brussels, the food.

Beer. Fries. Waffles. Chocolate. Mussels.

The best fries you will ever have, ever. If you go to Brussels, please please please visit le Friterie Tabora, it's not far from Grand Place. And so worth €3.

Based off of online reviews, Maison Dandoy has very high ratings. And the waffle and cappuccino were definitely amazing. Noms.

Guys, I should be a food photographer. Haha. So many more photos after the break..

brussels, the sights.

A few weekends ago, I went to Brussels (Belgium) with Sarah and Shawn. It was partially a last minute decision, and partially something we had been discussing for a while. But we did book our trip only 4 days before we left! Nevertheless, it was a good time.

We took the Eurostar that took us through the channel tunnel, or the chunnel, and I would highly recommend taking it if you are in Europe! I took it once before with my family a few years ago to get from London to Paris. The train is way more comfortable than the plane!

We stayed at Résidence Les Écrins, which is a hostel, but I have to say it is the highest class hostel I have ever seen. It is essentially an apartment style hotel. We got pastries and bread delivered to our door as breakfast every morning, and we had a giiant comfy bed. I would totally stay there again, and would totally recommend it for future travels. It's only about a 10 minute walk from the central area, and I would say I felt pretty safe. I don't usually mention hotels/hostels that I stay at.. but this place is totally worth mentioning!!

Sarah modelling the kitchen area of our hostel.

Typical of all old European places, the architecture takes my breath away. I think my favourite thing about Europe is just getting the chance to walk and look around. We spent Saturday in the city and just walked, a lot.

Cathédrale Saint Michel

Palais royal and Manneken Pis

On Sunday, we ventured out a little further from the city centre to see the Atomium and visit Mini Europe while we were there. It was a beautiful sunny day, and nice to see some famous landmarks in miniature form! It would be a fun place to bring kids too!

Sarah and I at Mini Europe, with the Atomium in the background

But Grand Place was by far my favourite place to be. It is an absolutely beautiful square right in the middle of the city, with beautiful buildings on all four sides. It is so beautiful, especially when all lit up at night.

A 360 degree view of Grand Place at night

More about food in a separate post, as always. But let me just tell you right now, the food was absolutely the best! I like travelling with food goals in mind, and will definitely make it a habit to do so in the future.

Sorry my posts come with such a delay.. I kind of forgot I would be in school, silly me. Everything has been very interesting and exciting, but with that comes lots of work too. On the bright side, we are going to Geneva for the next 4 days!! One of the biggest highlights is that we will visit the World Health Organization.. I can't wait!!

oxford.

Last week, as a part of our first course, our class went on an overnight trip to Oxford to visit the Sobell House Hospice and the Clinical Exercise and Rehabilitation (CLEAR) unit at Oxford Brookes University to witness how various professionals worked together on their care teams and learn about their application of interprofessional collaborative practice.

Graduation Hall at Oxford University

I really liked the hospice. I wasn't sure what to expect, but their facility really promoted community and living, rather than focusing on the death part of end-of-life care. The building itself was in a circular donut shape, with an outdoor garden in the middle and each of the patient rooms has access to the inner garden, promoting a relaxing and comfortable living environment for in-patients. One of the patients called the hospice a place to live, not to die. This statement really resonated with me. It tugged at my heart, as my preconception of a hospice was to facilitate comfortable end-of-life care, and preparation for death.

The next day, we visited the CLEAR Unit at Oxford Brookes University. I was the most intrigued by the experience of the service user - he identified himself as a service user, and not a patient. He mentioned that he was in hospital for a few years, and was wheelchair bound for 5 years. At that point, he was told that he would never walk again. However, when he came to the CLEAR unit, he was asked to identify his goals and was told that they would work toward it together. Our group asked him to demonstrate his walk, and it was very impressive to see the progress that he had made. Though his walk was not perfect, it was very functional and he could walk in a straight path, getting from point A to point B. Overall, I was very impressed.

