There are no tickets left unless you beg, borrow or steal for the Miller Rock the Boat Cruise, EXCEPT now you have one last chance to WIN tickets for you and 3 mates!

Get to Billy the BUMS in Durban on Friday 27th November, buy a Miller and stand in line to win in the main prize draw that night…

What would you like to buy this Christmas – something arty, something trendy, or something that’s a bit of both? Or would you like to collect something offbeat, quaint, or outlandish? Or, to put it simply, would you like to buy something oh-so-different from the usual conventional stuff?

Just hit Glebe Point Road on November 15^th where will be held the annual Glebe Street Fair. Books and painting, art and jewellery, candles and toys, crafts and carvings, clothing and rugs, artefacts and curios  and a thousand other strange but interesting odds and ends will be on offer along with food and fun and a lot of entertainment, what with all the buskers and the clowns!

There will be no traffic plying the road from Broadway to Bridge Road but only shoppers hunting for that special thing that they have always wanted to buy but couldn’t find anywhere else! While the adults go crazy over the knickknacks on offer, the kids can freak out on the joy rides and the fun games!

Glebe Street Fair – the right place for just the right gifts for the right people!

Christmas festivities in Darling Harbour are absolutely fun, fascinating and free! The celebrations begin on November 28, Saturday. Darling Harbour will have the tallest Christmas tree in Sydney, standing magnificently tall at 21 metres.

The Family Christmas Concert will present all the popular Christmas songs, and Santa Claus’ arrival towards the finale of the concert will add to the festive fun! The lighting of the giant tree will be done by a child from Starlight Children’s Foundation during the concert. Christmas Carols by the Tree will feature the live performance of traditional carols by the city’s best a cappella groups. Spectacular fireworks over the Cockle Bay on the Christmas Eve would add magic to the splendour!

If you are thinking beyond the free entertainment of the season, Darling Harbour is ideal for its shopping and sightseeing opportunities. The place is famous for its shops that sell artefacts, semi-precious stones and other curios. The National Maritime Museum, the Power House Museum, the Sydney Aquarium and the Sydney Wildlife World are worth a visit any time of the year.

The Harbourside would be the best place to pleasantly while away your time with its cluster of shops and eating places in the setting of the harbour. Cruising around the harbour would be a better way to experience the harbour. A  showboat cruise with its total package of entertainment,  sightseeing and five-star dining experience would be your best bet for the ultimate harbour experience and total value for money!

After last night’s adventures, I have resigned to being holed up in my room for the next few weeks handling an enormous amount of papers, readings, and presentations to be completed before the end of November. Since I’m now in my 5th hour of readings for today, I’ve decided to take a brief pause to post some pictures from last night! After uploading photos, I noticed (sadly) that I didn’t have nearly as many as I would have liked… a rare occurrence for someone who takes pictures like it’s going out of style.

Rita & Alex kept with the theme for the most part, going as angels, but I did meet up with the Blues Brothers (aka Ronan & Aidan):

and had a run in with Kim Jong-il (aka Wen Fa):

Almost uncanny, right? For anyone who’s reading this and is super impressed with Wen’s locks of love: the hair cut is courtesy of one Ronan Conlan, hair designer extraordinaire! For a small fee, he can make you, too, look like “one of the most mysterious leaders in the world” (CNN).

The boat cruise was super fun, too, and lasted way longer than I had anticipated (left at 7.45 and docked at 11.30P). We got a little bit of sight-seeing in and enjoyed copious amounts of cider (speaking for myself, of course).

All in all, it was a fun way to spend Halloween and has definitely inspired some desire to host regular costume/themed parties! Dressing up is always way too much fun <3.

Side note: for anyone considering a boat cruise — definitely a cool way to do some sight-seeing. Highly recommended.

Hope everyone else’s Halloween was a blast,

Sooo… somehow it got to be the end of October, which is a tid bit incredulous to me. For some reason, I thought I had plenty of time to get my Halloween costume together, but it’s already here! So, after much deliberation and the scouring of numerous Halloween costume websites, I have decided to go as a pirate captain.

I have the costume and I have knee-high black boots and black pumps (depending on which end up feeling more appropriate), plus I’ve pulled out my makeup collection to pay homage to Jack Sparrow in Pirates of the Caribbean. I’m going to double-coat my sunless tanner tomorrow so I look a bit darker than normal + using loads of fun bronzer and highlighter to give it a more rugged appearance. I’m actually quite excited because there are a load of eyeshadows and pigments that I’ve owned for years and have wanted to use and they finally get to come out tomorrow!

