Monday, August 10, 2009
Sunday, June 28, 2009
Inside the A380
View of the inside...
Three cameras give you the front, back and downward view of where you are going, where you have been and where you are now.
View of the runway as we approached Dubai International airport. Quite an amazing sight to watch your take off and landing.
Emirates A380 from Toronto to Dubai
When you first see the size of the aircraft, your first thought is, 'how on earth does this even get off the ground?'
This aircraft has two decks and therefore needs two aerobridges at different levels for passengers to get on board.
The on board entertainment system is probably one of the best in the world, if not the best. The system starts before you even get on, so you don't have to wait one hour after take off like other airlines. You have a choice of watching the latest movies, old movies and award winning movies. Cartoons, kids shows, documentaries, t.v shows and news channels are also available, as well as hundreds of music albums and songs that you can listen to. Earphones are placed on every seat....and you don't have to pay for them..unlike some airlines I know!
View of the inside of the cabin.
The A380 experience
The Emirates A380 that we flew from Toronto to Dubai.
The kids schools closed for Summer vacation, which means that it is time to pack our bags and go back to India!! (No, not for good...but for six glorious weeks with family and friends)
June 27th, we left for Pearson and after getting our boarding passes, made our way to the Gate where we would take our A380 Emirates flight to Chennai, India. (via a short halt at Dubai airport)
We were there an hour early, which gave us enough time to get some dinner. Our flight was at 9.40pm, but we knew from experience that by the time they served dinner it would be past mid-night. We ordered some burgers and cokes and sat down at the mini-foodcourt they have near the gates numbered in their 70's. While there we saw a basket ball team and the Black Eyed Peas. Fergie spoke to my eight year old daughter, after my very inquisitive offspring, decided to go and ask if she was indeed someone famous. With a story that I will be telling for years to come......with no picturs to prove it happened....and a very happy little girl....we made our way to our gate.
Remember that the A380 is huge.....so it holds more passengers, which means that boarding now takes longer.
After boarding, we noticed that the on board entertainment system was already on and working, with headphones on every seat. You don't have to wait an hour for the movies to start like most other airlines. Talking about movies, Emirates has an awesome array of movies, songs, t.v shows, games and documentaries running the entire flight time. You also have access to viewing the front and back cameras and the camera underneath the aircraft. Watching the approach to the runway is something just amazing to experience.
Some families who checked in late, were spread around the aircraft, but managed to swap seats with other passengers so that their families could be together. This created a problem of sorts, because Emirates take meal requests online at the time of booking for special meals like vegetarian, non-lactose, child, diabetic, nut free etc. Stickers are put on the back of the seats with the meal requests ahead of time to facilitate faster service. With the swapped seats, meals got interchanged and some people didn't get the vegetarian meal they ordered and some children didn't get their meals either. After some confusion, complaints and apologies, all was set straight and dinner was served.
The food was fantastic. We had a choice of lamb or chicken for dinner, and they served drinks and gave out snacks too. Once the dinner trays were collected, the lights were switched off and most of us decided to catch up on the latest movies instead of catching up on sleep! With each passenger able to control what they want to watch, and being able to pause, forward or rewind......the entertainment system on board Emirates has to be one of the best.
The twelve hour flight was more or less comfortable for being stuck in the sitting position and occasionally being told to put the seat belt back on because of turbulence. I am just 5.2, so the seats had decent space for me to stretch out my legs, but I'm sure a taller person would find it slightly cramped.
Bathrooms...........they need to put in more bathrooms! With a flight full of children and the elderly, there were lines of eight to nine people at any given time waiting for their turn to use the bathroom.
Major Negative!!
After landing at Dubai, all of us were made to walk in single file past a thermal scanner. Yes, they were checking for passengers travelling with any signs of the Swine Flu. They did the same thing in Chennai too.
During our stop at Dubai, we decided to use the lounge to send emails, have lunch and rest before our next flight out. The buffet was pretty good, and the kids got to eat something before our next flight. I also did some dutyfree shopping which is the best thing to do at Dubai airport. From perfumes to chocolates or liquor...Dubai dutyfree is one of the best in the world in terms of range and price.
We landed in Chennai at three in the morning and had to fill in two forms. One to be filled in with our immigration information and the other with our seat numbers, address and phone numbers. This was in case any passengers near us later experienced any symptoms of the swine flu, they would know how to contact us.
Once outside, we were greeted by my Brother and Mother......happy to be seeing us after our move to Canada.
Driving home felt the same...as if we never left. Some of the flyovers were new and the traffic felt a little heavier....even for four in the morning...but it was good to be back!
Thursday, June 4, 2009
Toronto events and happenings....websites info.......summer 2009
A wonderful website to check out if you are here in Toronto is
www. toronto.com
You can find information on everything happening in and around Toronto from music shows, art festivals, special movie screenings, garden shows, food tasting events, free events and exhibits.
There is also information on tickets to all the events, how to get to places, the best places to eat, child friendly places and places and things to do on a budget.
This summer for example, one of the things that we are going to see is the exhibit of the Dead sea scrolls at the Royal Ontario Museum. That should be great to see!
