toronto: "this is turning out to be an adventure. no...the avocado is the adventure."

so i'm back in the city...*cries* i hate leaving toronto...but i love coming home to a nice warm bed, nice big hugs from mommy, and good ol' fashion home cooked meals!

ok so here's how my trip went so i never ever forget. read if u must hehe

i only got 2 hours of sleep the day before my trip, cuz randy (aka army teacher/drill sargent) and i went to the gym super late, then came home and threw the football around. and then france and roj and randy #2 came over to see me off. and then i still had to pack...

anyway, randy drops me off to the airport after four hours of work (did i ever mention i love my job! and the doctor for wanting to take off early on fridays and then have 3 days off after the weekend??? i love it! i love it! i love it!) and then that only left me with 15 minutes to check in and board the plane. i also love winnipeg for having the smallest airport and letting me be able to arrive 15 minutes before boarding...with time to spare!

i arrived in toronto and headed downtown via ttc during rush hour...yuck. then i get to my lil hostel and they lost my reservation, and they're all booked up...so then i end up at niel wycik. i think it was cheaper anyways, and close the mall and queen st. so it ended up being ok i guess. then keo called and i had 15 minutes to get ready. i hadn't even settled in and i was already headed out.

he took me to marche again! i think i ate twice as much as he did! but whatever i love that place and i'm so happy i got to have supper there again! the kid in a candy store syndrome has not faded yet =) after supper, we walked off our meal at woodbine beach and sat by the the water and watched the stars. afterwards, i met up with shauna, justina and shane at babalus for some salsa dancing! i had so much fun! i danced quite a bit and had lots of fun with the girls! this is the second time i've gone dancing with shauna and she looks like a pro! justina stole some egg shakers on our way out...and then we called it a night.

on saturday, i went and met up with eddie for lunch. we went to spring roll...yum! on dundas. we had some good food and good conversation! it feels like i've known eddie for a long time...but i only met him once last year at a conference, yet we managed to keep in touch when he moved to korea last year!

anyways, the highlight of the day started when eddie suggested having avocado milkshakes! yum...which became the reason for our whole afternoon adventure. after lunch i began to crave avocado. so he told me that there was a loblaws just down yonge st...so we walked from dundas all the way past bloor to rose hill...and no eddie, there is no loblaws on yonge!! so i called 411 and asked for an address and i swear i heard 280 dundas...so we walked back down to bloor to the subway...then back to dundas where we started off. then walked almost all the way to chinatown to find that 280 dundas is not a loblaws! my feet were killing me so we had a drink and rested our feet before we headed back down to where we started. yonge and dundas. and then we discovered there was this lil market in the same building as spring roll...and as we're coming down the elevator...what do we see... nice ripe yummy avocados!

eddie and i parted ways. i went home and i crashed from exhaustion before meeting up with steph, justina, and raluca for some salsa dancing. i got to lula lounge before the girls, and i chatted with one of the owners jose. he asked me 20 questions..and my majors in school came up (hrm and marketing) and then he introduced me to his friend that owns a marketing firm and we exchanged business cards! hehe so i got do to a lil salsa and networking! what a good day. finally the girls showed up and we did a lot of dancing. some good guys...lots of creepy guys! but hot hot hot bartenders! we had lots of fun and steph even went on stage while the band was performing to take some pics with the band! these girls are so cute!

we left the lounge, and then headed to lucid. we had a crazy time finding parking. lots of laughs "ooh look at the horses bum...eww it's poohing." we got to lucid and it was packed. so we found a pub...the first one we got to pretty much ignored us...and then we found out they weren't serving food and we were all hungry. so we went to a different place...and entered an area that was closed...but the server said that we were the best looking table he had all night and let us stay haha. we had a pitcher, and then our food came and the four of us just savaged on our appetizers! haha i think we could've gone for a second round!