On the less school side of things, I also really enjoyed having the chance to walk around the Ashmolean museum. There were lots of old artifacts or replications that explored many different ancient civilizations and world religions. I do not know much about either, and I would definitely be interested in learning so much more!! Mostly, I was reminded of something my dad pointed out last time he was in the UK - these museums clearly depict the power dynamics of British rule and imperialism. It is both exciting to see all these cool things in one place, and it is also such a tragedy that cultures have lost them to the British.

Ashmolean Museum

We also went on a walking tour of Oxford which was lots of fun. I love walking, and I love Oxford!! It was always my dream to go there. When I didn't get my Hogwarts letter, I was convinced I'd go to Oxford instead. It's almost the same. Both the architecture and the history of the place was super interesting. I love that they keep so much tradition and still have oral exams and write exams in fancy robes. Sometimes it is the little things that count!

This hall was used as the Hospital Wing among other things in the filming of Harry Potter

I was also eagerly anticipating finally having some british pub food. We finally got a chance to do that in Oxford. We went to a place called the Three Goats Head Pub. The bartender there was really friendly and helpful. What a fun guy. He had to help me count my money.. tourist problems!! I had mushroom and chicken pie and a pint of cider (which I did not finish). I should really know better and order smaller drinks, haha! But both the food and the drink were delicious!! I'm just the slowest drinker of life.. don't worry about me. I also discovered that I really like Pimms though. It reminds me of sangria, which I love.

My pub food!

Anyway, we weren't in Oxford for long, but it was a fun trip. I would love to go back and explore some more Harry Potter sites, but other than that it was just a lovely university town that would be so charming to live in. I still wish I went to school there!! Oh well, in another life. Jks. I love my school.

Oxford

nearby sights.

On Sunday, our third (and last) day of orientation, we got to visit a few nearby sites. First we went to Pevensey Castle. As cool as it was, there was only so much to see. There was a lot of history but I don't really remember any of it (haha, oops) except that it got sieged multiple times and is now in ruins. Yep. Not a history kid.

 
Pevensey Castle (and my amazing photography skills.. not)

Then we went to Eastbourne which was quite cute. Beautiful, really. My roommate, Sarah, and I walked down the boardwalk and checked out the various international stalls (so cute) that were set up there. It was a little market type thing where vendors were selling international foods, clothing, and other various trinkets. I know I am travelling on a budget so I didn't indulge, but I kind of wish I did. But I'm okay with that cause we stopped in the cuuutest little cafe called Neate's and had lattes and scones. Well, actually Sarah got scones and I just nibbled some of it (thanks Sarah!). They were delicious!!!

Lattes and scones at Neate's!


Beautiful boardwalk and coast view from Eastbourne pier

On our way to Brighton we drove by Beachy Head which is a cliff that goes straight down. It is something like the 3rd most popular suicide location in the UK? I didn't write down the number, but it was hiigh. Three jumpers a week..!! But the cliff itself looked pretty cool. Also, the quidditch games in Harry Potter were supposedly filmed nearby. Not really sure where, but that's what we were told, haha! We also drove through Cuckmere where there was a really cool looking kayaking park. Seriously, so cool!

You can kayak in Cuckmere Haven! Looks the best!

When we got to Brighton, my group split up a big and we did very practical tasks such as buy sim cards (I have a UK number and can text now!) and others bought shampoo and whatnot. It was a cute city too, but I feel like we didn't have enough time to really shop (long lines, trying on clothes, etc) so we just wandered a little. My pictures of Brighton are super random and not really reflective of the city.. oh well.

 
Shirts in the clock tower, not sure why? And a photo taken walking down the street (raaandom!)

When we got back, our program officially started with two guest speakers and a welcoming ceremony where we got to mingle with staff and students in the other programs as well. But more on that later! I am excited to do more travelling.. we are already going on our first field study to Oxford this coming weekend! More on that after we go, haha.

bon voyage!

I fly out today, and will be at the Castle by tomorrow!!! It's all happening so soon!

As I write this post, I am still packing my bags.. Don't judge, I actually hate packing. However, I love planning my packing!! Remember this post on weekend trip packing tips from last summer? My packing strategies are not much different for my 2 month trip, except with some particular changes.

