Happy Birthday Lucia!

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Hope you have a wonderful birthday Lucia...



I miss you and can't wait to celebrate when we are together in Hong Kong!

Happy Chinese New Year!

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Last night, the MUN Chinese Society hosted a Chinese new year dinner party. We rang in the year of the rat with food and an evening of entertainment. Unfortunately, everyone spoke only in Mandarin, so I had absolutely no clue as to what was being said. Regardless, I think everyone had a good time.



I've attached some pictures of the menu - your guess is as good as mine as to why Mickey Mouse is celebrating along with us.



Sun nien fai lok!

Is It February Already?

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How quickly January came and went! We are now well into the winter semester and things are moving along well. Classes this semester are interesting and I am slowly preparing to sit for my CAPM (Certified Associate in Project Management) exam at the end of March. Otherwise, plans for our trip to Asia in April/May are coming together nicely. We have almost everything planned and organized. It's incredible to think that a 3 star hotel in Hong Kong costs $300 Cdn., while in Siem Reap, Cambodia, a similar hotel would go for $5 Cdn.! So, the plan of attack is to travel modestly in Hong Kong (save for the splurge on the dessert buffet at the Grand Hyatt) and then live it up a little in Vietnam and Cambodia where are travel dollars go much further.

But before I get too deep into talk of our overseas plans, life here in St. John's has developed a bit of a chill. It certainly has been a mild winter (by northern Ontario standards) with many days where the temperature has been +6 degrees Celsius. However, there have been days when the temperature has been much colder and accompanied by blistering winds. I especially dislike the days when I have to make my way to class when the rain, ice pellets, and snow are all coming down at once horizontally. On those days I wish there were MUNnels to Burtons Pond.

Speaking of the Pond, I have snapped a few pictures of the poor ducks that call the area home. They are very docile and show now concern when people walk beside them. I would bet that you could actually pet them, but I wouldn't dare try. The pigeons on the other hand are usually on edge and are best left alone. Whenever I have to walk through a flock of pigeons, I have this reoccurring image of Alfred Hitchcock's movie, "The Birds".


Pictured here is Burtons Pond and the (much blogged about) ducks. As I've mentioned before, the university pumps warm water into the pond to help keep a small portion of the surface free of ice.


"Hey Sid, remind me again why we are sitting on this frozen pond?"


When walking to and from class, I often pass through Paton College. This is MUN's traditional dorm residence geared towards early year students.


Picture left to right are the chemistry building, the Queen Elizabeth II library, the MUN clocktower, and the UC. Prince Phillip Drive passes through the centre of the campus and underneath the UC - very urban! I have no idea where the cars are though. This picture was taken Sunday afternoon at 4:00pm.


Here is where I spend most of my time when in class. The business administration building is only a 10 minute walk from the Pond, and when on the fourth floor, offers amazing views of the Narrows and St. John's harbour.

Where Has the Time Gone?

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I see that it is already January 21st and I have yet to make a post this new year. Although I have not yet had the chance to snap a few pictures of the poor Burtons Pond ducks, I thought that I could summarize what has happened since my last post.

The fall semester ended after writing two exams and presenting a semester long project all in on day. It was a hectic end to a busy semester - but looking back it all seemed to go by so quickly and with relatively little stress. That same night, I received an e-mail from Air Canada, alerting me to check-in and select my seats online as my flight to Ottawa was leaving the next morning. While doing this, out of curiosity, I decided to also check the status of my flight from St. John's to Ottawa (via Montreal) - the e-mail from Air Canada made no mention about flight status. My flight was set to leave the following morning and I was concerned about delays because St. John's was forecasted to receive snow overnight. To my surprise, I discovered that the connecting flight from Montreal to Ottawa was canceled! So, I called Air Canada and was able to make changes to my itinerary (free of charge) such that I would be able to fly out of St. John's directly to Ottawa. I did not question the service agent why this flight was canceled and the Montreal to Ottawa flight was canceled - in the end I was just happy to be on my way.

Although there was some turbulence, the flight was uneventful. I was able to catch up on some tv and movies (Superbad was hilarious and just the thing to watch at 7:00am) given that for the past four months I have been living in an apartment without any tv. Landing in Ottawa, it was great to see Lucia and immediately begin our Chirstmas holidays together. The first week I spent in Ottawa, Christmas shopping, visiting the Vietnamese embassy to arrange our visas to Vietnam, and meeting up with friends and old co-workers for lunch. It was great to see everyone! It was also great to eat fruit and vegetables and affordable Chinese food!

