Happy Australia Day

Despite the snowfall, sub-zero temperatures and lack of a public holiday last weekend, we still managed to celebrate Australia Day on the 26th. Paradoxically, I think it was the most True Blue, Ridgy-Didge, Dinky-Di Australia Day I've ever had!

We invited a bunch of friends over to our apartment for a traditional Aussie lunch that consisted of cheesymite scrolls, sausage rolls, meat pies, vegemite sandwiches, salads, fresh fruit, lamingtons, vanilla slice, tim tams, tiny teddies and pavlova. It worked on a couple of different levels - the Aussies in the group were delighted to taste their beloved national delicacies once again, and the Canadians were eager to try these strange and wondrous creations for the first time (some were even brave enough to sample vegemite)!

Our lunch was set to a playlist of famous Ocker tunes such as 'Land Down Under', 'This is Australia', 'You're the Voice', 'Great Southern Land' and 'Working Class Man'. We couldn't have been more Aussie if we tried.

I also took some lamingtons to work on Friday. They were greatly appreciated by my colleagues, but the name was somewhat lost in translation due to my accent ("lemingtons"). Everyone kept asking me if they were lemon flavoured. Never mind.

Happy Australia Day everyone!

It's Snow Time!

Ever since the temperatures began to drop I've been wishing and hoping and praying that it would snow. The gradual cool down from mid October made the prospect of the first snowfall very suspenseful. Picture the following scenario repeated week after week: On Monday, the TV weatherman says that Toronto can expect some snow on Friday. Claire goes to sleep with her fingers crossed every night and on Friday awakes to find... nothing. A tiny part of her heart breaks. Repeat.

Finally, one weekend in late November, we experienced our first flurry in Toronto. I braced the freezing cold air to dance outside on the balcony with a cheesy grin, catching snowflakes. A few weeks later, we went out for dinner and a movie. As we ate, I looked out the window enthralled as the snow gently fell and collected on the street outside. And yes, we were a little bit late for the movie due to a certain excited girl stopping and taking photos every 5 metres.

After several more uneventful flurries throughout December, we wondered if Toronto would even have a white Christmas this year. We didn't see any snow on Christmas day in New York, but there was a gentle flurry as we walked through Times Square on Boxing Day. We came home that night to a steady snowfall in Toronto, the heaviest we'd seen yet! The next morning we woke up to 15cm of pristine white loveliness! You can only imagine my child-like glee as I laced up my snowboots to walk to work. Turns out this is the biggest snowfall that Toronto has seen in two years, although people still gave me funny looks for taking pictures on the way to work and during my lunch break! I cared not. This lovely blanket of fresh snow provided the perfect opportunity for our first snowball fight and also inspired two snowmen! Alas, it has all melted away now. I hope Jack Frost visits us again soon.

Boxing Day night, Toronto

Our balcony

My walk to work


Park benches near work


Snowman #1


Snowman #2

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

A very belated Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to you all! Apologies that the posts have been few and far between lately, I've been having a bit too much fun to write.

Christmas is such a lovely time in Toronto; the tree-lined streets twinkle with fairy lights, festive decorations adorn shop windows and the minus temperatures bring a gentle flurry of snowflakes over the city. We got into the spirit of the season at home by decorating a gingerbread house with friends one afternoon.

In mid-December we visited the Distillery District's Christmas Market at night. The beautiful Christmas lights and jovial atmosphere made the freezing temperatures a little more bearable. The cobblestone alleys were lined with wooden carts selling Christmas gifts, ornaments, mulled wine, apple cider, wurst and pretzels. Christmas carolers braved the minus temperatures to sing and children had fun playing in the gingerbread house and mini hedge maze.

For Christmas and Boxing Day we flew to New York. It was lovely to stroll around the city amidst cheerful crowds of people stopping to look at the pretty Christmas decorations. Ice skating at the Rockefeller Centre looked like fun, but it was incredibly busy so we decided to pass it up. In Times Square we saw the New Year's Eve ball ready to drop in a week's time. We went to the Top of the Rock to take in a spectacular view of the city and enjoyed a relaxing Christmas dinner for two.

While it wasn't exactly a white Christmas in Toronto, we arrived on Wednesday night to a steady snowfall and awoke the next morning to find 15cm of fresh white powdery loveliness! But more on that next time. New Years' Eve was celebrated with good friends, good food, good music and above average dancing. I have a feeling 2013 is going to be a wonderful year!