I’ll never forget the first time I stumbled upon beekeeping during my travels. It was 2013, at the Fairmont Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal. I was there on a press tour to learn more about one of the city’s most iconic moments—John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s “Bed-in For Peace” in 1969. But while the peace movement was in the past, the hotel was hosting a different kind of quiet revolution in the present—one that was happening on the roof.
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Twenty-two floors up, surrounded by the hum of traffic far below, I found something completely unexpected: a rooftop garden bursting with heirloom tomatoes, fragrant herbs—and bees! The hotel had installed hives and was producing its own honey, which they used in everything from cocktails to pastries. As I later learned, this wasn’t a one-off project. In fact, many Fairmont Hotels across Canada and beyond have embraced beekeeping. And I had just gotten my first taste of apitourism.

In the spring of 1639, three young nuns set sail from France, each carrying a hidden key in her habit. Upon landing in the new settlement of Quebec City, they would unseal three sturdy locks on a large wooden trunk that safeguarded all their worldly goods. It also contained something invaluable—a contract to found a monastery hospital, the first in North America outside Mexico.

Little did they realize that one of their future guests* would become Canada’s most notorious** hotel thief, taking three round canisters with them in their luggage after their visit.



*Me. This story is about me.





** The dozen or so people who know this story won’t stop teasing me about it.

Where can you go to hang out with Vincent van Gogh, Freddie Mercury, a giant octopus, and a few dinosaurs? If you’re me and it’s October, you head to Upper Canada Village, a heritage park in Morrisburg, eastern Ontario. Each autumn, this genteel farmland setting is transformed into an incredible pumpkin-focused experience, the decorative gourds transforming the landscape into every possible tableau, from classic art, rock and roll bands, undersea adventures, and, well, dinos. If you’re looking for an autumn experience that combines creativity, community spirit, and a touch of whimsy, you need to head to Upper Canada Village’s Pumpkinferno. My October wouldn’t be complete without it.

Looking for a sweet spot to visit this autumn, one filled with cinnamon, cider, and cozy vibes? You have to visit to Chazy Orchards in Chazy, New York. Located just minutes from the city of Plattsburgh and a short drive from Montreal, this is more than just a tasty culinary destination. Chazy Orchards is part of American food history, the world's largest McIntosh apple orchard, and an amazing dog-friendly site that is Clover-approved. Just look how cute she is sniffing the apples!

As the owner of the world's oldest running cozy travel blog (I think!), no one has been more excited than me to welcome this summer's biggest trend: Demure.

What, exactly is demure? It would be easy to dismiss it as simply TikTok's trend of the month. Demure means being modest, mindful, and a little cutesy. Yes, this sounds pretty close to the classical definition of the word but for beauty influencer Jools Lebron, who put it into everyone's lexicon this month, demure is so much more. It's about being respectful but not trying too hard. It's about rejecting the messy world, subtly  protesting crassness and drama by sipping your drink with one perfectly groomed eyebrow arched. And I predict that this is going to be much more than a social media trend. I think it's going to be an ongoing lifestyle movement akin to the Danish hygge (homey coziness) phenomenal, because demure folks have been waiting SO long for their moment to come in a world of excess.

Demure and travel go hand in hand. Staying in your seat until the aircraft has come to a complete stop at the gate? Demure. Kindly greeting your seatmate? Demure. Putting on your headphones, sipping your drink, and ignoring your seatmate? Also demure. Demure travellers are always polite with airport staff, never put their bare feet on someone else's seat, and pack carefully considered snacks without being too fussy about it. 

I wanted to have some fun with the idea of demure travel and talk about the best travel-inspired demure nail polish shades. Now, do I really know all that much about nail polish? Nope. Am I secretly hoping to ascend the ranks of beauty influencer? Definitely not. But your girl knows travel and is demure to the core. 

I chose OPI polish because A.) It has so many wonderful travel-inspired collections and B.) It's basically the only brand I know. Like I said: travel, not beauty, is my wheelhouse. Plus, the brand is so popular I know it will be easy for most readers to find. So mindful of me! Enjoy.

​I can’t tell you when Labrador first hit my travel radar. 

This rugged, remote Canadian region, a part of the province of Newfoundland and Labrador but physically connected to north-east Quebec, is not a spot for a wimpy traveller like me. Distances are far, amenities can be sparse, and the mosquitoes will strip you bare in seconds. Yet the place they call The Big Land has been calling for me for years. Labrador has topped my travel wish list since the beginning of the pandemic. When I had the opportunity to visit as part of the annual Travel Media Association of Canada conference, I knew I had to go.

I dearly wanted to make Labrador’s acquaintance, but it’s doubtful that the region wanted the likes of me. I have no good reason to be enamoured with small Labrador fishing communities like Red Bay and Battle Harbour. My aversion to boats is both legendary and well-founded. Similarly, I can’t tell you why stories from events such as Cain’s Quest, Labrador’s legendary annual 3,100-kilometre snowmobile endurance race capture my heart. I dislike cold weather, sporty things, and noisy fanfare. Frankly, even the process of getting to Labrador is determinedly very non-Vanessa-ish. I like cold foam on coffee, not ferry decks, thank you very much. So, sure, the villages are cute, and the events are spirited, but this is clearly the kind of place I should appreciate through a documentary and not my own Gravol-addled brain. 

Thankfully, my heart is immune to common sense.

Maud Lewis was born Maud Dowley in 1903 in the southern Nova Scotia community of Yarmouth. By her death in 1970, she was recognized as a leading Canadian folk artist. Yet the woman who would become Nova Scotia’s treasure spent her life undervalued. If you love paintings by Maud Lewis, you will appreciate her talents even more after learning about her life and visiting the places in Nova Scotia that showcase her gifts.

In the most barren of circumstances, Maud created art – spectacular art. Her adulthood was a story of poverty, crippling and terrifying, and far from the romanticised austerity that sometimes creeps into her present-day narrative. Living with what we now recognize as degenerative juvenile rheumatoid arthritis, Maud bore constant pain. Married life in Digby brought a meagre house and a worse husband. Only a few neighbours offered comfort through hot meals, hot baths, and furtive visits. 

Defying her circumstances, she generated one of the most impressive yields of any artist. She painted shutters, baking pans, and scallop shells, along with nearly every surface of her diminutive house. She sold thousands of paintings depicting rural life, including oxen teams with gilded yokes and fluffy farm cats with wary eyes, often for just a dollar or two from her perch by the side of the road, a ploy devised by her husband to exploit sympathies and coax sales. 

Maud is often remembered as childlike with her petite stature and shy smile. But she was a gritty survivor, canny enough to turn her talents into a livelihood, carving a space for herself in an inhospitable world. 

I grew up in Nova Scotia, and I can’t remember a time when paintings by Maud Lewis weren’t a part of my life. As such, I’ve come to love these tourist attractions dedicated to her. Visiting them should be on any art lover’s travel list.

In the heart of London's colourful Neal's Yard neighbourhood, one cute and cozy cafe is serving up delicious coffee but there's something else on the menu: Second chances.

Neal Street Espresso (34 Neal Street) looks in many ways like a typical hip London coffee shop. Indeed, it is one. There is a robust menu of flat whites, mochas, and chai tea. You can grab your beverage with oat, almond, or soy milk and add a plump pastry or toasty hot sandwich on the side. The baristas are briskly efficient, foaming milk and taking orders without skipping a beat. In every way, they're just like any other cafe staff but there's a much deeper story here. Neal Street Espresso supports community members who have been part of the penal system and that starts with their staff.