Christmas Time Is Here!

 

 Wishing you peace, love, and good tidings this holiday season!

Maggie + Colin in HK: Part IV

We spent most our time on Hong Kong Island, so we made sure to dedicate at least one full day to Kowloon. Here's the dynamic duo in front of the historic clock tower in TST.

We braved the long line for breakfast at the Australian Dairy Co. It's very similar to Capital Cafe, but much more crowded. Maggie and Colin couldn't decide which one was their favourite!

We walked around Mong Kok one morning. I know it would have been better to go later on in the day, but time was running out. I'm glad I got to check it out anyway, since the last time I went was easily over 10 years ago.

Here fishy, fishy, fishy! Maggie and Colin wanted to bring a goldfish home to their friends.

Deal hunting for souvenirs. Don't underestimate their cuteness! These monsters know how to bargain.

We ate ridiculous amounts of Hokkaido milk ice cream. This one was from Milk Top, in the basement of Sogo (Causeway Bay).

Taking the Airport Express on our last day. It was really nice to check-in to our flight downtown, to minimize our time at the airport.

It was a blast, Hong Kong! Thanks for the memories and good food!

Maggie + Colin in HK: Part III

I've been to Hong Kong a few times now, but never to any of the outlying islands (except Lantau). Maggie and Colin thought Cheung Chau would be a cool place to visit. The ferry ride there was less than an hour.

Here's the main drag. There's no cars allowed on Cheung Chau so bikes are plentiful for renting. We decided to explore on foot.

It seems like fishing is very popular here. We ate a lot of seafood (in snack form). Everything was delicious!

It was a little too cold to take a dip at Tung Wan Beach. Plus, Maggie didn't want to get her hair wet.

Late one night, we ventured to a tiny dessert shop under a bridge close to North Point. This black sesame tong yuen was fantastic! Thanks for the recommendation, NK!

Here's Maggie and Colin on the Dragon's Back in Shek O Park. You can't really tell from Maggie's hair, but it was extremely windy at the top!

Following the leader!

We took the Star Ferry as much as we could during our stay. Here's us returning to the island from TST. Again, that view!

One more blog post to go!

Maggie + Colin in HK: Part II

Alrighty, on to the second installment!

Maggie and Colin visited the Man Mo Temple in Sheung Wan. After checking out the area, we walked across Hollywood Road until we ended up in Central.

We took the mid-level escalators for majority of the ride. The grandma in front was a bit confused why two monsters were following her.

The pals had a delicious pear pastry at Joel Robuchon's tea salon in the Landmark.

We also met up with friends for dinner at APM - a mall that's open until 2 AM every day. There were Snoopys and Christmas trees everywhere!

Maggie and Colin are posing in front of a local eatery, well known for its milk tea and egg tarts. If you're in Wan Chai, go!

Another day, they had a hearty breakfast at the cha chaan teng, Capital Cafe.

Here's the duo at the World SME Expo. We walked away with bags of free stuff!

We made a dedicated mission to Din Tai Fung for Shanghainese soup dumplings. The restaurant has a Michelin star!

The shopping in Hong Kong is first-rate. Causeway Bay has heaps of malls and boutiques.

What a view from our bedroom! We could see the Symphony of Lights show from both the island and Kowloon.

Even though I was conferencing for the first half of our trip, Maggie and Colin got to explore a decent amount. For such little guys, they covered a lot of ground in a short time!

Maggie + Colin in HK: Part I

Maggie and Colin are excited to share photos from their trip to Hong Kong! It was their first time overseas. On day one...

...they ate pineapple BBQ pork buns - not the easiest thing to find in Toronto.

They had an afternoon nap to help recover from jet lag.

They shopped at swanky department stores, including Harvey Nichols...

...and Lane Crawford (they're like the Holt Renfrews of the UK and Hong Kong).

They occupied Central (really Admiralty, despite what all the news said).

