So the fact that I shared a pint with my old friend Jon B in the 'The Crown' tonight confirms that I am indeed back in blighty. The last few days have been a blur. Tina returned from Peru on the Wednesday, only a day late! She has been feeling pretty ill from her Peru trip and exhausted from the experience. Still I get the impression it was a total success and, by judging from her pictures a beautiful experience. I decided to have a typical UK pub quiz evening for my final party so I gathered a fine bunch of folks to answer quiz questions both English and General Knowledge. My twist was that cheating is totally allowed and indeed encouraged. Those with Facebook access can see the full horror!

I found some time to be with Tina in the final few days. I particularly enjoyed our harbour front walk after cleaning my condo (See Right). Seeing it empty again reminded me of the time I moved in all those months ago. It feels great to think of all the wonderful people and amazing times I spent in Toronto in those past 8 months.

Well, I guess a summary is in order?? Toronto is an amazing city of ethnic diversity. To begin to list the nationalities of friends I have made here is futile not to mention pointless - they are all Canadian really! What still hits me here was the winter - I loved it. Mad I know but there you go.

What next? Well I can't say here what my plans are. Perhaps its time to stop this blog in this format. Its captured a very special time in my life and having the record here is a great way to reflect on the past few years. I was a very different person those few years ago. I never really understood the need to travel - but now I do.

Right well, this is the last blog entry I can make on my computer before the monitor / TV is confiscated leaving me 'cyber blind'. I hope to be able to blog my last few days here from Internet Cafes and the like but it never works out that easy!

I have plenty lined up in my final weeks here so rest assured I shall try my best to record as much evidence as possible - especially from my leaving party and the like!

My penultimate weekend passes much like the others, fast and furious. After an extended after work lunch in honour of my Russian Aeroplane project I ran downtown for some essential shopping. Saturday I visited the Canada National Exhibition with Shannon and Kristy. This exhibition is an mass celebration of - something. I would like to say 'All Things Canadian'. But perhaps thats the problem. Canada is just a melting pot (although I thing fruit salad is a better analagy) of cultures. So when it comes to defining 'Canada' you don't have much past the Maple Leaf, Mounties and perhaps some Mouse. Still - jolly fun it was all the same (See Right of the Canvial).

Today I hired a nice big pickup truck and drove my bed arond to Harim, a friend of Denise. It all went pretty well (despite a parkeing ticket - my first ever). I enjoyed driving my V8 monster around downtown until I came to top up the gas. Man, these things really drink the gas!

Trying to relax now - contemplating a dip in the pool and hot tub. Thinking that might be a good idea.

So everyone including myself is pleased to hear that Tina survived the Peru earthquake without a scratch. Indeed she didn't really notice that it was happening at all! Still my heart goes out to those Peruvians in Ica who suffered pretty bad.

I took a Google Earth snapshot of the region so you can see where Tina is hiding!

Well my computer is back from Chinatown and seems to be running well now. Another good reminder to us all to back up our data! While your at it wash your hands, never run with scissors and always look before changing lanes.

So some might think that a lack of a blog entry might be because I am either bored, depressed or having too much fun to blog. Well, for sure being seriously over busy is a factor but so to is that my computer has died. I now have to resort to notepad and internet cafes once more.

My parents were here with me from Tuesday last week and we did all the usual fun stuff including the falls and even a flight over the downtown area courtesy of my friend Chris. Pictures to follow when the good folk in chinatown get around to replacing my PSU.

So now I have a little time before Tina returns from Peru. It seems that South America is being hard on my little chica and infecting her with all sorts of nasty bugs and germs. Get well soon hunny!

As for me I am now reluctantly trying to coordinate my return to the UK. I had a welcomed visit from Denise's chearleader friend who was interested in my bed (Sadly her interest is not with me in it). We took a look at the 'taste of the Danforth' first - a Greek food festival that sees the streets full of music and the smell of Greek food.

The long weekend has brought many activities - none of which were really planned. Starting with eviction from my condo as countless unknowns trudge through my apartment and likely comment that they would put the coach 'over there' and the TV 'over here'. Light relief came as Denise invited me to see some Shakespeare in a park. Much Ado about Nothing if I recall. After - now joined by her Korean Cheerleader friend - we went for Suchi.

Saturday I went to the Caribbean festival with Chris. Well, we stood outside, looking in with a few beers - that was nice enough. Finally we retired to a fine local establishment for a brewski Yesterday was another zoo day! We toured the animal and took a much slower pace than previously - hoping and finally meeting Tina's friends Marina and Dave.