At the end of the first week, Lucia and I made our way to Hamilton (via Toronto for a stop at Sushi on Bloor). This week we made a few trips to Toronto to see Kelly (mmm... Korean BBQ) as well as a hop across the border to Buffalo for some shopping (mmm... Cold Stone ice cream). Christmas gatherings were had in Fonthill with the Eberts as well as in Toronto with Lucia's family. One of the highlights of our week in Hamilton was the "behind the counter" experience at Sweet Paradise - a very poplar Italian bakery in Hamilton who make the best tiramisu! We finished the week with copious amounts of delicious Chinese food and a couple of stops at T&T Supermarket to stock up on some Chinese groceries. A trip through Toronto would not be complete without a stop at Sushi on Bloor (again) before we made our way back to Ottawa.

Back in Ottawa on the 30th of December, we spent most of the last week of the Christmas holidays shoveling snow and skating in the back yard at Sandra and Sean's place. Hopefully next year Riley will be able to join us. Later in the week I picked up our visas at the Vietnamese embassy, went out a few more times for lunch with co-workers, and got a few hours of research in for our upcoming trip to Hong Kong, Vietnam, and Cambodia.

On January 5th I flew from Ottawa to St. John's (via Montreal) without any problems. Arriving early Sunday morning in St. John's was a bit of a shock. The Christmas break had gone by far too fast! Regardless as to whether or not I was ready, the winter semester began on Monday and I soon found myself back in the routine of classes and homework. The past two weeks have flown by and I can hardly believe that it is almost February! This semester is shaping up quite well. I have some interesting classes with some terrific professors. I have a fair amount of research work to do this semester as well, but so far so good.

With the arrival of the new semester, so too has winter. While the temperature is relatively mild, the winds are strong and can bring with them a numbing wind chill. Snow has begun to pile up around the city; however, Ottawa may still have more snow. I will be sure to post some pictures soon!

Until then...

Ahh Winter... The Smell of Exams!

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This will most likely be my last post of 2007, as these past couple of days have moved into warp speed and I am busily studying away for those A's. I have just two more exams to go - both are on Friday with the last exam scheduled for 7:00pm. On Saturday I have a simulation/presentation to participate/give and then it's Christmas vacation! Saturday night should be busy since class finishes at 5:00pm, and I have to fit laundry and packing in before I head off to a Christmas party with a bunch of other MUN students. My flight back to Ottawa leaves St. John's on Sunday morning at5:30am. The reality is that I may not get much sleep at all Saturday night. The campus is now down to the last few students who got the short end of the exam schedule stick.

In other news, snow is now just starting to accumulate on the ground. I must point out that we are several feet of snow behind Ontario. I was told that St. John's doesn't typically get snow until late December or early January. So the snow is actually a little early this year. I will have to post some pictures, particularily some with the ducks that call Burtons Pond "home". The ducks now have much less water in which to swim as the pond is beginning to freeze over. In wanting to keep the ducks around all year, the university has designed the pond such that a pipe delivers warm water to keep a portion of the surface ice free. I wonder what this does to the health of the pond?

Should I not get the chance to visit with you while in Ottawa, Toronto, or area over the next couple of weeks, I will take this opportunity to wish you a very merry holiday season and happy new year.

Flipper Pie Update!

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I realize that it has been only a few hours since I posted about my finds from Bidgood's, but it is now lunch time and I really wanted to try the flipper pie. Let me tell you, this is the real meal deal! To summarize this experience...

Looking at the ingredients list, flipper is the fourth item on the list. So, I had anticipated there being a little flipper, but not as much as was actually found. Essentially, flipper should have been listed first on the ingredients list - there is a lot of flipper in the pie! The ratio of flipper to carrot (the ingredient that is actually listed first) is 5:1. This is not an exageration.

So the big question, how does it taste? I am being completely honest when I say that it is actually pretty good! Maybe a little too much flipper for my liking, but I am certainly not complaining as the flipper is the most expensive ingredient. I would buy the flipper pie again.

I was going to upload pictures of the flipper pie experience, but under the flaky crust, it isn't so pretty. The look of the flipper meat does not do the taste justice!

Mmm... Flipper Pie!

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This morning I was off to do some grocery shopping at Bidgood's in nearby Gould's. The mission was two-fold: to take a drive outside St. John's, while also figuring out what sorts of Newfoundland awesomeness I was going to bring back with me to Ottawa for everyone else to sample over the Christmas break.

To summarize, Bidgood's is a traditional Newfoundland foods and craft store. See their website for more information; they do ship across Canada. The store is in a busy shopping plaza, itself called Bidgood's Plaza. In addition to carrying the standard food items you could find at any Dominion, they carry traditional Newfoundland food. While this section of the store is realtively small, they do carry quite a few items, some more interesting than others. For example, there is an entire shelf of seal flippers packed in jars, caribou steaks, and rabbits (which are snared every fall by local residents, cleaned, and sold to Bidgood's). Not to be missed is the large bakery and the Mug Up restaurant, offering daily specials of fish cakes, Jigg's dinner, fish and chips, salt fish and brewis, and toutans. Best of all, the bakery and restaurant items are prepared in the store. You know it's fresh and local when the pies are wrapped in plastic wrap as opposed to being vacuum sealed by a machine! 

