Canada and us................

Labour Day Trip to Montreal & Ottawa

2011-12-23T00:22:00.000-05:00

We wanted to take advantage of the long Labour Day weekend to get to know parts of Canada we had not visited before. And what better way then to head for the old economical and the actual constitutional capital?
Just follow us on the trip...

And one more year...

2011-12-22T23:05:00.000-05:00

White Rock Ostrich Farm and Rockwood CA

2011-12-22T22:53:00.000-05:00

One summer weekend outing led us on a "Safari trip" to White Rock Ostrich Farm, where we went on a tractor pulled wagon tour to see these impressive birds closer. All I can say is that they are not of a tender nature. The rest of day was spend in really beautiful Rockwood conservation area, sightseeing, Sandcastle building and hiking... More under the following link.

August Activities

2011-12-22T22:27:00.000-05:00

August wasn't the sunniest month as you'll appreciate by the number of photos taken indoors. But this didn't prevent us from from having a real Korean BBQ (Johann loved it!) and visiting the Botanical Garden in Brampton. There are also some impressions from a multicultural day at Johann's daycare with Indian dancers. Please have a look at the Pictures....

Our holiday in Dresden 2011

2011-11-07T23:50:00.000-05:00

Here are finally some photos of our holiday in Dresden this summer. We went there to spent some time with the extended family and notably to attend my sisters wedding. Many of the posted pictures were taken at outings in the surroundings and Johann had much fun with his cousin as one might see...

July 14th

2011-10-24T23:07:00.000-04:00

Some impressions from our beautiful summer at Rotary Park Pool and 14th of July with the French crowd in High parc....

Going to a restaurant with a toddler is feasible...

2011-10-24T22:23:00.000-04:00

Don't even think about taking him inside, an outdoor place like Bairada is perfect....

Forget about him eating too much, the broccoli is just to make nice on the plate....

Have fun and don't make a fuss, and if there are screens somewhere, even better...

At least Mom and Dad can talk to each other and enjoy the moment...

Canada National Day and Riverdale Farm

2011-10-04T23:41:00.006-04:00

Just as last year we went up to Caledon to spent Canada Day in the sun. But this year, Johann was tall enough to go for a Pony ride. The toughest part was to get him back off the horse !!

For the latter part of the long weekend we went to Toronto's own Farm, a kind of Minizoo with lush surroundings. The pictures around the wading pool are taken when we thought we could cool off from our visit and relax a bit. But no, there were "bubbles"!!!

Detroit trip 2011

2011-10-03T23:11:00.003-04:00

Aiee, how I'm fed up seeing cars... the pictures from the Detroit zoo are much nicer....

Johann's life

2011-10-03T22:33:00.002-04:00

For the first part, some select pictures from Johann's activities at the daycare, at our dads group and "outside" (one of his favourite words).

For the second part, the pictures were taken at our outing to the "Taste of Little Italy", one of the street festivals Toronto is famous for, celebrating all things Italian...

Johann's 2nd Birthday

2011-09-13T23:39:00.003-04:00

On sail boats

2011-09-12T23:44:00.003-04:00

These pictures were taken on the Kajama tall ship where friends invited us for a tour of the Toronto harbour, as well as one friends very small ship ;-) in Oakville.

More photos...

France & Belgium 2011

2011-07-11T23:51:00.004-04:00

Below pictures were taken on our family trip to France and Belgium in May.

As there are really quite a few photos I've subdivided them into sections for each part of our trip. Please click on the country label to jump to the picture series....

Belgium

Alsace et Lorraine

Valence and Lyon Region

Hanami

2011-06-27T00:09:00.000-04:00

A very famous tradition in Japan is "hanami" ... gathering under the blossoming cherry trees (sakura) to admire the beauty and purity of these white flowers. They also also create the sensation of snow fall at every slight gust of wind.
"In 1959, the Japanese ambassador to Canada, Toru-Hagiwara, presented the Japanese Sakura trees to the citizens of Toronto on behalf of the citizens of Tokyo. The trees were planted in appreciation of Toronto helping to re-locate Japanese-Canadians." ... "They're also a sign of rebirth and strength." (CBC News 05/10/2010)
We truly enjoyed this beautiful outing to the trees. You can find some additional pictures here.