So today I am just chillin before meeting up with Tinas sister Terry to get a nice 'late lucnh'. This should conclude my long weekend. Just in time for my parents visitation tomorrow.

Picture to follow when I find my camera :o)

The sidewalk rarely lies

So August brings me into my final month here in Toronto. Its a shame really cos it feels to me like I have been living the last 3 years of my life in the 'final month'. Ho humm

So good news is that I got all my money back from the ATM fraud thing in Montreal (all 1200 quid) thanks to the kind folks at the National Westminster Bank.

On a bad note my landlord is asking for compensation for my unforseen cancellation of my lease. I offered to take him to dinner but he didn't see the funny side. So I am now waiting for some hired goons to turn up and turf me onto the street.

I feel shattered today and am looking forward to the 3 days weekend.

Please can I stay??

Camping?? For me this usually falls into a single catagory. Squatting in a wretched piece of sodden cloth perched on some windswept turnip field in Devon waiting for a pot noodle to soften sufficiently to eat with a flimsy plastic fork. It seems the North American approach is a little more different. I'm not kidding when I say that 'packing up' to go home include defrosting the fridge. Some folk here have RVs bigger than most UK houses with awnings that span time zones.

I thoroughly enjoyed my (NA) camping experience (See Right) as we all had massive tents, a folding chair each and dined from Karls amazing bottomless coolbox. Emergencies were limited to things like warm beer or wet bathers. We partied, rested, drank, ate, swam, canoed, splashed and laughed the weekend away.

Pictures to follow when I get the time.

Right - OK - so tomorrow I am going camping with about 15 guys from work or there abouts. We are going some 3 hours north of Toronto to a little national park where do doubt some grizzly bear will pull me willy off as I go for a midnight comfort break. Seriously, I am looking forward to this an hope that the weather holds out. Its 50/50 at the moment.

There is heaps of other stuff to waffle on about but I have run out of time - not even a few minutes to explain how I have become the victim of ATM fraud to the tune of over one thousand squid.

Ah crap. I was hoping to detail my time in NY accross a few entries to try and maintain a degree a consistency but I have just plain run out of time.

Suffice to say that I met my folks, brother and Katherine on Friday afternoon after a rather nice walk accross brooklyn bridge. We all managed a nice lunch before a visit downtown to the Statton island ferry and a ride out to see the Statue of Liberty. Upon return we made a quick detore to ground zero before dinner on the westside.

Saturday we all jumped out of bed like eager beavers, had a spot of breakfast and headed out for the Empire State Building. Following this was a quick visit to the Declaration of Independance, Grand Central Station and a wonder around Grenwich Village and then home for some food.

Sunday morning was a downtown ride on the open top tour bus and an enourmous lunch in Chinatown. After lunch we toured Brooklyn and then a power boat ride in the harbour :o) - Phew! This day was finished with a meal at Bubba Gumps Shrimp Resteraunt (Think Forest Gump) and finally some Jazz at the Birdcage.

The final day brought RAIN - and lots of it so we retired to the Natural History and Guggenheim Meuseums. PHEW.

Took my plan home, had a beer and went to sleep - job done!

OK. So soooo much has happened recently that I have broken it down a little bit and hope to catch up as soon as possible.

OK so today (Thursday) I awoke early to get my bus to the airport to get my flight to NY. It was pouring with rain and I got pretty well soaked. After the obligatory anal probe from immigration and necessary flight delay I finally boarded for Laguardia airport US of A.

Not too impressed with the manners of the bus driver to begin with. Not like the lovely Canadian folk here, still he was correct. 'I ain't getting on no dam bus with a 20 buck note'. A quick ride through Queens sitting next to the genuine Fresh Prince and his PSP and I was in Manhattan. And so was the rain. Following me I swear (See Right).

Of course I have my sightseeing priorities but seeing as the Lockheed SR71 (Worlds fastest airplane - so far as we know!) was off for a polish I had to revert to plan B. Finding that big building from Ghostbusters (Dana Barratts apartment, home of Zool). Well, with just my memory of the film (Seen it quite a few times!) I found something that seemed to fit the bill. I just discovered tonight that in fact I did indeed find said building. Into the bargain I am sure I found the restaurant that Rick Moranes tries to enter when being chased by the scary 'Terror Dog'.

