Trip #6: Viva Las Vegas!

Saturday February 17th, 2007


















You know you're in Las Vegas when there are slot machines to greet you at your airport gate. ha! So....it is NBA Allstar weekend for the first time in Vegas - a city that doesn't even have it's own professional team... It is also the hotspot for Michael Jordan's bday & Paris Hilton's bday bashes. - maybe I'll spot a celeb...(ps in the pic...we're posing with a wax figure)...so no. we didn;t spot a REAL celeb haha



















Let's just say it was absolute havoc - an extra 250,000 people were on the strip (on top of the expected # of tourists)+ free flowing alcohol + a whole lotta weed & goodness knows what else = havoc. It took us 2 hours just to get a cab! (cause of the NBA games/jams), we eventually made it to the Excalibur where Anita & her friends were staying. Let me just say that the NBA seems to bring out the HOOCH in everyone. I've never seen soooo many terrible outfits (and in such small sizes)....Jess said that one girl actually FELL out of her shirt in the elevator. lovely. We quickly realized that hoe or not (NOT...definitely a not haha), we were hit on like every few ft we walked...hilarious.





















Anita's hotel was a massive castle on the outside. These casinos were so huge! We made our way to the Bellagio for supper, and after that we decided were going to try to get into a ritzy club!!! We waited in line to get into one of THE clubs - PURE - in Caesar's Palace - which I believe is where the Pussycat dolls started! We waited in line all dressed up in heels, Anita showed some leg, and we got in! No cover! haha.

Inside there were white leather couches blocked off for the high rollers, and dance/standing areas inbetween. It was pretty cramped, the music not so good...but HEY, we were in a classy club! Oh yes, and we all got hit on like a ridiculous amount...it was pretty funny. Eva Longoria & her boyfriend __ Barker? were supposed to be there, but were no shows/ well I assume - I left early...haha yes i'm lame.

Here's a Chineese New Year Banner: (It was gorgeous - all the casinos were decorated in red & gold)

Trip #5: Canadian Idol Unleashed

Feb 12th, 2007

Saj had school today so I crashed at Ted's (which is IKEA'D out ladies ;) haha. He lives in York by "Korea-town"...we walked around went for lunch then it was off to the metro to go meet my aunt & uncle in Misissauga. It was nice catching up with fam...the next morning it was back to Calgary & back to work...brutal. But totally worth the trip!


February 11th, 2007

Ah! To sleep in....after a breakfast of champions of ORGANIC peanut butter puffs (yes yes i'm talking about food again but u must try these), saj gave me a walking tour of Yorkville - which is a trendy, celebrity frequented area with upscalish shops like Gucci, Calvin Klein etc. We walked into one store just for fun and that's when we spotted....THE DRESS. Saj picked it out, made me try it on, and everyone in the store came over to see! It fit PERFECTLY which never happens...all the sales girls came over and ooohed and awed (cause they wanted me to buy it). So it was unanimous. I splurged on the (LEOPARD PRINT) dress (after bartering the price down)SWEET. Saj - you have immaculate taste!

From there we quickly ran thru the ROM(Royal Ontario Mueseum) to chk out exhibits on Chineese history & Buddishm. Sorry I couldn't take pictures!

In the evening Ted picked me up and we checked out a comedy club show. It was setup like SNL, but was "Sunday nite live" - it even featured a musical guest host: Ryan Malcolm! No. He's NOT a celebrity...but he IS a Canadian Idol!...

After the show we picked up saj and went to cafe with great cake, full of students, and the guy next to us was knitting while playing scrabble....But it was sooo great hanging out with my BFFs! scratch that....with Saj & Ted! :)

Trip #5: The Big T.O.

February 10th, 2007


Yay! Off to Toronto to see Saj & Ted (highschool BFFs)- ok ok I won't use that acronym again. anywho....

Wow did the flight ever suck. I feel so small town here haha. I'm glad Saj & Vishal (saj's MAN)were able to pick me up! They gave me a quick tour of stuff....sorry saj I honestly can't remember what we passed in the car..oh yes U of T campus, that was quite nice, and a wind energy mill...right in the middle of the city :)

Then we went to an authentic Mexican restaurant, there were sombreros everywhere! Thanks for taking us out for dinner Vishal! From there, went to Saj's place (close to U of T) her neighbourhood is very lively!

