.Happy Belated 1st Year.

.1st Anniversary on 1/1/2009.

♥ With Love, ♥
MK & Steph

.Part 2- Toronto.

Part 2: Toronto

2hrs+ bus journey up to Toronto. Not quite as bustling & crowded as Tokyo or New York City (or rather, Manhattan) … Toronto reminds me of Singapore. Skyscrapers, Financial District, Shopping Malls, Restaurants, and crowds of people hitting its streets … yet at the same time, it’s not too overwhelming to the extent that you are always banging into someone within a 20cm radius range. Met up with some family friends and they treated us to a sumptuous lunch of dim sum. The best Chinese food I had since arriving in the USA. So much to the extent that I complained that MK’s breath smelled of dim sum! lol.

Day 3

When the sun sets… Walked along the wealthy street of Bloor-Yorkville. Home to all luxury brands – LV, Prada, Chanel, Gucci, Burberry, Tiffany & co, etc. Having stayed in Buffalo for the past 4mths, it was indeed refreshing to hit to a city where its people are decked in fashionable and stylish winter-wear. I marveled at the sights of the young and beautiful. That, plus the gorgeous Christmas decoration displays of the many departmental stores.

Impressive architecture of the ROM – nope, not the Registry Of Marriage but the famous Royal Ontario Museum.

Drinks at Paranoma Bar, Manulife (51st storey). One place that offers you the opportunity to sip a drink or two while basking in the spectacular views of the city and lights. Another alternative is of course, the CN Tower (that’s the CN Tower in purple in the background) which Im sure boost even more marvelous 360 degrees views … but hey, that comes with a heftier price too. Wasn’t able to take clear pictures due to the reflective nature of the windows.

Day 4

With only 1 day left to visit the sights and attractions of Toronto, you can be sure that it was hell of a packed day for us.

First stop – Casa Loma. Once, the biggest mansion ever built in North America. To some, it resembled a castle. In any case, it was home to 98 rooms, secret passageways, a stable, and even an 800-foot long underground tunnel. Like all grandeur homes, this house was located at the top of a hill (think: good feng shui) which thus offered its residents an amazing aerial view of downtown Toronto. A life-long dream of its owner, Sir Henry Pellatt. Though less than a century years old, there was however much history behind this remarkable building … enjoyed learning a bit more about it through our headphone guides. In the spirit of celebration with the coming Christmas, Casa Loma held a kids-oriented musical rendition of “Sleepy Beauty”. Think hi-5.  It wasn’t too bad, got us in a chirpy mood though it wasn’t exactly my cup of tea. I honestly believe that we saw about 300 or so kids right at Casa Loma. Kids watching the musical … running along the tunnel … exploring each and every inch of the historic mansion. Would you want to stay in a historical mansion like this?

School buses = time for excursion now, kids!

Allen Garden Conservatory

Well, visiting a conservatory is usually not on a typical tourist’s must-see list. However, being in a city can sometimes be rather overwhelming and so … this calls for a time to seek some sense of tranquility in a peaceful environment. And, there you go …

The popular Poinsettia flowers, also known as the “Fire Flowers of the Holy Night”. Did you know that the “Poinsettia has a built-in tome switch that causes the top leaves to change colour at the right time of the year- Christmas”? That’s the reason why it is fully embraced by many during the Christmas season!

Finally, last agenda of the day. Walked along Yonge Street – said to be the longest street in the entire world. Of course, the distance covered by us was only but a small fraction of the entire stretch. There’s Eaton Centre (an extremely huge shopping complex) , the world-famous Toronto Downtown Walkway (27km of underground shopping. Dont worry, u didn’t miss much. Quite similar to Citylink) and other smaller stores. Probably equivalent to our Orchard Road. Mainly just a time for us to people-watch ( well, it’s the holiday season so there’s plenty of people in a mad rush to shop for gifts for their significant others) and to enjoy the cold or rather, very cold climate together. Unfortunately, due to a shortage of time .. we weren’t able to do all that we planned. Had to miss out on Downsview Park Christmas lightings and Black Creek Pioneer Village.    Visiting Toronto was a good break, but boy were we all hyped about visiting Horseshoe Valley, Barrie next … time for some fun in the snow – ski, snowboard, snow-tub. But who would have expected that sometimes, not all goes well according to the plans..
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Part 3: Barrie, Oh Barrie! Whatever happened in Barrie, baby?