Other information guides you can also find on their website are:
Family Guide
Arts Guide
Contests
Visitor's Guide
Nightlife Guide
Club Guide
Golf Guide
Adult Guide
Travel Centre
Toronto Traffic
If you are looking for places to camp, fish and hike. Or other activities like paintball, golfing or even rafting.......check out the website: They also have information on rentals of canoes and cottages, and info on skydiving lessons:
http://www.playday.com/
From shopping to finding hotels and where exactly the happening bars and clubs are, go to http://www.toronto.com/ and see what this amazing city has to offer........................and while you are doing this, you can also check out the little weather guide box on the top right to make sure it isn't going to rain or snow while you plan your days outings!
For events in Canada, check out:
http://canadaeventscalendar.ca/
http://www.canada.gc.ca/whats-quoi/newevent.html (This website gives you details on up and coming Canadian Government events).
Hope these websites are of some help in planning your 'staycation' if you are here in Toronto or elsewhere in Canada.
Have a great summer everybody!
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Stunning sight of rainbows over the Toronto skyline...
Incredible rainbow over our home on the evening of may 30th...........there were actually two rainbows......one light and one dark...........you can see both in one of the pictures below.
Two rainbows at the same time!
Emirates A380 lands in Toronto!
The A380 has landed........................
The headlines on todays paper......'Colossal jet has star turn at Pearson'. I read the article with a lot of interest, as we normally fly Emirates on our way back to India or Canada, and was excited that we may get to travel in it too. But this flight, being the inaugural flight.....cost the priviledged passengers $10,000 CAN/- per head........with champagne, 23 inch touch screen televisions, leather couches, fully stocked bar, mini fridge for every business class seat and massaging functions on your seat.
Now, with the A380 coming in to Toronto three times a day, it opens up an entirely new style of air travel. Yes, there is even a shower on board........but don't get any funny ideas...there is a five minute limit!
The aircraft, the biggest in the world, has 489 seats and can land only in airports fitted with the third level aerobridge to allow passengers to reach the upperdeck. About sixty airports around the world are either geared up or are gearing up to take passengers on the A380.
Speaking of airlines.......having travelled on different carriers in the past, according to me.......the best three are: Emirates, Singapore Airlines, Virgin Atlantic and Jet Airways. The worst? Air France and Air Canada (sorry!!) This was based on the types of food served on board, in-flight entertainment and service. (Flights in and out of India) As far as airports go.....Dubai's International terminal with the duty free stores and first class lounges and Singapores Changi airport top as two of the best in the world.
Schools will be closing end of this month in Canada......and I'm sure many families will take to the skies...........no matter what airline you decide to take and where you decide to go.....have a safe trip and a terrific holiday!!
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Saturday, May 30, 2009
EQAO - Evil Questions Attack Ontario
This is what my daughter (she is eight) thinks that EQAO stands for!
It actually means, Education Quality and Accountability Office. Every year, the public school system students take this exam.........to assess their skill level in reading, writing and math.
Grades three, six, nine and ten students have to take the test and it is administered end May and beginning June. The students do not study for these tests, but take them for the Government to assess the schools and how well they are teaching the curriculum to the students. This allows for improvement in weak areas and to help pinpoint which schools need extra resources. This occurs when the majority of students are from different backgrounds and may not have English as a first language.
You can check www.eqao.com
The website gives you all the test details and you can also download the previous years question papers to use as practice lessons. Click on the Parent Resources button to get into the page for downloading the questions.
As I have a son in grade 6 and a daughter in grade 3, both my kids are taking the EQAO this year. The results should be out by October. Will let you know more about how the results are tabulated when I get them.
Until then........good luck to all you grade3, 6, 9 and 10 students!!
It actually means, Education Quality and Accountability Office. Every year, the public school system students take this exam.........to assess their skill level in reading, writing and math.
Grades three, six, nine and ten students have to take the test and it is administered end May and beginning June. The students do not study for these tests, but take them for the Government to assess the schools and how well they are teaching the curriculum to the students. This allows for improvement in weak areas and to help pinpoint which schools need extra resources. This occurs when the majority of students are from different backgrounds and may not have English as a first language.
You can check www.eqao.com
The website gives you all the test details and you can also download the previous years question papers to use as practice lessons. Click on the Parent Resources button to get into the page for downloading the questions.
As I have a son in grade 6 and a daughter in grade 3, both my kids are taking the EQAO this year. The results should be out by October. Will let you know more about how the results are tabulated when I get them.
Until then........good luck to all you grade3, 6, 9 and 10 students!!
Update on our dvd player repair..post of Feb 14th
If you go back to my post of Feb 14th.......you'll understand this better........but basically our Samsung dvd player stopped working after just six months!
After Best Buy, where we bought it from, told us that we would have to send the player to Samsung by UPS (which Samsung paid for) we did just that. Three months we waited for no news........and then you will never guess what happened!!
We got a knock on our door, and when I opened it.......there was a UPS guy there with a HUGE box. I first thought he's come to the wrong house or it was some equipment we ordered for our business that we forgot about.
The 'box' turned out to be a brand new Home Theatre system from Samsung as they could not repair our dvd player!! So now we have one working dvd player and TWO sets of home theatre system speakers!
Yea!
After Best Buy, where we bought it from, told us that we would have to send the player to Samsung by UPS (which Samsung paid for) we did just that. Three months we waited for no news........and then you will never guess what happened!!
We got a knock on our door, and when I opened it.......there was a UPS guy there with a HUGE box. I first thought he's come to the wrong house or it was some equipment we ordered for our business that we forgot about.
