Halloween H8R

Jeff's Jack-O'Lantern.

The last few years, I have found myself less than enthusiastic when Halloween rolls around. Back in the day I used to get excited about dressing up, but now I just can't find the patience to sit down, think up a costume idea, and follow through with constructing it. Costumes are not my cup of tea because there is always something uncomfortable about them. They're itchy or pinchy, they have cheap accessories that smell like plastic and chemicals, they're too tight or too big... Costumes are NEVER comfortable. And as a result, I'm a Halloween Hater.

Unfortunately, my friends all fall on the other end of the spectrum, and usually go all-out with costumes. I don't have the heart to truly boycott Halloween (which might be strongly related to my love of candy and baked goods), so I find myself in a costume year after year.

This year, Tom and I matched in stripes; him as Waldo, and me as an convict.

Tom and I gorging on the food spread.

I think Ashley and Steve would win prizes for best costumes with Ashley as a cannibal, and Steve as a semi-mauled explorer. Ashley's costume was complete with a bag full of oozy kidneys, hearts, fingers and ears. GROSS!

Ashley the cannibal and Steve the mauled explorer.

Jeff and Billy come in close with their dual costumes, mad scientist, and hunchback assistant. In honour of Igor, we lovingly referred to Billy as Bilgor. Billy's fake teeth were really gross, and I'm glad he took them out early in the night!

Mad scientist and hunchback assistant!

We also saw Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne, a bumblebee and a giant toaster! Unfortunately I don't have a picture of any of these costumes.

Each year, Jeff always manages to out-do himself with Halloween ideas. Several years ago there were lychee eyeballs floating in the punch, last year there was candy sushi... This year there was pumpkin stew, meringue bones, pumpkin cupcakes and spooky faces carved into the apples floating in the punch. And I can't forget about the fog machine on the front porch!

Halloween details.

Maybe next year I'll try a little harder to get into the Halloween spirit. In retrospect, there are many things I should look forward to. There is always a great spread of food, and I always end up having a good time. It's really just the costume that I dread stepping into.

Ha!

Whether your trick-or-treating or handing out candy, Happy Halloween!

Cupcakepalooza

Vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting.

Four different cupcake batters.

Six types of chocolate frosting.

24 combinations.

I'm struggling on the brink of sugar coma.

Jasmine is getting married in six months, and she wants to offer cupcakes to her guests at the end of the night. Her fiance, Joel, requested vanilla cupcakes with chocolate frosting. With so many different recipes out there, it seemed logical to try out a variety of cakes and frostings.

Mallary compiled the ingredients necessary for four cupcake recipes and six frostings. It's actually a bit unnerving to see everything all together.

Flour, sugar, and baking powder as far as the eye can see.

6 lbs of butter.

We had the cupcakes baked and cooling surprisingly fast. This was because the house that Paige just moved into has a suite in the basement, so we were able to use the ovens on both floors of her house to keep things moving. We baked each cupcake recipe into different cupcake wrappers so we could tell them apart later on in the day.

About 8 dozen cupcakes.

Making frosting was another adventure. Thank God for Mallary and her KitchenAid stand mixer! We tested chocolate creamcheese, dark chocolate, milk chocolate, chocolate meringue, chocolate buttercream and chocolate ganache frosting.

Mallary with her stand mixer.

The five of us are quite familiar with cooking together, and this time we had a guest cook, Josie! Josie is Joel and Jasmine's puppy. She seemed totally uninterested in all that was going on in the kitchen. She spent a great deal of the afternoon sleeping. The few times she quietly ventured into the kitchen she was accidentally stepped on!

Josie sleeping on a grocery bag.

We also devised a system of piping and slathering icing so we could tell them apart from each other. We tested different piping tips and dipping techniques to find the prettiest results.

Mallary and I piping icing.

As a finishing touch, we sprinkled white chocolate and milk chocolate Bernard Callebaut shaving onto the tops of the cupcakes for decoration.

A plethora of cupcakes.