Bags: 30L backpack, large suitcase, large lulu bag/purse and small crossbody purse. You have no idea how much deliberation went into this decision!! After my program ends, I will travel out of only the backpack and store the suitcase to pick up later. It needed to be a bag big enough to carry 2 weeks worth of belongings, but small enough that I can handle it. It looks reasonable, but I will let you know how it goes! However, to fly out I am packing clothes into the backpack, and packing the backpack into the suitcase so I still only have 2 bags to handle (suitcase + purse). It is much less of a hassle to deal with less bags, and it also gives me an entire backpack of space to buy clothes/food/souvenirs to bring back from my travels!

Money: I feel awkward publishing how much cash I will be carrying so if you are actually curious you can ask me, but otherwise... I will be carrying cash, duh. I also got my credit card limit increased for just-in-case purposes, and also called VISA to let them know that I will be travelling so they don't freeze my card if I start spending in Europe all of a sudden!!

Clothing: As a general rule I do like to pack in the same colour family, but I also had to expand that colour scheme because I also tried to pack in non-cotton clothing as much as I could! Generally packing in the same colour schemes (and neutrals) reduces the amount of clothing cause you can mix and match more clothing. But because I will be backpacking/sweating/who knows how clean I will be... I also wanted to pack sweat-friendly non-cotton clothing. I packed my non-cotton socks, non-cotton bras, non-cotton underwear, non-cotton shirts and non-cotton shorts. Good to go! Cotton is not your friend!

Shoes: I'm bringing running shoes, keds, flats and flip flops. I opted to not bring rainboots because I can't wear them all the time and pretty much everyone I talked to told me they are a waste of space. My rain shoes will be my flip flops then, I guess. Not the most comfortable footwear but I definitely need them as shower shoes too. What shoes I bring backpacking is still up in the air. I don't think I will bring both runners and keds, and I won't bring my flats. But I'm not sure what I will do as of yet.

Important documents: passport, driver's licence, health card, travel health insurance, bank card, VISA, letter of attendance (to show that I am going to the UK to study). Photocopies in my bag, photocopies to my mother, and originals in my purse. That should do it.

Necessities: Bible, notebook, pens, water bottle, converter and adapter, tylenol, phone, laptop, flashlight.. I tried hard to pare down the items I'm bringing but it's so hard! I decided that these were the necessities.

And a few prayer requests before I go (thanks!!):
1. For community: to find like minded Christ followers, to find a church, and to trust that God will never leave me or forsake me- He is a God beyond all borders!
2. For ministry: to use the opportunities that I will have to share Christ's name, and the gospel / to disciple others while away!

I'm super excited, super nervous, but totally psyched to go! I will continue to post here to keep you updated. I cannot wait to embark on this adventure!

castle!

I'm going to study at a castle in the UK for 6 weeks this summer!!!!

Herstmonceux Castle

I can't wait!! I'm participating in a summer field program called Interdisciplinary Studies in Global Health and Disability (such a long name!) and taking 3 courses while I'm there: Interprofessional Collaborative Education; Disability Studies: Issues, Research, and Policy; and Global Perspectives in Community Based Rehabilitation. We will also be taking field trips to various places including Oxford, London and Geneva (to visit the World Health Organization!). And on top of that we are given local volunteering opportunities as well. I have no idea what I might be doing, but I could not say no. When would you ever get an experience like that elsewhere? I love volunteering, and would love to see how the material I am learning in class can apply in the real world. That is my favourite part about being a health student, after all.

I will also be travelling for a few weeks after my school term. I don't know too much about what I will be doing when I am away, but will keep you all posted as to what I will be up to! I can't wait to share my adventures with you!

As for now, I will be busy this week figuring out what to pack/how to pack/exchanging money/and all the other preparations for the trip! If you have any tips on packing for overseas travel/backpacking/hostels/food/europe in general/sights to see/good footwear/clothing choices/ANYTHING at all, I would love to hear it!

family, a wedding and lots of excitement.