I’m going to keep my lips pretty faint (almost unnaturally nude) and make my eyes super dark and pirate-y. I also brought out the fake lashes which may make an appearance tomorrow night, too!

As for accessories, I managed to get the sword that I needed (think 10 year-old play toy sword), but the hat wasn’t happening. The idea of the hat was great, but it was super cheap looking and didn’t fit the overall vibe/coolness factor of the costume. Instead, I’ve decide to try to do my hair to fit the costume. I was looking at this girl’s hair for some inspiration (ignore her alien-esque facial features):

I think her hair is kind of cool and works for the look that I’m going for, unfortunately I also think it takes some level of skill to make hair look that cool. I’m not sure how much skill I have on the hair front, so I may end up just putting it half up and teasing it a bit to give it mad volume.

All in all, really excited to get dressed up and even more excited to go on the Heaven & Hell Boat Cruise on the Thames!

What are you guys going as for Halloween?

]]> http://sydneyharbourevents.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/sydney-christmas-%e2%80%93-a-summer-christmas/ Thu, 22 Oct 2009 08:45:17 +0000 juliandavis http://sydneyharbourevents.wordpress.com/2009/10/22/sydney-christmas-%e2%80%93-a-summer-christmas/

Christmas in Sydney is in the summer season. Hence celebrations of Christmas in Sydney are slightly different from those of a white Christmas.

The Christmas decorations do not include holly and mistletoe. They are substituted by Christmas bush and Christmas bell which are two decorative native plants available during the summer season. Indeed the houses in Sydney, or rather in the whole of Australia, are not as heavily decked up as those in other countries where it is winter during Christmas, as people here enjoy the warm climate and hence are not as confined to indoors!

Christmas feasts in Sydney most often include seafood and very often exclude the turkey. And often they are outdoor feasts with steaks and prawns on the barbie and cold salads!

Nowhere else would you find Santa Claus pictured in swimmers or Santa riding on a surfboard or Santa water-skiing! Thanks to the weather, people love celebrating Christmas outdoors or even on the beaches. Cruising companies offer party cruises during Christmas time to celebrate the season.

Magistic Cruises offer Christmas lunch and dinner cruises with buffets inclusive of choice seafood varieties and exceptional wine. One can hire a private deck or even a whole boat! Sydney Showboats offer cruises with cabaret shows and live jazz bands. All these offers come with group discounts.

If you are in Sydney this Christmas season, celebrate it on a cruise. Enjoy the feast, the fun and the outdoors!

Are you one of those employers who are harried by the financial pressures and problems of recession and are having to resort to cutting expenses and trimming budgets? Then the time that you dread most is fast approaching – the time for Christmas and year-end parties.

Christmas is a time which employees in any organisation generally look forward to.  So what if the budget is down? It still pays to have an office Christmas Party. Meeting each other socially and forgetting personal grudges at least for the time being along with the general anticipation of a great New Year help to improve camaraderie and goodwill among the members of the organisation.

Sydney offers several venues to hold your Christmas Party, each with its own specialties and features. However, a Sydney Harbour cruise would be the best of venues, as it comes naturally with a package of spectacular views of the harbour and the excitement of a cruise.

The luxury and comfort of the Magistic Lunch and Dinner as well as Extended Lunch Cruises and the live entertainment provided on the Sydney Showboats like cabaret shows and jazz bands are guaranteed to make your function unique. And the group discounts offered for all their cruise options, with bigger groups earning higher discounts, you can not only have the proverbial cake but eat it too with the icing and all!

Day 9 and 10: Paihia, Bay of Islands and Cape Reinga

After leaving Auckland for the second time, we head north for the town of Paihia.  We have ourselves booked in for 2 nights, but after seeing all there is to do here, you could easily stay 3 or 4 nights.

Paihia is backpacker heaven, there a dozen backpacker establishments all located next door to one another on Kings road which is just a stone’s throw from the beach.  A word to the wise, if you are planning on cooking while you are here, pick up groceries ahead of time, there are a few small grocery stores in town, but it is more expensive than other places.

Fuller's Boat Cruise

On our first day, since we have arrived around noon, we decide to do the half day boat cruise around the Bay of Islands.  A boat cruise of some sort is a must do in this town, and there are lots to choose from.  Be sure to check out who has the best deal going since it can be a bit pricey. After trying some hokey pokey ice cream, the Australian favourite flavor, we head out on the Fullers half day boat cruise.  The swells are quite high out on the water today and a few passengers are seasick.  Unfortunately for us, since the water is so rough, it means we can’t venture out to the Hole in the Rock, out on the cape, so we buy the postcard instead.  We cruise around all the islands, stopping to see a house where Queen Elizabeth stayed when visiting New Zealand several years ago.