Of course - I wasn't just there to do the Ghostbusters tour - I did the Tourist Stuff too (Under Construction!)

Ahh, just remembered that I need to get my brother a present for his birthday. No doubt he is also in a flat panic trying to find that Tag Heure watch that I pointed out to him last year (Dreams...). Well I found something suitably 'him' - can't post the picture until its in his sweaty hands. This should be New York this weekend. Sounds kinda weird when some folks say 'Hey Jon, you wanna go see the Transformers movie this weekend?' and I say - 'Nah - going to NY actually'. Even more weird when the response comes 'Oh - you driving there?'.

So after finding the present (And some new shoes, sneakers, pumps or whatever they call them here) I joined some of the grads for a game of beach volleyball. I always thought this sport was a little cheesy after seeing that famous sceene from Top Gun once to may time. Anyhoo - I enjoyed thoroughly (See right) before the sun went down and we could no longer see the ball.

Dark clouds once again loom over the City and the weather here appears to be the same as the UK just more extreme (See Right). Lots more sun when its sunny, lots more rain when its not. I just hope the weather is OK for my BBQ planned for tomorrow.

Of course I continue to miss Tina who appears to be examining Peruvian poo and 'other things' besides. I installed Skype in an effort to make contact but of course we never seem to be online at the same time, likes ships in the night!

So I have secured a tent also for my camping trip at the end of the month. Perhaps overshot the mark as I now have a 10 person canope all to myself! I'm guessing I could use the extra space as a garage LOL.

New York looms ever closer as my flight is now exactly a week away. This will be my first time in the States and I am looking forward to it! I shall meet my family and perhaps its soon to be newest member Katherine my brother finace.

So I finally found the reason why I can't play DVD's properly on my computer. For those geeks and boffins out there you no doubt already know that my DVD player was not in DMA mode (obviously). You may not know that Windows can decide to set a drive to 'Not DMA' of its own accord (of course telling you would ruin the fun). Furthermore, it will not let you override its decision. So basically your in the registry deleting checksums. Which to be honest is a little like me flying an aeroplane. I think I know what do do but by the time I realise it was the wrong thing to do its all gone pear shaped.

I promise never to be geeky again on this blog :o)

On Friday Tina left for Peru, I went to her folks place to meet her the night before and take a walk in the forest nearby. I spun her round a bit too much and got dizzy. I started seeing stars but thankfully Tina saw it too - fireflies!

Those interested can follow her exploits on her blog.

To recover from my loss I joined the usual crowd and hit Summerlicious (See Right)- a Toronto festival of food where all the good gaffs open their doors on the cheap. We go soooo stuffed on quality pork I thought my shorts would pop.

On Saturday I awoke a little late it must be said before venturing out to see the Indie500 racing at Exhibition Place. It was kinda cool but I'm not a great fan of watching motorsport live. Still I got a nice little video here. Its one of the few things that are better on telly! Still, met the Expats after that for a beer which was all rather 'jolly'!

Today I met up with Shannon and Kristy for a visit to the beaches. The beaches to lake Ontario are all smelly and polluted so this is unwise. Instead we drove north to Wasaga beach (See Right). Shanon and I took a quick swim. Its kinda weird being in such a large body of fresh water. We diverted through 'Barrie' on the way back and stopped at the Ontario BBQ cookoff competition to treat ourselves to some seriously good ribs. I liked it so much I bought a hat.

Today I might have just as well been in the UK. With temperatures around 21C and that weird kinda heavy fog that sits in the air and just kinda 'appears' on your glasses and the windshield of the car. Also, soccer seems to be everywhere at the moment - on the TV and the screens of colleagues at work.

However, it is of course independence day, which celebrates the day when England breathed a final sigh and cut loose America to fend for itself, rather like an unruly teenager. To celebrate this I sit here watching the fireworks at 'Ontario Place' harbourfront - of course the CN tower is nicely decorated in the Stars and Stripes colour scheme too (See Right).

Earlier in week Tina had her old friend Kelly over for a few nights. We ended up doing the usual bar scenes and of course the Madison. He's a nice chap from Vancouver BC. It was kinda fun talking to him about old video games we used to play - Goldeneye for the N64 in particular. Also some friends from Waterloo returned for the Jazz festival and I had a couple of hours to share a beer with those guys (See Right)

Yesterday was Canada day and expecting that Toronto might celebrate this we planned to go see some fireworks or something (As I needed a picture for this blog entry!). No such luck as there was nothing planned on Toronto.ca anyplace Downtown. So instead I bought a Canadian flag to fly from my car and Tina got a wristband - then we went to see Ratatouille - a new film from Pixa.