Last weekend my cousin Jolene got married!!! Since Jolene is the oldest of my cousins, this was the first wedding I had been to since I was about 6. I was a little excited.. just a bit. It didn't help that one of my favourite wedding photographers and bloggers Joee Wong was their wedding photographer..!! (I mentioned him in an earlier blog post, did you catch my excitement the first time around?)

It was nice to see so much of my family together again. Most of my cousins and aunts and uncles are in Vancouver, with my family and Jolene's families being the exceptions, so it was really neat to see everyone together in Ontario!

My aunts, uncles, cousins and immediate family.

The wedding was beautiful! Though it was windy and therefore quite chilly, it was beautiful to see Jolene and Wilton get married outside- the early evening light was amazing too. They were very lucky with the weather as it had been raining all weekend, but it really cleared up for them!

Uncle Bobby walking Jolene down the aisle.

A few months ago, Jolene asked me if I could help out with their tea ceremony. At the time, I had no idea what it was as I had never seen one before. I learned quickly that it's a ceremony where the bride and groom offer their elders tea as a sign of respect, and their elders offer them lucky red pocket money as a blessing for their marriage. My part in all of this was to bring the tea to the couple. One of Jolene's bridesmaids poured the tea and I went back and forth with the tea tray. After the tea ceremony, my arms got quite shaky from holding the tray for so long. Funny story: we got candy in cute little candy jars as wedding favours, and when I opened mine, my arms were so shaky that I spilled candy all over the place. Embarrassing.

Jolene and Wilton offering Uncle Bobby tea.

Jolene and Wilton are both such sweet and kind people. This summer, over a few trips to Toronto, it has been really great seeing the two of them together. They are so caring towards others and so easy to talk to! I can't wait to see them build a life together! (Cheesy, but true, I promise!) Also, as a plus, Wilton was the first person to understand what it is that I am studying, before I explained it. He studied something similar in university (except at Western, pfft).

They made their entrance to Gangnam Style.. haha! They sure know how to have fun!

I was super excited when I first spotted their photographer, Joee. I wanted to say hi, but I didn't know what to say! "Hi... I'm a huge fan... *awkward smile*" I waited until after the tea ceremony.. but still said just that. Though I felt super awkward, Joee was super nice and gave me a hug, and asked if I was from Ottawa.. he totally remembered me (Jolene had mentioned me to him, haha!)! We had a nice chat and he said he wanted to get a photo with me before the end of the night. (What I hope I sounded like: "Yeah, that'd be awesome!" What I probably sounded like: "OHMYGOSHREALLYOKAY!!!!")

I watched him work a little throughout the wedding, but it was amazing how he blended into the background so seamlessly. Even for someone like me who wanted to watch him work, I forgot he was even there lots of the time. I happened to be sitting next to the projector (seriously, how did that happen?) when he put up a surprise Same Day Edit slideshow for the newlyweds. It was a great sneak peak of his amazing photos. Anywho, by the end of the night, we took a photo together and I probably had the biggest, goofiest grin ever. I will definitely show you once I get a look at it.

Also, check this out:

My excitement level was through the roof!!!

And so, Jolene and Wilton are now married! Crazy, right? Also, I love this picture. They both look so goofily happy. How cute!

Congrats to the happy couple!

weekend trip packing tips

It might be a little late in the summer to give you weekend trip packing tips since there aren't many long weekends coming up... this weekend is the last of the summer!! Sniffle. But I hope it may be useful for someone, somewhere, sometime. I've made a few short trips recently instead of doing a larger vacation this summer, so obviously, I'm an expert (ha, I kid). This applies to not only weekend trips, but I packed this way when I went to Vancouver for a week too.

What kind of trip are you going on? Are you visiting family or friends? Going sightseeing? Going shopping?
It is useful to know what you are going to do on your trip. If you are going out, maybe you need a nicer outfit. If you are going sightseeing, you will need to make sure you wear something comfortable you can walk in all day. If you're going shopping, pack less cause you're buying stuff anyway (that's my mom's tip.. she swears by it. I can't do it because I have to alter so many of my new clothes and I don't like risking not buying enough shirts or something).