That night we met up with Ted to go clubbing in downtown Toronto! I got to ride the metro...i'm now officially an urbanite. - Unfortunately we had to wait in line @ the Boulevard Room, but inside it was pretty cool; An R & B singer performed for a bit, and Snow was a no show. Really I didn't care cause I got to go CLUBBING in TORONTO! WOW. I'm still in awe.

After that we went to a popular, but scuzzy Montreal diner called Mel's for late night poutine...mmm greasy goodness! damnit i'm writing about food again!

Trip #4: Cruizin in the Mini-Van

Jan 29th, 2007

Jess's family lent me their van today! Wow, so trusting! It's funny cause people who KNOW me & my driving skills would NOT lend me their car! haha No worries, it was like a n independent road trip...time for self reflection?



My first destination was Peggy's Cove (the lighthouse you see on postcards). On the way there I passed through little fishing villages. It was amazing! The homes there made me think of cottages, all multicolored and on the lakes/ocean. I also drove by a small wind gen farm...that was pretty cool!



From there I went to visit family in Dartmouth. They were soooo nice! and fed me curry :)mmmmm. They also gave me a tour of the harbour from the Dartmouth side...I will post pictures soon!

Next I drove into downtown to meet my friend Jibran for supper at Economy of Shoeshop.(very cool restaurant) It was sooo great to see him!I don't regret meeting soo many people on this trip, but I was soo happy to see a familiar face! He gave me a tour of downtown, we walked around the Halifax harbour at night and I even got a tour of the Universities! The highlight: A lifesize Theadore Tugboat in the dock....a little bit creepy at night. haha. :)

The next day I said goodbye to Halifax and flew home....soooo tired!

Trip #4: Canadiana at it's best!

Jan 28th, 2007

Ok I gave up on trying to leave Halifax, and decided to enjoy it the best I could. David & Laura (Jess's Uncle & Aunt) were so great, I'm glad I had the chance to get to know them a bit! Their house is amazing!!! It backs out onto this beautiful pond, with tall pines on either side. Then at the edge of the pond there's an elevated railway track for CNrail passenger trains, and Grande Lake behind those. It was gorgeous! I got my toque & mitts on & went out onto the ice to play some hockey while occasionally waving to the passenger train when it went by. I felt like I was smack in the middle of a Tim Horton's commercial! I can't believe I've been to both sides of the country in the same month....I felt soooo....patriotic :)

In the evening they had friends over for supper & I got introduced as Jess, their neice's friend...(aka. the free-loader) haha. My luggage finally showed up and it was off to bed!

PS I'll add Halifax & Regina pictures sooon! Sorry for the delay!

Trip #4: East Siiiiiiiiiiide! (so cheesy i know)

Jan 24th, 2007

Ah the maritimes...Jess western canada one weekend, eastern the next, why not? So it was decided. We booked our flights & off we went to Halifax: I connected through Montreal & Jess through Toronto. Unfortunately Jess never made it past Toronto (don't worry she's OK), but due to bad weather all flights out of T.O. were cancelled!!!!

Meanwhile I get to the Halifax airport, and realize there's A) No Jess. B) No luggage (it got lost)! F*ck. I was also dependent on Jess for planning this trip b/c we were staying with her family....so C) No accommodations Ahhhhh! Worst luck ever.

I guess we were both panicking simultaneously b/c Jess was in the airport haggling with Customer Service....I checked my msgs to find out all they could offer her was a flight back to Saskatoon (where she's from). So I'm stranded on my own in Halifax! Yikes.

Fortunately (since I looked like I was lost) her Uncle David spotted me and asked if I was "Jen". He wanted to paige me (since they had no idea what I looked like) as "Jen" but figured that probably wouldn't be so effective. They had not heard of Jess not showing, so I had to explain the situation fun fun. Fortunately they still took me in....

Trip #3: Homeward Bound (Regina!)

Jan 17th-Jan20th, 2007

Trip #3: Regina

Ok this weekend went by waaaay too fast! Probably cause I was home AND slept a whole lot to make up for last weekend!...It's always great to see my folks & my little bro. I spent most of my time hanging out with my mom & dad. I also got to see my cousin Astra! We bonded over curry...(though she thinks I'm a slob) mmm home cooked meals! I guess it's ok to get excited over my mom's food. :)


Sunday Jan 18th,

I planned a get together with (of course) a somewhat random group of friends (sorry I always do this to you guys)! I can't believe Carmel came out (who was 8 days away from giving birth!) - you're amazing girl! And Amy with her beautiful daughter Faith! ,& Krish: Bright engineering friend! Karla: my film buff & a budding journalist...Vinnie: the amazing salsa queen - we always have good times!

