2009

We started the year off with a trip to the ostentatious city of Dubai.  After a brief stopover in Amsterdam, we landed in the United Arab Emirates.  There we enjoyed desert safaris, skiing indoors, great food, and we got engaged!  We also made our way to Luxor, Egypt to see ancient ruins and pharohs' tombs.

Our winter was spent mainly hibernating from the cold - we began thinking of the wedding and planning our getaway. It was the 5 year anniversary of the day we started dating in May and we celebrated with sushi at Wasabi Sabi. In June, we started this blog as a way to document our travels.

During the summer we started the process of selling our house ourselves.  We still made time to explore our hometown (before we left for good) and for lots of evening bike rides.

The arrival of fall brought 3 milestones: selling our house, starting our trip, and best of all, getting married in Los Angeles.

We packed our storage unit  and drove away from Winnipeg just before Hallowe'en.  Chicago was the first stop on our voyage, and didn't disappoint.  We continued on to Toronto where we got rid of our car and visited family. 

Mina had to have an unexpected surgery, which delayed our departure for a few weeks, but it gave us a chance to pick up some final supplies and equipment.  As soon as she was feeling better we hopped on a plane to Mexico City.

We tore ourselves away from Mexico City after a fulfilling week of sightseeing and amazing cuisine, and bused down to Oaxaca in time to catch Las Posadas celebrations.

We made our way to Lake Atitlan, Guatemala.  The trip took us through the cities of Tapachula, Guatemala City, Antigua, and Panajachel and required a few different modes of transport over a few days.  We were relieved to finally relax and enjoy a nice Christmas together overlooking the lake.

We ended the year off by climbing a volcano and then heading to San Salvador for New Years Eve.

Happy New Year! We hope you have a wonderful 2010.