The 'box' turned out to be a brand new Home Theatre system from Samsung as they could not repair our dvd player!! So now we have one working dvd player and TWO sets of home theatre system speakers!
Yea!
What's up in Canada...besides Victoria day?
Queen Victoria
If you are in Canada in the month of May........you will notice a holiday on the Calendar....that may strike you as being slightly strange. The Monday on or before May 24th is Victoria day and depending on which part of Canada you are in........along with Saturday and Sunday, you have a long weekend off! This means the start of summer to many, garage sales, and of course gardening and doing your lawn. The Victoria day weekend is also when many Canadians take off for camping grounds, visiting family or just chilling out at home.
According to Wikipedia:
Victoria day celebrates the birthday of the current Canadian Monarch, Queen Elizabeth II. However, the date does not change with the change of monarch, instead it is set on the birthday of Queen Victoria, the Canadian Monarch at the time of Canadian Confederation and establishment of dominion status in 1867. Her birthday being May 24th, 1819.
Alexandrina Victoria, was the only child of Edward, Duke of Kent and Victoria Maria Louisa of Saxe-Coburg. The Duke and Duchess of Kent wanted the name Victoria but her uncle, George IV, insisted that she be named Alexandrina after her godfather, Tsar Alexander I of Russia. ( I guess Victoria day sounds better than Alexandrina day!!)
Victoria day is a statutory holiday in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, Northwest Territories, Nunavut, Ontario, Quebec (coincides with National Patriotes Day), Saskatchewan, and Yukon.
It is not a statutory holiday in the eastern maritime provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland & Labrador, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island.
This year, 2009, Victoria day fell on May 18th. Wow, what a weekend..........we saw bikers out....kids playing in shorts outside and lots of people out enjoying the nice warm weather! We also saw lines and lines of people shopping for lawn equipment, plants and fertilizers........yes, the annual, 'who has the best lawn on the street' competition has unofficially started. May the best green thumb win!
Thursday, April 30, 2009
How do you buy milk in Canada?
All about Milk.......in Canada!
When you live in Canada, you will be buying your milk in these kinds of packs.
Inside the big pack, are three little plastic packets.
Once you place the packet in the jug, snip a corner of the plastic off. These jugs are available at most supermarkets and dollar stores. Almost every single home in Canada has one of these!!
Milk packs in a supermarket cooler.
When you live in Canada, you will be buying your milk in these kinds of packs.
Inside the big pack, are three little plastic packets.
Once you place the packet in the jug, snip a corner of the plastic off. These jugs are available at most supermarkets and dollar stores. Almost every single home in Canada has one of these!!
The milk is all set to be used for your tea or coffee, or to give to the kids. You don't have to boil the milk like we do in India.
Milk packs in a supermarket cooler.
If you notice, the blue packets have one percent written on them, the pink ones have two percent and it goes up to 4 percent and skim milk.
Whole milk has 4% fat content, which is what the percentage indicates. Babies two and below need the 4% milk as they need that amount of fat. But children age two and up, should use the 2% (at times you can get 3.5 %) or 1%, and for those who don't want any fat use the skim milk which by law is supposed to have .5% fat.
They also have buttermilk, fat free milk, soya milk, full cream, low fat, organic milk and milk that is light and made just for coffee or tea. The common brands are Dairyland, Neilson and Parmalat.
Prices range from $3.60 to $4.25 or so, depending on the store and if they happen to be selling milk on sale or not.
All this talk about milk....and I think I left mine out on the counter.....better go put it in the fridge!
catch you later,
Nalini
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Sunday drive
We woke up last Sunday to a wonderful sunny morning...and decided to go for a long drive. At first we didn't know where to go, and then just ended up on Steeles heading towards the city of Milton. We drove on the backroads and did not enter Milton, but ended up driving around it. Here are some of the pictures I managed to take before the camera battery died out on me!
One of the bridges we drove under........................
The road is one straight road, but it goes up and down like this...............
One of the horse ranches we drove past...........
If you are an Indian in Canada......please let me know of other restaurants that you have been too......and what your feedback is.
One of the bridges we drove under........................
The road is one straight road, but it goes up and down like this...............
One of the horse ranches we drove past...........
One of the many Harley Davidson bikers that you see now ........enjoying the sunshine and finally a chance to go for a fun ride on two wheels instead of four!
The Paper Dosa my daughter had at Anjappar Chettinad for lunch........this is made of rice and urud dal, fermented and kept over night, and then poured out over a hot plate stove and cooked into a crisp delightful meal. The dosa is eaten with chutney and sambar, two gravies that come with the dosa. (Chutney is made of coconut and other spices mixed together, and the sambar is a gravy made of lentils, tamarind and spices) Dosas are normally eaten for breakfast in South India...but you can eat them for lunch or just a snack too. This dosa was excellent...not oily and very crisp!
If you are an Indian in Canada......please let me know of other restaurants that you have been too......and what your feedback is.
Thanks,
Nalini
Bring out the umbrellas and rainboots!
The past week has been wet to say the least.........but thank goodness our newspapers have been coming to us dry, wrapped in sheets of plastic. The same newspaper that had a huge article on the front page about 'going green'. Looks like no one really practices what they preach these days!
With all the news about the Swine Flu going around.........travellers have been cautioned in Canada about travelling to the U.S and Mexico. Looks like there are two confirmed cases right now in Canada......but not serious and looks like the two patients are doing okay.
