images of spring (break)

OK, so we've been rather busy since spring break (March 17-25). Break from school means vacation time for us, of course. Despite our busy schedules (no, I'm no longer lady of leisure aka tai-tai; in fact, it's been so long, I don't remember what that was like), we peeled ourselves away from our books (not difficult) and headed up north to moose and elk country. This time joined by little brother from Grand Rapids, Michigan.

On our way, we stayed at a b&b in Niagara-on-the-Lake, beautiful lakeside (think BIG lake with no end in sight i.e. Lake Ontario) town neighbouring the more famous Niagara town where the Falls are located. Spectacular in the winter. Unfortunately or fortunately, Niagara was kinda dead at this time of the year. We were not surprised that we brought the rain with us (as we usually do when we go on vacation). So, after admiring the stunning views and getting soaked from the sprays from the Falls, there was nothing left to do but to entertain ourselves in the games arcade and...casino! We were sadly disappointed that the slot machine would not take the only quarter we were willing to spare and so did not get the opportunity to have a go at winning the day's jackpot. At the games arcade, we pretended to be cops and boxers and had a hilarious time!

Boxing day

We also had some ice wine for the first time while touring the wineries the area is famous for. Ice wines are made from grapes harvested in the late winter. Due to the lack of "juice" from the shrivelled up grapes by this time, the process is extremely labour intensive and time consuming, hence the price. The taste? It surprised and titillated the senses from start to finish. I'm usually not discerning enough to note the different flavours in wines (woody, oaky, etc), but I could honestly taste the subtle nuances in each of these wines. Very, very yum in my expert opinion.

Niagara in the winter

Pensive pretender...

After our giddying wine tour, we drove up to Toronto, only an hour and a half away. It was great seeing the Elliots again. Since we didn't see much of the city the last time, we made sure to schedule a few trips into the city on this trip - this time, armed with culinary recommendations. So, after some chit chat, we took the subway downtown and headed directly for a kebab place. After all the hype and expectations, it turned out to be so-so. It still didn't come close to our favourite kebab store in downtown Manhattan. We did receive a lesson on kebabs, though. These kebab owners were very insistent about correcting our misconceptions about the origins of kebabs. We were careful to make reference to only Turkey from then on. After the mediocre kebabs, we caught a revue called Tip of the Melting Iceberg, "a laugh-out-loud look at people, politics and the planet Earth".

In between precious and competitive moments with the Elliots (notably playing Nertz and Settlers of Catan), our trip included some rest, more subway rides and explorations of the city. We were especially pleased to discover the Canadian National Film Board (NFB) that had impressive personal viewing screens where one can watch unlimited films for a day pass that costs merely $2/day. There we saw the Oscar nominated The Danish Poet, among other short animated films and documentaries.

Of course, Toronto was also filled with various gastronomical treats. While few things can beat Naomi's culinary skills, we managed to check out a few other places in town - an Ethiopian, an all-day breakfast diner and dim sum. We taught Jake, Jono and Oobie how to order their favourite dim sum dishes the right way. OK boys, if you're reading this, remember it's har gau (the shrimp thingy), siew mai (the pork thingy) and char siew pau (the little buns you ate a tonne of). I don't think I had ever ordered as many char siew paus as we did in that one sitting (18 in total).

Setting up for the final match - Settlers of Catan

So that was our brief spring reprieve. Until next time, ay!