So, after spending nearly an hour perusing the aisles, I decided to pick up a few things to taste test. I intend on making another visit to Bidgood's in a couple of weeks with a list of things to bring back to the mainland. Here is what ended up in my cart:


Home style rabbit pie... local rabbits. Tasty!


Home style flipper pie. I am not sure if the flipper is from a seal, but this was a must try! I saw the jars of seal flipper next to the prepared pies. In their raw form, the seal flippers did not look incredibly appetizing. We shall see how they are in a pie format.


There were way to many pies to choose from. I am repeating myself when I say this, but what really struck me was that a lot of the baked goods were hand wrapped!


I decided to try the Bidgood's version of fish and brewis. This looks to be less processed than the version I typically buy at Dominion. Bidgood's is also well known for their spreads. While choosing among the many varieties, there was a sign which explained that for a something to be called jam, the product must contain at least 66% sugar. Bidgood's therefore calls their products spread because they use less sugar and more fruit. Interesting!

With my grocery shopping done, I decided to make a detour to see nearby Maddox Cove and Petty Harbour. For all you Great Big Sea fans, Alan Doyle grew up in Petty Harbour. From the picture, you can see that we have only a dusting of snow on the ground. Fall in St. John's has been great. My fingers are crossed for a nice winter.


A very quiet Petty Harbour.

St. John's to ... Siem Reap?

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Well, it has been nearly a month since I last posted anything on the blog, let's just say that as the fall semester winds down, the work load has increased considerably. Reports and presentations all come due either this week or next week. Needless to say it has been a very busy November.

The fall semester officially ends on Friday November 30th... tomorrow, with exams following for the next two weeks. All of my exams are scheduled late in the second week, meaning plenty of study time but also a late start to the Christmas break. It's incredible to think that it is almost December and the semester is about to come to an end - where has the time gone? I am definetly looking forward to spending time over the Christmas break with everyone back in Ottawa and southwestern Ontario.

In other news, it has been difficult to keep focused on school work these past couple of weeks as I (along with Lucia and Jen) have decided to make a trip to Asia! What we've decided is that for the three week break that I have in between the winter and spring semesters at MUN, we will get together and spend some time backpacking throughout Hong Kong and Vietnam. 

Here is a quick breakdown of our trip... 

Leaving St. John's on Saturday April 19th, the day after exams end for the winter semester, I fly into Toronto and meet up with Lucia and Jen. From Toronto, we all fly non-stop from Toronto to Hong Kong. After the long 15 hour flight, we take a couple of days out to tour Hong Kong and area. Lucia's Cantonese will certainly help us during our stay in Hong Kong. After a couple of days in Hong Kong, and with our fill of dim sum, we fly into Ho Chi Minh, Vietnam. We have a week and a half together in Vietnam, during which time we intend on making a visit to the Mekong Delta, Hue, Hoi An, Hanoi, and Halong Bay. Our travels together end after Halong Bay, as Jen and Lucia return to Ottawa via Hong Kong and Toronto - they are due back at work.

As for me, the MUN spring semester doesn't start until mid-May, so onwards from Halong Bay I continue. My intentions are to take an overnight sleeper car from Hanoi to Sapa, in the northern mountainous region of Vietnam, and spend a few days jungle trekking. Making my way back down into Hanoi, I fly into Siem Reap, Cambodia. I have 5 days in Siem Reap and will be spending a good amount of time touring the famous wats of the region. From Siem Reap I fly into Ho Chi Minh, and then onwards back to St. John's via Hong Kong and Toronto. The whirlwind vacation ends with me arriving back in St. John's on Sunday May 11th at 4:00am, with classes starting the next day!

Airline tickets have already been purchased (Air Canada, Cathay Pacific, and Vietnam Airlines), and now we are searching the many places to see, hostels to stay, and restaurants at which to eat (this of course being Lucia's passion). Besides taking in all of the amazing sites... one of my goals on this trip will be to get my fill of fresh fruit, this in an attempt to make up for the 8 months of a cod filled, vegetable absent diet in St. John's. It's all very exciting, with more details to come as the three of us plan the trip in greater detail over the Christmas break.

Courtesy of Wikipedia, here are some highlights of what we will see on our trip:


Amazing Hong Kong!


Sailing among limestone karsts by junk in Halong Bay.


The incredible Angkor Wat!