Now that you know what you're packing, pick your bag(s).
I say, stick to a maximum of 2 bags (purse included). If you're okay with lugging one backpack around everywhere, all the better. But there are so many combinations you could do:

Suitcase + backpack, suitcase + large purse, suitcase + small purse, backpack + large purse, backpack + small purse, you get the point..

My personal favourite combinations are suitcase + large purse and backpack + large purse. I have a problem with bringing too many bags (one for every purpose!) but in both instances, I have a large versatile purse (and I usually throw a small clutch in, shh!) where I can carry anything I need from water to passport to a light cardigan to my iPod. And then I throw the rest of my clothes in the suitcase or backpack, depending on what degree of wrinkled is okay and if I need to walk a lot with my belongings (aka if you are taking the bus or train and are sightseeing on your way to the hotel).

Pick a clothing colour scheme
This is my #1 space saving tip!!! Use your basics and neutrals, and only accent with one colour family. That way you can mix and match and re-use your pieces without having to pack too many different outfits. Use your accessories to change up the feel of some of your pieces and you instantly have a new outfit (a thin cotton belt vs a thick leather belt makes a world of a difference). I usually figure out one outfit first and then build around it. For example, when I went to Toronto a few weeks ago for my cousin's bridal shower, I picked out an outfit for the shower (skirt and top) and then built the rest of my choices around those colours. That weekend I packed in pinks, purples and neutrals. When I went shopping in the States last weekend I packed in blues, turquoises and neutrals. Make it work!

Before you start actually grabbing your items, make a list.
This way you can see how much you're packing and you can easily strikeout items or add to it without having to turn your closet inside-out (has happened too many times). And if you've done it before, reuse an old list and you'll be sure to never forget the same items you forgot last time (happens to the best of us).

As I get ready for my weekend trip to Kingston, my best friend is on the other side of the world in Fiji. Rosemarie shares her tropical travel tips on her blog, threepiece. Check it out!

(photos from Pinterest)

a weekend away: utterly exhausting.

This past weekend I went to Toronto for a quick weekend visit! It was loads of fun, and oh-so exhausting. We got back to Ottawa at 12:30am Sunday night (Monday morning, really) and I didn't get to bed until about 2. Let's just say that Monday at work was not the most productive day...

Elaine invited the entire lot of us to her place in Brampton for a BBQ Saturday night, and originally I wasn't going to go down but Jessica's family just happened to be driving down and they offered me a ride! How generous of them! I was super lucky to get a ride down, and to be able to stay at Claire's place for the weekend!

So when we got to Toronto Markham, Jess and I went to Congee Wong in First Markham Place where I had some awful chinese speaking challenges. It's one of the few restaurants I am familiar with in the area, but I had never been there without my parents and had no idea how to order.. I tried to remember what the name of the congee we normally get is and I ended up ordering "tang tze jook" to which the waitress went "ha?! tang JUY jook?", hahahaha oops. It was a seafood congee which wasn't what I was looking for... but it'll do. I remembered later that I wanted pay dan suw yook jook, or pork and preserved egg congee. I have a mad craving for that now though!!

We headed out to Brampton soon afterwards, and had an amazing time at Elaine's. The food was ah-mazing! I had a burger with smoked salmon, avocado and tomatoes. Uhhhhh, delicious. There was also bacon for the bacon lovers. Best. Options. EVER. So much delicious food happening there! I brought french fry cookies (cookies that look like french fries!! BBQ themed, yes?) but more on that later!

We went to the park to play grounders, which was fun.. but being the creative kid I was I had more fun playing with Elaine's family DSLR and *trying* to take artsy angled pictures. Try being the key word here. I will have to see how they turn out..!

In a time full of catching up, deep talks, and personal sharing.. we ended the night in worship and prayer. It is truly a blessing to have a group of friends you can spend such quality time with.

On the way back to Markham, we took the 401 and got stuck in traffic from 12 to 1..!!! Just had to throw that in there. Oh Toronto, only you.

