I am a Torontonian

I moved from Australia in September back to Canada!

I had the chance to go back to my home: Lake Clear Ontario! This is My sister and I at Thanksgiving at my family home on the lake.

A nice view of the Lake.

I decided to move to Toronto since my sister lives there and I got hired at the HI as Accommodations Coordinator. I got laid off recently and now I work as a Travel Agent for Flight Centre. I live north of the Beaches which is right by lake Ontario. Summertime will be the best.  I've walked along the beach most weekends. I feel like I will always need to live near water.

I thought Toronto would be too loud and busy with not enough nature and trees. I've been really enjoying living in this city. I've met some amazing people! There is so much going on here. I've been ice skating at Harbourfront and Nathan Phillips Square. I went tobogganing in High Park. I've been practically living at Snakes and Lattes which is the best place in all of Toronto.  http://www.snakesandlattes.com/#contact. It's a concept cafe with a library of boardgames. The best by far is Settlers of Cattan. Check out this website for more info http://www.blogto.com/cafes/snakes-and-lattes-toronto

For Vintage shopping the best place to go is Value Village. I get most of my clothes there since it is a giant thrift store. Bulk Barn is great for candy and other items.

I've tried many restaurants and my favourite so far is African Palace an Ethiopian restaurant in the Annex.  The best thing on the menu is Beef Tibbs.  http://www.blogto.com/restaurants/african-palace

This month I will be going to a TIFF exhibit on the tv show Game of Thrones!!!! (it's the Toronto International Film Festival). It will be showcasing props, weapons and costumes from the show. It will also have behind the scenes footage! The best part is it's free!

The best source for information about what's going on in this city is blogTO. It has info on events, restaurants, stores, neighborhoods, etc. It also has the" best of" lists of anything in Toronto.  http://www.blogto.com/

Review of Freshlook Colors VIOLET Contact Lens

I love VIOLET eyes! I have always loved Elizabeth Taylor's gorgeous violet eyes and inspired by her I ordered a pair of Freshlook contact lenses. These lenses from www.netoptical.com.au which is an Australian optometrist base in Queensland. The package took 2 business days to arrive and was delivered to my door personally by Express Post.  I have bad vision so I ordered them in my prescription of -1.75 for both eyes.

  Here are my natural colour of eyes: a deep warm brown.

 

Review:

Comfort: 10/10

Colour: 8/10

Opaqueness: 8/10

Fit: 10/10

They are extremely comfortable and I have no blurred vision due which can sometimes happen with coloured lenses.  I have them in a prescription of -1.75 and these are as good as my clear prescription lenses.  In regular daytime natural lighting my eyes look very violet, not blue which is what I was hoping for. Overall I am very pleased.  I plan to wear them for a ComicCon costume of the Last Unicorn when she is transformed into a human.   

I HEART HARP SEALS

 I was given a stuffed toy baby harp seal when I was a small child and it changed my life! Harp seals live on an island in north eastern Canada and they have their young around the month of February.  By this time of the year the seals have grown and the seal hunt begins.  The Canadian government lets a person with a seal hunting license to kill 6 seals per season.  There is a huge eco tourism industry with tour companies take people out during the season when the babies are white and fluffy.  They charge outrageous amounts to helicopter people in and a few months later this money funds the economy of the area allowing hunters to live and carry out business. Some tour companies are legitimate but many are keeping the hunting business thriving. 

Here is a link to an excellent National Geographic article about the issue:
http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/static-legacy/ngm/0403/feature3/

Iconic Classic Film Influences my Spectacle Choice

I spent a lot of time with my Grandmother Betty and she introduced me to another era.  I suppose it is because of her influence that I am acquainted with Classic Film and Fashion.  I am especially drawn to the Hitchcock era or what we now refer to as the Mad Men era. 

