I had always thought that i was the little prince. Little did I know that after I met him, I was the aviator all along.

Happy are those who dream dreams and are ready to pay the price to make them come true.
Leon J. Suenes

Bonjour all!

A new decade has arrived and with it, new hopes, new opportunities, new dreams, as well as more windows and doors to open.

Well as my winter break begins to slowly draw the curtains down, I must say, as I reflect back, that it has been quite a stir, and with it lessons learned, friendships brightened, and life becoming more unpredictable as ever, however in a good way.
Last night, I had the chance to share a wonderful evening with my friend, who came from France for the holidays, and my sister, to enjoy Toronto in the wintertime. Yes, it was simply delightful to see snow clinging to branches, and seeing the winter lights all over the city, but the wind chill was enough to make you stay indoors.
Went to Bier Markt down near the St. Lawrence, one of my favorite hangouts in the city, and grabbed some Markt poutine as well as interesting desserts as Belgian Chocolate Fondue.

On New Years Eve, I had the pleasure of having enjoyable company to engage in places down at King, first taking some Fruuli , fries, and Creme Brulee at Beer Bistro. Upon receiving the Creme Brulee, I had the definite urge to crack its surface as Amelie has done in "Le Fabuleux Destin d'Amélie Poulain " Felt immensely satisfied afterwards.

Afterwards, half an hour before midnight, we all headed to Nathan Philips Square, where there was a massive blur of people surrounding the premise. It was incredible to see so many people gathered at this one place all counting down to a new decade. It was absolutely thrilling when everyone cried out loud: "Three, Two, One!" and then a blast of red and white fireworks erupting the sky, followed by gold sprays. I know I was truly excited, hugging all my friends and praying that only things will only go up from here on out.
Well spending time with my friend who came from France, like this summer, I really got the chance to see the city in a different feel. One night, we were playing along and headed to Union Station, all the while I pretended that we had to catch the London train. We decided to go up on the platform and for a moment, I was silent.

There was low humming, and a peaceful quiet echoed throughout the platform. There's just something about train stations, any train stations that unravels my imagination and springs forth this energy of thinking things grand. A possible lover awaiting her love to arrive during the time of war, friends eagerly awaiting each other's company for years of not having seen one another would issue great memories as soon as they meet, things like that.
While exploring the city in the wintertime, I also managed to taste quite a lot of desserts during the holidays. At Cafe Nervosa down at Yorkville, they have great tiramisu- the kind my grandmother has on her birthday.

While I was sitting and relaxing, you had the perfect view of Anthropologie right across. I have made a couple of trips there and I must say its love really.

All along that street, there are shops which left me riveting. Teatro Verde, Paper Things, Anthropologie, especially in Teatro Verde where they had these amazing composer busts I wished I had purchased, but sold out. Wanted to get Schubert and Chopin.
Will make a return to Cafe Nervosa soon. I enjoyed its atmosphere.
Also I had a fantastic opportunity to catch up on some film-watching. Films include: New York, I Love You (which literally left me wanting to do something similar for Toronto) Nine, Sherlock Holmes (everyone close to me know how badly i was dying to see this and I've been talking about this for ages- in fact, I liked it so much that I went to see it twice.), Avatar, Adam (thought it was amazing, Hugh Dancy is just wow).
There's just something about winter lights that just brings such a magical element to things they drape upon. Like a little pixie dust to the everyday mundane things in life to remind us that with just a dash of light, even the most ugly buildings or places can glow in rapture.

And that's all for now, ciao!

You would not believe your eyes, if ten million fireflies lit up the world as I fell asleep

"He thought about himself, and the whole Earth,

Of Man the wonderful, and of the Stars,

And how the deuce they ever could have birth;

And then he thought of Earthquakes, and of Wars,

How many miles the Moon might have in girth,

Of Air-balloons, and of the many bars

To perfect Knowledge of the boundless Skies;

And then he thought of Donna Julia's eyes."

-Byron, Don Juan (1819), Canto 1, stanza 92

Bonjour all!

Well so far, my Fall Break has been very lovely indeed. I joined my friend down near the Esplanade to my favorite eatery called Bier Markt. It's a European-style restaurant in the city's original waterfront promenade. It features over 100 beers and a brasserie-inspired menu.

What I particularly enjoyed was the strawberry beer from Belgium known as Fruli. My friend tried some Austrian and German beer which he found to be over the top in his expectations.

Menu-wise, I ordered this lovely Wild Mushroom Soup, which the overall appearance was enjoyable (broth held within the teacup) and alongside that the Markt Poutine was utterly delicious and rich, which I accompanied with a nice Belgium beer known as Palm that was a perfect companion with the Markt Poutine.