The past month or so, one piece of news that South Asians, especially Srilankan Tamils and Tamilians from India have had their eye on, is the war. The war in Srilanka that is, to those who don't know what I'm talking about. On one side is the Srilankan Army and the other side is the LTTE. With so many Tamilians from Srilanka here in Canada, there have been protests and demonstrations across Ontario to get the Canadian government to step in and help the innocents caught in the crossfire.
Today one of the protests turned violent with the protesters blocking city roads and the police having to push the crowds back to make room for emergency service vehicles.
Just found an amazing website for Indians living anywhere abroad. Check out www.garamchai.com
Tons of info in there about moving to different places and general contacts and links to helpful sites.
Went for an amazing drive to a place called Milton the other day. Didn't enter the city but drove around it and saw horse farms and ranches. Out of the books as they say! Stunning to say the least to see horses running around huge pastures on a sunny afternoon. All that was missing was our picnie basket and sandwiches!
We are missing out on one thing here and that is the IPL going on in South Africa. Go Chennai Superkings!
Have a great week!
Nalini
With all the news about the Swine Flu going around.........travellers have been cautioned in Canada about travelling to the U.S and Mexico. Looks like there are two confirmed cases right now in Canada......but not serious and looks like the two patients are doing okay.
The past month or so, one piece of news that South Asians, especially Srilankan Tamils and Tamilians from India have had their eye on, is the war. The war in Srilanka that is, to those who don't know what I'm talking about. On one side is the Srilankan Army and the other side is the LTTE. With so many Tamilians from Srilanka here in Canada, there have been protests and demonstrations across Ontario to get the Canadian government to step in and help the innocents caught in the crossfire.
Today one of the protests turned violent with the protesters blocking city roads and the police having to push the crowds back to make room for emergency service vehicles.
Just found an amazing website for Indians living anywhere abroad. Check out www.garamchai.com
Tons of info in there about moving to different places and general contacts and links to helpful sites.
Went for an amazing drive to a place called Milton the other day. Didn't enter the city but drove around it and saw horse farms and ranches. Out of the books as they say! Stunning to say the least to see horses running around huge pastures on a sunny afternoon. All that was missing was our picnie basket and sandwiches!
We are missing out on one thing here and that is the IPL going on in South Africa. Go Chennai Superkings!
Have a great week!
Nalini
Sunday, April 19, 2009
April in Canada
The month of April has been interesting to say the least. We grow up hearing about April showers bringing May flowers?? Well, so far we have had two days of snow, zero degree temperatures and wind chills of below 0. Does that sound like spring to you?
At least this week, the temp is up to 12 and we are actually enjoying some sunshine.
In the news this week: An eight year old girl went missing from school and a nearby video camera caught her on tape, being led away by an un-identified lady. Scary..when you are a parent to hear news like this. So far...no advance on the investigation and the little girl is still missing.
A 21 year old girl, was driving to work and slammed on her brakes at a traffic light. If she only knew what was in store for her at that split moment. Her laptop, that was lying on the backseat......came flying over and hit her hard on the back of the head. The poor girl never knew what happened and died. So now there are messages from the Police, and various other agencies....to strap down things in your backseat or put it in the trunk. Who would have ever thought that something like this could happen, right?
Some things I have noticed:
Last weekend I went to some stores to check out what was on sale as Easter just got over and they had to replace all those racks of Eggs, bunny toys, chocolates and baskets with something.
They replaced them alright.......with anything and everything to do with gardening and playing outside. I saw seeds for growing any kind of flower or vegetable, watering cans, garden equipment, hoses, lawn chairs, barbaques, sun tan lotions, sprinklers, footballs, frisbees, skipping ropes and even chalk for the kids to draw on the driveway or sidewalk.
My kids loved it! They make everything look so enticing.....and you see many families literally grabbing things and filling their shopping carts, quickly emptying the racks.
Another thing is that all Winter clothing is on sale, and Spring and Summer clothes have hit the racks. From shorts, t-shirts and spaghetti strap tops to sandals and flipflops (chappals) to racks and racks of swimwear.......the stores are ready for the next two seasons.
This is the ideal time to plan weekend outdoor trips and activities. We realized now, that because of the LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOG winter, people here utilize the spring and summer days to do anything and everything outdoors. From cycling to fishing trips, to picnics in the park to long drives out somewhere. You don't waste a single weekend because before you know it, it is September and too cold to be outside again. I now understand why Canadians, Americans etc all plan elaborate holidays in destinations with beaches and the hot sun........it is because they are trying to get as much of it as possible before the next Winter!
Just found a very interesting website....www.garamchai.com
Check it out for very interesting news and information about the desi abroad.
Movie halls have been filling up with kids this week.......with Dragonball Z, Hannah Montana and the Monster vs Alien movies all playing at the same time. On an average, you will spend close to thirty dollars for a family of four for a movie and a little more for popcorn and drinks. The theatres are free seating...so far I have not had an instance where we got seat numbers alotted. So, go a little early if it is a new movie or else you will all be split up!
Would anyone be interested in recipes on this site.........I'm thinking of adding simple recipes using ingredients from here for making Indian dishes and also simple Canadian meals too. What do you think?
At least this week, the temp is up to 12 and we are actually enjoying some sunshine.
In the news this week: An eight year old girl went missing from school and a nearby video camera caught her on tape, being led away by an un-identified lady. Scary..when you are a parent to hear news like this. So far...no advance on the investigation and the little girl is still missing.