I have worn the same pair of Blue Moschino Spectacles since I was 16 yrs old.  Over 10 yrs later I rely more on contact lenses.  Although I wear a very expensive version that is breathable and can be slept in, I find I still rely on my glasses/spectacles when at home.  I decided to find some classic frames that I could wear for the next 10 years. 

After endless searching I finally found the perfect frame: Vintage NHS Tortoiseshell

 

Reminicent of Grace Kelly's Pair

I fell in Love with Michael Kors' Autumn 2008 RTW Collection

On closing how much does January Jones who plays Betty Draper on Mad Men look like Grace Kelly?

Trip to Katoomba Blue Mountains

 I have wanderlust. When I was a child I did not see the Ocean until I was 12 yrs old. But I had dreamed of what it would be like while lying in my 80's water bed. My childhood dreams have come true and I've been lucky enough to have traveled all over the world.

A few weeks ago I discovered the Blue Mountains of NSW. This region is about a 2 hr drive from my house or from Sydney. It is a strange and amazing little mountain village. The main street is filled with antique, vintage shops, bookstores, cafes and pubs. They even have a vintage cinema.

 Photo from Flickr Venitia27.

I stayed in the YHA Hostel, an Art Deco Heritage building with fireplaces. I just love working for YHA. My friend is the Night Manager here.

The Common Ground; a restaurant run by the 12 Tribes (a Christian Cult). It was like stepping into a fantasy world.  Hand-carved woodwork tables and stairs. The food was homemade and I had the delicious blueberry pancakes.

I had to see the famous Three Sisters Mountain range.

 I visited the Royal Botanic Gardens at Mount Tomah. The highlight was the Californian Giant Redwood or Sequoia tree.

 There is a train station in Lithgow (about 45 min drive from Katoomba). They have steam trains that you can take a ride on. I'll be going back up to Katoomba in May for the Wizards' Express Steam Train. If you love Harry Potter, it's at platform 9 and 3/4 Clarence Station Lithgow NSW on May 14th. Everyone will be wearing costumes and then you get sorted into your prospective houses by the sorting hat! Also in Winter there is a huge festival called Winter Magic with a parade down the main street in Katoomba. This is my kind of place!

I found this website to be extremely helpful in planning my trip http://www.visitnsw.com/town/Katoomba.aspx

Escape to Hidden Beaches

Last weekend I escaped.  I had worked all week in the city in Sydney and I needed to get into the wilderness.  I drove with my friends south down the coast to Husskison and went snorkelling.  Then we drove to a national park through dirt roads to a secluded Honeymoon bay (see previous post from the winter time visit).  We snorkeled and then spent the afternoon walking from Nelson's beach down the shoreline to Blenheim beach, and Greenfield beach.  It was spectacularly white sand, clear turquoise waters and pure blue sky.  We spent from 8am to 5pm in the water- basically from dawn til dusk.  It was one of the best days of my life.

Heat Wave Breaks

I am a cold climate girl living in one of the hottest places on earth.  This week rose to 40 degrees celcius.  I suppose that is just normal for many people, but if you understand that back home in Northern Ontario Canada it has been -37 degrees this month you can see why this is difficult to endure. The record hottest temperature for this area in Australia was 45 degrees, so I suppose it could have been worse. It felt generally like a sauna, or a hot tub while trying to sleep at night. Last night I watched a light show in the sky as heat lightning flashed over the horizon. Today as I write this we finally have a Southerly Buster.  For those folks who are not Australian, a southerly buster is a sea breeze that moves inland to cool everything down usually around mid afternoon on a very hot day. It's been a week of above 35 degree weather, absolutely stifling.  This breeze is what I have been waiting for. The heat meant that I couldn't sleep much and I have had heat stroke for the past two days.  I've drunk about 5 litres of ice water per day to cool off.  I've also had a pressure headache from the humidity and general hotness.

I am dreaming of the ice hotel in Quebec and huskies pulling dog sleds, light blue glaciers, the northern lights, and ice skating on Lake Clear at my parents house.