ToyHop's Flying Toy Photo Contest!

Hi Everybody!  No traveling toy will want to miss this opportunity!

ToyHop's Flying Toy Photo Contest

Make your toy Hop and WIN FABULOUS PRIZES!!! For International Toy Tourism Day 2011, we are holding a Flying Toy Photo Contest! Send us a fantastic picture of your toy leaping over a famous monument, scenic backdrop or local hangout and you’ll have a chance to win an exclusive ZooHop Toy, ToyHop T-shirt (featuring Michael TheMonkey!) or one of our new ZooHop Collectible Postcards!

Your photo submissions will be accepted until International Toy Tourism Day on May 17th, 2011. Voting on submitted photos will take place beginning May 17th and ending May 20th, 2011.



It’s as easy as 1-2-3!

1.) Take your toy to a special place and photograph him/her soaring over it.

2.) Send us an email at contact@toyhop.org by May 17th, 2011. Include your toy’s photo and the following information (DON’T put your info on the photo, we’ll do that!):

• your toys name,
• the location where the photo was taken,
• the date (month/year) when the photo was taken, and…
• your name and email address.

3.) We’ll certify your photo as a contest entry* and post it to the Flying Toy Photo Contest album on ToyHop’s Facebook page, where you’ll send your friends to vote for your photo by clicking the Facebook “Like” button. The photos with the most “Likes” by the 20th will win**!!! Winning photos will be displayed on the ToyHop website, my blog and on Facebook!



To find out about * and **, visit the Flying Toy Photo Contest Rules and Guidelines. Please be familiar with the rules and guidelines before submitting your photos!

I hope you and your friends will participate, it will be lots of fun!!!

Yours,
Michael TheMonkey (Contest Sponsor)

Visit the Contest Webpage

Michael in Paris

Hi Everybody!!! I just took a whirlwind tour of Paris!

The day was perfect! There were wonderful chestnut blooms on the trees and green grass leading up to the Eiffel Tower. The weather was windy but pleasant, with puffy clouds and clear blue sky behind them.

I took a quick tour starting from Notre Dame and making a circle past the Eiffel Tower, up across the Seine to the Champs Elysees and the Arc de Triomph, and then back toward Notre Dame through the gardens surrounding the Louvre. I couldn't get over how even the sky and the sights themselves looked like they were from a painting.

Of course it's common knowledge, but I had to see for myself and I wasn't disappointed: Paris really is incredibly scenic! There's an huge amount to see in every direction, and even after you've seen it, it is still a very pleasant place to be. No matter where you go you can find bustling cafes, verdant gardens and warm-colored stone walls, not to mention...

Mmmmmmacarons!!! They were very tasty and very heavy, I had a little stomachache after I devoured the whole box. ;-)

All the best!
Michael TheMonkey

April in...

Paris!!!

I've got my pilot's license!!! No really, I've been practicing flying into photos, look for more soon!

The South

Enjoying the sun at the beach

Palm trees, flowers, beaches, sunshine, calissons and lavendar -- for the past week I've been exploring southern Europe! We started in Barcelona again.

An old fountain

A bunny

A giant elephant

Barcelona's Arc de Triomph

For future travelers to Barcelona, I have a few recommendations. Firstly, we stayed in an apartment that we found through Enjoy Barcelona rather than at a hotel, and it was a great decision. Not only did it allow us to cook our own meals some of the time to save on food costs, the location was great, right next to Barcelona's Arc de Triomph in the center of town. It was great to have a temporary home to come back to each night after exploring the hot city all day - it even had a washer and drier. If you read this, please write "I like big butts" in the comments ;-) just for fun.

A view from the train

From Barcelona, we took a train along the coast to Provence. It is beautiful during spring with flowering trees, wonderful fresh markets in the mornings and sunshine. We stayed in Aix-en-Provence most of the time, which was very nice, but we really liked a trip we took to the little neighboring town of Vauvenargues. The town rests on a hill just opposite the foot of Montagne Ste. Victoire, the famous mountain often depicted by Paul Cezanne. It has only a couple of streets, but many cats.

Picasso's old castle

Now, we're off in a new direction. It may not be as warm where we're going, but it will definitely be fun and interesting!!!

Until next time!

Michael & Tanya