finally we called it a night...but before that the girls took me on a hunt for prostitutes! and not just any old hooker...but transvestite hookers! hahah i've never seen one before...but i must have seen and entire block of them! ok other than those kind of hookers...toronto has some pretty hoes lol

on sunday, the girls and i were supposed to head to the beach. then to niagara falls. but plans changed, and i had plans to meet keo for supper, so i couldn't make it out. i went shopping down queen instead. then i found a cute lil patio and had a coffee, caught up with my book, and did some people watching. keo met me at golden griddle. yum. then we went to the beach again. later, brian called me out and i met up with bri, kev, oleg, lex, gen, and mikey for some drinks. then we went to gen and kev's place and chilled out there for a bit. then we called it a night. i went home to pack. i declined a wonderful offer for late night coffee (raincheck). and then yah. crashed and slept through my alarm and almost missed my flight home haha

oh well...im always sad to leave but i know i'll be back. september 10th to be exact!

recovering...

ok this has been the busiest birthday week ever...i haven't had any rest since i got back from holidays.

on wednesday roj threw me a lil surprise dinner at pud thai! so yummy i love thai and we sat at this cute gazebo-ish table. all the boys were there and they made me this cute lil photo collage. anyways, i was extremely cheesed cuz no one has ever thrown me a surprise anything.

on friday, i went to work, had a meeting with mitch, then went to visit randy. i celebrated my birthday with my family and we just had italian. then i went out with france and we hung out with imojan and randy again. then we called it a night.

on saturday we went and partied at tijuanas. this was by far the best birthday i have had at the bar! usually my bday falls on the long weekend so no one is ever in town, and i get super sour and hardcore birthday blues. but not this year =) lots of people showed up (i missed andrea, and mel and janilyn and diana though cuz they were outta town) but i still had lots of fun! i predrank before i got to the bar, and that was not a good idea cuz i was pretty wrecked by the time i left the place. i was solid though, even after shots of tequilla and jack daniels yuck. i only yakked on the way home cuz the silly sti and being lowerd made it a very bumpy ride home! after i felt better roj and i went to mcdix and hung out in the gazebo for some fresh air. then i crashed.

i got up, and i was super hung over...but i still had my aiesec car wash to deal with. now that's dedication hahaha to plan an event the day after my bday. anwyays, i had to reschedule the car wash because it was raining. and then i spent most of the morning doing aiesec work and answering phone calls. i couldn't get back to bed...so i spent the rest of the day oh the couch watching movies, trying to recover. my body is still hurting though haha

whatever...that's the price you pay i guess when you plan ur birthday at the bar. anyways, this week made me appreciate my friends, cuz they were all there for me, even though i have been gone for two weeks! thank you all for a wonderful birthday, and i will never forget turning twenty two! (i mean its my backwards bithday and i'm twenty one...oh i loved being twenty one hehe. oh well)

cabin trip in less than 3 weeks!!!!!!! so excited!

honey i'm home =)

greetings from winnipeg...blah...

ok so i'm extremely exhausted, so i'll finish documenting the last part of my vacation before i forget anything!

part two...the vacation continues...

day nine: so before i met up with lee for lunch, i went to aritzia and bought andrea a cute red tna top so we could match. hehe she was a wonderful host so i thought tna would be a nice gift =) anyways, i finally had my first meal of the day at spring roll with lee. it was the cutest restaurant ever. after lunch we had a some tea and coffee at second cup and chat chat chatted the afternoon away.

i finally went to andrea's office so we could head out to the beaches and meet shauna and alex and them to play some beach volleyball. but on the way there is started to pour...so that was out of the question. i chilled out at the office for a few hours...then andrea, lanchani and i headed off to the lcbo in chinatown and pick up some drinks for pregame at the house. the pregame turned into a house party, and the porch was just packed. everyone was having a good time. i met a bunch of aiesecers and trainees.

brian, alex, kevin and mikey convinced me to stay in toronto until tuesday so i could go to the beach with them on monday. it was hard to say no while under the influence of alcohol. anyways, everyone was planning on going to the bar (i was gonna celebrate my prebirthday party there) so we decided to go to tonic. i was only gonna go for a walk...but i ended up in the vip line =) we didn't stay at tonic for too long because andrea was more than tipsy...so we went home. andrea was a mess, i had to stop her from throwing her contacts on the bed, take off her watch, and lanchani was trying to get her earings off. what an ordeal. finally at around 6am i went to bed and crashed.

day ten: i was supposed to go to hamilton for the aiesec trainee event, but it was too much of an effort to get out of bed, get dressed, pack, then take the go train all the way there. i decided to stay behind. i got out of bed at about 3pm and mike and i ventured out to find a tim hortons. i think we walked for about 20 minutes before we found one at the hospital on university. when i got back home to the mc house i helped lanchani clean up the aftermath of the house party. i finally got ready to go party with the boys.

