring. Continue Reading →

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In search of my Ottawa Valley Irish family roots

By on May 9, 2013 in Canada, Travel Tips
log cabin Ottawa

Victoria and Mariellen in front of Victoria’s 100-year-old log cabin home

A meaningful adventure travel experience to connect with my Irish ancestors

This year, I will be Going home to Ireland as part of a massive tourism initiative called The Gathering 2013. Read on to find out about the search for my Irish-Canadian family roots, and the Irish heritage of the Ottawa Valley.

Celtic Cross, OttawaI think it was the mosquito that did it. When I saw that mosquito, etched into the Celtic Cross at the mouth of the Rideau Canal in Ottawa, I suddenly gained new insight into the harsh conditions Canada’s early settlers faced. The Celtic Cross stands at Ottawa’s most picturesque spot in honour of the 1,000 Irish workers and their families who died building the Rideau Canal (1826-32). Apparently, a significant percentage of them died from malaria. I had no idea. The other symbols on the cross include an explosion, a wheelbarrow, a pickaxe & shovel and in the centre of them all, a harp — the symbol for Ireland. Approximately one-third of Rideau Canal workers hailed from Ireland.

I recently drove to Ottawa to follow the Irish trail through eastern Ontario, which is where my ancestors settled when they emigrated from Ireland in the early 19th century. In fact, many of Canada’s Irish settlers ended up in the Ottawa Valley, and they have long been known as “Ottawa Valley Irish.” I’m retracing my roots this year, in anticipation of my September visit to Ireland as part of The Gathering 2013 – a tourism initiative to bring home the Irish Diaspora. My first blog in this series, The Journey from Ireland and back recounts the harrowing story of loss that drove my ancestors from Ireland to Canada, more than 200 years ago. Continue Reading →

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Pre-order inspiring travel book: “Roll out the magic carpet”

By on May 6, 2013 in India, News/Events, Yoga/Spirituality

India travel guideDonate to get a copy of the book plus other great perks!

Roll out the magic carpet: How to travel in India and other life lessons is the name of the book I am writing. A very unique cross between Eat, Pray, Love and the Lonely Planet India, the book will inspire you to overcome your fears, go after your dreams and travel safely and well in India and beyond. I am crowd-funding to write and self-publish this book on the popular Indiegogo site. And I am hoping you will help by making a donation, which will net you a copy of the book when it’s published plus lots of other great perks like magic rings and guided tours. Continue Reading →

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Why you should travel overseas even if you’re scared

By on May 2, 2013 in Responsible Travel, Travel Tips
Nepal-Kathmandu-Durbar-Square1 560

Kathmandu. Photo courtesy Barbara Weibel

Because though travel adventure comes with risk, the rewards are usually far greater

“In the wastes of civilization, Luristan is still an enchanted name. Its streams are dotted blue lines on the map and the position of its hills is a matter of taste. It is still a country for the explorer. I penetrated only a vey little way. But I spent a fortnight in that part of the country where one is less frequently murdered.” Legendary travel writer and explorer Freya Stark wrote these lines in 1934, after an extremely arduous trip, by donkey, into parts of the Middle East no European woman had previously visited. Her book about this trip, The Valleys of the Assassins, is filled with adventurous tales of avoiding bandits, sleeping under the stars, looking for hidden treasure and suffering every kind of discomfort, mishap and illness.

It was typical for Dame Freya Stark, who lived to be 100 and was many times decorated by the Royal Geographical Society. She set off on many daring journeys, usually alone, with only one native guide. Yet all of her trips ended well; she always found safe passage; and most of the people she met along the way were kind, generous and helpful. And so it goes. Continue Reading →

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Shop online for clothes, jewelry from India

By on April 12, 2013 in India, News/Events

shop shopping online India shawl jewelryYou can win a fair trade shopping spree!

Sign up to receive updates from Breathedreamgo and you could win a $75 gift certificate to go shopping around the world! I’ve teamed up with Novica to offer you the opportunity to buy beautiful fair trade products from talented artisans in India, Bali, West Africa, Mexico and many other places.

When I travel in India, a significant portion of my time is spent shopping. I love visiting markets and buying local products from a country known for beautiful handicrafts; stunning house wares, textiles and furniture; and of course my favourites: colourful, feminine clothes and jewelry. So, I was really happy to find out about Novica, an online company that sources very high quality, fair trade products from India and around the world. The online store, in association with National Geographic, features pages of stunning products: about 8,500 products from 1,700 artisans. Click here to shop online: New customers save $7 at NOVICA. Click to get code. Valid through 6-30-2013

Continue Reading →

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Gathering Road Trip:
On the Whelan trail in eastern Ontario

By on April 1, 2013 in Canada, Ireland
Costello Hotel, Brudenell, Ontario. Photo courtesy Paul Politis.

Costello Hotel, Brudenell, Ontario. Photo courtesy Paul Politis.

Visiting the Ottawa Valley to find my Irish roots

This year, 2013, as Ireland celebrates The Gathering (a year of festivities to welcome back the Irish Diaspora), I am retracing my family’s history. I’m starting here in Canada now, and in September I will be visiting Ireland to walk in the footsteps of my ancestors and join the Whelan clan gathering. But my first step is a road trip to the Ottawa Valley, where wave upon wave of Irish immigrants settled in Canada in the 19th century, including my relatives. My first post in this series is The journey from Ireland … and back again.  Continue Reading →

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Dazzled by Indian classical music maestros

By on March 30, 2013 in India, News/Events
Ustad Zakir Hussain (tabla) and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (santoor)

Ustad Zakir Hussain (tabla) and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma (santoor)

Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma wow audience at Toronto concert

There was a moment during last night’s concert by Ustad Zakir Hussain and Pandit Shivkumar Sharma when the music, the audience, the entire atmosphere of the concert hall came together in a crescendo of movement, joy, vibration; when all barriers blurred and dissolved; and when the spiritual truth of oneness was achieved. And this, I think, was the point. For as great as the music was last night — and this was two legendary masters, at the top of their game, playing to an adoring audience — I found Pandit Shivkumar’s words just as inspiring. Continue Reading →

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A year in Japan

By on March 28, 2013 in Japan, JAPAN, News/Events

Travel writer Mariellen Ward in Tokyo Japan

My life in Tokyo, Japan

One night, many years ago, I dreamt I moved to Japan. I had just moved in with my boyfriend in Toronto and we were buying furniture and decorating. After that dream, I bought black lacquer bedroom furniture and Japanese prints for the walls. Then, he was offered a job in Japan.

We flew to Tokyo on Valentine’s Day, on Singapore Airlines, my one and only first class flight so far. When the beautifully attired air hostess offered me Johnnie Walker Blue Label, I thought she was mistaken about the colour of the label.

On Valentine’s Day, I landed at Narita International Airport to begin my new life. My life in Japan. I had never been to Japan before, never been to Asia before, when I agreed to move there. Tokyo was my first Asian megalopolis. The population of the greater Tokyo area including Yokohama equals Canada. Continue Reading →

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