The next day I went to church with Claire and her family. Seriously, the sweetest and most gracious people ever. Everyone is so welcoming! I loved visiting a church that is so welcoming. Also, Claire's cousin is the cutest little girl ever. In Sunday school all the kids were bouncing off the walls, SO HYPER and she turns to me, sighs, and goes, "I know how you feel". BAHAHA, you're cute.

After spending some nice quality time catching up with Claire, I went out for dinner with my cousin, Jolene. Jolene took me to a Korean restaurant called Cho Sun Ok, where we had naeng myun, which translates to cold noodles. I had never heard of it before, so it was quite the adventure! The broth is icy - kind of slush-like. And I found the noodles quite difficult to get away from the main bunch, but once I mastered the spaghetti twirl with chopsticks, it was so much easier to eat!! Delicious meal. I would totally eat it again!

Image from Google.

As we caught up over dinner, I found out that Jolene is getting one of my favourite wedding photographers (it's not weird that I know wedding photographers, okay) for her wedding in a few months time!!!!!!!!! Yes, Joee Wong deserves that many exclamation marks.. I'm so excited!!

I completely forgot to take my camera out and take pictures this weekend.. which is ridiculous! I'm sorry that I have no pictures to share from this weekend!

Elaine, using the fry sleeves to hold her cell phone.

NEXT WEEKEND: Canada day + visitors!! Can't wait!! This month has been amazing!

a weekend of firsts.

This past weekend, I made a trip to Kingston with my friend Jess to move into my new place!

It was the first time I had gone on a road trip in the driver's seat..! I was both so excited and quite nervous! But it was a very pleasant ride down since the weather was beautiful, there wasn't much traffic, and I had a very talkative travel buddy. Surprisingly, the 2 hour drive down didn't phase me at all. Everyone warned me that I might get tired and to make sure I stop and pull over if I ever did. But it felt just as comfortable as driving in the city. I am super thankful for an easy ride down.

Once we got to Kingston, we checked out my new house, and boy is it dusty! Haha! What can you expect from a house that isn't lived in, though? After we unloaded the car and got the heavy labour out of the way, Jess and I headed downtown to grab some food to eat. At the reasonable hour of 3pm, we had "linner" (lunch+dinner) at Pan Chancho. It was perfect. I had never been, but have heard rave reviews. The food lived up to its reputation. It was amazing! Just light enough, but filling enough. The food and environment were both amazing!

 

I had a sweet potato hash, off the breakfast menu. It included roasted vegetables, with toast and poached eggs. Delectable! I am a big lover of breakfast foods! Actually the whole weekend, I only ate breakfast. I love all-day breakfast menus! Perfect for me.

Afterwards, we met up with Matt and Silas near City Hall and went for a walk out by the water. I was so not properly dressed for this! We climbed the rocks all the way out to the lighthouse, which was so much fun, but I seriously slipped and slid all over my sandals. But whatever, it made it that much more adventurous.

After playing frisbee and soccer in the park, we were ready for some ice cream so headed to Marble Slab Creamery. I got chai ice cream, with skor, almonds and cookie dough mixed in. Next time I will definitely get less mix-ins. I loved the ice cream but felt like I didn't have enough of it! Too much of everything else.

The next day we headed to Wolfe Island after church with Matt, Silas and Joel. I was very excited for this trip since I had never been before! We rented bikes for $15 each, and biked west until we got close to the windmills where we went to explore a bit. We frolicked through some wheat fields and got to see some windmills up close. It was so pretty, and flat!

After getting bored of the same farm road after a while we turned around and went back east where we found some marked bike paths that lead through more picturesque farm lands. We made a pit stop at some hay bales, and climbed them just for kicks. I don't know which was harder, biking in a skirt or climbing a haystack in a skirt!!

A little sunburnt and sweaty exercised-out, Jess and I headed back to Ottawa with Timmy's Ice Capps in hand, dazed from the sun and with thoughts of summer drifting in our heads.