Easter 2011

2011-06-26T23:37:00.002-04:00

Easter Sunday was a day full of activities. First of all we got up early, literally with the birds, to attend the Easter sunrise mass at Humber Bay Park. Just as last year this was a moment of of intense and living spirit. And even the sun graced this morning with it's rise, just to disappear behind the clouds moments after. Gladly, there is always a very filling breakfast served at the church as well.

After the sunrise mass, we told Johann the Easter bunny had hidden some surprises in the garden... and the search concept was quickly understood. Easter bunny even knew that Johann loves " ta ging don" (or Chuggington in English spelling)....

Please find some more photos by clicking on the link....

Toronto Discoveries - Jane's Walk and Doors open T.O.

2011-06-22T00:19:00.001-04:00

Spring time is also a great time to discover the city and it's neighborhoods and participate in free guided tours. Attached are some pictures from the Mimico walk, St. Laurence Market and a Hipster walk in Ossington.

Palm Sunday Weekend

2011-06-22T00:02:00.006-04:00

On the Palm sunday weekend we went to the Ukrainian Easter Bazar not far from our home on Lakeshore (church pictures). Best borshtsh I've ever tasted!

And the other day was not less of a gustative pleasure as we went to a newly operened Cidrerie North of Toronto. To walk off the calories we then had a hike in a nearby Conservation Area. At least Daddy hiked, Johann quickly preferred his shoulders...

Pictures

Serena's Birthday

2011-06-21T23:39:00.003-04:00

Johann was invited to his little friend Serena's birthday party. At this time of the year you can almost bet the wheather will not be very clement and so her parents had the great idea to celebrate at an indoor playground (which is also a typically Canadian invention - basically a covered play area you join after having paid an entry fee - or for free when you're invited.) Here are some impressions from toys paradise.

Project Tomato

2011-05-03T23:53:00.002-04:00

This years seedlings trial... And if I say I mean trial because with the temperatures we experience since a couple of weeks (7-10 degrees celsius) nothing would really germinate so far. Let's see how it goes on but we're really missing spring!

Maple syrup time

2011-05-03T23:42:00.002-04:00

One of our favourite outings of early spring is to taste the first maple syrup being made from this years harvest. Mountsberg CA is a very nice spot to discover the "story of sap to syrup". Please find some additional photos here....

Mr. Snowman

2011-05-03T23:36:00.000-04:00

A sure sign of winter's ending is when the snow get's pretty mushy. The perfect time to build a snowman! And of course to have a photo shoot celebrating the shortliving new family member...

Winter excursion to Crawford Lake Conservation Area

2011-05-03T23:24:00.003-04:00

Canadians say you must "embrace winter". So we went on on Family Day to Crawford Lake and it's Indian Longhouses, to hear stories about how the Firs Nations survived winter, what they played to pass time (snow snake and Lacrosse) and we also had some yummy marshmallows grilled at a campfire. Click on this link to see some more pictures....

Stranded in a snowstorm in New York

2011-05-03T22:43:00.004-04:00

One of the joys of business travelling is going to the nicest places at the strangest times... this one was still in January right after our holiday in Cuba. I got stuck in the biggest snowstorm of the season, right in Newark, sitting on a plane which could not move backwards or forward as it had hit a snowdrift. 2 and 1/2 movies and six hours, at 4 am we were finally brought back to our gate to spend the rest of the night in the waiting areas. The middle photo is actually not a view from a hotel room....

¡Our Holiday in Cuba!

2011-02-23T23:52:00.002-05:00

Before Johann started day care, we took advantage of a not so busy week at work to book a last minute holiday.
If I say last minute it was last minute, less than 48 hours before departure, the minimum required for the travel agency to process the paperwork. We headed down to sunny Cuba, switching our - 20 degrees with a little + 30.
Our all-inclusive vacation resort was situated close to the city of Holguin in Eastern Cuba, bordering very nice, not so crowded sandy beaches. The pictures taken show our excursions to Holguin and Guardalavaca, our tours on catamaran and paddel boat, as well as some scenes from within the resort. A very relaxing break, with the only question in mind: so which restaurant do we chose for dinner tonight? We never ate so much lobster in our lifes, but actually we've been told they're rather cheap over there.... Let's go for the pictures.