A 21 year old girl, was driving to work and slammed on her brakes at a traffic light. If she only knew what was in store for her at that split moment. Her laptop, that was lying on the backseat......came flying over and hit her hard on the back of the head. The poor girl never knew what happened and died. So now there are messages from the Police, and various other agencies....to strap down things in your backseat or put it in the trunk. Who would have ever thought that something like this could happen, right?
Some things I have noticed:
Last weekend I went to some stores to check out what was on sale as Easter just got over and they had to replace all those racks of Eggs, bunny toys, chocolates and baskets with something.
They replaced them alright.......with anything and everything to do with gardening and playing outside. I saw seeds for growing any kind of flower or vegetable, watering cans, garden equipment, hoses, lawn chairs, barbaques, sun tan lotions, sprinklers, footballs, frisbees, skipping ropes and even chalk for the kids to draw on the driveway or sidewalk.
My kids loved it! They make everything look so enticing.....and you see many families literally grabbing things and filling their shopping carts, quickly emptying the racks.
Another thing is that all Winter clothing is on sale, and Spring and Summer clothes have hit the racks. From shorts, t-shirts and spaghetti strap tops to sandals and flipflops (chappals) to racks and racks of swimwear.......the stores are ready for the next two seasons.
This is the ideal time to plan weekend outdoor trips and activities. We realized now, that because of the LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOG winter, people here utilize the spring and summer days to do anything and everything outdoors. From cycling to fishing trips, to picnics in the park to long drives out somewhere. You don't waste a single weekend because before you know it, it is September and too cold to be outside again. I now understand why Canadians, Americans etc all plan elaborate holidays in destinations with beaches and the hot sun........it is because they are trying to get as much of it as possible before the next Winter!
Just found a very interesting website....www.garamchai.com
Check it out for very interesting news and information about the desi abroad.
Movie halls have been filling up with kids this week.......with Dragonball Z, Hannah Montana and the Monster vs Alien movies all playing at the same time. On an average, you will spend close to thirty dollars for a family of four for a movie and a little more for popcorn and drinks. The theatres are free seating...so far I have not had an instance where we got seat numbers alotted. So, go a little early if it is a new movie or else you will all be split up!
Would anyone be interested in recipes on this site.........I'm thinking of adding simple recipes using ingredients from here for making Indian dishes and also simple Canadian meals too. What do you think?
Thursday, April 2, 2009
We will Rock you - the music show
Wow...what a night! Now we know why Toronto is 'the' place to be for stage performances and musicals!!
With our family of four, and my cousins family of four (visiting from Dubai), we decided to go for a muscial show. Every day in the paper, there are ads for the shows playing that evening...and this week we had a choice of three. Dirty Dancing, The sound of music and We will Rock you.
The first was adults only, the second we had seen the movie enough times...and so We will Rock you it was. Also, all of us being Queen and Freddy Mercury fans could not miss out on that!
We booked our tickets online..it came to about $250 for the eight of us, orchestra pit seats....including tax. The show was at the Panasonic Theatre, which is on Yonge street...the longest street in the world (some trivia for you!).
The show started at eight pm. For the next 2 hours and 45 minutes we just didn't know how time seemed to fly by.........from the amazing acoustics in the hall, the lights, the strobes, the wonderful cast of actors, smoke machines and stage decor. The dialogue was quick and humorous.....lots of jokes that had references to Bryan Adams, Celine Dion and other Canadian singers. The dance routines and the singing was just outstanding!
With our family of four, and my cousins family of four (visiting from Dubai), we decided to go for a muscial show. Every day in the paper, there are ads for the shows playing that evening...and this week we had a choice of three. Dirty Dancing, The sound of music and We will Rock you.
The first was adults only, the second we had seen the movie enough times...and so We will Rock you it was. Also, all of us being Queen and Freddy Mercury fans could not miss out on that!
We booked our tickets online..it came to about $250 for the eight of us, orchestra pit seats....including tax. The show was at the Panasonic Theatre, which is on Yonge street...the longest street in the world (some trivia for you!).
The show started at eight pm. For the next 2 hours and 45 minutes we just didn't know how time seemed to fly by.........from the amazing acoustics in the hall, the lights, the strobes, the wonderful cast of actors, smoke machines and stage decor. The dialogue was quick and humorous.....lots of jokes that had references to Bryan Adams, Celine Dion and other Canadian singers. The dance routines and the singing was just outstanding!
Well, don't want to give too much away.....but if you do visit Toronto..........take in this show! Believe me, you'll have, the tune of 'We will, we will rock you', stuck in your head and feet all night long!
Rock on!
Rock on!
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Happenings in March............
Spring break is over, and school starts on Monday. Although spring has 'officially' started, the temperature is still hovering at 0 degrees, going into the minus at night. Still no sign of anything green, no birds chirping or any other sign that spring is actually here....oh wait....except for one thing. Spring sales!
Every other store seems to have a sign hanging on the door saying, 'Buy now! The latest Spring collection, in store now!' From shorts to garden hoses, swim wear and spaghetti tops......spring seems to be only in the stores for the time being.
We made a booking for a night to stay at Niagara falls next week as my cousin is visiting. The room rate came to $119 per night, for four people in a room. These are falls view rooms, and do not include any meal. The breakfast buffet rate is about $7 per person, and kids are less.
