Sorry once again for being so MIA this week! Been pre-occupied with PDAC. I've gone to PDAC (mostly just the parties) for the past 4 years now and it really does get better each year. Last year was a lot of fun but this year was even better. My favourite night (as always) was the night of the big Mining Night party at the Royal York ballroom - aka the night I met cute blond boy ;] More about that later....
Here is a video for now, earlier on that night with the live band:
I'll start from the night before the convention officially began..my friend & I went to the airport to pick up one of his business associates. Most of the people who come for PDAC are foreign (or from Vancouver). I've met quite a few over the years; pretty much all of which I only see for these few days when they're in Toronto for the convention. I guess that's one of the reasons why I always look forward to it again. When we got to the airport we found out his plane was delayed 3 hours so we killed some time, went back there to pick him up, then went for laaaaate night dinner - poutine & Fruli!
Going to the show..I mostly went just to say hi to the people I knew at the booths. I stick out so much at this place lol (As you can see, the majority are old and/or men)
Immediately after the show, the party-hopping begins..the first one on our schedule was Bymark, hosted by one of the law firms. So pretty much all the PDAC parties are open bar with an endless amount of delicious hors d'oeuvres passed around. The food here was so good!! We had so many slider burgers, lobster rolls, chicken dumplings, tuna on something..etcetcetc..
After Bymark, I went home for about an hour to recover/rest a bit. Then off we went again to the Royal York Hotel for a few suite parties (each one put on by a different company/firm).
A couple hours at the Royal York, then Loose Moose for a huge party put on by Wildeboer Dellelce. Strict door policy here, luckily I had a ticket! It seemed like mostly corporate types from Toronto here.
The photo on the right was this oxygen bar they had in there. It was scented oxygen. Supposed to wake you up a bit but it did the opposite for me. There was also a fortune teller/tarot card person there that I forgot to try..We spent the rest of the night here and was one of the last ones to leave. Fun night!!
Round 2: Mining Night
Now my favourite night! We started off at the Hockey Hall of Fame party..a quiet, calm evening at first.
My dinner that night
Then the Royal York!! I guess Mining Night is considered the "biggest" night during PDAC. At the Royal York they have the huge party in the ballroom with a live band, and on one floor of the hotel there are several suite parties. There are mostly mining students at these. We got there and it was completely packed. We walked around for a bit before meeting my other friend & some of his business associates.
We stood by the side of the stage. Suddenly this cute blond guy comes in front of me..then to the side..then behind (well at a distance)..I didn't really pay any attention at first. Then a girl (blond boy's co-worker) comes up to me and goes "hey he thinks you're really cute..but are these your bodyguards?" referring to my friend's business associates hahahah. So then I strayed away from my "bodyguards" & went around in search of more suite parties with blond boy, then a non-PDAC bar, etc..then finally home...another great night.
Now I'm suffering from PDAC withdrawal. Life goes back to normal tomorrow. Might be MIA for the next few days as I catch up on life/work.
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This post archived in: Favourites + Events
Picked up some macarons, rose + lychee marshmallows and apple + hazelnut pastry/croissant the other day from Nadege Patisserie. I am on a never-ending hunt for the perfect macarons in Toronto and so far I still haven't found them. Nothing comes close to the texture of Laduree's (or my favourite - Sadaharu Aoki). The Nadege macarons were way too sweet for me. The marshmallows were good but not sure if they're worth the price..& the pastry was DELICIOUS! Here it is:
& here is a very very random mix of photos - recent & not so recent..
Guess where I'm going again soon?!! Just booked these a couple days ago..so excited to be there again!
Bosk at the Shangri-La Hotel
View from the penthouse of the Shangri-La! My dream view. (more here from a post I did awhile ago)
View from the very very top!
Rosewater for the McGill University MBA event last week - a friend invited me to go along..I was most excited for the hors d'oeuvres. Robert Deluce, the CEO at Porter Airlines was a speaker there!
Here is my new favourite food place - iQ Food Co!! I have NO IDEA why I haven't tried this place sooner..they have two locations in Toronto right by my place (connected to the "path" of course). Their Hot Boxes are amazing! I really love this one, called the Blueberry Crunch. It has fresh blueberries, roasted chicken, green apple, feta cheese, julienned carrots, roasted pumpkin seeds, & chopped mint on a bed of brown rice/quinoa. Perfect combination.
This one is also good, called the Sparta Hox Box. Roasted chicken, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, feta cheese, basil, extra virgin olive oil on a bed of brown rice. It looks like a Greek salad but it tastes soooo much better than any Greek salad I've ever had.
Hanging around beer drinkers is making me drink more beer than I'd like to these days..
One of the events I look forward to the most each year has finally arrived, and it could not have come at a better time - the PDAC convention! It's the biggest gold mining/mineral convention in the world with delegates from all over the world in Toronto..lots staying at my hotel. I don't work in the industry but have some friends who are so I just go along to all the parties..so much fun. Especially the Royal York suite parties. (if you want to read about it/see photos I took from previous years)
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It's been forever since I last made a post from my Europe trip (from last May/June 2012)..I have exactly 20 more coming lol. Yes, I already pre-made all the posts..sort of. So here are some more photos from one of my favourite cities in the world, Copenhagen! It was my first view of Europe (I came for the first time in my life many years ago with my dad) and I immediately fell in love with it. This city will always be special to me. The weather is always perfect, there's daylight well past 10pm during the summer, the atmosphere is laid back and sophisticated at the same time, and it's just such a colourful (literally) and friendly city. With lots of well-dressed good-looking people. Plus the food is amazing here. I could eat smørrebrød every day of my life if I could!
They have the best bread/pastries here
Hello, Danish boys
One thing I noticed about Copenhagen - they have a LOT of juice shops. Joe & The Juice was my favourite one (mostly thanks to the cute servers..especially when they drew a heart on my order lol). They have locations around Scandinavia, Germany and London. Before my flights I always like to arrive at the airport at least 3 hours early. I have to say..sitting around Kastrup/Copenhagen Airport was one of the highlights of my trip. Highest concentration of good-looking men in suits I've ever seen..
So sad to leave Copenhagen but little did I know at that time that my next destination, Prague, would end up being four continuous days of fun adventures & memories I'll never forget!
PS - do any of you use the cab service, Uber?? They gave me a special promo code to give out so you can get $40 off your first ride! Just click here to sign up. The code is already entered in. Available in any city with Uber cabs. The offer expires in March so make sure you take the free ride by Feb. 28! Enjoy!
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This post archived in: Travel