Today is a Holiday in Ontario and I intend to spend it with Tina and a 12" Hogie on the Toronto Islands.

Back to work with the usual 'bump'! The typical symptom of holidays is the overfull inbox - I'm sure that someone will coin a term for this and it will appear in the dictionary eventually. I ended the remainder of my holidays with Tinas folks for fathers day (sorry dad!) where we all had a Canadian Brunch - very nice. I then took a walk along the harbourfront with my camera and took a couple of snaps (See right). In the evening Tina and I went to the Rex to listen to some Latin American Jazz (amazing female vocalist). All in all a good end to a good vacation. Next stop for me is NY and Peru for Tina!

So I am once again alone. Ann has returned to the UK and Tina is attending a night in with her 'girlfriends'. To be honest I need the time out. Earlier in the week I drove the 600km to Montreal to catch up with Ann once again. This City is in Quebec the French part of Canada. I must admit that it is a weird mixture of French and North American cultures but I love the city indeed (See Right). I didn't really understand the history so much as it seems to be founded by France, England, Scotland and Ireland altogether. Well - perhaps my good friend 'Will' can discover all this for me when he goes there to study.

Last night was a laid back affair as Ann and I went to a Korean restaurant where you have to cook your own food on a kind of BBQ sat in the middle of the table. Afterwards we migrated to the 'Rex' - possibly Torontos premier Jazz and Blues hotspot to watch another truly great performance. I especially loved the guy on the Xylophone - where at times it appeared that the xylophone was playing him!

Finally (I promise!) the city has started illumination of the CN tower (I used to continually question why this was not done) and they have done a great job of having the whole thing illuminated in cross fading coloured lights - so tonight I shall wonder about with camera in hand and try to get some nice piccies!

A rare joy as I spent the day with Tina and other friends (Shannon and Chistie from Australia) at Canadas 'Wonderland' (See Right)- one of the largest theme parks in North America. Our time was limited so we chose our rides with care, one big new coaster, one old coaster and something that makes us wet! MUCH embarrasement as one coaster was stopped on the initial climb as yours truely was seen to be using his camera :-(.

I was super surprised later that day as Tina and I went shopping (I am often surprised by the simpler things in life). As I wheeled my trolley off the mall premises only to find that it suddenly broke. Tina explained that you can't steal shopping carts (trolleys) in Canada. Of course I thought this untrue but indeed all the other discarded trolleys in the parking lot were also 'broken'. I later discover that clever electronics in the wheels prevents theft by locking wheel when it leaves the proximity of the shopping mall. Clever indeed!

And so I reach the midway point of my holidays. Ann has left for Ottawa (I shall meet her in Montreal next week). Yesterday we attended a North by Northwest (NXNE) gig, a city wide music frestival of upcoming artisits. Ann and I watched a couple of god bands for only about CAD$10 - not bad Toronto!

I met with Tina for some lunch and then I decided to take a walk on the islands. Just as I boarded the ferry a storm front came over and I found myself taking the same ferry back to the city along with a bunch of drenched tourists.

Yesterday myself, Ann and Anita took a light aircraft flight over downtown Toronto (See Right). The flight was at night and the conditions were perfect. After a short cruise we began a few circuits over downtown and the CN tower. As the roof to the Rogers Canter (Skydome) was open so we could see down into the game below. The Illuminato festival was still in full swing so the sky was full of the beams from the searchlights of the harbourfront. Quite spectacular indeed. Also pretty impossible to photograph!

My holidays continue today as we wave good-bye to Anita who is off to Vancouver - lucky her! So myself and Ann wandered the streets of Toronto today, including Kensington Market and Cabbagetown.

So I am properly into my holidays now. I have a couple of lovely English ladies here at the moment and we are just chilling and making the most of Toronto and Ontario. Yesterday we went to the falls for Anns birthday (See Right). Last weekend was the Luminato festival in Toronto. This is classic of a Torontonian summertime festival. We toured downtown to see some hanging artworks and then chilled in the posh Yorkville area at a little music festival that was playing. On Sunday I finally got to see the 'Robotic Chair' - this amazing little robot is a chair that falls apart and then rebuilds itself. Later in the day with met with my Australian friends and had some lunch and a little walk around the harbour front.