In the end, it was a very productive afternoon. Paige constructed a "Cupcake Matrix" in Excel to track our combinations and comments on flavors. I'd like to say she's a huge nerd for making a spreadsheet... But the truth is, we all egged her on!

My personal favorite was the milk chocolate frosting on a Martha Stewart white cake, but the chocolate ganache was tasty too!

Paige, Jill, Mallary, Jasmine and I with our cupcake spread.

Now... I can't imagine eating another cupcake for several months. Good thing the wedding is still six months away.

Cupcakepalooza-- SUCCESS!

Tempting Your Palate

On Friday, Tom and I went to the Rocky Mountain Wine and Food Festival with some friends. It was my second year attending, and it has become an event that I really look forward to!

The festival is comprised of dozens upon dozens of exhibitors with sampling sized portions of wine, beer, rum, vodkas, ciders, desserts, appetizers and food. You purchase sampling tickets for 50 cents each, and sampling an item can cost you anywhere from 2-10 tickets.

Here are some highlights of my sampling for the night:

Crabbie's Original Ginger Beer

Photo Credit

I tried ginger beer a few times when I was in Australia, and I further solidified my love for it when we were in the UK. This is the first time I've seen ginger beer in Canada, and I was eager to try it! I was not disappointed. Apparently this ginger beer (brewed in Scotland) is available at the Kensington Wine Market.

Buttercream Bakeshop - Strawberry Shortcake Cupcake

Photo Credit

My favorite part of the night is the Buttercream Bakeshop stall. Last year we went there more than once, and this year we did the same. Although they offered a chocolate chilli and pumpkin carmel flavour, I stuck with ol' faithful, strawberry shortcake. Why try something new when you know you won't be disappointed?

Kung-Fu Girl Riesling

Photo Credit

Kung Fu Girl Reisling was another favorite from last year. I already knew that I liked it, so I made sure to sample some again. Last year I even bought a bottle of this wine to enjoy on my own (and as you know, I don't like wine), but Tom mistakenly opened up the bottle and used it for cooking asparagus.

UBU Lounge Lobster Corn Dog

Imagine chunks of lobster deep fried in a corn batter, and then slathered in a delicious creamy dill sauce. Need I say more?!

Here are some lowlights of the night:

Alaska Distillery - Smoked Salmon Flavored Vodka

Photo Credit

Okay, I admit... I didn't actually try this vodka. It just sounded absolutely revolting! Who thought it was a good idea to put FISH flavor into a beverage? When we passed this stall, they were mixing the vodka into caesars, which might not have been too bad... But I was too chicken to try it.

Frisky Zebra Red Wine

I can't even remember what type of red this was (maybe merlot or shiraz), but it burned all the way down. I was sucked in by the delightful name and label, but I regretted this sampling choice!

We spent almost five hours at this event, and sampled many other foods and beverages. We also attended a free cheese tasting from the Canadian Dairy Farmers. This is definitely something I'll be interested in attending again next year. Can't wait! Maybe I'll see you there?

I Do Not Speak French

Je ne parle pas francais.

But it was okay! Tom and I got by with the minimum. Merci, oui, bonjour, s'il vous plait!

A view of Paris.

Tom and I arrived in Paris on October 3, and it was really, really hot. We took the high speed Eurostar from England and went under the English Channel. There were a lot of unpleasant pressure changes as we went in and out of tunnels that kept making our ears pop painfully. But the trip was mainly uneventful as we made our way to our hotel near the Montparnasse Metro station.

Our first impression of Paris wasn't a positive one. Guess whaaaat? Paris smells like urine! Maybe it's because there weren't many public washrooms around, or because many of the washrooms we did find required a fee in order to use them. But when we were walking through a park towards the Louvre, Tom saw a guy peeing in the hedges.

Tom and I outside the Louvre. Turns out it was closed!

We planned to spend our first morning in Paris at the Louvre, but we arrived and discovered that the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. Why Tuesdays? I don't know. It's not like closing on a Sunday would be logical or anything... So instead we took a walk through the Notre Dame Cathedral and were confused why people were taking photos. Both the Westminster Abbey and St. Paul's Cathedral had a no photo policy, and we assumed the same would hold in France. Apparently the French only have a no flash policy.