Check, check, check. Truly a weekend of firsts. First time driving on a road trip, first time climbing out to the lighthouse, first time to Wolfe Island, first time climbing a haystack, and the first time running through wheat fields.

vancouver, part 2: the food

Oh, the food. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water! (To read part 1 of my trip to Vancouver, click here)

There is no rhyme or reason to this post... because when it comes to food my brain melts and I just want to share ALL of it, all at the same time. And pretend I was eating it again. It's pretty hard to give the food highlights of an entire week's trip, when all of the food was so good. I'll try my best! Also, I apologize in advance for the quality of the photos.. Hunger and excitement outweighs my patience, and ability to take nice photos.

The Pelican, Dim Sum Adventure: I got the chance to put my very sparse Chinese skills to a test. I didn't know how to order some of the food because a) I can't read Chinese, and b) I don't know what things are called in English. So Rose and I checked off all the things we recognized, and I called a waitress over and got her to help me. It was kind of embarrassing, and I am very thankful nobody at my table could understand my broken Chinese. It all worked out in the end, and we got lots of shrimp (not surprising as it is a seafood restaurant), and everything came in such large portions! Everything was 1 and a half times bigger than I was used to!! (Translation: AMAZING).

The Famous Warehouse: After rock climbing, Rob took us all to a restaurant on Granville that sells everything for $5..!! And it's not like they were skimpy on their portions or anything either. Though the guacamole was kind of expensive, comparatively. I would definitely go back, and just not get guacamole, haha. It was also neat because the waitress told us that they make all the furniture themselves, so the tables and benches weren't of amazing calibre, but they were functional and definitely had personality! Neat-o.

Broadway Station Sushi: Cheap sushi, but good for its price. Quite excellent for its price, really. I think I got Lady Dragon Roll and Dynamite Roll. I can't quite remember what the first one is called - I waited too long to write this post! In any case, it had a lot of avocado on top, and was therefore so delicious. The menu was quite overwhelming, and I wanted to try just about everything they offered.. next time!

Granville Island Market: You can never go wrong with eating at a market. Fresh deliciousness. I got a couple of gala apples (my favourite) for snacking on. Wax-free, you could actually taste how much better it was! No shiny stuff. For lunch I had a yam salad (image at the top of this post) and it was oh-so-delicious. I don't even know how to describe it, just look at it! Yum!

Cheesecake Factory: In Seattle my mom and I went to the Cheesecake Factory for lunch one day. I hope some of you watch The Big Bang Theory, so you can appreciate this.. our waitress' name was Penny! Hehehe! The food was great, but the cheesecake was just to die for.

White Chocolate Caramel Macadamia Nut Cheesecake @ The Cheesecake Factory, in Seattle

Stepho's (Greek restaurant): I have never really eaten Greek food before, and when I have, I was never the one to order. I had no idea what to get! I played it safe and got a pork souvlaki. The portions were HUGE! And the food was delicious.

Already half eaten, hahaha. So yummy!

Japadog: I'm sure you've heard of it.. they were all over the place during the Olympics in Vancouver! They offer a variety of hotdogs with different sorts of Japanese toppings. It seems like a really strange concept, but is surprisingly good! I got a really safe variety though.. I think it had teriyaki sauce, mayo and nori on it (Terimayo hotdog). A tourist experience worth trying.

A traditional hotdog with Japanese dressings is strangely appetizing..

Rogue: A restaurant within the Waterfront Station. It actually looks super fancy and classy inside, and is located in a beautiful transit station, so I thought it would be a little overpriced, but it isn't! It's quite reasonably priced, actually. Rose and I went here after seeing an SFU grad dance show, and we shared a pitcher of lemonade (the special that day!) and a dessert. The restaurant itself is quite large, and quite loud and busy, but you also feel like you are in your own world and have some privacy because of the table arrangements and different areas. We also had a really quirky waiter. What a wacko, but so amusing at the same time. I had a GREAT experience here! And so many good chats with Rose, ending my trip off with a flourish.

Reese's peanut butter cheesecake. It tastes as good as it sounds.