Hot pot, Nail Art, Skiing and AYCE Sushi

Hope everyone had a nice reading week, or if you're not in university, a good week over all. My reading week went really well and I got to do a lot of things that I normally don't get a chance to do.

Hot Pot on a Snowy Day

I had hotpot night at my house, and to my good fortune, I picked the only day it seemed to snow this winter.

There was actually snow on the ground!

Hot pot, if you're not familiar with it, is like an Asian fondue, accept you cook the food in hot broth over a little stove. I love adding fish balls and slices of thinly cut meat like beef and lamb. It's a great way to cook food during the winter since you're sitting over the stove and a great bonding activity with others. :)

Lots of fish tofu boiling away. Yum!

Nail Art

The next day,  Christina graciously did my nails with her cool stencilling tools. I don't normally put on any nail polish since I can't paint within the lines (I know... how sad). But thankfully she was great and there were so many combinations with her colour collection that you can really get creative with your designs. 

Look at all the cool stencil options!

She decided to do a purple flower and white butterfly on each finger, I really loved the combination.

Christina was nice enough to do my sister's hands as well with a simpler design.

The white flowers look so classy.

Afterward, we went for a little walk around my neighbourhood and noticed how gigantic the stop signs were. 

Christina was compelled to "STOP" for the large stop sign.

Skiing at Blue Mountain


Later in the week, I went a day ski trip to Blue Mountain in Collingwood. This was my third time skiing, but first time going to Blue Mountain. I had thought I was an OK skiier until I started skiing and wiping out like crazy on the slopes. I guess I'm just not the Canadian-winter-skiing-type.

Just before we left however, I had the chance to explore the little village/resort around Blue Mountain. The place was just gorgeous around twilight and I'm sure it gets even prettier at night.

The hotels looked so quaint and cute

There was even an outdoor rink to play hockey if you felt that skiing wasn't enough.

The townsquare was full of restaurants and shops and looked very old-fashioned, which made it perfect for tourists like me. The red brick and the lights really gave everything a very romantic look and feel.

At the bottom of some slopes, they even had lawn chairs set up for when you got tired. I'm not sure if that's a good idea since there is the possibility of some n00b crashing into you.

All-You-Can-Eat Sushi on Baldwin

I had a craving for all-you-can-eat sushi so we ended up going to Kunisuhi-ya! on Baldwin Street. The food was pretty good and as always with AYCE sushi, it's a delicate balance between making your money's worth and not killing yourself with food. Our strategy for the night was to try and stick to sashimi and meaty dishes and avoid rolls. 

The gyoza 

I would say that my favourite of the night had to be the squid teriyaki. Everything was well cooked and I'm a sucker for anything squid/octopus.

Annie really wanted the chicken wings and I must say, four wings per order was pretty small and the wings were tiny too. I would not recommend getting this unless you really like chicken wings like she does.

The sashimi was pretty good but they only came in one slice per order so we got lots. 

We ordered more food later but I got lazy and stopped taking photos. Overall, I would recommend this place since the service was quite good and we got a 10% discount for paying in cash. The food wasn't bad but AYCE sushi is never as good as the a-la-carte version anyways.

February is almost over and I can't wait till Spring is here! Have a good weekend everyone! :)

Bubble Tea at Eskimo's!

It's the Friday before Reading Week, so a few of us went to get some bubble tea around the  Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO)!

We went to Eskimo's, which sells little cakes and drinks, right across the street from AGO.

You can see the spaceship design of the art gallery from the window.

I would say that Eskimo would be a perfect place to hang out or bring your date to, after a long day of  art-viewing across the street.

The menu was really cool and artsy looking!

They had lots of desserts on display and everything looked soo good! 

I ended up getting the chocolate milk green tea with tapioca and it was the perfect marriage between a hot chocolate and green tea. 

The tapiocas were just the way I like them, chewy, soft and sweet. 

I also got some beef and fish balls to go along with my tea. 

The tables had little grafiti logos on them too

I think I take a lot of food picture so here's a picture with people in it. :D

Shreya with her ninja-like skills took off her glasses before I noticed

It was a beautiful sunset when I left and I couldn't resist taking this picture (click to enlarge).

Happy Reading Week everyone! Leave me a comment for suggestions of new places/things to try. :D

Casting Day

Casting Day is the day when everyone on the U of T Concrete Canoe team comes together to make this year's canoe. I have been coming to this event for a very long time now and this year was my 4th year. 

It's always a fun day since this is the one meeting where current members and canoe alumni come back to cast and reminisce about good times. 

The mix contains fibers and they're added into the mix by hand. 

Jason and Marko working the mixer. I think we've had that thing longer then anyone can remember

The canoe is casted in layers and this was the first layer about to cover the mould.

The layers have to be thin

Casting a 20 feet long canoe is no easy job and requires everyone's help.

Looks like the first layer is almost done :D

The tip of the canoe is always tricky and requires a lot of special attention.

We use carbon fiber in the canoe for extra strength without the weight. 

After the carbon fiber has been added, you caste another layer of concrete.

When the whole canoe's been casted, you make a huge humidity tent to cure it.

Look at the giant tarp!

Of course, there needs to be some creativity in this. Someone made a bear in concrete.

Aww....

It's not a JYG adventure without some food of course. Marko's sister was kind enough to bake us some cupcakes. They had a chocolate canoe shape and blue icing for waves! Very thoughtful and yummy indeed :).

I think Lina really likes them too.

 I had a family dinner later that night and my mom made some smoked salmon appetizers!

Have a good week everyone :D!

Takoyaki at Manpuku and 5 Dollar Lunches

After trying out the takoyaki or octopus balls at Fin Izakaya, Sophie decided to show me other varieties of this dish at Manpuku.

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Manpuku is a small little lunch shop inside the plaza opposite of the Ontario Art Gallery. For a busy place downtown, it does feel very cozy and "Japanese".

The easy to read menu

Since takoyaki is a snack and we were technically there for lunch, we got some main dishes to go along with the takoyaki.

Sophie got riceballs in soup 

I had udon with fish slices

The noodles and the fish was really good!

Finally our takoyaki came and they were so good!! I would most definitely go back :)

Mmm....Takoyaki :)

The next day, I decided to go to Hart House's famous 5 dollar lunches with a few friends.

Hart House is probably one of my favourite places on the U of T campus. It has the old world feel that one does not normally find in North America. 

The beautiful chandeliers in the Great Hall

Even the chairs look old! 

Clearly, this was a popular event....

The food that day unfortunately was not that good at all. It was an all vegetarian menu with candied yams, peas and hummus in pita with rice.

The yams tasted funny :(

On my way back to classes, it just so happened to be the Student Action day and saw a few policemen standing by.

There were quite a lot of students protesting. I don't usually see such a large turnout at protester events at U of T.

The atmosphere was quite fun and lively since there were speakers playing loud music. It honestly felt more like a concert then a protest.

Extras:

Kris had worn a shirt with holes in it and of course, Esther couldn't resist drawing in those holes, and I couldn't resist documenting the process. 

At least Kris was co-operative about it....

Can you spot the hole she drew?

Almost forgot to show off my fancy Graditude lapel pin:

I'm a sucker for Engineering swag

Have a great weekend everyone!