How my tastes changed during Katimavik.

I sat down to a big bowl of Ramen today, and it got me thinking. I did not like Ramen before Katimavik. In fact, I was not a fan of spicy food in general! The rest of my family adored spiciness, but not I. Then, I went to Katimavik, where everyone was pretty much a beginner in the kitchen.

When you are first learning to cook, sometimes spices are the least of your worries. The main goal is to create something that 1) won’t kill anybody and 2) is not burned. Good flavour is just an added bonus! Besides, there is only so much flavour you can put into tofu and rice noodles, anyway. And that’s where the hot sauce came in. While I never quite got into the world of Tabasco, I did fall for hot sauce’s less-hot cousin, barbecue sauce. By the end of the nine months, there was not much that I did not put barbecue sauce on! It tasted good on everything! I especially enjoy the spicy version from Kraft!

Before Katimavik I avoided feta cheese like the plague. I mean, GOAT’S CHEESE? Ew. Imagine my surprise when I encountered it in a Greek salad, and discovered how amazing it was! Cheese had a great influence on me in Quebec. I had always enjoyed it, and often remarked it as my favourite food. However, my experiences pretty much landed in the world of cheddar. In Quebec, I was introduced to cheese curds, which were lovely and salted and squeaky, and I began to explore more cheese options. I’m not sorry, and I’ve never looked back. Cheese is amazing.

I’d never even touched a sweet potato since I was five years old. I had disliked it back then, so I assumed I still did. Sometime in Katimavik, I encountered them again, and discovered that I liked them. Then I discovered that I loved them when mashed with butter and cinnamon! Now sweet potato and cinnamon is one of my favourite foods!

Katimavik gave me different food experiences and choices. Which is great. I encourage everyone to get out there and try something new today!

Random Fact of the Day: Today is Blog Action day. Unfortunately, my stomach got the best of me, and I’ve blogged about something else. Still, please check out the Blog Action Day website, for a list of blogs that ARE participating!

More Photos!

Well, what a treat! It seems Sean has been using the CÉGEP computers for good instead of evil! So, here are some more photos! I haven’t posted any in soooo long! Ha ha.

None of these pictures are in order!

This is our view from our campsite on Isle Verte!

This is us in our neighbour’s pool! Ignore the red circle, the picture was uploaded as an inside joke to one of Sean’s friends!

This is us walking through a tunnel in the walls of Vieux Québec!

Here’s us on a street in Québec!

Here’s us in front of the fountain in front of the Legislative building in Québec!

So, yes, that’s all! Any more pictures found will be posted when I find them! Ha ha.

An Isle Verte Photo.

New photos of us camping have now surfaced online! Most of them don’t include me, because Sean uploaded them to his Facebook, so they obviously have a more Sean-related focus (the same way my pics are always of me, and never of Sean.).

Anyway, here is a nice group shot of us, after visiting a museum, and before we almost drove the van off a cliff.

So, yes… I will be home one week from today! Actually, at this point, I will have been on the plane, and it will be just taking off! So, that is kind of exciting, isn’t it?

Old Photoshoot, ha ha.

On May 18, 2007, when we were still in Orleans. Sean, Jade, Alex, Joelle and I were bored. So we decided to do a photoshoot, on account of Sean is studying that at University next year. Anyway, I was sorting through the photos today and playing with them a bit, and I thought I’d share!

First, here’s Sean, our brilliant photographer. This picture was actually taken by Joelle or I, and then skanked up for Seanzor, by yours truly.

Here is me, in sepia, enjoying the view of something to my left!

This is moi and Joelle having lots of fun!

The four girls… aren’t we adorable?

And me, looking dreamy, lying on the floor, in black and white. (I love this one!)

There are LOADS more, including some really hot Joelle-with-skateboard shots, and Jade-with-guitar. It was a pretty sweet night, and we were pretty bored! Ha ha.

Also, here is a colourization I did of a photo of Anny:

A few pictures

Well, here are, atleast, a few pictures of our shenanigans on Joelle’s b-day!

Thanks to Sean’s camera on his phone!!

The gang at the restaurant:

The view of Parliament from the Alexandra Bridge:

Us, walking over the bridge, into Quebec:

Me, sitting on Maurice “The Rocket” Richard’s stick:

Alex and I singing to Nsync’s “Bye Bye Bye,” on the bus home:

What a great night!!!!

Meeting the Governor General at Rideau Hall!

Okay, I wrote another entry before this one, so go read it as well!!! But this was just so exciting I couldn’t wait!!!

Oh, except here is a pic of Anny and I trying an ice cream cone filled with MAPLE BUTTER (yummm) and the sticky maple stuff they put on snow, in Ottawa!!!

Anyway…..

Yesterday, we went to Rideau Hall, which is where the Governor General, Michealle Jean, lives. She held the first ever forum there for the International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination! There were great speakers! And we met her!!! She is SOOOOOO nice. Oh, and the place was gorgeous and smelled of fresh flowers! AND THE FOOD! My goodness, it was AMAZING!!!! Sorry, these pics are out of order, but I HATE blogger’s way of putting pics in!