Dolphins!

On our way back, we come across 2 different pods of dolphins, my first time seeing dolphins out in the open ocean.  They follow our boat along for a while and we take a few hundred shots and live video feed.  Heading back to mainland, we walk around this small little town for a while.  There is basically one small strip and a few side streets that comprise the town, but you could see how it would be a great party place in the summer.  We venture out tonight down to Pipi’s bar which is down at the X base backpackers next door.  Have a few drinks and meet some folks who are signed up for our bus tour tomorrow to 90 mile beach and Cape Reigna, off to bed early since we need to catch our bus at 7 am!

Our last day – and what a day it is! We catch our bus in the early morning and we are off to the most northern part of New Zealand, Cape Reinga.  You can do this drive yourself, however it is long (8 hours driving round trip, no stopping), and you have to be familiar with the tides on 90 mile beach, so I would highly recommend doing a bus tour. Along the way there is 90 mile beach and several others to take in.  As it turns out, Spike, who we met in New Plymouth is our bus driver for the day! What a bonus!

One Big Tree!

First on the list – Manginangina National Park. Here we take a 45 minute walk around a boardwalk to see the biggest trees I have ever laid eyes on.  The Maori tribes would use just one of these great big trees to carve giant canoes out of that could hold over 100 people!  Next on the adventure – New Zealand’s, “best” bakery – somehow I think Spike is getting hooked up here, but I did have the best donut in the world – a very dougy cinnamon sugar donut, Andrew and I had to resist going back for seconds.

Now the real fun begins, 90 mile beach at low tide is considered a road – meaning you can zip along at 100 km/hr, but I wouldn’t recommend it for a small car.  As we drive along the beach, the most amazing thing is that there is no one and nothing else for miles.  It is a stunning site to see so much beach and so much uninterrupted coast line. As we drive past, we see a pack of wild horses running along the beach – it’s like a site out of a movie!

Jumping for Joy on 90 Mile Beach

Finally we stop just passed a small island which provides some variety to the background in the photos.  We fun and frolic on the beach, jumping in the crashing waves and writing our names in the sand.  I scoop up a bunch of sand here to add to my world sand collection back home.

90 mile beach is surrounded by massive sand dunes, and what better to do with all that sand then to go sand boarding! Out from under the bus appears sand boards for everyone, and we all race to the top of the hill to be the first to go down.  I am the first girl and 3^rd person to make it to the top from our bus group, I feel good about this.  Sand boarding is like tobogganing but a bit scarier, and messier.  Wear sunglasses for this as you will get sand blowing up in your face.  It is an amazing rush boarding down the sand dunes, an experience not to be forgotten.

Since we are all covered in sand, a stop at another beach to rinse it off and have some lunch at Tapotupotu Bay. This one is off the beaten track a bit but worth a stop.  Huge waves crash onto this small bay, making it a bit too dangerous for boogie boarding, but good enough to wade in and rinse off the sand.  A picnic on the beach to take in the sites here is a must.

Touching the Lighthouse

Half an hour later we pack up and head to our final attraction of the day – Cape Reinga.  This place is very important to the Maori people, it is sacred land, and it is asked that you respect this by not eating or drinking on the land. As you head through the underpass and onto the walkway you can really feel the spirituality of this place. Here the Pacific Ocean meets the Tasman Sea.

There are signs along the walk that point out the places of reference in Maori culture.

Endless Sea

As you make your way down to the lighthouse, you will be surrounded by views of the ocean and sea on both sides.  There is a view here like no other in New Zealand.  At the lighthouse there is a pole with a number of signs telling the distance to various world cities – Vancouver makes the cut at 11,000 km away. A few more minutes of soaking in the view here and back on the bus to Paihia for tonight.

I can’t believe it is our last night in New Zealand.  Even though it was quick, I really think we made the most of the time we had.  There is always more to see, but I feel like we had a good run at it.  Off to Australia tomorrow!

Auckland Harbour Front

Day 1:

We arrive! After almost 19 hours in the air, we finally land at the Auckland aiport at 5:15 am on Sunday Sept 6th (we have skipped Sept 5th entirely because we passed the international date line).

