The focus of this blog is to share experiences and stories about travel. The prep for, the actual travel, the recover from, and the documenting of it too!  Attempts at humour will be made  – no guarantees my dry, pun loving, funny bone will tickle yours though. I will try and give you tips and practical information so you can plan your own travel. The focus will be on what I learned from my experiences, research about other traveling adventures, and of course family and friend advice too.

I love travel, love to laugh, think every day is an adventure, and so hopefully that combination and good intentions will make this blog something you would want to check out – and maybe tell a few peeps about.

Brande @ Eagle Barge Pub, Invergarry, Scotland – walking the Great Glen Way with my sister!

Here is a bit about me (Brande, usually just called B) …

Married living in Vancouver, loving my provincial government job in the area of health operations, and always always always planning my next travel destination. I love this big crazy world and plan on seeing as many corners off it as I can.

I love to hike (albeit slow like a turtle), I love to scrapbook (check out http://www.scrapstorian.wordpress.com), I love write and I love to read. I work full time, and go to University part time and some where in there sometimes cook, keep a clean house, and shower my hubby with love.

I am blessed beyond belief and have the pleasure of coming from a massive, family that I absolutely adore and is likely the reason I like travel with a little chaos, noise, good laughs, and real exposure to different things.

“Cheers, and welcome to our blog!”

I am very lucky and often do not have to travel alone. My husband, family and friends are just crazy enough to subject them selves to my travel antics. As part of travelling with me I hope they too will contribute to this Running for the Gate blog. I wouldn’t want you getting sick of me and most of my friends and family are much funnier than I can be.

As my friends and family add posts, I will include them here with an intro:

Here is a bit about Lana …

On the train from Dublin to Drogheda on one of our first adventures.

At the moment I am living and loving working in the booming metropolis of Edmonton. My nursing career has allowed me to take two very different directions -simultaneously-in the massive realm of healthcare. A high-acuity surgical unit gives me the fast-paced, results-driven, outcome-based environment that I crave, while catering to marginalized population groups in an inner city clinic satisfies my desire to effectively serve those in need. I am fascinated by the human condition although I don’t always enjoy humans!

I’m a self-proclaimed hermit who loves to read and write… But don’t kid yourself, I can’t pass up a good laugh and a pint at the local pub! I love history, culture, language, food, adventure, and travel (Not necessarily in that order!), which is why I’m so excited to be a part of this journey. My mom and sister are my biggest fans and have supported me in all things since I caught the travel bug and started roaming the world at 25. I’ve adopted the philosophy that everyone has something to offer and the biggest lesson I have learned is that people are people, the world over. We are broken and blessed, bizarre and beautiful, but we’re all human. There is something to learn each and every day and there is always, always, always, something to be thankful for…