My Greatest Inspiration

     Oh hi there, I haven't been around much, but that is not what I wanted to post about today. Today is the day I talk about the greatest papa in the world. What does the word Dad mean to all of you? To me, it means love, care, patience, and strength. My dad was my superman growing up, and he still is. Sure, he's lost his six-pack that used to scare all my male-friends away, but he is still that awesome person. Now, when you see your superman in a weak state, or looking defeated, something changes in you. You don't believe that it's actually happening, and after that, there will be a spark of strength and energy. The energy to persevere and help your superman pass this obstacle in life.

My silly superman. 

     I experienced that process three years ago. My dad had a surgery to remove a pituitary tumor that was compressing on his optic nerves. He lost some of his vision, and the hope of recover was crushed by the medical doctors. They told him he would never get back to 100%. It took me one full year of nutrient-dense smoothies and optimistic coaxing for my dad to believe he can do it.
     Before the surgery, my dad did work in embroidery. That occupation required great vision. He was really sad that he couldn't continue his work, but not everything in the office required 100% vision. He manages to fix the machines at close proximity.

Yes, the machine was fixed after this.

     He still cooks better than me, and many others that I know. Many of his friends still ask him for help with renovations, and I never hesitate to ask him to help fix anything, because he is able-bodied even without all of his vision. This spring, he even made a greenhouse out of tent supports, plastic sheets, velcro and a stapler. I don't know many people who could do this with all their eyesight.

We've had our first harvest of bok-choi and they tasted pretty awesome.

Standing proudly beside the green-tent

     This post is for my daddy, who is and forever will be my Superman. If you've read this, I encourage you to contact your loved ones (biological or chosen family too!) and give them a hug or show them how much they mean to you. Because no matter what happens, you know they will always have your back.

Oh, and if people end up reading or showing this to my lovely papa, HAPPY EARLY FATHER'S DAY! <3

Much love,
Christina

Sushi Galore! Toronto Edition

Hello everyone!
I have obviously been neglecting my duties as a "blogger" if I'm even one to begin with :) However, I have been enjoying life as one should. Also I have been transitioning back into going to school. So I guess I should apologize for not being around much.

On to the food! The past few days I have found myself have copious amounts of raw fish in the form of Sashimi and sushi/nigiri. I normally have nighttime adventures with my boyfriend and his best friend, where we would find food/desserts and just hang out. On Friday night, we were on a mission to get some dessert. However, it just somehow turned into going to have gourmet sushi. Now, I regret always forgetting to bring my camera to these occasions, so these iPhone photos will have to do.

The restaurant is called Ja Bistro. It was the most fancy and delicious sushi place I have been to. It was also NOT an AYCE (all you can eat) so you can imagine the dent in our wallets at the end of this. An innocent dessert run turned into a >$200 bill.

The front of the restaurant has this. Its quite cute. 

Non-alcoholic Lychee drink

Strawberry drink with wine.

Non-alcoholic Green tea Mojito.

Lobster miso soup. It was ok. I prefer normal miso soup :)

Sashimi Sampler Platter. This was not just beautiful. It was delicious. The fried fish bones on the bottom for decoration was edible too. They also had two types of soya sauce. One is sweeter and one is classic. 

Salmon Sashimi...because we needed it. 

The ultimate nigiris. These were the freshest, highest quality fish. And they were gloriously delicious.

Matcha Creme Brulee. This...just so good. 

Matcha Tiramisu. I can argue that this was better than the creme brulee. There's just too much amazingness going on here. 

That's it for this post! If you are in Toronto, and you don't mind spending some cash on high quality sushi, then you have to drop by. The main intersection is at Richmond and University. The restaurant is on Richmond. I loved it, and I would definitely go again.

-Chrissymon

The Honda Indy and Elvis Presley

Hi everyone!
Something super exciting happened this past weekend. I finally got to go to the Honda Indy! I hear it all the time and my dad actually does parts of the uniform for the Ferrari team, so I have always wanted to go see it. Also, I am not-so-secretly a car fanatic. ;)

Now, I had to work as a part of the K-team, so my footage is not as impressive as I would like them to be. Maybe I will go next year for fun? ;)

Funny how the first car I took a picture of was just the Honda Civic...but it's cute ;)

Samsung Galaxy S5 had a racecar at the Wind booth. It was pretty sexy ^-^

One of team Ferrari's race cars. I was more than ecstatic to see it <3

Team Ferrari's pit-stop crew! Do you see the baseball cap? That's what my daddy helped make for the team. <3

This is how empty it looked before everyone came in for fan day. :)

Obviously this is where I bought my lunch. I love Smoke's Poutinerie. 