Around Christmas and New Year 2011

2011-02-08T22:32:00.004-05:00

Some pictures to keep you in the loop on what happened in the last little while:
- JB sadly left Canada for "la metropole"
-Christmas eve with Haydee and Andres
-Steph's birthday and late holiday dinner with friends
-New years eve with Jean-Francois and Cecilia
- Dinner with Zara and parents
-sleigh tour (or better sleigh plough tour) to Kipling's Outdoor Ice rink

Holiday Spirit 2010

2010-12-22T00:16:00.000-05:00

Pictures from the Toronto Downtown Christmas Parade, the Lakeshore Christmas Parade, Kitchener's Christmas Market and our backyard....

Children's Christmas Party 2010

2010-12-21T23:18:00.001-05:00

Please find some more pictures from the company's Christmas party starring Andres, Johann and Santa by clicking on the following link.

Dia de los Muertos

2010-12-21T23:09:00.000-05:00

We took advantage of a city stroll to pass by Harbourfront centre in Toronto which hosted a festival dedicated to the Mexican tradition of the "Dia de los Muertos". Quoting Wikipedia, Day of the Dead (Spanish: Día de los Muertos) is a holiday celebrated by many in Mexico and by some Mexican Americans living in the United States and Canada. The holiday focuses on gatherings of family and friends to pray for and remember friends and family members who have died. The celebration occurs on November 2 in connection with the Catholic holidays of All Saints' Day (November 1) and All Souls' Day (November 2). Traditions connected with the holiday include building private altars honoring the deceased using sugar skulls, marigolds, and the favorite foods and beverages of the departed and visiting graves with these as gifts.

Halloween 2010

2010-11-26T00:01:00.001-05:00

Halloween is quite a tradition here and we used the occasion to visit a heritage site in Missisauga which displays Halloween traditions from past times, but also offers a lots of activities for the kids of today. And for sure Johann went "trick and treat"-ing with his friend Zara. she was dressed up as a pink and white rabbit and Johann as a lion. Too bad that daddy and Mummy had to eat almost all the sweets afterwards ;-)

Thanksgiving in Upstate New York

2010-11-25T23:12:00.003-05:00

Not far from Toronto and only separated by Lake Ontario you'll find a very different world... rural, slow-paced, charming and though very American Upstate New York. We went there for the second time and once again enjoyed its' stunning scenery with gentle hills, vineyards, little Victorian mansions decorated with the star-spangled banner, all that in the very special light and colors of autumn. Our target destination was Letchworth State Park, also called the grand Canyon of the East, a 14 miles long deep valley carved by the Genesee river over several thousands of years. We stopped at a winery, visited beautiful Hemlock lake, attended a county fair and did some hikes around the park's waterfalls. And for the records, we bought almost 2 kg of cheese from a local cheese maker to take advantage of the reasonable prices compared to Canada.
Please find the diapanorama here.

Alsace-Lorraine and Brussels

2010-10-22T00:12:00.002-04:00

The comfortable ICE train crossing Germany made travelling pass by quickly, Johann even had a bouncing horse in the infant compartment and well, his father enjoyed some German brewery craftmanship ;-)
We spend some days with Stephanie's parents and family, taking the time to see Johann's cousins and some old friends close to Strasbourg.
And then we went on to Nancy in order to attend the baptism of Stephanie's best friend's son. A very lively worship service was followed by a delicious lunch at a typical country inn. Stephanie and Johann finally conluded their trip in Bruxelles visiting her godmother Nicole, whereas Sebastian left for Canada from Luxembourg.
As always, please find some more pictures clicking on the underlined...

Saxony

2010-10-21T23:41:00.001-04:00

After a quite interesting flight combination (DNR->EMA, EMA->SXF) we were picked up by my parents in Berlin and arrived safely in Dresden. We spend this time with the family and discovering or rediscovering the surrounding areas.