we pregamed at mani's siters apartment. i was thoroughly buzzed by the time we left the place. downed a couple of beers from frank the funnel =) i was one of the boys that day haha we met up with michelle and her bf at inside. she told me she would've brought her hot tall asian friends with her if we had more vip...haha she knew i was coming to the bar and she wanted me to meet them...damn. they played soca all night...and then i got bored pretty quickly, and maybe semi depressed for i was "all alone with no one to call my own" and i think my singleness is catching up to me cuz i hate the bar scene (i think i wanna settle down again haha) i walked through the carribana crowd (i was lucky that i didn't get kidnapped or raped lol) and grabbed a taxi home.

day eleven and twelve: i was waiting for andrea to get back from hamilton...but she took forever so i headed down queen street for my last minute shopping. i was crossing the street when i saw someone familiar. it was danny from winnipeg. he moved to toronto a month ago. we met each other through salsa dancing. i had to stop and say hi. what a small world! he was having lunch on his own, and i was looking for a place to eat so we decided to grab a bite together. we found a cute lil sushi place and had the cheapest but probably the best japanese food i have ever eaten. anyways, we just caught up with gossip and some good conversation. we decided to hit the mall and do some shopping together at eaton center.

i met up with andrea and we headed to the beaches. we took the street car and in no time we were setting up our blankets in the sand. was dying to play some beach volleyball i've never seen so many good courts to play on! there were no cute boys, but there were some old men playing soccer in speedos. that is not cool...andrea and i haven't changed i realized that day, we still bitched about the same things, and criticized people behind their backs in front of their faces =) it was good times! we finally headed home after soaking up some sun. andrea headed to the office, and i got ready for my dinner date with keo.

keo picked me up at the house and he took me to this wonderful restaurant called marche. i think the theme was outdoor european market? the atmosphere was indescribable. you have to experience it for yourself. i was giddy the entire time i was there and i couldn't wipe the smile away from my face (i dunno if it was the place or the company i was with *wink wink*) but seriously it was total kid in a candy store syndrome. there was so much activity in this place, it was just alive and full of energy, and the fresh smells of all the different foods was intoxicating... there were candlelit tables, people constantly walking around, chefs preparing your food in front of you, cute lil characters serving bruchetta. it had to have been the perfect "date-but-not-date." i really dont know how else to describe it but that’s what it felt like. it was just perfect. i cant wait to go back, i think this is going to be a ritual everytime i'm in tdot.

keo and i shared potatoes and smoked salmon, cajan alfredo pasta, bruchetta, mango papaya and plantane salad, and strawberry and blueberry crepes with vanilla ice cream! i think keo knows me pretty well to know i would enjoy a place like this! 1,000,000 brownie points to keo!

after dinner, i had plans to meet andrea and shauna for salsa dancing. we met at el rancho and danced the night away. andrea and shauna, being semi-beginners, found some really good leaders to dance with and by the end of the night looked like pros!! we had so much fun! dancing with whoever...and trying to avoid stinky old men! none of us stretched, so our legs were in total pain by the time we left the bar!

andrea and i got home at about 3 am, and by strict orders from alex, we had to be ready for the beach and waiting on the porch at 5:15 sharp. so we decided to pull an all nighter. in 2 hours we showered, got ready, packed, and had breakfast and planted ourselves on the porch. alex and brian rolled by the house at about 20 after five hehe and. we met up with mikey, kevin and gen by queen st. then we headed over to fairview and met up with steph, oleg, and silvia. finally destination "cuba." apparently i'm supposed to keep the location of the beach private...i slept pretty much the 3 hour car ride there. it was 9 or 10 when we finally hit the beach...and i swear it was one of the most beautiful beaches i have ever seen. we had to walk over a few small hills to get over to the beach but as soon as i saw the water in off in the distance i was in awe. we were the first ones on the beach so we had prime location to set up camp. it was gorgeous. i’m still amazed that you could find beaches and water like that along the shores of lake ontario!

