Growing up in a hockey family in the suburbs of Washington DC, I had no choice but to be a Washington Capitals fan. I've worn jerseys, gone to games and watched the Caps on TV for my entire life. No Christmas in my family is complete without gifting some Caps gear.

So when my brother came up with the idea to follow the team during their multi-game run in Canada, I was definitely in. This was a different travel theme than I'm used to, but I liked the idea of doing something out of the ordinary .

There were three games over four days in Vancouver, Edmonton and Calgary, but we extended the trip to seven days (including travel days) in order to fit in some tourism.



Day 1: Fly to Vancouver

I worked a full day in Washington, D.C. and left in the early evening to fly to Vancouver. My dad and brother had flown in earlier that day and I met them at our Air BnB in the Fairview neighborhood downtown. We were very happy with our spacious Air Bnb and its central location near the hockey arena.


Day 2: Stanley Park & Caps vs. Canucks

We spent the day wandering the city and walking many miles around Stanley Park. We followed along the seawall to the Lion's Gate Bridge and then strolled around Beaver Lake (its more of a marsh and definitely not a must-see). At this time in October, the leaves were changing and the park was beautiful.

Fall foliage in Stanley Park, Vancouver

Stanley Park, Vancouver, Canada

That evening, the Caps played the Vancouver Canucks at Rogers Place. They didn't play their best game and suffered a bad loss (6-2.. ouch!), but it didn't ruin our night. We were happy to watch hockey in a new location with some surprisingly pleasant (and a few very drunk) fans.

Washington Capitals at Rogers Arena

Caps fans in Vancouver!

Day 3: Granville Island & Sea Plane Tour

With no hockey game, we had the full day to see Vancouver. We spent the morning at Granville Island Market and stayed for lunch. We did a little shopping and bought some souvenir chocolates to bring home to my mom. I highly recommend grabbing lunch at the market. There is something for everyone. I got a Montreal-style spinach bagel from Siegel's Bagels. So good and unlike any other bagel I've had!

For the afternoon, we booked a seaplane tour with Seair Seaplanes. Both my dad and brother have pilot experience but had never been in a seaplane. On my first visit to Vancouver the previous year, I flew in on a seaplane from Victoria and loved it.

We chose the 30-minute Vancouver City Skyline Tour in a six-seater Dehavilland Beaver. The benefit of flying with Seair instead of HarborAir is they fly small propeller planes (but maybe not a benefit if you have a fear of flying). The tour gave great views of the North Shore Mountains and circled us over Stanley Park, Howe Sound, and downtown. We even flew right over Rogers Arena where we had watched the game the previous night.

Seaplane views of Light House Park and Howe Sound in West Vancouver

View of Lion's Gate Bridge from the seaplane

Seaplane View of Downtown Vancouver and BC Place

After the flight, we stopped at Cartem's Doughnuts for a treat. If you go, get the honey parmesan doughnut. It sounds weird, but it's delicious! Trust me.

Cartem's Doughnuts in Vancouver

Day 4: Edmonton & Caps vs. Oilers

This morning, we flew Air Canada from Vancouver to Edmonton and checked in to The Westin Edmonton. It was a cold, grey day with snow flurries in the air and to be honest, the city wasn't very impressive. Very few people were seen in town and many restaurants were closed. We joked about calling it "Deadmonton" and found out later that the locals sometimes use that nickname too.

That evening, we grabbed dinner at Craft Beer Market before the game. Caps played the Oilers at the new Rogers Place. Although Edmonton seemed deserted that day, the arena was packed at night. The people in Alberta sure love their hockey! Luckily, the lines to enter the area were inside so we didn't have to wait in the cold (unlike DC).

The Capitals came from behind to win 5-2 and the Edmonton fans were a lot of fun. We even met quite a few Canadian Ovechkin fans that drove in to see him play.

If you're a hockey fan, you might know about the 50/50 raffles at the games. Well, this night the total jackpot was over $165,000! That's over ten times more than the average at Caps games. And unfortunately, I didn't win but at least the Caps did!

Washington Capitals at Rogers Place in Edmonton

Wayne Gretzky Statue in Edmonton

Day 5: Calgary & Caps vs. Flames

We picked up a rental car in Edmonton and got on the road to Calgary for another game that night. On the road, we stopped for breakfast at Tim Hortons because, you know, Canada.

The Caps took a bite out of the Oilers in Edmonton, so I did too.

The drive from Edmonton to Calgary was pretty easy and took less than three hours. When we arrived in Calgary, we checked into the Fairfield Inn & Suites Downtown. It was another dreary day, so we relaxed a bit before dinner at Brown's Social House.