Paris and Britttany

2010-10-21T23:19:00.001-04:00

In September we flew over to France to attend our friends' Maiwenn and Hugues wedding. But the very first stopover was in Paris to meet with a longstanding Torontonian who returned back home, Jean-Marie. After some sightseeing in Paris we finally arrived in Brittany, under clear skies and bright sunshine. We had great fun over the two days we spend there, enjoyed the beautiful setting as well as the excitement and little touch of glamour which make a French wedding so special.
Mai and Hug', we wish you many happy days together!

To stay within the spirit of the day, I found a quote from David Viscott being the mot juste:

" To love and to be loved is to feel the sun from both sides".

And thank you for the invitation which made it possible to live these moments with you!

Taste of the Kingsway 2010

2010-10-17T22:21:00.001-04:00

There's a street festival every year close to our subway station, with lots of entertainment, food and music. We went there quite early on a Sunday morning to enjoy the pancake breakfast.
Some impressions....

Point Pelee

2010-10-17T22:03:00.001-04:00

The last long weekend of summer, labour day weekend, was the occasion to get out once again and discover a new part of Ontario, Point Pelee. This is the Southern most part of Canada on the 42 parallel, at the same level as Rome in Europe. Point Pelee is also the oldest wine-growing region in Canada and we used the occasion to visit Colio's caves and have a sampling at Smith and Wilson's.... The rest of the time we spent in two very beautiful Provincial Parks, Pelee Peninsula and Rondeau. But also the huge tomato fields (Heinz's factory is in Leamington were we stayed overnight) and delicious blueberry sundaes will be remembered for a long time.... Please find the diapanorama by clicking here.

Winona Peach Festival

2010-10-14T23:55:00.004-04:00

One of my colleagues recommended the Winona Peach Festival as a local must-go outing and we enjoyed a beautiful sun-filled late August day there. It was much fun to see the art and crafts booths, cheap rides, to taste a huge peach sundae. Johann got his photo taken with charming peach princesses....

I also added some pictures from the Lake Ontario beach close to our home and Johann's helpful undertakings at home.
Here are the pictures....

Manitoulin Island

2010-09-02T00:06:00.002-04:00

End of July, beginning of August Sebastian's parents stayed with us for holidays.
They invited us to join them on their trip to Manitoulin island to see one of the traditional Native American pow wows.
Here are some pictures from our their time with us taken during different excursions....

Bastille Day 2010

2010-08-29T23:11:00.000-04:00

Almost becoming some sort of tradition the diasphora of francophone or francophil Torontonians organises every year a lively get together to celebrate French National Day. Here's a short diapanorama of our picnic under the trees at High Parc.

Summer outings 2010

2010-08-25T23:51:00.000-04:00

Here's a short slideshow with pictures from Africafest, the birthday party of one of Johann's girlfriends and toboganning the companies summer event.

Johann's first steps

2010-08-25T23:17:00.005-04:00

We believe one day Johann just forgot that he could not walk. And since this day he is unstoppable...

Family Holiday [Sauble & Bruce Series]

2010-07-21T00:12:00.001-04:00

We went for 3 days up to Lake Huron, enjoying the perfect and very warm summer weather at the beach.
Some more pictures...

Family Holidays [Toronto Series]

2010-07-19T00:18:00.003-04:00

Johanns little cousin from France and his parents spend some days with us. Here are some impressions form our strolls through Toronto and the fun afternoons spent in Albions Hills CA and Emerald Lake.

Twilight concert at Applewood Homestead

2010-07-18T23:55:00.002-04:00

A fun evening Johann and I attended was the big band concert at the historic Applewood Shaver Homestead (Stephanie was off for a seminar). We spend a beautiful evening with a lots of joyful music!
And as eminent fans we got "snap'd" as well.... Here's the web-version from the magazine.