anyways, we had so much fun just chillin, playin in the water, chicken fights, getting drowned, being thrown in the water, girls vs. boys keep away, football, getting burnt to a crisp, laughing so hard every 2 minutes that my abs hurt, etc. hehe it was well worth staying an extra day, that’s for sure. it’s one of my most memorable experiences on this trip, and it had to have been the best way to end my vacation!

finally, at around 5 we decided to pack up and head home. we were either sunburned or baked brown like i was (aka chinese jamaican or brownie lol) it was still worth it, i have to keep telling myself that hehe. i slept for most of the 3 hours home. we made a pit stop for food. then we all met up at fairview mall. we all parted ways here, and i thanked everyone for making my trip the best ever, and i promised that i would be back asap.

me, andrea, brian, and lex got into the “GOOOLE” and headed for downtown. so much laughter in the car ride home, andrea and i were in “pain.” i caught a glimps of downtown toronto in the distance…and then i realized that this was my last day in toronto! i was parting ways with one of my best friends in less than eight hours. i started to get a lil misty eyed and then me and andrea had one of our moments! i started to reflect on the last two weeks and i have to say it was the best vacation that i have ever been on. i started to miss andrea already cuz i didn’t think i would see this crazy girl for another long while…

we finally reached home, and i thought that this was gonna be the last time i would be down these streets for a while. i said my goodbyes to brian and alex. oops i mean my see you laters cuz lex doesn’t like goodbyes =)

i showered, packed, said my goodbyes to the mc, and crashed….

day thirteen: i got up at 5:30, signed the mc wall (no fair that my hands are small because i couldn’t write as much as i wanted to!) got ready and hailed a cab. i ran into the subway, then grabbed the airport shuttle and booked it to the airport. i got off at the wrong terminal! and took a shuttle to the right one. i was so late for my plane! the lady at the counter was extremely understanding and made sure that i didn’t miss my flight! i had to run and i mean RUN to the gate and they were already boarding by the time i got there (curse toronto for have such a big airport!) anyways i made it home safe and sound. i had an hour to shower and get ready for work (thank god cuz i looked like a mess when i got off of the plane) and i booked it to work. i decided that i was going to do paperwork and photocopying all day since my body ached and i was still exhausted!

afterwork i had a lil nap. and less came by to pick up some things i bought for him, since he helped me choreograph stephs debut and i insisted that she not pay us for it hehe anyways we watched the video of the bboy battle (it was really good i’m sad that i missed it.) go whatever ur crews name is less! haha number one bboy crew in canada whoot whoot whomp whomp! i was also waiting for karens call so i could see her before she moved back home to vancouver…but it was getting extremely late. so i said my see you laters over the phone. i know i will see her soon enough though.

i went online to do some blogging when i saw all the toronto people i left behind on msn =) me and my big mouth and being so easily influenced told everyone about my 5 days off in two weeks because the good doctor wants to go camping and is going to shut down the office! yay! so i started making plans with everyone and got so excited that i agreed before confirming these plans. oh well. it’s pretty much a done deal. then stupid andrea and her “im just looking at the seat sales for fun” and then “man i should take advantage of this is so cheap!” and the “where should i go?” and then “new york…no montreal!!!!!!!!” and then me “yah! montreal i should come meet you!” and then andrea “seriously ok let’s go september long! roi said i could go” and then me “ok let’s do it.” and then her “are u booking yours? cuz im gonna hit confirm you have 2 minutes to change your mind.” and me “no let’s do it! only im broke so we have to sneak the both of us into a hostel, and we can only site see by foot and sit in cafes, eat once a day, go boy watching, and hit a salsa club!” and then it was done and our crazy spontaneity got to the best of us. so 24 hours haven’t even passed since i last saw this crazy girl, but we already planned out our next adventure together! i guess we missed each other so much already hahaha i do miss you gia!!! GOOD TIMES…no GREAT TIMES!!!!

i have to say that this has gotta be the best vacation i have been on in a long time. i did a lot of things out of my norms, saw a bunch of my friends from across the country, made new friends along the way, and did so many things other than shopping! i don’t think i would have done anything differently. it was as close to perfect as you could get. … all in all it was a great experience, and i have some amazing memories. i miss everyone so much already, but i’m sure i will see you all soon.

no regrets. well…maybe one or two ;)

“i do not regret the things i’ve done but those i did not do”