Caps played the Flames that night at the Scotiabank Saddledome. This area definitely showed its age and had an odd layout, but the game was probably the most fun (aside from the loss). It felt a little bit like a semi-pro game in the best way. The songs were fun, the crowd was happy and the Flames Ice Crew even passed out Halloween candy in the stands. Although it was a good time, the Caps gave up the game in the third period and we lost 2-1.

Capitals at the Scotiabank Saddledome

Day 6: Banff

While I love watching hockey, this day was my favorite of the trip! We left Calgary in the morning and drove west to Banff National Park. October in Banff is the off-season for tourists, but the bad part of this was that some roads and access points were closed.

We first drove to the beautiful Lake Louise. The lake and mountain view was incredible. If it wasn't so cold, I could've stayed there for hours. If you haven't been, add Lake Louise to your list of places to see someday!

Lake Louise in Alberta, Canada

We stopped at the Lake Louise Visitors Centers to read more about the area and pick up a map and our free park pass. Then, we hopped on the Icefields Parkway. Every direction you look, you're surrounded by gorgeous snowcapped mountains. I had definitely found my happy place in Banff National Park. We drove along the parkway stopping at almost every lookout point. While we didn't have time for longer hikes (and weren't properly dressed for the freezing temps), we made the most of our visit. And I promised myself that I'd be back for more hiking someday!

The London Eye

Visiting the United Kingdom and Ireland is a very accessible trip from my home in Arlington, Virginia. A 7-hour direct flight to an English-speaking nation seems easy and comfortable, but yet I had never been to this part of Europe. Two friends and I decided to go, but it was difficult choosing which areas we wanted to spend our time in. In the end, we chose to get a small taste of three different countries and four cities, whichever we like best, we'll have to plan a visit to go back!

San Francisco is a city that had been on my list for a long time, but I never had the right opportunity to visit. That is until a friend asked me to tag along with her to a wedding. On my first visit, I quickly learned that San Fransisco is larger than I imagined with many diverse neighborhoods and a lot to see, do, and eat (of course)!

Read on for some of my favorite activities in this weekend guide to San Francisco!

Catch the Best Views of the Golden Gate Bridge

The Golden Gate Bridge is the must-see iconic landmark of San Francisco. The best views come from the Marin Headlands in Sausalito. You can catch an uber across the bridge or rent a bike. Once in Sausalito, we hiked down to Kirby Cove to play on the beach and catch great views of the bridge and the bay.

To get to Kirby Cove, you can start at Battery Spencer. With Battery Spencer on your left, walk shortly past it looking for a sign with directions to Kirby Cove. It's about a mile walk downhill.

Enjoy the Colorful Mission District

With so much to see and eat in the Mission District, it's hard to tackle it all on your own. Booking an Avital Food Tour was the best idea. By taking the food tour, we were able to sample a few things from some of the best restaurants while also learning some of the neighborhood history. My favorites from the tour were the pork belly breakfast taco at West of Pecos and salted caramel ice cream from Bi-Rite Creamery.

I also enjoyed seeing Mission Street's famous street art and perusing the aisles of Bi-Rite Market after admiring the fresh bouquets out front. I highly reccomend making a stop at Mission Dolores Park to relax in the sunshine if you have time.

Visit the Must-See Sights

There are so many landmarks to see in San Fransisco that it's hard to hit them all in one weekend. On the way to the Marin Headlands, our Lyft driver made a quick stop at the famous Lombard Street: the “Crookedest Street in the World." We drove down it and then walked around at the bottom. You don't need to spend much time here, but it's definitely something to see.



San Fran is filled with beautiful Victorian houses. I loved wandering the streets and imagining who the people are who live in these homes. A must-visit is Alamo Square Park to see the Painted Ladies on Steiner Street. Walking further down Steiner Street you'll also find more Victorians as well as the house from Mrs. Doubtfire.
The 16th Avenue Tiled Steps are a community project in the San Francisco's Golden Gate Heights Neighborhood. The colorfully tiled steps are a fun stop to visit after grabbing at latte a Home Cafe (mentioned above). You can climb the 163 steps to Grandview Park for a nice view of the city.

Treat Yourself in Little Italy

Everyone mentions San Fran's Chinatown, the largest Chinatown outside of Asia, but Little Italy sits beside it and is also worth a visit. For dinner, try Sotto Mare for great Italian-style seafood. Order the sand dabs as an appetizer.

After dinner, treat yourself to a cappuccino and biscotti or gelato at one of the many nearby cafes. Cafe Grecco or Stella's.

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