You can easily find hotels and make reservations online, where the final booking will have to be made over the phone as they will need a valid credit card.
Once the confirmation is made, they will send you an email with the booking number and details.
Met some Indians yesterday who moved to Canada thirty years ago! Their kids were all born here and are now working or studying in the University. None of them regretted moving to Canada and felt that life for their children was certainly better here. But on the other hand, I met a couple that moved here just five months ago as their married son wanted them to come and stay with him. Well, that couple is just waiting for a chance to go back to Delhi where they lived for the past sixty years. Coming during the winter didn't help and being stuck inside a house without being able to drive (remember getting your license here takes time..see one of my earlier posts on this tagged license) can be really boring.
Keep watching the Indian news channels to find out what is happening in India. Good to know that our cricket team made history in New Zealand!!
On that note......I'll sign off until next time!
Every other store seems to have a sign hanging on the door saying, 'Buy now! The latest Spring collection, in store now!' From shorts to garden hoses, swim wear and spaghetti tops......spring seems to be only in the stores for the time being.
We made a booking for a night to stay at Niagara falls next week as my cousin is visiting. The room rate came to $119 per night, for four people in a room. These are falls view rooms, and do not include any meal. The breakfast buffet rate is about $7 per person, and kids are less.
You can easily find hotels and make reservations online, where the final booking will have to be made over the phone as they will need a valid credit card.
Once the confirmation is made, they will send you an email with the booking number and details.
Met some Indians yesterday who moved to Canada thirty years ago! Their kids were all born here and are now working or studying in the University. None of them regretted moving to Canada and felt that life for their children was certainly better here. But on the other hand, I met a couple that moved here just five months ago as their married son wanted them to come and stay with him. Well, that couple is just waiting for a chance to go back to Delhi where they lived for the past sixty years. Coming during the winter didn't help and being stuck inside a house without being able to drive (remember getting your license here takes time..see one of my earlier posts on this tagged license) can be really boring.
Keep watching the Indian news channels to find out what is happening in India. Good to know that our cricket team made history in New Zealand!!
On that note......I'll sign off until next time!
Tuesday, March 17, 2009
Ice Skating
Today was the second day of ice skating class for both of my children. They are half an hour classes, and they start exactly on the dot of 10am. You quickly notice here that no one is late..and a lot of parents bring their kids in ten to fifteen minutes early.
The kids put their skates on and entered the arena with the rest of their group. The instructor was a young man, who looked like he was a college student, probably earning extra credit for volunteering during his spring break. He immediately got the kids to 'walk' across the ice, then 'jump' up and down and then actually 'slide' side to side. Then he spent five minutes getting the kids to 'fall' down and then learn how to stand up again.
Each group had about ten to twelve children, and there were about six groups totally all around the arena in different corners so that no got in anothers way. What was really cute..was the three year old group. They were all bundled up in their snow suits, skates, helmets and gloves..and looked so adorable as most of them were just falling all over each other trying to stand up. The skate staff were well trained, patient and knew what each group was doing for the day. Overall, I was impressed with how well coordinated they seemed to be. As groups of kids finished their class for the day they exited on one side of the arena, while the next group entered through another entrance. All the children had to write their names on white labels and stick them on their helmets.
By the end of the class, the school age group kids were able to get from one side of the arena to the middle and back without falling. By the end of the week, the kids should be able to skate. The community center's arenas are open for specific times during each day for recreational skating, and this is open to anyone who can skate.
We also watched the ice hockey training session....and after watching this I realised how far my kids had to go in terms of sheer agility, speed and technique required in skating for this sport. Will write more about ice hockey in a later blog.
Have a nice day!!
The kids put their skates on and entered the arena with the rest of their group. The instructor was a young man, who looked like he was a college student, probably earning extra credit for volunteering during his spring break. He immediately got the kids to 'walk' across the ice, then 'jump' up and down and then actually 'slide' side to side. Then he spent five minutes getting the kids to 'fall' down and then learn how to stand up again.
Each group had about ten to twelve children, and there were about six groups totally all around the arena in different corners so that no got in anothers way. What was really cute..was the three year old group. They were all bundled up in their snow suits, skates, helmets and gloves..and looked so adorable as most of them were just falling all over each other trying to stand up. The skate staff were well trained, patient and knew what each group was doing for the day. Overall, I was impressed with how well coordinated they seemed to be. As groups of kids finished their class for the day they exited on one side of the arena, while the next group entered through another entrance. All the children had to write their names on white labels and stick them on their helmets.
By the end of the class, the school age group kids were able to get from one side of the arena to the middle and back without falling. By the end of the week, the kids should be able to skate. The community center's arenas are open for specific times during each day for recreational skating, and this is open to anyone who can skate.
We also watched the ice hockey training session....and after watching this I realised how far my kids had to go in terms of sheer agility, speed and technique required in skating for this sport. Will write more about ice hockey in a later blog.
Have a nice day!!
Sunday, March 15, 2009
Happenings in March...........
Spring break is here!! Next week, all schools and colleges are closed across Canada for Spring Break. I was watching the news yesterday and they actually had a camera crew in the airport, Pearson International, interviewing people leaving Toronto for the short break. Families were going to Vancouver, Ottawa etc to meet other family members, some familes and students were going to Paris....and others were going to Florida..to enjoy some beach and sunshine for ten days. Many students here go off for the first time with friends for a holiday by themselves. Parents were seen giving last minute instructions, do's and don'ts to their teens and waiting for ten days of having peace and quiet at home!