I was sooo glad to see you all! Regina is my rock, my home. I luv it!

Trip #2: Van City Baby! Part II

Jan 14-16, 2007

Vancouver Part II

The next day I got to bond more with family! We first went for all you can eat sushi @ fish on rice (sooo good). Then went to check out the bodyworld exhibit with Neil & Naveen (http://www.scienceworld.bc.ca/bodyworlds/index.html) - The exhibit looks a bit creepy at first glance, but we got to see what actual diseased organs looked like in comparison to healthy ones. There was an display of all the major arteries of the body (I guess they injected a cadaver with a special plastic to get that). Also the cross section of an over-weight person (a bit gross), but cool learning experience! Laura & Sheila you would have loved it!

Then Pavin cooked an awesome supper (mmm butter chicken) and we hung out with her fam...:)! Monday (our last full day)we spent shopping with Neil & Pavin....we got to see downtown,and covered a whole lotta stores!!! I think I tired them out but it was great spending time with them :)Then my old university/rez friend Jenn T (Big Jenn) called me up and I met her for coffee. She's doing great!

Tuesday was brutal - Jess and I woke up at 3am to call a cab (my bad I booked the flight so early) and off to the airport! Then from the airport to the bus, the bus to the lrt - the lrt to work! brutal.

Trip #2: Van City Baby!

Jan 13, 2007

TRIP #2: Van City Baby!

This time Jess (chem eng from Saskamatoon) volunteered to be my travel buddy. My cousin Naveen picked us up (he's lives in Metrotown). I quickly realized that driving in Vancouver is all about being on the defensive...Naveen almost got side- swiped by 3....sorry I've got to say it....female asian drivers. Yep. (I do realize I fall into this category (minus the SUV) so it was THAT bad) haha.

Metrotown is such a great area! Naveen's condo is SURROUNDED by asian restaurants and all you can eat SUSHI! Man I get waaay tooo excited over food!

From there we went to Granville Island to check out a brewery tour (Naveen's idea - the lush).JJ. But they told us the brewery wasn't in operation on Saturday but they'd gladly take our money and give us samples....yah no. We walked around a bit, grabbed fish n chips (greasy goodness) then headed onward to the Market area of Granville.


The Market was soooo busy! It reminded me of the Farmer's market in Calgary, but with more fresh fruit & fish. From there we checked out a dock area that had a ridiculous number of birds. Apparently I have a fear of most birds, especially when they fly straight at my head. I'm convinced they're evil & sense fear. I guess Jess found this pretty funny since she took pictures while I was trying to duck/dodge the birds/while having a panic attack. From there we caught a street performer (OUTSIDE - My god it was freezing and the poor girl was in tights) She was pretty funny and yelled after people for being cheap bastards if they stiffed her.

Poor Naveen then drove us in to Little India, because I thought Jess might want to see it....but it was too cold outside! So then took off to Granville Island to watch improv!!! I love improv! And in comparison to what I've seen before, this should have been professional improv! They did a "So you think you can dance" theme (but for improv), it was hilarious. They brought up audience members: one lady was already drunk from being on her staggette. It was good fun!

We then crashed a house party Naveen was going to. Jess and I were unfortunately anti-social cause we were soooo tired!Sorry for being lame Navu!

Trip #1: Edmonton

Jan 9th, 2007

TRIP #1: Edmonton

MY FIRST BLOG!
Ok so this one was not an official / planned trip. The deal started Jan 9th a Tuesday....And I didn't feel like going into work, so I booked a day trip to EDMONTON! Yay! Alex (just happened) to be in town so we went shopping @ West Ed. We spent most of our time mesmorized by Jazz the sealion....He's so cute! Then we chilled at a very nice coffee shop...and time flew by and before I knew it I was back on a plane to Calgary. This was a short, but sweet trip.

Who? What? Wherea?

Jan 1st ish 2007.

INTRO BLOG:

Ok, so for those of you who don't know...I signed up for this sweet deal through aircanada where I can fly unlimited on Tuesdays and Saturdays for 2 months....My plans are to travel every weekend for the next while (sat-tuesdays) just for fun! It may feel a bit intense at times / feel a bit sleep deprived...but I'll make this work.

PS The dates for the first few blogs will be off b/c I took so damn long to type this up...my bad.