Tomorrow I am hoping to get airbourne for a night flight over the city - I am hoping it will be as spectacular as it sounds!

This weekend was Toronto's 'Open Door' weekend where loads of places open their doors for free. On sunday I visited the Fairmont Royal York Hotel (Once the biggest structure in the British Empire) to see the ball rooms, kitchens and the like (See Right). Exclusive to the tour is a visit to the 'Green Room' where many famous performers prepared before a big show. After that the studios of CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Cooperation) and finally to a new Condo development famed for its green ethics. In order to reduce electricity costs in the winter and summer the building draws water from deep within Lake Ontario and uses this to stabalise the temperature of the rooms. Feeling a bit tired now from all the queing so am going to take an early night.

Wow, a three day weekend! I remember that in Paris we had a few more of these (4 day ones too). So to have one here in North America is a true joy. Even more so because the sun is now shinning properly here in Toronto. Funny though because its still cold! The chilled wind from the lake is still bathing the city in a chilly air (Those who know me will understand that this is no problem for me!). So I wondered the city on Friday and took loads of HDR shots of downtown (Click here for my favourite). Saturday was a rude start and drive to North Toronto to help Tina in her Charity Car Wash (See Right of us after 8 hours of washing cars). Here is my fav pick from the day. On Sunday we took things a little slower with a visit to Allen Gardens and dinner with Tinas sister.

Today myself ,Tina, Sam, Shannon and his Fiance all went to the Zoo! Pictures to follow when I can be bothered to return to my car and get my camera which are both 31 floors below me as I speak. However, even without pictures of timid cats and naughty monkeys to backup my blog I can confirm that Toronto Zoo is pretty cool.

Damn I am looking forward to my holidays at the end of the month!

So about this time last monthl I said that I was going to try a little HDR photography. For those not in the know this basically means taking not one, not two but perhaps 7 exposures of the same image and munching them all up together in some clever software to basically create a final image with a mind popping amount of luminosity information. Then you monkey with some sliders (the purpose of which are unknown but the effects instantly understood) and ... hey presto! My first attempts didn't work basically cos I couldn't keep the camera still enough on my little tripod.

So here is my first attempt at HDR with no time invested and free software. Its actually only 2 exposures (Of the 'TD' tower in downtown Toronto - I love this building) cleverly aligned and compiled with Photomatix. To find out how to do this yourself click here!

Joy! I can achieve the excellent cheesyness of the 'baccy grad without the need to carry a bag of filters!

The sun is really beginning to shine now and the city feels so much more alive than it did in the winter. On Friday I me up with Ed and a few more of his friends to go eat (Chinatown of course). I was presented with a bowl of chicken feet soup :o(. I wouldn't have minded much save for the fact that there was a pair of feet floating about in the bowl. Afterwards I met Tina and a few others to go to a nice (if late) BBQ. Saturday was a mooch about and then a few beers with my Australian buddy Shannon, his lovely girlfriend and a friend they had over. We had some beers in the Madison, which is one of my fav pubs in the city.

Today I took a long walk to the beaches where I took a photo of this chap balancing rocks (See Right). Not sure how he manages that - or whether he is cheating even!

I see there are lots of birthdays on Facebook - so Happy Birthday to you all!

Also Tina phoned me at work today to tell me that my brother was finally popped the question to his long suffering girlfriend Katherine. Congrats my boy for you have done well! Better start saving for a nice toaster.

Today the new sculpture outside my condo was unveiled to display what appears to be Mr Bassatt and his family. I took a piccy to show you all. I have never really talked much about my gaff here in Tonto. When I moved in it was still being built and I named it Fawlty Towers due to the constant problems. But now its settled and I beginning to love it! Although its getting pretty warm and muggy now and I feel that the air con may be necessary in the coming weeks

Eager as you all are to learn about Canadian culture I can conclude with the amazing fact that there is no Canadian word for 'Parcel Shelf'.

A tiresome week at and after work brings me once again to a weekend. I started this one with a film 'Hot Fuzz' A UK affair it seemed to be a kind of modern comical remake of the Wicker Man set in the Westcountry. After this we retired to the Beer Market - a new bar that has opened near me and sells a million zillion European beers. Got a little squiffy after that and didn't feel too good on Saturday morning for our excursion to the falls. So instead we made our way to the distillery district (!) . It was very pleasant (See Right).

For the month of May Toronto is having a photographic thingy going on so I decided to go see a digital photographic expo held near the airport. I sat happy as Larry for hours as a pro photographer demonstrated studio photography by building his studio set piece by piece around the model. Each time taking a shot and demonstrating the difference.