We decided that since we are here in Canada, for spring break, our children could learn something unique to this part of the world, that they couldn't learn in India. Ice skating! So for the next week, every morning, we're going to drive them to the nearby community center, where they will learn to ice skate.
We went shopping yesterday for the skates...as my kids are eight and eleven, we got skates that fit shoe size 4 to 6. They stretched out to the bigger size so that kids could use the same skates for a year or two without having to buy new ones. The skates cost $39, they were on sale and the original price was $99/- marked down to $49 towards the end of winter and then finally $39/. This is why a lot of people here buy things for the next season, at the end of every season...as you get almost all products at more than half the price off!
These are our daughters skates...and the ones for our son are the same except for the colour...blue! Will let you know how their first class went tomorrow.
The newspapers are FULL of ads for musicals........The Sound of Music, We will rock you! (songs from Queen and Freddy Mercury), Dirty Dancing (yes the movie now on stage) and many more. Tickets cost from $199 for a set of four family tickets for some shows, to $28 per ticket for others.
All the community centers have so many activities and classes for kids and adults...from cooking, learning any sport, babysitting classes, hiking, environment based classes and get togethers for a movie or dance..spring break like all their other breaks are well planned and you or your kids can never complain that there is never anything to do!
This week the weather is great...we're wearing half sleeves and sandals after many months of coats and boots. With Easter around the corner, the stores are full of chocolate covered eggs and candy.
I tried frying Thilapia this week and made a gravy out of this fish too. It was really nice and I recommend this fish if you are here in Canada. I'm putting together a range of simple Canadian dishes, and will put up the recipes on this blog shortly.
The time is now 7pm and it is still daylight outside. A big change from a couple of months ago when the sun was setting by 4pm!
I really appreciate so many of you reading this blog and taking the time to let me know!
Thanks,
Nalini
We decided that since we are here in Canada, for spring break, our children could learn something unique to this part of the world, that they couldn't learn in India. Ice skating! So for the next week, every morning, we're going to drive them to the nearby community center, where they will learn to ice skate.
We went shopping yesterday for the skates...as my kids are eight and eleven, we got skates that fit shoe size 4 to 6. They stretched out to the bigger size so that kids could use the same skates for a year or two without having to buy new ones. The skates cost $39, they were on sale and the original price was $99/- marked down to $49 towards the end of winter and then finally $39/. This is why a lot of people here buy things for the next season, at the end of every season...as you get almost all products at more than half the price off!
These are our daughters skates...and the ones for our son are the same except for the colour...blue! Will let you know how their first class went tomorrow.
The newspapers are FULL of ads for musicals........The Sound of Music, We will rock you! (songs from Queen and Freddy Mercury), Dirty Dancing (yes the movie now on stage) and many more. Tickets cost from $199 for a set of four family tickets for some shows, to $28 per ticket for others.
All the community centers have so many activities and classes for kids and adults...from cooking, learning any sport, babysitting classes, hiking, environment based classes and get togethers for a movie or dance..spring break like all their other breaks are well planned and you or your kids can never complain that there is never anything to do!
This week the weather is great...we're wearing half sleeves and sandals after many months of coats and boots. With Easter around the corner, the stores are full of chocolate covered eggs and candy.
I tried frying Thilapia this week and made a gravy out of this fish too. It was really nice and I recommend this fish if you are here in Canada. I'm putting together a range of simple Canadian dishes, and will put up the recipes on this blog shortly.
The time is now 7pm and it is still daylight outside. A big change from a couple of months ago when the sun was setting by 4pm!
I really appreciate so many of you reading this blog and taking the time to let me know!
Thanks,
Nalini
Tuesday, March 3, 2009
Non-vegetarians coming to Canada
Picture of the inside of a meat shop in Brampton.When we first got here, our first trip to the grocery store was so confusing to say the least. Being non-vegetarians, the meat section was where we went to get some chicken. From organic, halal to lean and minced, with skin, skinless, with bones, boneless etc there is just so much to chose from..besides the different parts of the chicken (packages with only wings, only legs, only thight, only breast etc) ,then they have beef, fish, and meat (lamb and veal).
Something we have noticed is that the name 'mutton', does not seem to be used here, and if you go to and Indian restaurant and want 'mutton', look for 'goat meat', on the menu instead. They don't have mutton biriyani, they have goat biriyani. Strange, right?
So you can either pick up your meat from the regular grocer or from a meat shop. When comparing prices, for a package of ten to twelve chicken legs and two big pieces of chicken breast from a grocer can add up to about ten to twelve dollars. They sometimes have whole chickens, but these are frozen and can take forever to defrost.
The better bet for Indian cooking is to get your meat from the meat shop. This is fresh and you can ask them to cut a whole chicken the way you want. Normally, the price of a whole chicken comes to about ten to twelve dollars according to the size.
Besides fresh chicken and goat meat, they also have chicken tikka, tandoori, masala fish, goat and chicken pickle (not really pickle, but a dry cooked dish made of these two meats) and other masala coated meats that you can buy and grill or barbeque at home.
Above shows two of the Tandoor chickens available at the store with the prices per pound. There are NO flies, and the place is really clean with no smell of raw meat. They have machines for cutting the meat parts that have bones, so you get finely cut pieces.
