New Orleans
Tuesday December 31, 2019
I spent the last five days in New Orleans, basically inspired by this video to go and explore Creole and Cajun cuisine. NOLA (New Orleans, Louisiana), as its affectionately known, was never really on my travel radar, but this year I knew I wanted to get out of the country for Christmas, especially since I had the time off anyway, and I wanted to go somewhere warm and different.
As much as I would have liked to reenact the video like Katrin and Janine, I didn't have enough time, or really the stomach space. I did the best I could, and I thoroughly enjoyed not only the food, but the history behind their cuisine. Apart from that, there's some beautiful architecture in the French Quarter, and City Park and Audubon Park are really nice walking areas, but there's not much else to see in the city, so I spent a lot of time just lazing about and playing Pokemon Go. It's so good to see the city back on its feet after Hurricane Katrina, although the devastating collapse of the Hard Rock Hotel right in downtown was still visible. I found Amorino, the gelateria that crafts their ice creams into roses, which I had first tried in Seville, Spain. The Steamboat Natchez on the Mississippi River had a lady rocking out on the steam organ, which was probably my favourite memory of NOLA. There were street performers and random jazz music jams in the French Quarter, and a lot of drunk people walking down Bourbon Street. I'm not really a party animal, nor am I a big drinker, so I didn't really participate in that side of New Orleans, but I still had a really good time.
Posted by Jeremy at 3:47pm on Tuesday December 31, 2019 :: 0 comments :: 
Christmas
Wednesday December 25, 2019
It’s been a busy time. Summer flew by so quickly, and in came autumn with its exceptionally beautiful colours. We went hiking around Muskoka, Ranney Gorge, Peel Forest, Hamilton and Niagara, and the reds, oranges and yellows were truly outstanding this year.
We got our first snowfall in November, and since then, a few major storms have hit but now on Christmas Day, the weather is sitting around 0C and most of the snow from last week has melted. Work has been busy leading up to the end of the year, especially since head office pushed the release of the game to next fiscal, but this past week was very quiet in the office. All the Christmas parties are done. I made a pavlova for the first time, to rave reviews, and presented it at the church’s Round the World banquet. I nailed the piano accompaniment for the Christmas service. I cooked a Chinese meal for the young adults, which seemed to go over well. Everything is pretty much done and dusted for the year, and now I’m at Pearson Airport, on my way to New Orleans.
What a year it’s been! I look back at my camera roll with fond memories of Peru and Machu Picchu, as well as travels to Atlanta, Chicago, Quebec City and Montreal. I’ve had some great food and some not so great food. We had our big E3 reveal, to much excitement and praise. 2020 will be a big year for Ubisoft Toronto and I’m glad I’ll be around for it.
Posted by Jeremy at 8:27pm on Wednesday December 25, 2019 :: 0 comments ::