The Notre Dame Cathedral.

From the cathedral, we decided to make the long walk to the Arc de Triomphe. It looked to be about 5km on the map, but we figured we would see many more sights than taking the subway. We were right! We passed many impressive buildings, an event for Paris Fashion Week, and several monuments.

The Arc de Triomphe.

The Arc de Triomphe is situated in a large traffic circle. From the top of the Arc, we spent a few minutes watching the chaos of cars below us. There are six to seven unmarked lanes of traffic filtering into two lanes! People going every direction, and non-stop honking. It also seemed like the people inside the traffic circle were yielding to the people on the outside. It's difficult to describe the traffic in words, so I've posted a video below.

French traffic circle chaos.

From the Arc de Triomphe, we headed towards the Eiffel Tower. It is hard to appreciate the size of the tower since there are no other tall buildings around it.

The Eiffel Tower (as seen from the Arc de Triomphe).

Up the belly of the Eiffel Tower.

Initially Tom and I planned to take the lift to the very top of the tower, but when we saw the line of tourists waiting to go up, we made the executive decision to take the stairs. There were about 670 stairs up to the second level, and it was a lovely view. We were exhausted after our first day; I'm sure we walked no less than 8km!

The line to take the lift up to the top of the Eiffel Tower.

The line to take the stairs up the Eiffel Tower.

For our second day in Paris, we ventured into Montmartre to see the Sacre Coeur. This area of the city was full of artists and tiny boutique shops. Although the Sacre Coeur was beautiful, the entire perimeter of the building and the steps leading up to it smelled strongly of urine. It kind of kills the so-called "romantic" vibe of the city!

The exterior of the Sacre Coeur.

We stopped at the Galeria Laffeyeta (i.e. a giant department store mall) to admire the intricate ceiling, and visited a French McDonald's. I secretly hoped the McChicken would be called the McPoulet... But no, it was still the McChicken.

The rest of the day was spent at the Louvre. We saw the Venus de Milo, and also the Mona Lisa.

Although we have heard many stories of the French being rude and snobby, everyone that we interacted with was very friendly and helpful. We enjoyed our time in Paris, but it was not our favorite destination on the trip. Tom and I had quite the adventure flying home... But I'll save that for another day!

Canadians in London (England)

Canada House in London city center, England.

The heat wave continues in London. It reached at least 27 degrees today, and I am developing tan lines on my nose, arms and shoulders. We were not particularly successful at finding summer clothes, so I took a lesson from Jill and washed my only summery dress in the hotel sink last night.

Our hotel in London is just a few blocks away from Parliament and Westminster Abbey. In fact, as we were toting out luggage out of the tube station, I was so engrossed by the Parliament buildings on my left, I didn't even notice Westminster Abbey on the right side of the street!

The imposing Parliament buildings.

Big Ben clock tower.

The exterior of Westminster Abbey.

We bought a London Pass to save money on admission fees to many of the iconic attractions in London. Some of our major stops include the National Gallery, the London Museum, the Tower of London, and the London Bridge. We walked through St. James Park on our way to Buckingham Palace, and made our way through Trafalgar Square.

A pond in St. James Park.

Tom and I in front of Buckingham Palace.

Tom and I also tried something that was included in our London Pass called the "London Bridge Experience." We didn't know what to expect, but it turned out to be a cheesy house of horrors based loosely on the history of the London Bridge. At the end there was a tour through the "London Tombs." Actors kept jumping out and harassing the girl in front of me, and she was screaming every other minute! I am ashamed to admit one of the actors startled a good squeal out of me, but I feel better because one of them made Tom jump too!

The London Bridge.

Generally after a full day on our feet we've spent our evenings relaxing in the hotel. On Friday we went to an Indian Tapas restaurant in Soho on the recommendation of a friend. Afterwards we went to see Les Miserables at the Queen's Theatre. Tom and I realized it has been about five years since we've seen a play together (Of Mice and Men in 2006), and I thoroughly enjoyed the show. The theatre was smaller than I expected, but we had great seats and a prime view of the action. There was a band playing the music live in the orchestra pit, and the audience was incredibly enthusiastic.