Further along the weekend, today I was really glad to meet up with another close friend of mine, where we went down my treasured place here in this city, St. Lawrence. We instantly grabbed some hot apple cider at Second Cup, where we then head to my favorite bookstore Nicholas Hoare. Upon entering the bookstore, I was instantly gripped by the need to pull a book, to go up the ladders and reach out to a intriguing title. There was just too many titles I wanted to add to my personal library, and what felt like hours, I settled down on two:

Both immediately drew my attention. What I like to do is read the first few sentences within a book and if I become captivated, then instantly I know it would be towards my liking. Both satisfied this taste.

Afterwards, it was onwards to lounge at the Royal York Hotel. One of my favorite historic places to go in Toronto, it sweeps you back to a classic time where life seemed to be gracefully and elegantly dancing to the sounds of the Golden Age.

We explored its many different rooms, including its Imperial Room

The Library Bar is exquisite.

I'm actually quite glad we have such amazing architectural accomplishments as the Royal York.

Oftentimes on the upper level, where they have deep-seated old-styled chairs, it would be such a great atmosphere to curl up on a good read, or people-watching. Its just that from above, you look down at those coming and going... wondering where they'll head off to, what sort of life they are living.. its incredible the connectivity we are unconsciously part of.
The interesting moments is when you see flight attendants and their pilot wandering through, and you think about their travels they have gone through... in which I instantly feel the tug of travel in my heart.
Well the day fell into evening. It finally came upon dinner time, so my friend and I agreed upon dining at the Rosewater Supper Club.

I actually first dined here three years ago when my uncle and aunt took my cousins and I for a pre-Christmas celebration. It really was an enjoyable evening. The food was exquisite.

So my friend Tiff and I finally arrived at the Rosewater.

We dined down where the pillows were. What is great about the Rosewater is its invigorating atmosphere and music.

Dinner was fun, while my friend and I caught up and talked. I was actually relieved to see Rosewater quiet on this Saturday, where it usually is packed to the full.

The whole place is very lovely indeed. I'm quite glad I took the time to enjoy life as it is. Between school and at the office, one can ignore many of the things where it may aid you in De-stressing yourself. I'm glad this weekend turned out to be fun, hope yours was just at interesting!

And that's all for now, ciao!

On Grandeur

Dost thou love life?

Then do not squander time,
for that is the stuff life is made of.
Benjamin Franklin

Bonjour all!

Recently, a lot of things I have been particularly fond of in terms of heightened interest, which allows me to further expand on what I like to do and take part of.

How much I take great strides to slowly walk around campus, to see such amazing imagery of nature around me, harmonizing with the older architecture.

Lately, there has seem to be a huge outbreak of news of this particular H1N1 (also know as swine flu) which seems to have grasped my very city and beyond. To be honest, this rise of such a dilemma leaves me feeling like where I stand right now, where society is right now dealing with this problem, seems to be coming out from films we would see in the cinema. What will happen in the near future: further isolation, seclusion, loss. I feel like I'm outside looking in, that I have a hint of denial that such a sweep of an illness could in fact be faced with a definite consequences as death.

On a lighter note, there have been a greater increase in the want to help others, to those who I may not personally see or meet in this lifetime, but to understand that I can make a difference in this world. Free The Children, or JHR (Journalists for Human Rights) are some of the many who are trying to set that change. I know I want to see a better realization of a world where we can say that we are making that surge of effort, we really do want to see a change happen, rather than theorize that thought of such happenings.

Halloween is coming up. I recall that when I was younger, I remember going Trick or Treating door-to-door and alongside asking for candy, I also asked for a donation for UNICEF. For me it wasn't a daunting challenge. It was thinking that such a small amount of money could give clean water or food to those in need in many parts of the world.
Yes, the world of a university student has in fact, brought a very busy schedule. One thing's for sure, I truly find my European Politics class a hoot. The various political structures within Europe, I just find it interesting. A light dream would be that I would end up living in Europe... perhaps maybe one day...one can only dream!

Recently another thing in which I would call the "dreaming love" of, is to travel by train. The whole sense of traveling old-world style to seek out the mysteriousness and grandeur it seems to hold, is captivating within my storybook mind. Who knows, there can be a mysterious love with a stranger as well, haha.

One thing's for sure, I've been listening to a lot more of classical music, being one of my favorites, and recently I've been listening to Bach's Cello Suite No. 1 over and over again. I think apart from the piano, the sound of a cello really reaches deep into your soul and can vibrate right through you... that's how I feel it anyway. Starting to practice the piano more, which is great!

Also picked up writing, more of sketching and writing down thoughts, a random blip, a sentence which I find mesmerizing.

You know what else is a hoot: The Big Bang Theory! Bought Season Two of the show, and I honestly can't get enough of it. Sheldon really is something, I wish he was my friend, haha.

Well, that's all for now, ciao!