Dad's time

2010-07-18T22:59:00.005-04:00

Johann and Sebastian sometimes give Mummy a little bit of free time and join other dad's and kids at a special Dad's group. A very active bunch of individuals and a great way to connect and make new friends. At the occasion of Father's day, CTV came and filmed the "life of the group" and invited the organizer Brian for an interview to their studios. Here's the video footage: Make sure to stay also for the interview as other scenes will be displayed during Brian's comments. Here's the link if you would like to know more about http://www.dadstoday.org/

Johann's first Birthday Party

2010-06-07T23:57:00.001-04:00

First we celebrated only all 3 of us (Johann took care of the cake, you'll see) and then with some little friends in the garden. A joyful day and a memorable first year, wishing us many more to come!
Some photo shots from the event....

Doors Open Toronto 2010

2010-06-07T23:41:00.001-04:00

Once per year for one weekend in May, many buildings which are normally closed (mainly heritage or religious sites) open their doors for the general public. A great occasion to visit places you would never be able to see without such an event.
This time we decided to live some television experience at Omni TV newscast studios, take the elevator to Le Meridien King Edwards hotel's chrystal ballroom (closed since the seventies, buit still plenty of character, btw. King Edwards being the hotel where Yoko Ono and John Lennon staged on of their famous bed-ins for peace), admire the beautiful wall paintings in the Knesseth Synagogue at the Junction as well as a Tibetan temple (no pictures allowed).
Here are some more impressions....

Johann at the Dad's group and at home

2010-06-07T23:23:00.003-04:00

More pictures....

Weekend Trip to Stratford, Grand Bend and Pinery Prov. Parc

2010-05-18T00:12:00.001-04:00

This sunny May weekend we went for a little trip to the shores of Lake Huron, visiting Stratford and St. Marys on the way.
We had a great time playing with Johann in the sand, taking long strolls on the beach and admiring nature in one of the most beautiful Provincial Parcs we've seeen so far. There are plenty more photos...

Jane's walk - Neighborhood walks in Toronto

2010-05-17T23:20:00.000-04:00

Every first May week-end, neighborhood walks are offered in Toronto and a lots of cities all over the world. The idea is to learn about the history, the buildings, people and challenges which a neighborhood encounters over time. Albeit immigration-related, due to business decline or rise, or simply gentrification. You'll walk with other like-minded people in a stretch of the city eager to discover the foremost hidden parts of it. Here are some photos from our strolls....

Chasing Mr Racoon

2010-05-17T23:08:00.000-04:00

Steph finally managed to shoot a photo of one of the essential parts of our back yard wild life (we're in Canada, eh!).
Mr. Raccoon in full daylight! I'm always mistaking our neighbors enormous cat for a racoon and I finally know why: this poor guy is not well "in shape" like his fellows but way too skinny.... maybe he didn't get enough delicacies from our garbage bin?

About the transience of time

2010-04-29T22:56:00.008-04:00

At a recent professionel event this video was shown to make us think about our industry and what our environment will look like in 10 years or later... However, the clip doesn't focus on any particular industry but more on the information age we're living in and the increasing complexity of the world of tomorrow. Give it a try, I'm pretty sure it'll provide you with some new perspectives on our live - present and future.

Daytrips and Weekend activities

2010-04-25T23:07:00.002-04:00

With the following link you will discover some of our recent day trips and activities, such as the frisbee-golf at the Toronto islands, our weekly swimming hour at the community pool, some city strolls, Johann's first (supported steps) at home and in our backyard garden as well as his delicate gusto for Spanish Tapas.

Easter Sunday Brunch

2010-04-05T23:39:00.001-04:00

These are impressions from the Easter Sunday Brunch with some of our friends at our home in Etobicoke.
A gorgeous day in the sun with a lots of great food frome Canada and France, good vibes and good wine for sure!

Sunrise Easter Mass

2010-04-05T23:35:00.000-04:00

We decided to get up early on Sunday morning (5:30 am) in order to attend a Sunrise mass. This remembered me of old times in my childhood where we would meet around the Easter fire to sing some songs together before heading over to the church and having a breakfast all together. The morning showed off all its' glory with a golden sun rising at the horizon just beside the skyline of Toronto. And the folks of "Martin Luther church" (you see, it's like a return to the sources) prepared an absolutely stunning (Canadian) breakfast afterwards. This being a wonderful prelude to the rest of the day...

