Happy Halloween!

Finally got a chance to get away from the books for a bit to do what I look forward to doing almost all year: pumpkin carving.

Not that I'm a huge fan of Halloween, or dressing up, or having to run up and down the stairs all night long to answer the door. I guess it's just a creative getaway for me.

Some fun carvings that I've made in years past:

2006 - Headless Horseman

2007 - Mario

2008 - Tigger

2009 - Count von Count

Porter's Halloween Sale

Save 20% on all Porter flights for bookings from now until November 2nd.

Promo code: SCARY20

Enjoy!

Jay Z & Alicia Keys - Empire State of Mind, World Series, Game 2

James Cameron's AVATAR

I'll let the clip speak for itself...

This movie just seems out of control:

Toronto getting Guu'd!

Finally, the popular Izakaya chain, GUU, from Vancouver will be hitting Toronto by the end of the year. For those who haven't had the gastronomic privilege, this should not disappoint if it compares to the offerings in Vancouver.

For those not in the know: Japanese Izakaya is literally a bar that serves several small dishes to accompany their food - basically a Japanese version of Spanish Tapas. Vancouver, in my opinion, has adopted this restaurant style quite well and this particular chain is testament to that with 4 restaurants spread over the Greater Vancouver Area (GVA?), and soon to touch down on Church St. in Toronto.

My taste buds can hardly wait!

Read all about it HERE

Click HERE for info on GUU in Vancouver

***UPDATE***

Guu Toronto NOW OPEN

Read all about it HERE

Limited Cirque 15% Off

In case any of you might be interested, the Cirque du Soleil OVO show in Toronto is having an irewards special saving you 15% off a regular ticket.

Click the banner or HERE for more information.

This show is absolutely amazing and definitely worth every penny. The tent is quite small so seating really doesn't matter (just make sure your view isn't obstructed).

Enjoy!

Eurotrip photos

So it's been way too long since I've posted.

First thing's first, here are the photos I promised. There are about 2000 pictures in total or something ridiculous like that so please take your time to enjoy them. Captions in my picasa albums should follow shortly, but until then, Enjoy!

(click the bottom right corner of the slideshow to retrieve a link to view the full album)

Madrid, SPAIN:


Zaragosa & Barcelona, SPAIN:


Avignon, Aix-En-Provence, Nice & Monaco, FRANCE:


Pisa & Florence, ITALY:


San Gimignano, Rome, ITALY:

Porter's End of Summer Sale

Here's a coupon for porter's end summer sale.

The catch? Gotta book by Monday Aug 31, 2009 for travel until December 17, 2009.

Use it if you can!

home...bitter, home ;)

Finally got home after extending my stay in Roma for 2 more nights (thankfully).

In compliance with the last post, here are highlights of the rest:

Pisa: leaning tower pics, asian wedding?, essential fob&jump pics, scabies?!
Florence: the glory of David, skipping uffizi, OSCAR vs. OSAKA, CONTIKI PIC!, dinner under the Tuscan sunset, "SHH...or they'll throw pee", hungover city tour, RAIN!
San Gimignano: beautiful hills, World's Best Gelato - Gelateria di "Piazza"
Rome: Quickest walking tour, Trevi Fountain, Pantheon, Piazza Colonna, Piazza Novona, Monumento Nazionale a Vittorio Emanuele II, Forum, tourguide fighting in italian w/ Colosseum dude, losing my ticket to get IN to the Colosseum!, St. Peter's Square, Vatican Musuem, St. Peter's Basilica, one final night of debauchery, awesome final night in Roma w/ Contiki Crew, Darren's Birthday, Churches and Basilicas galore, BEST pizza in Rome, awesome Gelato, ENOUGH PIZZA!

Past couple of days were rough and trying to get through the workday. Will post pics soon.
Adiós España
Au Revoir France
Arrivederci Italia

In Pisa tonight, Florence tomorrow

Internet access has been a bit dodgey and relative "down" time has
been sparse hence the lack of any sort of communication.

We're in a nice hotel in Pisa and having a rare quiet night before
heading to the leaning tower and then to Florence.

Some highlights so far:

Madrid: the taxi ride to the hotel, the Royal Palace, the Valley of the Fallen, and the bullfight
Barcelona: everything Gaudi, the Gothic Quarter, "snakeman" and the insane nightlife
Avignon: not much really, but "ratlady" on the way
Aix en Provence: quaint quiet town filled with culture
Nice: the beach, the ridiculous bar
Monaco: the famous casino and a 10€ bet on 8 that landed 350€, Prince (formerly known as the artist formerly known as Prince) in the house!
Cinque Terra: the beach, the ridiculous italian beach lady, the burn, focaccia and gelato (twice)

Spain and France seemed to whizz right by, but Italy now has my full attention. Looking forward to the wine, the food and possibly some nice "chocolate".

Possible updates later,
Buonanotte

Intro

Realizing that status updates via Twitter and Facebook can only say so much, I figured I'd start up a blog.  Updates and posts will be random, sporadic and varied.  

Welcome to another facet of procrastination.