One of our main stops on Sunday was the Natural History Museum. The museum had a very impressive spread, including exhibits on dinosaurs, birds, mammals, marine life, fossils and geology and ecology.

Great hall at the entrance of the Museum of Natural History.

Hilarious conversation overheard in the washroom between a mother and her two children:

Little boy (from bathroom stall): Mummy! I dropped my car in the toilet!

Mother (from another bathroom stall): You dropped your car? Oh dear! There's no help for that.

Little boy: It's in the toilet, Mummy!

Little girl (from a third bathroom stall): Fish it out and wash it off!

Mother: Don't you DARE!

Little girl: Well I still have my car!

In the afternoon, we took a train out to Windsor Castle to take a look at the State Apartments. Tom and I are becoming experts at getting around on the London tube. We realize we took the longest route possible when getting to our hotel when we arrived.

Royal Guard (aka Beefeater) at Windsor Castle.

Our last stop in London before we head to Paris will be St. Paul's Cathedral.

This will likely be my last blog until we get home on October 6. We do not have a proper adapter for electric outlets in France, so we likely won't be able to use our laptop unless we buy one. But I'm sure we'll have plenty to occupy us (other than blogging) in Paris anyway!

Enjoy your week!

UK Roadtrippin' Part 2

Sept. 28 - Llandudno to Oxford

For the third day of our road trip, we made the four hour drive to Oxford. For a change of pace (instead of sightseeing), we spent the afternoon visiting old friends of Tom's grandparents.

Tom, Cyril, Mabel and I.

Cyril and Mabel are in their early nineties, and met Tom's grandparent's (on his dad's side) while traveling in the mid 1980's. They became fast friends, and over the years exchanged correspondence in a series of letters and cassette tapes. Cyril and Mabel came to Canada once in 1986 when Tom was about three years old; apparently Tom had a penchant for untying Cyril's shoes. Tom's grandparents travelled to England and returned their visit in the following years.

This was essentially the first time we'd met Cyril and Mabel, and we had a wonderful time listening to their stories and hearing about their life experiences. They told us about their children and grandchildren, and many of their travels. They also recollected how they were on a holiday when war was declared in 1939.

The couple have a lovely home in Oxford with a beautifully manicured garden. There is a bird house and birdbath, autumn crocuses and giant sunflowers.

Sept. 29 - Oxford to London

In the morning we took a walk around the town of Oxford. Tom and I were under the impression that there was one University in Oxford, but it is actually comprised of multiple colleges. For example, some Oxford University Colleges are, Exeter College, Brasenose College, Trinity College, Wadham College, University College, etc. The list goes on! The town is teeming with students. Students walking, students cycling (and barely any with helmets!), students jogging... Students, as far as the eye can see!

Old buildings of Oxford University Colleges.

Next stop... Stonehenge.

Some images of Stonehenge.

I think the interesting thing about Stonehenge is how little that is known and understood about Stonehenge. There are many theories about how Stonehenge was made and what it was used for, but no one knows for sure. However, I did learn from the audio tour that at last count there are over 90 varieties of lichen growing on the stones!

Stonehenge was the last stop on our UK road trip. We took our beloved Vauxhall Astra back to the car rental place at Heathrow, and made our way into the city. After nearly two hours on public transportation, we regret our decision not to take a taxi. We thought it would be cheaper to take the tube from Heathrow, but after forking out 42 pounds for train tickets (i.e. $70 CAD), we're not so sure.

Have I mentioned that it is sweltering out here? Tom and I thought it was going to be cool fall weather, so we brought lots of layers and pants. Today it reached at least 29 degrees! Don't believe me? See for yourself! Exhibit A:

Note that the temperature in the top right hand corner reads 29 degrees.

I think we might have to do some shopping to resupply ourselves with summer clothing. At least the hotel has AC.

We are now enter the London portion of our trip, wish us luck!