Merida - Our New Favourite Place!

After staying in Cancun, Isla Mujeres, Tulum, and Valladolid we arrived in Merida. We have seen so much so far and it has only been ´uno semana´! This city is bustling with culture. We arrived on Sunday and got a great room overlooking the Grand Plaza. The Hostel Zocala is a beautiful building with 12 foot ceilings and beautiful arches. Every weekend there is a festival in the Plaza and we caught the last day. We ate 60 cent tacos that tasted great and by the end of the night everyone was literally dancing in the streets! (Did I mention that this happens every week!)

This morning we found our way (with some difficulty and a lot of walking!) to Cuzama, a small town outside of Merida. There we took a horse and buggy ride to 3 cenotes. All the rivers in the Yucatan run underground and small pools are created when the ground collapses over them. These pools are called cenotes, and they are ¨muy bonita¨! We were basically swimmimg and diving in caves filled with the clearest water we have ever seen! Thank goodness for the man who lent us his goggles for awhile...

(pictures to come soon... our camera died)

Miguel and Mirinda

Hola from Mexico!

Our luxurious honeymoon is over! We stayed in a beautiful, all-inclusive resort in Cancun for the last 4 nights. We enjoyed our Pina Coladas and Sex on the Beach as well as the nightlife... Spring Break 2008 wooohoo!

Today we left the resort and went to Isla Mujeres (Woman Island) to swim with the dolphins! Our dolphin, Nala, was incredible, giving us kisses, handshakes and rides around the ocean! Our standards for accomodation have dropped drastically, as we are now at a dorm style hostel in seperate beds that costs $10 a night. It is a little overwhelming for both of us, but we have eachother and are excited to begin our travels!

Matt gave me a book to read that was apparently the Hippie Bible, called Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenace. I really enjoyed this quote and hope to live by it:

"Plans are deliberately indefinate, more to travel than to arrive anywhere..... We want to make good time, but for us now this is measured with emphasis on "good" rather than "time" and when you make that shift in emphasis the whole aprroach changes."

Buenos Noches!

Miguel & Mirinda

Our International Shower!

Just a few pictures of the Donald family shower! Thanks to Mom and Uncle Paul for putting it all together and making it such a memorable day! A big thanks to everyone who came and contributed all that delicious food from around the globe! What a fantastic idea!

Parties, parties, parties!!

Well, Mike and I have officially finished our jobs and are now in full Wedding/Trip Planning mode. Every weekend from here until the big day is booked with parties, parties and more parties. (Not the worst existence in the world, I know.) Two parties have already taken place, and I've included a little slideshow of some shots my sister Jen took.
The first party was on January 27th and was given by Brenda Hodgson, one of my mom's fabulous friends! She had it at her beautiful lakefront home in Ajax. We had a really great time there and were so overwhelmed with how much love and support we felt from everyone there. The highlight for me would have to be the speech my dad gave and the songs he and my sister sang for us! Thank you Dad and Jenn for doing so much work! It means the world!
The second party was on February 2nd and it was the joint Jack and Jill we had with our friends Rachel and Dylan! We held it at The Rhino on Queen West in Toronto. This was a great night with games, raffles and....well, frankly, really cheap drinks! So many people helped out with this party but I'll have to thank Laura and Matt for coming up with some awesome Nearly-Wed games and questions! I still can't believe that Rachel and Dylan beat us but I'm convinced that it's because Mike and I know each other TOO well. That's my story and I'm sticking to it!

February is Exciting

Things are moving along really fast now! Miranda and I both resigned from our jobs and are officially done working on Feb 1. We are excited to have a month to organize the wedding, get ready for the trip, and see our family and friends! Rachel and Dylan are getting married on Feb. 16th, so we decided to throw a joint Jack and Jill on the 2nd. We also have 3 showers coming up, bachelor and bachelorette parties, and Rachel and Dylan's wedding! So many celebrations!



We are getting very excited for our big day. We both love the way we are doing it and everything has worked out so easily. We are also thrilled about our upcoming trip! Soon we will be able to kick back on that dock...

South Carolina

Just after Christmas, the Donald family headed to Hilton Head, South Carolina for a weeks vacation. It was great to get away and relax. We enjoyed shopping, golfing, riding bikes on the beach and spending time together. While we were there, Jill took some engagement photos of Miranda and I. We love them! It may look warm... but it was not at all. Those pictures in the water were freezing, our feet went numb!

Jill has started a photography business, and we think she is amazing. If you would like her to take photos of you (wedding, engagement, maternity, family, etc...), please go see her website, see her other work, and let her know!

http://jilliandonaldphotography.blogspot.com/

Wedding Plans

I think Mike and I need to get much better at keeping this blog updated. It has been months since our last entry and so much has happened since then!
Our wedding plans are coming along very well and we are now currently one and a half months from the big day!
Above are pictures of the ceremony and reception venues. Allan Gardens’ greenhouse is the perfect place for us to get married. It is absolutely beautiful and just big enough to house the 20 some-odd people that will be there! We were concerned that, because our wedding is so small, most places would feel empty. When we went to look at Allan Gardens, both Mike and I unanimously agreed that it was the place.
Bodega is the name of the restaurant we will be taking everyone to post-ceremony. This decision was a little harder to make. We wanted a place that feels upscale and private but that is reasonably priced. Bodega is quite lovely and charming. It’s built into an old Victorian home in Baldwin Village, not far from Allan Gardens. Our parents took us there for dinner in November and we had a culinary experience! The food is exceptional.

Amongst all of these wedding plans we have also begun to plan our big trip to Central America! We are so unbelievably excited! If you know Mike and I well, you’ll know that we are very different. He loves sports, sports and more sports. And I love the arts, singing, dancing and performing. However, this dream to travel and see the world is one thing that we share as a common life goal. And if we have listened to any advice it’s this; if we want to travel, we should do it now. Almost every person with life experience agrees that the older you get, the harder it is to plan something like this.
We are both excited to step back from all the chaos and learn about this world and our role in it. As we take this time away, we hope to learn some really important lessons about what is important to us and get some perspective on what it means to live a full and passionate life.