Easter Egg Hunt at Springridge Farm

2010-04-05T23:08:00.000-04:00

Easter Saturday we spent a great day in the sun at Springridge farm hunting Easter Eggs, visiting Easter bunny and doing a lots of other farm activities. Thanks to Christine, my colleague Thomas' wife for this great idea!
Here are some pictures from our excursion...

Good Friday at "The Beach"

2010-04-05T22:55:00.001-04:00

Good Friday we wanted to give a break to Mommy and we went for a trip to "The Beach". This is a famous neighborhood in T.O. and although I was used to say "The Beaches" as almost everybody here, a friend told me on facebook that it is now called "The Beach" in singular, due to a democratic vote of the inhabitants some years ago. Needless to say that it's all about water and sand and big excitement for Johann. As the wind coming from lake Ontario was quite cold (a little 15 Celsius) we went for a city stroll downtown afterwards. Here are some pictures from our discoveries. Many thanks to the funny Chinese girls taking photos of us at the beach. They were pros having another photo shooting going on. You can judge by the pictures...

Johann March 2010

2010-04-05T22:40:00.001-04:00

Hey it's me!
Did you know that my parents gave me a new nick name?
"The Globetrotter"
That's because I do now crawl (army-style) to every impossible place in the house, not speaking about my other trips in the past: France, Germany, Belgium, USA....
Here are some pictures from my daily life: sleeping swimming, moving around and having a lots of fun!

Maple Town Sugar Bush

2010-03-08T22:21:00.001-05:00

March arrived and with it a typical and unique Canadian tradition: getting out in the woods to see a sugar bush! This time we went with a couple of friends to Mountsberg CA to participate in their Maple Syrup Festival. Other than tasting the sugar water right from the maple tree and watching its' transformation into syrup we also had the great chance to enjoy some delicious pancakes in the first rays of the spring sun.
Some more pictures...

Week-end trip to Quebec city

2010-03-03T22:27:00.003-05:00

We finally managed to go to the "French" part of the country all together!
I must say it was a longstanding dream, first I thought we would spend some time there during the Christmas period in order to see all the houses and windows dressed up... but as Canadians are Canadians and like to lighten up the entire winter with decorations, we even felt like Christmas end of February. Snow was still plenty around which made the winter trip perfect.
We took off from Toronto city center airport on Friday afternoon, getting into some delays due to gusty wind and snowfall. But we arrived safe and sound to Quebec city in the evening and had a great dinner with Tourte au Caribou and Paté au Saumon. Saturday was reserved for a Quebec city tour, we paid a visit to the Musee des Civilisations, had a ferry trip on the St. Laurence river and took some nightly strolls through the city. On Sunday we rented a car, as we wanted to discover the Ile d'Orleans with it's wineries and cidreries. After this tour, we headed to the Montmorency falls, visited the old Indian Reserve of Wendake and finally went into the mountains outside of Quebec for a nightly visit of the Hotel de Glace, one of the only tzo Ice hotels in the world. A truly great day of discoveries with a lots of interesting views and photo shots! Monday morning got us back to Toronto, this time in the brightest sunshine....
Here are some pictures...

Orillia Winter Carnival

2010-02-22T23:48:00.008-05:00

Recently, I heard someone saying: "In Canada, you should enjoy winter activities as much as you can, the cold period will pass much faster...." OK, but what do you do if you're waiting for this winter since November here in Toronto? Just go up North, where the snow belt guarantees winter fun! As we did last week-end in Orillia at their Winter festival. For a Toonie you can go for a dog sleigh ride, do some treasure ice fishing (if you're a kid... a diver will put something on your hook from underneath), have a tour on a snowmobile if you' re old enough (not yet for Johann...), do some skating or a ice hockey game, play winter Olympics, visit a petting zoo, admire the ice sculptures, sliding down from the ice castle ... and lots

more (<-click here).

Olympia Tribute

2010-02-09T22:33:00.011-05:00

Nobody can escape the Olympic media hype these days, but rather than focussing on the medals and who's going to win the most of them, there is a short presentation on Vancouver I would like to share with you.
The German news cast "heute.de" published this lovely story about the B.C. capital and its' inhabitants. Getting a local public hero like Michael Bublé on board certainly helps convincing us of the charm of the place, but you'll also smile about the interviewed "locals".
Like the slogan goes: "Canada, true North, strong and free" and I would add: "Happy and a little bit self-content"... But that's changing refreshingly from the I-like-to-complain-mentality of other countries.