Picture of raw chicken legs...you buy it by weight or number of pieces, that he will weight and price accordingly.
Since the meat shop is just a three minute drive from our home, I find this place really convenient. The quality of meat is outstanding...and the 'mutton' from here is really soft and delicious!!
One more thing, here in Canada, prices of chicken and goat meat are more or less the same, unlike India where mutton can be pretty expensive. Recently I picked up some Thilapia fish and fried it with Indian masala. It tasted really good. Four fillet pieces (which I cut into half as they were pretty big pieces) came to about six dollars.
If you have kids though...be ready to eat at KFC, McDonalds and other fast food places more often than not!!
Happy eating!
Touchless Car wash...our first experience
Ever since we got here, the kids have been begging us nearly every weekend if we could get the car washed at one of the 'Touchless' car wash places.
This is the outside of the Touchless Car Wash we went to. They are normally found along side a gas station or part of one. The one we went to was part of a gas station chain, and they had a deal where you got a discount on the car wash if you put in some gas first.
The sprayers come on and these huge beams with the sprayer holes move side to side, under and over your car....with very high pressured water spraying the dirt right off.
Then a soap water solution is then sprayed all over the car and washed off, this being repeated twice before a minute of high pressure water hitting you from all sides. Make sure your windows and sun roof are closed!!
This is the water being sprayed on the windshield. This process takes about two minutes.
Then once this is over, you drive very slowly out towards the exit where these huge dryers overhead blast hot air on the car to dry it. This dryer is a huge version of the ones you see in the bathrooms of hotels these days, for drying your hands. The picture below is of the dryers overhead.
The exit door opens and you come out, noticing right away how clean the windshield is.
View of the exit through our now clean windshield. (You should have seen it before!)
Here is our car after the wash..notice how clean the tires are!! We got out of the car and said, 'WOW!' because it looked so good. It was such a mess before since we didn't clean the car for ages. (we kept hoping it would rain!) Then we went around and looked at the other side...OOPS..there was mud dripping down the entire right side of the car and the back of the read view mirrors were still filthy. So my husband took the car back, got a free car wash and came back home with a car that was now clean on BOTH sides. This seemed to be a one off...as the guy at the car wash said he would put in a complaint to the company that something was obviously faulty.
The kids wanted to go again, as if it was some ride in Disneyland...but for the time being....we will wait until the next time we feel like it and until then either wait for it to rain..or wash it ourselves!!
Almost everyone I know in India who had a car, also had a driver, who would wash their car every morning, if not every other day or at least twice a week. If not a driver, they would hire the newspaper boy or someone like that exclusively for car washing duties! Automatic car washes are either non existent in India or very rare to say the least. I remember an MRF one in Chennai, but I never knew if that actually worked or not. Does anyone know?
So, getting the car washed automatically by a bunch of sprayers and huge sponges was something new.
This is the outside of the Touchless Car Wash we went to. They are normally found along side a gas station or part of one. The one we went to was part of a gas station chain, and they had a deal where you got a discount on the car wash if you put in some gas first.So we first put in twenty dollars worth of gas. They have different rates for different kinds of washes.
The basic one, the premium one (includes high pressure sprays underneath the car too) and the one where they spray anti rust underneath the car.
We took the premium one, which costs 8.99/- but we got a two dollar discount because of the twenty dollar gas we put in. So, minus 6.99/- and more gas in the tank, we headed for the entrance of the car wash.
This is a car that was in front of us which went in first.
As the doors closed behind this car, we positioned our car so that my husband could lean out of the drivers door and punch in the code from our receipt into the little touchpad they had near the entrance.
Once you punch in your code, and the car in front of you is finished, the main door opens and you drive in.
Once you punch in your code, and the car in front of you is finished, the main door opens and you drive in.
Once you drive in, there is a series of lighted signs telling you to either go forward, back up or stop. This is to get you into the right position for the sprayers to work.
Once you are in the right position, the door closes behind you and the high pressure sprayers come on. You sit in the car while this three minute process goes on...and it sounds and feels like you are in the car during a heavy rain storm with the wind and water lashing at your windows.
The sprayers come on and these huge beams with the sprayer holes move side to side, under and over your car....with very high pressured water spraying the dirt right off.
This is the water being sprayed on the windshield. This process takes about two minutes.
Then once this is over, you drive very slowly out towards the exit where these huge dryers overhead blast hot air on the car to dry it. This dryer is a huge version of the ones you see in the bathrooms of hotels these days, for drying your hands. The picture below is of the dryers overhead.
The exit door opens and you come out, noticing right away how clean the windshield is.
View of the exit through our now clean windshield. (You should have seen it before!)
Here is our car after the wash..notice how clean the tires are!! We got out of the car and said, 'WOW!' because it looked so good. It was such a mess before since we didn't clean the car for ages. (we kept hoping it would rain!) Then we went around and looked at the other side...OOPS..there was mud dripping down the entire right side of the car and the back of the read view mirrors were still filthy. So my husband took the car back, got a free car wash and came back home with a car that was now clean on BOTH sides. This seemed to be a one off...as the guy at the car wash said he would put in a complaint to the company that something was obviously faulty.
The kids wanted to go again, as if it was some ride in Disneyland...but for the time being....we will wait until the next time we feel like it and until then either wait for it to rain..or wash it ourselves!!
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