We arrive at the apartment/hotel that we have rented for our first two nights, Quest on Nelson St. I would definitely recommend this place – the rooms are mini-aparments complete with a full kitchen, pots and pans, and in suite laundry and for relatively cheap.  It was great to have some of the comforts of home on the first few days.

We headed out into the city, looking for a coffee shop that would be open at 7am on a Sunday morning.  Esquires coffee has vouchers for free wi-fi which let us send a note home to our family and friends to let them know we had gotten to NZ safely.  We walked along Quay st by the water and decided to take the ferry to Waiheke island for the day.  I would recommend the Fuller’s Explorer tour - for $48 you get the round trip ferry ticket, a 1.5 hour tour of the island, and an all day bus pass as well.

Waiheke Island

The tour is a great way to see the island which would be hard to navigate on your own – lots of small windy streets.  Views here are spectactular – the island has lots of bays and sandy shoreline.  Wine tours are popular here as well.  We stopped at Gold Water Estate and sampled a few of their wines – only $3 for a tasting of 4 wines.

After we get back to Auckland, we decide to take advantage of our full kitchen and buy some groceries.  Shortly after dinner the time change catches up with us – both of us our lights out by 9 pm.

Day 2:

View from Sky Tower

An early start to the day (since we did hit the hay really early!) at 7:30 am.  Decide to start things off at the Sky Tower – this is a must do in Auckland.  It is the tallest building in the southern hemisphere – even taller than the Eiffel Tower! However, I really think they should judge where the observation deck is  - more of a true measurement of the views you get to see.  Either way – the views are great – you definitly want to do this on a clear sunny day.

Inside Auckland Museum

Next,we jump on the Link bus to the Auckland Museum, about a 10 minute bus ride out of the downtown and only $5 entry fee.  (The Explorer Bus tour is over priced for what you get – it is much cheaper to take the city bus and/or walk to places).  You want to budget at least 3 hours for the museum as there is a lot to see – first floor is the Maori/New Zealand culture and history.  Second floor is all about volcanoes, and then the exhibits on Earth, Land and Sea creatures – as well as a few dinosaurs thrown in for good measure! (my personal favourite).  3rd floor is a memory to WWI and WWII and the New Zealanders that contributed to those efforts.  Definitely eat before you head in as there is no food/drink allowed in the museum – we almost didn’t make it through the 3rd floor we were so hungry!

View from Mount Eden

Next we walked from the Museum to Mount Edan – the highest land point in Auckland.  It is about a 30 minute walk from the Museum.  Great views here as well, a must see in Auckland (and its free so hey why not?).  Took a bus back into the city to grab some food for dinner.  A word to the budget conscious – food and drink are much more expensive in Auckland than Canada. Ex.  Starbucks tea (my drink of choice) in Canada – $1.65 in Auckland – $3.10.  Haven’t been able to find coffee or tea anywhere for under $3. We hit up a food court at the mall for a hearty meal under $10pp.

Next – we head out to find free wi-fi – and we hit up the public library, always a good place for free internet.

Tonight – probabaly a low key night again, we might try our luck at the Sky Tower casino to see if we can get any winnings for our trip! Wish us luck!

Stay posted for updates from Roturo and Taupo.

Fall Colors

We are starting to see a tinge of yellow hit our trees lately, a sign of autumn is soon upon us. Come and take in the beauty of the fall colors by boat or car. We have one million acres of Lake of the Woods and over six hundred thousand acres of forest to explore. Lake of the Woods is a perfect place to spend a weekend away.

Ladies & Gents come aboard the first ever “OVERBOARD BOAT PARTY”!

Your chance to really rock the boat with some of Brisbane’s freshest DJ’s.

Featuring: Danny T, Dope N Dusted, Luki, Finga jigg, Ashley Dionysius, Bart Banda, Musik1 aka Buré and Radaza…

Details

When: Saturday, 22nd August 2009
Time: 11.30am (Anchors up, so get there slightly earlier)
Where: Eagle St Pier, Brisbane River QLD
Tickets $50 each.  Contact: Ashley – 0418 742 249 or overboardbp@live.com.au
Finger Food on board.

LIMITED TICKETS AVAILABLE, 18+ Event – I.D required on entry.

On Saturday, July 25th, 2009 Lefty Productions and The Saint John Marina present some of the Maritime’s best musical talent together to rock the docks!!!