Hike at Webster's Falls (Dundas, ON)

2010-02-09T22:00:00.002-05:00

Last week-end we decided to go for a hike at Webster's Falls. Our guide ("Toronto's Fun places") highly recommended this place, especially in the winter. We head great sunshine with us (but as chilly as usual, around -6 to -8 C) and we were surprised seeing all the ice piling up around the rocks the water splashes on. Have a look at some more pictures....

Wintercity Festival

2010-02-08T00:05:00.005-05:00

More Pictures...

And a short movie shot from the performance:

Sunny winter hike at Humber Bay park

2010-02-07T23:57:00.003-05:00

More pictures...

Shopping spree at St. Laurence Market

2010-02-07T23:51:00.000-05:00

One cold winter evening at the chimney fire

2010-02-07T23:48:00.000-05:00

Hike at Clairville Conservation Area

2010-02-07T23:42:00.000-05:00

Wychwood Barns Farmers Market

2010-02-07T23:39:00.001-05:00

Just when you think it's too cold, all the markets are gone... you stumble over a jewel like Wychwood Barns with a very livley athosphere and a clear organic orientation. Great location and a lots of fun!

Johann's days...

2010-02-07T23:33:00.002-05:00

More pictures...

2010 New Year's reception

2010-02-07T23:19:00.003-05:00

The chamber of commerce (CGCIC) 2010 New Year's reception took place in the old St. Laurence Market, which had it's charm for the convinced foodies we are.
More pictures...

Brussels by stroller

2010-01-26T00:00:00.003-05:00

Discover some pictures from Stephanie's and Johann's city walk....

Sleigh trip joys

2010-01-25T23:54:00.000-05:00

Not sure if Johann will remember his first trip on a sleigh, but for his parents it was fun! Even when they were playing the dogs or reindeers, depending on your individual perspective....

Dresden's Christmas markets

2010-01-25T23:39:00.001-05:00

One highlight of our trip: Dresden's traditional Christmas markets... We even had the accompagnying weather, pushing us to have just another hot wine....
More pictures....

Travelling....

2010-01-25T23:23:00.003-05:00

We were heading home for Christmas, home being a somewhat subjective description... In the end, this was a trip to Germany, France and Belgium in two weeks time. Attached please find some pictures of landmarks, airports and from within trains and planes....

SNOW! On a business trip to Vermont (USA)

2009-12-13T23:57:00.000-05:00

Stroller Hike Impressions

2009-12-13T23:53:00.000-05:00

Johann's live

2009-12-13T23:47:00.001-05:00

More pictures...

Niagara Falls from the Canadian side

2009-12-13T23:38:00.000-05:00

Children's Christmas Party

2009-12-13T23:30:00.001-05:00

More pictures...

Hike at Hilton Falls in November

2009-12-13T23:20:00.001-05:00

More pictures...

Montreal impressions

2009-12-13T23:01:00.000-05:00

My bottle, my life...

2009-11-10T22:35:00.000-05:00

On the traces of a lost river

2009-11-10T22:28:00.001-05:00

We participated to the 5th anual human river event, following the traces of the now completely buried Garrison Creek. Most of the attendants wearing blue symbolized a human river bringing the Garrison Creek back to life!

Some more pictures...

Toronto Islands in October

2009-10-20T23:08:00.000-04:00

After a good brunch with the folks from Francophonique, we decided to have our Sunday hike on one of the closest nature spots to our home: Toronto Islands. It only takes a short ten minutes ferry trip over from Toronto harbour. We enjoyed the great weather, even if it was chilly though and we took advantage of the quiet and pieceful setting with the city as horizon to breathe the fresh sea (lake) air....
More pictures...

Life at home

2009-10-20T22:57:00.000-04:00

Happy Diwali

2009-10-20T22:56:00.001-04:00

Last week-end was Diwali, a holiday comparable to Christmas for the Hindu community. We returned to the Swaminarayan Mandir temple to see the decoration and learn more about the Hindu culture. These pictures were taken outside just after the visit.