Jade and I next to a pretty table with fresh flowers:
Anny, Nick and I with the Queen (her picture anyway) in the room where the reception was held!

All the Katimavik participants in our cluster, and the Governor General! (I’m the one in baby blue, obviously)

The Governor General speaking (before the reception, obviously)

The room that the forum was in:

The gorgeous chandelier in the room the forum was in:

Like with the last entry, there are more pics but I won’t have time to post them until after billeting!!! Sorry!!! Now I have to go eat!! BYEEEE!!!

Museum of Cilvilization // Trip to Ottawa

Okay, so, this is the long awaited museum and Ottawa entry! I’m going to do it quickly, because more interesting things happened yesterday!

Okay, so there aren’t many pictures yet because we haven’t uploaded them, but here are some now. I’ll put more on after billeting, maybe!

Museum:

Me at a war monument in Ottawa:

Us all under our respective flags.

Me at the Rideau Canal.

Like I said, there’s not much!!! But yesterday was so exciting I’m going to go write now!!!

Pictures in Orléans…

Wow, sorry for being so emo last time. Sometimes that happens, I guess.

To make up for it, here are some happy pictures of me and my group in Orléans!

This is Anny and I when we got off the plane at the Ottawa International Airport!

We took a yellow school bus to our house! Big change from the luxury busses we had in BC (you know, with bathrooms. Sweet.)!

This is our house! It is SO BIG compared to Kelowna!

This is me, wearing a leopard printed hat. Don’t ask, because I forgot why!

This is me in the fort we built in the living room, because Orléans is boring and suburban and there was nothing else to do!

Gwobs, Anny and I inside the fort!

Me, Joelle, Alex, Sean and Gwobs, in the woodsy area behind our house before playing Capture the Flag!

And, last but not least, me doing my cowboy-walk-pose!
So, yeah, that is all so terribly interesting, isn’t it!!??!!

Last night we went over to Gatineau to go to the Museum of Civlization, because it’s free on Thursday nights! So, firstly, it was the first time I ever was in Quebec ever. And let me tell you- it’s weird. All of the signs are in French (duh), but also for each traffic light there are TWO REDS!!!!! Yes, it goes like:

(Red)(Orange)(Green)(Red)

Isn’t that weird?!?

Anyway, the Museum was AWESOME. Obviously, I LOOOOVVVEEE museums, but this one was FANTASTIC. I’ll upload pictures later, but I didn’t take any, so I’ll have to wait until Anny, Jade and Joelle upload theirs so I can steal them!

So, what am I up to the next few days….? Umm… tonight is free time, so I might be going to the mall FOR THE FIRST TIME SINCE BEFORE I LEFT KELOWNA. Wow. Tomorrow we’re doing a big excursion in Ottawa. We’re walking along the Rideau Canal (since we obviously can’t skate since it’s melting) and going to see… umm… wait, let me look it up… we’re walking to the National Arts Centre, then to Confederation Park, then to Parliament where I’m sure we’ll take zillions of pictures and eat dinner, and then we’re going home, unless some of us want to stay in the city and bus it back. So… yeah, that sounds cool!

And then on Sunday, we have THE WHOLE DAY OFF UNTIL DINNER. So, I think some of us are going back to Quebec for a bit, to do whatever. So, that should be fun if I end up tagging along.

Wow, this week went by quick! Last time house manager dragggggggggggged. But this time it was alright. Ugh to next week though! I’m excited about getting back to work, but it’s the last week before billeting! And I’m not a big fan of billeting…. Ah well. Atleast I can look on the brightside- that billeting isn’t for MORE than 2 weeks. Ugh.

Pictures from Rotation Camp!

Hey, we just got a CD from our old PC, Christine, with pictures from Rotation Camp. And here they are!

This is Gwobs, Me and the recently-departed Sophie outside of the room we ate in:

This is all the girls and Sean inside of a hula hoop! We all want to learn how to hula hoop and be sexy in La Pocatiere. And hopefully combine those two things with fire, somehow:

A crazy group shot in the Fireside Room:

Okay, so here’s the story behind this. The rice was gross and sticky, so I made a snowman with brocolli arms and tofu eyes. Then I tried to make Heidi eat it. And she stuck it in her mouth and then spit it out because it was gross. And then Heidi, Gwobs and I had a rice fight. And I put ricec in Gwobs’ bed, but he made me take it out by threatening to kill me:

A group shot in bunk beds:

We take a lot of group shots. We’re next to a lifeguard chair:

Yet another group shot with a totem pole after our intense team building activity:

And finally, a (surprise!) group shot after another activity!

The other ones mainly consist of me looking exhausted at 2am when we had to get up to catch our 4am bus. So, I’m not posting them! So there.

Vancouver Photos

Here are a few photos from Vancouver! Just to satisfy you until I can get more/ write about our trip!