We kick off this party with a sunset boat cruise option on the Voyageur Riverboat, leaving at 7pm from the Indiantown Wharf right in the heart of old Saint John. There is also the option to get on board at the Saint John Marina at 6:30pm. The entertainment while cruising the beautiful Saint John River for 3 hours will be the toe tapping booty shakin sounds of Owen Steel with his percussionist Mike Humble and Scott Culligan on the upright base!! River music for sure!! There will also be some of our talented friends jumping in to jam out some faves.

Then the big boat Voyageur will dock at the Saint John Marina just in time for some BBQ from Reservoir Dogz before NB’s ”The Ideal Gas Law” take the stage to get the night groooovin!

Keith Hallett with his Trio are finishing up the night with their hard hitting style of Blues/Rock that has just taken them to both the Festival International du Jazz de Montreal and the Cisco Ottawa Bluesfest!!

Boat cruise and show tickets: $30
Show tickets: $12/$15 door

Boat cruise/ show combo tickets are limited to 100 people and are available at the Saint John Marina or directly from:
Marc Doucet at marc@sunseekerfestival.ca

The boat tickets sold out fast last time, so pls contact ASAP if you are gettin on board!!

Show Tickets available at Mr Music and Backstreet Records in Saint John, and at the Saint John Marina. If you live outside of Greater Saint John, email Marc Doucet (marc@sunseekerfestival.ca) 

This is a rain or shine event.

***********************************************
Owen Steel et al.
http://www.myspace.com/owensteel

We are Radio (formerly Lemonisco)
http://www.myspace.com/lemonisco

The Ideal Gas Law
www.myspace.com/gaslaw

Keith Hallett Trio
http://www.myspace.com/keithhallett
keithhallett.com/
***********************************************
www.leftyproductions.ca
www.sunseekerfestival.ca

The U.S. Explorer checks out Oprah’s hometown of Chicago!

The Westcoast Blogger

(Wow, I didn’t notice that pun in the title there until I’d already written it. I’m just going to let it slide.)

I’m actually in Bulgaria right now, but I have to catch up on some Turkey events, so the next few blogs are going to cover the rest of Turkey. We’ll start things off with the amazing four-day boat cruise that Lindsay and I took from Fethiye to Olympos. We stopped off at some beaches and small towns along the way: Butterfly Valley; St. Nicholas Island, where it is said that the one and only Santa Claus was born and raised (bit of a hot climate for him, but whatever); the small fishing village-turned-tourist-trap of Kas; the sunken city of Kekova; the beautiful village of Simena, where we whiled away an hour taking funny photos at the castle on the top of the hill; and an interesting pirate bar called Smuggler’s Cove, which was (rather fittingly) only accessible by boat.

But I don’t have the time or energy to write in depth about all of that, so instead, I’ll leave you with:

The Daily Rhythm of Life on a Turkish Boat Cruise

early a.m.
- Boat’s engines turn on, people wake up, possible morning swim.

Breakfast
- Hard-boiled eggs, cucumber, tomato, cheeses, fresh white bread, watermelon, tea.

late morning 
- Possible swim before boat starts moving.
- Suntan and chat
- Boat moves to next destination, so take in beautiful scenery along the way.

Lunch
- More tomato, cucumber, cheeses, and white bread. Other tasty lunch-type foods as well.
- Beer also a possibility.

early afternoon
- Beer?
- swim?
- check out whatever destination boat is at, whether a beach or village.

late afternoon
- Get back on boat after checking out said beach or village
- Beer?
- Swim?
- Suntan and chat while boat moves to next destination, where it will anchor for the night.

early evening
- Boat anchors
- This is a good time for a swim. Basically, any time the boat is not moving, and you’re still on the boat, is a good time for a swim.
- After swimming, also a good time for a beer, suntan, and chat with other travellers.

Dinner
- Always very delicious.

evening
- Lots of talk, card-games, backgammon, and possibly beer.

late evening
- Grab a blanket, some bug spray, and a place on the deck, where you’ll fall asleep with only the stars and your boat mates to keep you company.

Essentially, what I’m trying to get across with this very concise summary of my Turkish boat cruise experience is that Turkish boat cruises are amazing and you should all go on one.

On to the next Turkey blog post!

EXTREMELY LATE…  I do apologise.  In any case, what’s left of this week’s stellar line-up!