St. John Sea Dogs Vs. St. John's Fog Devils

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As promised, here are the highlights from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League game myself and many other MUN students attended this past Saturday evening. A bus left MUN at 6:00pm and dropped us off at Mile One Centre. The puck was set to drop at 7:00pm. We thought that if there was enough time after the game, we would swing on over to Ches's for some Newfoundland sui yah... fish n' chips. However, it turned out that the bus was going to pick us up immediately after the end of the third period, and so we were back at MUN by 9:30pm without the fish n' chips. There was the option of heading over to George Street after the game. Believe it or not, I had a fair amount of work to do, so instead of hitting the bar, I hit the books and spent a few hours in front of the computer researching for a report!

As for the game...

The game was between the St. John Sea Dogs (from New Brunswick) and the St. John's Fog Devils (from Newfoundland). Not only did I not know the name of the hockey league (I had to Google QMJHL), it was quite easy to confuse the two teams. Not only that, I had some ethical dilemma as I did not know who to root for - the team from the mainland (being from Ontario and all) or the team from the city in which I currently live. I sat on the fence, but decided to cheer a little louder for St. John's. Regardless, a majority of the players were from Québec. The game was not bad, although St. John's (the team with the 's) was outdone. Few shots on net and a lack of momentum right from the start of the first period resulted in St. John winning 5 to 2. Here are a couple of pictures from the evening...


The very nice Mile One Centre.


St. John scored their first goal 15 seconds into the first period!


Everyone likes a good fight, though very traumatic for the younger fans seated in the first row.


Into the second period we already knew that St. John was going to win the game. At this point in the game we thought we might leave now in order to give us enough time to swing over to Ches's for fish n' chips. We passed on the idea knowing how long a walk Ches's is from Mile One Centre. That and it was pretty cold out Saturday night!


Watching the game with the roommates.

St. John's Historic West End Walking Tour

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Today was a a much needed day off from the constant onslaught of exams and multi page report writing. My initial plans were to take a hike along the East Coast Trail south of St. John's near Maddox Cove, but after consulting the map, I discovered that the trail would require an overnight stay! So, I decided to stay in St. John's and roam the downtown and west end.

The day started with a stop at the Starbucks located on Water Street. There are only two Starbucks on the entire island of Newfoundland - and they close by 5:30pm! So, today I indulged in a grandé caramel macchiato (thank you Kim!) while enjoying views of St. John's harbour. St. John's harbour is a working harbour - not one lined with walking promenades or flowers. Ships can be found docked while cranes unload their cargo - interesting to watch.


The working harbour of St. John's, with Signal Hill, Cabot Tower, and the Battery in view.

From Starbucks I made my way to the tourist information centre to pick up some information on upcoming events. I also found several walking guide brochures. With nothing really planned for the day, I decided to do the historic walk through the historic west end of St. John's. This is a part of the city I had not yet explored, in part because it is located some distance from the major attractions of downtown. The area also has a "rough" appearance.

The tour started at the railway station on Water Street. Newfoundland no longer has a railway but the station is still in use as a terminal for the trans provincial bus service. It also doubles as a museum - very nice! For those who have walked/biked/cross-country skied the Trans Canada trail, mile marker zero is in front of the railway museum.


The railway station located on Water Street.


The Trans Canada trail - it all starts here!

From the museum, I walked down Water Street and could see all of the cargo containers being unloaded off the many ships docked in the harbour. Everything from groceries bound for area Dominion stores to cars and trucks destined for car dealerships. It's something to stop and realize that almost everything that exists on this island has been brought in by air or ship! Of course, I am reminded of this every time I am grocery shopping for bananas as the prices are considerably higher than in the rest of Atlantic Canada. From Water Street I turned north onto Patrick Street and passed by St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church (consecrated in 1881).


Colourful houses along Patrick Street.


Patrick Street with St. Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in the background.

Turning right on Hamilton Avenue, there was a set of row houses with modest decoration and simple gable roofs - typical of the sort of housing built in St. John's in the 19th century. I later learned that the Hamilton Avenue houses are unique because they are the few houses to survive the Great Fire of 1892. After the fire, most houses were rebuilt in the more fashionable Second Empire style or the simpler bracketted Italianate style.

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West end St. John's, Hamilton Street.

The walking tour followed Brine Street, Plank Road, and returned to the railway station. It was a great walk through one of St. John's unique neighbourhoods. On Brine Street is the Martin McNamara House. This is a special dwelling because of its pyramidal roof that has stood since at least 1849. It is unusual in the neighbourhood because it has a central chimney to allow for all of the rooms in the house to be heated from the same source. It appeared as though someone still lives in this house today.

After the walking tour, I made my way over to the zero mile marker of the Trans Canada highway. Although the Trans Canada highway has been extended further east to Quidi Vidi in recent years, the mile marker has remained in front of St. John's City Hall (near Mile One Centre).


Mile marker zero of the Trans Canada highway.

This coming Saturday, a bunch of us from MUN are off to watch some Quebec major junior hockey at Mile One Centre; St. John's Fog Devils versus Saint John Sea Dogs. This won't be confusing! Sounds like fun. I'll keep you posted...