One of Four Packs of Cheese Curds
It took only 2.5 hours to get to Toronto from Kingston, but we first had to stop at Wilton Cheese Factory. Dave's dad had taken us there to try fresh cheese curds and we couldn't get them off our minds. We had to share them in Mike and Julie who had never been to a cheese factory before. We bought about $50 worth of cheese including four bags of cheese curds and ate a bag within 10 minutes!
Dave Couldn't Control Himself
We arrived in Toronto at about 2:30 pm. We were all exhausted, but it was also New Year’s eve. When we arrived we went to Square One, the big mall in Mississauga, which was only around the corner from Mike and Julie's apartment.
Mike and Julie met in Korea and fell in love. Julie, who is from Chicago went back to Chicago to finish her vision therapy degree, while Mike stayed in Korea for another year. They wanted to be together, but with the failing economy in the States, Canada would have to be their home. So they got married in early 2012 in Toronto and waited for her Canadian permanent residency to kick in. She was finally granted permanent residency in December and moved to Toronto on the 17 December, just a few days from when we met them in Montreal. Coming back to their apartment in Mississauga was new to them too since they had only lived there for maybe a week and half. They had never lived together for longer than two months and were now a married and learning how to share a place they would call home. We felt like we were intruding on the love birds, but we were all glad to be welcome the new year with good friends.
New Year's Eve Dinner
That night we ate the cheese, a pepperoni, olives, sleeves of crackers paired with red wine and Crown Royal (this would be the last time I would eat meat for the next few months). We played, Scopa, an Italian game that I had learned from Marco in college that Mike was obsessed with. His Sicilian grandfather had taught him when he was young and has played every since.
At five minutes to mid-night we went to the building lounge since Mike and Julie didn't have a TV yet to watch the ball drop. We couldn't find the station with the Times Square New Years Eve coverage, so had to watch a tamer version of the Toronto party. With two minutes left, we were drinking our wines and were ready to ring in the new year when the security guard told us to leave. Mike pleaded with him and the five of us rung in the new year with kisses and hugs. Mike even gave the security guard a firm ‘thank you for letting us stay’ handshake.
We returned to their apartment, drank more wine, ate another bag of cheese curds and played scopa until 3 am when Dave and Mike took shots of soju (the last thing I'd put in my body before bed) and gave speeches about our friendship and the adventurous year ahead.
The next day, we woke up late with hangovers to boot. We nursed our heads with a big bowl of chips and salsa and samosas that were supposed to be for our new year’s eve dinner. The salty fried food did the trick. We were back in the car, which smelled so bad from rank snow water we kept dragging in.
Mural in Kensington Market
We went to The Distillery, a quaint historic part of Toronto and the Old town feel. We then went to Mike and Julie's favourite weekend spot, Kensington Market, which sounds posh, but is really a street with Latino vendors and restaurants, sort of in the ghetto, which gave it its charm. Nearly everything was closed in both areas, but we did find an Asian vegetarian restaurant serving soups to warm us up. For dinner, we went to Korea town, which is fitting since we all have Korea to thank for our friendship.
Dave Felt Bad For Using the KFC Restroom
He Ordered This Sad Sad Drumstick
The Most Lit Up Store I've Ever Seen
Eleven days in Canada seems like a long time, but it went by quick. We were able to go to four major cities and spend quality time with family and friends. Dave's mom keeps saying how beautiful Canada is in the summer – we plan on coming back during summer 2014 if not 2013. Stay tuned!
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