They brushed up on their Chinese reading skills. I think they're better than me!

And they occupied Central some more!

More photos to be posted soon!

Happy Birthday, Quatchis!

Q and the Mins turn six today!

Happy birthday to all the other Quatchis out there!

Knock Knock!

Look who arrived! It's Spencer from Monster Factory, and he's ready to move in!

Snowman showed him where to unpack his belongings...

...and then introduced him to the friends! Maggie and Colin are out and about but knew Spencer was coming. Welcome, Spencer!

Muffins by Maggie (and Colin!)

Maggie was reunited with her cousin, Colin, this past weekend. And great news - he's here to stay! Maggie wanted to show Colin her super duper baking skills. She also wanted to show him how to wear a muffin liner like a fancy hat.

The Best Chocolate Chip Muffins

1/2 cup butter

1 cup granulated sugar

2 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1/2 teaspoon cinnamon

2 eggs

1/2 cup milk

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

Preheat oven to 350 F. Line a 12 cup muffin tray with paper liners.

In a large mixing bowl beat the butter, sugar, baking powder, salt, vanilla, and cinnamon until fluffy. Beat in eggs, then stir in the milk. Mix in the flour just until combined, then the chocolate chips. Divide the batter evenly among the muffin cups.

Bake the muffins for approximately 30 minutes.

Source: Cinnamon-Spice & Everything Nice

LWA's Newest Member

Meet the Letter Writers Alliance's newest member!

Q is a keen letter writer. He loves keeping in touch with friends around the world. He asked me to sew the LWA badge onto one of his belongings. I'm thinking his backpack...or maybe one of his shirts?

Bonsai Thanksgiving

Just chilling with our new bonsai tree on this fine Sunday.

Happy Thanksgiving to our Canadian friends!

King of the Mountain

It was a huge treat to hang out with my good friend, Michelle. We've known each other since grade six. She's been working and living in Calgary for the past few years. I haven't seen her since last summer.

We lucked out with awesome weather when we ventured out to Banff. It was much better than the flurries I encountered when I flew in to Calgary a few days before.

The gondola ride up Sulphur Mountain was worth every penny. It took us 8 minutes to go up to 7,486 feet. Hiking up the mountain would have been fun but we didn't have the time. The hike would take anywhere between two to five hours.

The views were spectacular!!! To the left of Mini's shoulder is the Banff Springs Hotel. The very blue body of water in the distance is Lake Minnewanka.

There is an old meteorological observatory building at the top of Sanson Peak. It cost $950 to build back in 1903.

Thanks, Mini! I was wondering where to find Toronto...

There are many shops, restaurants, and bars along the main drag in town. Mini was super excited when he found the Dancing Sasquatch! It wasn't open so we opted for a dance party in the street instead.

Sending lots of love to Michelle in Calgary! Thank you for being an excellent host!

One Day in Cowtown

I went to Calgary last week for work. Mini joined, since I extended my stay to visit a friend. On our first free day, we walked all around downtown. I completely forgot to take any photos in the morning since it was so chilly out. We accomplished a lot in a few hours - we checked out Kensington, the Peace Bridge, the Bow Valley Pathway, and Prince's Island Park.

Mini is pointing to the Chinese Cultural Centre. We dipped in quickly before heading to Chinatown and grabbing a bite to eat.

There's a decent amount of public art in the city. This sculpture is by Jaume Plensa, a Spanish artist. 

Olympic Plaza was much smaller than we expected. If we had more time, we would have went to Canada Olympic Park - the main site of the 1988 Winter Olympics.

Mini is standing in front of a newspaper being held up by Nellie McClung. She, along with four other women that make up this monument, were very important for women's rights in Alberta.

Though not as tall as the CN Tower, the Calgary Tower has the highest 360 observation deck in the world.

Mini was very patient while I went shopping along Stephen Avenue Walk. There's no provincial sales tax in Alberta, so I tried to take advantage of some good deals.