Tina and I in a stairwell in the distillery district

So I finally found a source of supply for my Marmite. This helps define me as an Englishman oversees. I needed this to recover from the shock of my recent blood test. As part of my job I need to apply for a Russian visa and this involves a basic medical. Gotta love the Canadian doctor who repeated said 'sorry' as he jammed the pointy end into my arm.. Ouch!

Another first as I venture into the Rogers Centre (Right) to watch a baseball game. It was the Toronto Blue Jays vs the Kansas Royals. The games are played in a set of three and this was the second of three (The Jays won the first). The Tuesday games are called Tooney Tuesdays and its only $2 a seat. As I watched the Jays repeatedly fumble the ball and was slowly deafened by the screams of 'YOU SUCK' from readnecks behind me I realised that baseball really isn't a good sport to follow if your a Torontonian. Anyways - it was all very good fun and I think we shall all go again next week!

On a different note I read this blog from one of Dave's friends today and thought it was a fairly good reflection of my home village of Stonesfield in the UK.

So just need some time alone tonight to regain my balance from another hectic weekend!

I spent most of this weekend with my new partner in crime 'Tina'. Starting in Greek town for some lush moussaka. On Friday we went to the Canada vs USA Floorball championships (Look closely and you can see us in the background - famous at last!). Last night we went out west to check out some music out there. Was pretty good - playing Jack Johnson and Ben Harper stuff.

So another week arrives and plans are afoot to go see the Rocky Horror Picture Show and maybe plan a little road trip to Montreal later in the month.

So last night I was having dinner with Tina up in Greek town when the usual subject of the environment and climate change came about (As it does all too often). So, having a quiet time alone today I surfed the net and reviewed what are considered the Yeing and Yang of climate thinking.

The imfamous Al Gores 'An Inconvenient Truth' and 'The Great Global Warming Swindle'

So make up your own mind and then bore people with your conclusions at social gatherings.

This week I tried Curling for the first time. I think curling is a little stupid as sports go and debate the fact that scrubbing the ice makes any difference. Still it is good fun and if thats all that makes a sport then it certainly qualifies (See blurred picture - taken with my phone!).

I was dead impressed by Stephs blog today where she posted pictures of her younger self with childhood friends 'Gilda' and '007'. Also Mr David's and Bily's blogs had me thinking that myself reporting on our recent excursion to the 'petting zoo' might not 'cut it' so to speak in the blogging world. That was until I checked my hits counter which has continued to climb non-stop since I started this whole thing. Who are you people???

So - cos I'm bored and so are you (obviously) I thought I might discuss 'turning left' at intersections. Get this... You wait to turn left - but you can't on a 'green light' because cars are coming towards you. Never mind - enter the junction anyways and activate the indicators (For insurance purposes). Wait until the light goes red (obviously) and hit the gas - close your eyes - and hope all goes well.

Right turns are pretty much the same but you can go on either green or red (or until the guy behind gives you the horn).

You might gather from all this that I nearly died this afternoon.

So after work on Friday we decided to go karting at a nearby circuit. There was only three of us and one of the karts was really slow (This always happens - do they do that on purpose?). Afterwards we ate our complimentaray pizza and returned to the Madison Pub - from which Ed had left his credit card the night before - and shot some pool. On Saturday I arose somewhat late and went shopping in the Eaton Centre. I needed to find some clothes for my evening of Salsa (Think frilly white shirt!). Finally found the shirt I liked when the centre was plunged into darkness for a few hours after a power failure.

Later that evening I met up with Susan, who I earlier had managed to convince to be my dance partner. She was a hoot, seemlessly swapping from sophisticated salsa moves to speradic moments of cheesy pop jives.

The weekend started well as I recieved my new vehicle (See Right) a spanking new Mazda 3. I opted for the manual tranmission as I sorely miss downshifting into turns. On Saturday we all met up at my place and went to see a show that is put on every year by the Engineering students at The University of Toronto. It was very entertaining and focussed my thoughts on the principle differences between Canadian engineering students and those of the UK. 1) There are more chicks 2) They annually dye themselves purple 3)They have mascots.. 4).. that they like to steal from each other (Namely cannons and large wrenches etc.. 5)They get a funky ring when they graduate 6)They seem to enjoy engineering. However, I thought I might also list the similarities.. 1) They drink beer.