.Part 1- Niagara Falls,ON.

Part 1: Niagara Falls, ON

The day where MK and I reunited, after 4mths of separation. And so happened, it fell on my 21st Birthday … Possibly, the best gift I could ever received.    Off we head towards Niagara Falls, Ontario whereas my family remained in Boston for a couple of days of sight-seeing before we join them at Barrie.

Day 1
21st Birthday dinner at Rainforest Cafe … Once a favourite restaurant of mine, I was devastated upon hearing that the Sg branch of the cafe was closed down… for good. Rainforest cafe recreates a scene right out of a tropical rainforest with its indigenous animals such as the gorillas, snakes and elephants. Keep a lookout out for its sudden rain storms that never fail to keep all its patrons entertained. 

We initially wanted to head for the “Candle Light Stroll” event at the City Hall and so, enquired about the directions to get to there. Immediately, the waitress exclaimed, “Why would you wanna head to the City Hall? Are you both going to get married? ” LOL. In case if you don’t know, couples are required to head over to the City Hall to get the paperwork done in order to obtain their wedding license. That remark got baby and I pretty much blushing from embarrassment. Elope to Niagara Falls,eh? Doesn’t sound too shabby an idea. :p Nevertheless, we figured out that we were too late for the event anyway and opted to take a stroll along Clifton Hill.

A stroll along the stretch of Clifton Hill and its neighbouring streets to bask in the sparkling bright neon lightings. To some, Clifton Hill might seem a lil’ tacky with its many touristy attractions (haunted houses, wax museums, tourist shops, etc) but to us, it kinda reminded us of a tiny “Las Vegas Strip”. Wanted to try the “Nightmares Fear Factory” haunted attraction, which claimed in its website that over 95,000 pple had chickened out. But well, being the coward that I am, I decided not to go ahead with it cz somehow I have a feeling that I might end up getting half-paralysed in the midst of getting frightened. Instead, we had a ball of fun playing the good-old fashioned arcade games (air-hockey!!) over at Canadian Midway. That being said, Clifton Hill is probably your one-stop entertainment district to all leisure things … the rest of the town seemed laid-back and quiet in comparison.

Such a tourist trap but yea, we went ahead with the “Niagara Sky Wheel” which honestly offers scenic views of not only the illuminated falls but also of the brightly-lit Clifton Hill. With relaxing music playing at the back, you can say that it’s a romantic ride that overlooks the falls and its busy touristy-streets. Go with a loved one and it’s one of the best place for a romantic kiss. A great way to end a fantastic first day of our trip!

DAY 2

Niagara Falls. Needless to say, that’s the only reason why we decided to head to the town of Niagara Falls. As such, we spent both morning and sunset/evening taking a lovely stroll along the pathway. Here are some spectacular views of the massive, illuminated falls in the evening (Well, if you consider 4-5pm evening since sun sets at around that time during winter).

With Christmas just round the corner, Niagara Falls and its parkway was transformed ”into a winter wonderland of shimmering lights”. Display lightings of winter activities, candy canes, Disney characters … all of which that truly brought out the Christmas spirits in us. My favourite being the Enchantment of Disney animated displays - As childish as it might sound, I truly believe that Disney brings out the kid in *Almost each and every one of us. My next destination for Christmas? Florida’s Walt DisneyWorld.

Incredible views of the lightings that sparkle and twinkle when night falls.
 



If I didn’t know better, I definitely would have thought of this beautifully-decorated building to be that of a shopping mall or something commercial. But get this, it is a police station. On the stroke of 9pm, the building ‘magically’ came to life with a dazzling performance – whereby the snowflakes danced in accordance to the tune of “Carol of the Bells”. Well, seeing that Saks 5th Aveune has the exact same performance, only in a larger-scale, im sure that this one at the falls was inspired by the one over at NYC. Still, one would have never associated a christmas lighting performance with the law. !!

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Part 2: Done with the Falls and upward to Toronto!