This Honda Indy race car was balanced on tea cups. It is amazing. 

Hot Wheels had a little workshop here. The kids really loved it. I loved watching the smiling faces :)

Obviously there would be Medieval Times there, and these gentlemen...or Knights were kind enough to take pictures with me :D

More car pictures. These were in front of a booth for Import fest. A really attractive lady was there ;)

Of course there would be an Acura here too ;) Looking sleek!

Found this on the bench table as I was having my lunch break. Thought it looked weirdly cute. 

 On Wednesday, July 23, the K-Team was at Concerts in the Park, Vaughan. That day was special. There was an Elvis singing there! It was pretty amazing. We were serenaded into the evening and many people came to enjoy it.

Doesn't he look legit? 

The crowd. I didn't expect so many people! 

And a little close-up for you fans out there. This was near the end where he was covered in sweat....>_>;

And the beautiful sunset on a clear-ish sky at the end of the night. 

Thanks for reading this! I hope you all have had a great summer so far. I have started to appreciate the little things in life a little more. I feel like I'm actually starting to grow up because I no longer think the same way as I would a few years back. I'm grateful for everyone who have helped me along the way, and I look forward to meeting new friends and keeping the old ones who have supported me thus far. I hope you all have people in your whom you can hold dear and rely on. <3

Until next time my lovely humans and aliens alike!

-Chrissymon

Chrissy Travels: Episode 3.3 - Korea Part 4

Harooooo~
I am sad to report that this will be the last post for the Korea part of my travels. The next one will be more for my experience in Hong Kong and Macau. These posts will be with and without my two bffs that had to return back to Toronto for work.

January 17, 2014 - We went to a seaweed emporium to taste test and buy the seaweeds that we liked, a super large ginseng store where we were tempted to buy Korean Ginseng, a giant skin care store where we were introduce to a brand called UBG, a casino + duty free mall where I hoarded the aloe gels, and finally Lotte World an amusement park where we just pigged out and explored.

돌쌰부 - shabu shabu type with pork and veggies. This was a good soup 

비빔밥 - bibimbap. The portion sizes was much smaller than ones in Toronto, but they were the perfect size for us!

The rooms of the Korean Palace. Just like in the dramas!

A type of game played in the olden days for aim. Reminds me of the games at fairs/carnivals. 

These are kimchi jars! That's what kimchi was made in during the older times. 

Sitting on these giant steps. Too bad I don't have a servant to help take my shoes off ;)

Lotte world! 

Super cute piggie <3

Wax figure...scared the crap out of me because it looks so real! There were wax figures in a historic part of Lotte World. I think it might have been the "adult" part. lol 

삼개탕 - Ginseng Chicken soup. Oh man, I have waited the WHOLE trip to try this dish. I have been meaning to try it in Toronto too, but just never had the chance to. I'm so glad I got to have this! We even go to have some Ginseng Soju to go with it. Lucky we are old enough to drink ;)

January 18, 2014 - We went to a jewellery store which sold Amethyst jewellery and then we headed to 명동 - MyeongDong. This was where my wallet was drained dry from cosmetics, skincare, kpop goods, and food.

This was the place we were told to tell taxi drivers to bring us if we were ever lost while we explored MyeongDong

Okay, so I couldn't resist having a picture with a cardboard cut out of GD...sue me.

Little baby bboong-oh bbangs! Fish shaped cookies with custard or red bean fillings. Super yummy. 

Soon-dae! Korean style sausage. Served with innards and special spicy salt. 

We ended up ordering a kimbap as well (korean sushi type thing) and we couldn't finish all our food. =\

Strawberry milk! OMG this tastes sooooooo good! You can get the same brand ones in Toronto, but they don't come in the plastic container. They come in little boxes, and lemme tell you...the difference is HUGE! These taste 1000000x better. :) The boxed ones are also much sweeter 

There are a few regrets from this trip to Korea, but that just means I will have to go back again! I regret not getting as many clothes as I had wanted. The super Asian part of me was thinking "But maybe I'll find a nicer one or a better deal later along the line!" I know better next time. :) Another regret was going with a tour group. Now that I know I can semi-survive on my broken Korean, I think I will go by myself/with friends next time instead of with a tour group.

The next time you read a Chrissy Travels blog will be the section of my vacation where I am in Macau. Keep in mind that I travelled to Macau twice. Once with all four of us, and another time just myself and one bff to visit my family. I apologize for any time gaps, but that's just how I roll ;)

-Chrissymon