• KV Players “High School Musical” Auditions (Monday 22nd, KVHS, 7pm – FREE)
• XOCAI Healthy Chocolate Tasting (Wednesday 24th, 165 Union St.-3rd Floor-above Saigon Noodle, 7pm -FREE)
• Saint John Idol VII Kick-off (Wednesday 24th, Market Square Boardwalk, 8pm – FREE) 
• Moose Light Lime “Sneak Peek” (Wednesday 24th, O’Leary’s Pub, 9pm – FREE BEER!)
• Open Mic with Brent Mason (Wednesday 24th, O’Leary’s Pub)
• Bean Books Thursday Night Book Club (Thursday 25th, Bean Books on Germain St., 5:30-7pm – FREE)
• Shaydid (Thursday 25th-Saturday 27th, O’Leary’s Pub)
• Country Star Kick-off (Thursday 25th, Market Square Boardwalk, 8pm – FREE)
• FUSION Party with a Purpose (Friday 26th, A Khord, 5:30-7pm – FREE)
• Moose Light Lime Kick-off!  400 FREE BEER being given away (Friday 26th, Market Square Boardwalk restaurants, 6-9pm)
• Boat Cruise and Show (Friday 26th, Indiantown Warf – Main Street North, 6pm – Information: marc@sunseekerfestival.ca)
• “The tongue is the rudder of our ship” (Friday 26th, Infusion Tea Room for Third Space Gallery, 7-9pm -
• Walk for Muscular Dystrophy (Saturday 27th, Market Square Boardwalk, 1pm – Fundraiser)
• Tanners Home Inn Walk-a-Block (Saturday 27th, Tanners Home Inn – 190 King St. E., 11am – $20)
• “BE-LOVED” www.lifemusic8.com (Saturday 27th, Saint John Arts Centre, 7pm – $10-$15) 
• DANCE (Saturday 27th, Chinese Commerce Centre- 24 Coburg St, 8:30pm-12:30am – $5) 
• Solid Sessions ft. Freedom Danish, Harmsworth & [sic]adelic (Saturday 27th, A Khord – Water St., 7pm)

It’s been interesting lately to hear about local companies and brands promoting their releases and events by taking out their customers on an off coast boat adventure. Recently, Johnny Cupcakes announced that an elegant boat buffet will take place on July 26th, 2009 for those who purchase a limited tee (pictured below). The price of the limited edition tee and exclusive event package runs for $100.00 usd.
ALL-AGES
Spirit of Boston boards on Sunday, July 26th @ 5:30
Pre-sale for tee and tickets are only until July 11th
Holy Ship limited tee + cruise ticket = $100.00 usd.
For more details, here.

Tomorrow (June 20th) another event going down on the shores of Boston is Cambridge, MA based Concepts, who is celebrating the release of the Blue Lobster SB Dunks after last years success of the original Nike SB “Lobster” Dunks.
“Priced at $250.00 usd, the actual Blue Lobster sneaker will be bagged, tagged and sealed in a HAZMAT foam container. Each pair will be joined by an official Nike SB tee shirt, hang tag and lace lock. The first 200 pairs will come with 1 of 2 Concepts x Alien Workshop skate decks” via cncpts blog.
Following the in-store launch, Concepts will host an afterparty on the MV Freedom (@Boston Wharf) while featuring special guests and performances by an array of artists such as DJ Statik Selektah, Termanology and Masspike Miles.
21+
MV Freedom boards on Saturday, June 20th @ 8:00
cruise ticket = $30.00 usd.
For more details, here.

image via Concepts blog

I’m sorry. I’m usually not sentimental or mushy like this. I’m usually not at a loss for words or moved to write things like what appears below. Wednesday night however was different. We took a boat cruise down the Seine at dusk and it was one of the most amazing things I have ever seen. For an hour I felt like I was raptured to a different world. I finally saw Paris in its full glory. I finally learned to love Paris and its charm and beauty. The boat cruise inspired me and moved me in a way very few things can. I won’t waste too much effort trying to describe it with words so I’ll post pictures as soon as possible. Personally,I think its an experience everyone who visits Paris needs to have.

Our boat left at 9:40, the perfect time for this time of year because the sun was just about to set. We sat the sun set behind Notre Dame, the Eiffel Tower light show, and all of Paris’s other landmarks at night. We were on the starboard side so we got the best view of everything. There was cheesy French music playing (think French Celine Dion) and a tour guide who spoke accented English and Spanish in addition to French, but all that seemed to fit right into the atmosphere of the evening. It got a little nippy and windy as the cruise went on, but with a jacket that seemed to fit right into the romantic image of cruising on a ship at night. Parisian beauty is real. Unlike some cities which look nice in photographs and movies, Paris is unique in that it is the real thing. When you’re here, you feel like you are walking through a postcard. It’s really that beautiful.