Mode & Design 2010

I've watched a few fashion shows on TV and the Internet and I thought I would never have a chance to see it in reality. But Montreal, which is as miraculous as Genie (Aladdin's magic lamp), made it come true. The show was outdoor and taking place near McGill metro station. There were a huge temporary stage, two screens, a professional DJ, buskers, some exhibits, beer and... models, of course! After I waited for 30 minutes, the show finally started. Those cute, tall and slim models were hitting the catwalk to the rhythm of music right in front of my eyes. I felt like a little girl who got her first barbie doll.

There were many shows, and the one I saw was exhibiting more casual clothes. I heard some people watched the bikini show and various other types of shows. If I lived downtown, I would have stayed longer to enjoy the music and the mood. It actually became one of the reasons why I decided to move out after that summer.         

Another pink room

One day my mom asked me if I would move into another house because there were too many boys in mine. I agreed that sharing a bathroom with boys is truly inconvenient so I promptly packed all my stuff and moved into my new house, which was also closer to the bus stop. Great! I can sleep five more minutes in the morning. The room was the biggest one in the house. I was totally in love with this room. There was a huge window and the view was perfect! I was very excited about my discovery. According to her daughter, this was supposed to be her future room.


There were four students in total who lived upstairs. We didn't make any agreement about who would first use the bathroom in the morning. I definitely knew I was not a morning person so I always had to be the first to occupy the bathroom. After that, I was half dreaming half slowly preparing myself in my room.

Although my English had improved a little, I listened  to people more than I spoke. My mom helped a lot with my English listening skills. She frequently talked to me about her family stories, life experiences, the culture of Canada and so on at dinner time when other students had not shown up yet.

In my opinion, living in a home stay is a good way to improve a language skill. However, if you unfortunately get a roommate who has a radically different life style, it could drive you crazy. So good luck!

Such a perfect place for studying

I occasionally see squirrels running on the tree.

On my way home the leaves turned yellow in the autumn.

Summer activity: Tam-Tam

The first Tam-Tam I've seen in my life was in the movie hot chick (see the photo below). I got an instant crush on that amazing rhythm.

The picture is from http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iiGki-_iD3I

There is an outdoor activity taking place in Mont-Royal park (which is the biggest park in Montreal) during every summer. I went there a few times. When I got off the metro station, I just followed the sound leading right to the park. Even though they have a performance every weekend, I still see many people going there. Imagine bringing your lunch box, a few beers, sitting or laying on the grass (Thanks god, there's no poo-poo), chatting with friends, enjoying the music for free, lingering out the whole evening in the park, and maybe (for those who enjoy) even smoking a few joints (!) Isn't it a luxurious life style? 

Je t'aime en chocolat

I was just right in time to go to this festival which was only taking place for two days. I was not supposed to go out that day because it was -17 degrees outside. In order to see the chocolate paradise, I had to wear many clothes to protect my body from getting cold.

The exhibition was in the Marché Bonsecours, which was already packed when I arrived. I was so excited to see the large variety of chocolates, all of which were all elegantly packed. It almost made me become a headcase. But I had too many chocolates in my secret drawer already. If I had not had so much, I undoubtedly would have bought as much chocolate as I could have.    

Many chocolate makers were providing samples for us to try. I fell so fortunate I didn't miss this event. I'll certainly go next year as well... See you there maybe!

Vertige

I had an amazing Valentine's day dinner at Vertige yesterday. I have to say thank you to my boyfriend for making such a good choice for that special day. I have been there a couple of times and I always leave the restaurant astonished.

We ordered the Valentine's day menu which had a total of six courses (I missed taking a picture of the lobster soup). The presentation of the food was so beautiful that every new course served to my table would always make me unknowingly open my eyes and my mouth. And the taste was just fantastic (God! I gotta learn more adjectives to describe this food) Every time I closed my eyes to enjoy munching every piece of food in my mouth, making me feel like I was in Heaven. I can't tell which one of the dishes was my favorite because it's too hard to rank each of them. My tongue still remembers every single flavor I experienced yesterday however.

The timing of the service was perfect. I spent three hours there and never felt rushed, even though people kept coming in. The owner and the waitresses were smiling, cordial and attentive. Despite the fact that I don't understand French, they were kind enough to translate for me.

Overall, I heard this is one of the best restaurants in Montreal, and I absolutely agree with it. I recommend it to anyone. You never know how good it is until you've tried it!

I feel bad for the chef because I'm not a professional camera woman.

Vertige
540 Rue Duluth Est H2L 1A9 Montreal, Quebec

Juliette & Chocolat

Chocolate fondant

I consider the chocolate fondant of Juliette & Chocolat to be the last dinner for myself, before leaving Montreal. I also recommended to every friend I made in school to try this fantastic chocolate cake (check the picture on the top), and everybody loved it. When I cut the cake with my spoon, the liquid chocolate inside flowed out such as the magma out of a volcano. Though I have seen it many times, it still makes me pleasantly surprised. There were two scoops of ice cream beside the cake and it made a very good combination. Just remember to eat the cake before it gets cold, otherwise, the taste will be less pronounced than the first bite. Likewise, it's better to eat it on the spot rather than to take it out. 

The store opens every day and the opening hours are from 11am to 11pm. Sometimes it opens until midnight as well. What a customer friendly place... 

On Laurier street

This one is near Berri-Uqam metro station.

Happy Valentine's day to everyone!

juliette et chocolat
For the location please click http://julietteetchocolat.com/cheznous.php

Pride parade in Montreal 2010

I missed one of the biggest events which occurs only once a year in Montreal. When my friends and I got off Berri-Uqam station, the parade was already finished. It was a very special event for me. We Asians barely see such things in our country. Besides my purpose was only to stay in Canada until June 30, 2011. Though I had so many regrets and disappointments not having seen it, I took a few pictures of people who were dressed in special costumes for the event.

Since I was a child, I've watched many movies that made jokes on gay people, and like every other kid who watches too much TV, I learned from it. As I grew in age, my view changed little by little. I started thinking by myself about what was right or wrong, not just being fed information that I got from the holy mass media. I learned to respect each life, each culture, each color of skin and so on. I was touched by them, seeing them stand for their right. They are not criminals, so don't wear color glasses to judge them. I adore people who can say "Yeah! I'm gay, so what?" with full confidence.

What do I grasp about gay people? I don't really know them but I know many of them have great sense of fashion and good taste for decoration. There are many quite fancy bars and restaurants which you can easily find in the gay village. This is one of the reasons I love Montreal, people here are such open-minded.

By the way, I just found out that Taiwan has the biggest Pride parade in Asia. Yeaah!

The diversity of the diet culture

When I went to a super market for the first time, I was shocked to see the chicken packed in saran wrap. The skin of the chicken breast or thigh was completely taken off, and it looked like a new born rat. Indeed, the size and the shape was almost the same and reminded me about an article I read about genetically modified food: a chicken with six legs. Of course it's not true, is it? The store was even selling rabbit meat, likewise the skin taken off as well. Don't blame me, you do think that some Asian food is gross, don't you? I feel the differing opinions about  food of Canadians and Taiwanese is interesting.

Most Montrealers only eat meat once headless, tailless, with no feet and completely skinned. Some of my friends explained me the reason why they dislike to see the whole body of the chicken. They are not sure they would be able to eat it if they could see their eyes. They would feel guilty and think the chicken is accusing them.

As opposed to Montrealers, if there was a cooked chicken without a complete body, a Taiwanese would think that there is something missing because they always wish for everything to have a good start (the head) and a good end (the tail).

Mmm... delicious!

See what I found in super market in Chinatown. 
Can somebody tell me how to cook it?