At the Farmer's Market

2009-10-20T22:52:00.001-04:00

Whitchurch Conservation area and Icook's Japanese buffet

2009-10-18T23:07:00.002-04:00

On Sunday we thought we should really enjoy the great weather and go on a hike... what we finally did. Whitchurch's conservation area was not easy to find, but very a quite wild and lost place.
It is situated about 10 miles North of Markham, the "Asian" suburb of Toronto. As hiking made us really hungry, we decided to look out for some Asian restaurant over there and we ended up in a strange place we'd never seen before. The Japanese "Icook" principle is to cook all kinds of Seafood, Meat, Vegetables, Tofu, dumplings and things you don't know what it is in several kinds of broths. Great fun, we ate until the waiter brought the check... We have to say for their excuse that the place was crowded with a huge line up at the door, so famous and truly tasty it is!

More pictures...

Chudleigh's Apple Picking Farm

2009-10-18T22:39:00.004-04:00

More pictures....
One sunny Saturday afternoon Jean Marie brought up the idea to go Apple Picking at Chudleigh's with a bunch of friends. We were not so convinced that we'd really need apples (you know we have a big apple tree in the backyard) but we nevertheless thought it could be fun to see how a professional apple picking farm is managed. And it was ! We had a trip on the hay wagon, a typical Canadian lunch: corn on the cob, hot dogs and we ate a lots of apples.... apples for a week, trying out all the differents kinds they offered (about 8 different varieties). And as the world is small, we even met a clleague over there (Thomas, his wife Christine and the little Emma).

Nuit Blanche Toronto 2009

2009-10-08T23:30:00.003-04:00

From sunset at 6:55 pm on Saturday, October 3, to sunrise on Sunday, October 4, 2009, Toronto's playful overnight celebration of contemporary art once again took over the streets...

More pictures...

(Last year's blog and pictures...)
The video below gives you great impressions of what Nuit Blanche in Toronto is like and how it looks like ...moving.

Nuit Blanche website

At Al Ferri's Apple Farm

2009-10-08T23:12:00.001-04:00

These pictures were taken at a Saturday afternoon trip to Al Ferri's, a great place to buy all kinds of delicacies, fresh apples and pears, apple tarts, cheese, jams and other local products.

Squirrel Land

2009-10-08T00:19:00.000-04:00

There are 3 kinds of very active wild animals around our house: some neighbour's cats, which Grisou watches very closely, the racoon who has a recurring compulsory fridge (sorry waste-bin) craving at 1 am in the morning, and for sure the Squirrel gang, who is always hungry and doesn't mind healthy food. As the old slogan says: an apple a day keeps the doctor away.

Johann in action

2009-10-08T00:12:00.000-04:00

Bronte Creek Provincial Parc and English car day

2009-09-23T00:20:00.002-04:00

More pictures...

Humber River historical festival

2009-09-23T00:18:00.002-04:00

More pictures...

A glass with Matthew in the sun at the Taste of the Kingsway festival

2009-09-23T00:16:00.000-04:00

Toronto Harbour Cruise

2009-09-23T00:14:00.001-04:00

More pictures...

Fingerlakes NY

2009-09-23T00:12:00.005-04:00

View Finger Lakes in a larger map

On Labour day weekend we decided to discover new horizons and to cross the southern border to upstate New York. What a revelation!
Beaujolais-like vineyards, beautyful lakes in gentle valleys and extremely friendly and welcoming people!
We will have to return!
Thanks to Soum, Honi and their Friend for the nice photos taken at Wagner Vineyards.
See you soon!

More pictures...

View Finger Lakes in a larger map

Black out revival party at Kensington Market

2009-09-23T00:04:00.000-04:00

Who remembers the BRN? Quite the same story, but without any alcohol on the streets (we're in Canada, eh) and not so traditional as it just started one year after the big East coast electricity black out of 2003. The idea is to show alternative ways out of the consumption
society by celebrating a big street party without any electricity.

Here I am! Some pictures of Johann...

2009-09-22T23:58:00.001-04:00

More pictures...