Bowsing Around the World

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Announcement: New and Improved Blog!! I'm so excited to announce that I have consolidated my two blogs into one: Bowsing Nom Noms…

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Japan Nom Noms: What to eat in Japan?

Japan Nom Noms: What to eat in Japan?

Featured image: Sashimi bowl @ Tsukiji Fish Market. Photo credit: Aaron.

I few of my friends have been asking about food recommendations in Japan, so here is my list! Of note, I only travelled to Tokyo and Kyoto so this is based on my time in those two cities. Aaron has been on a few more trips to Japan than I have, so I have added some of his recommendations to my list as well. I also noted…

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Toronto Day 2: Strange Love - Joon's Restaurant - First Tesla Road Trip

Toronto Day 2: Strange Love – Joon’s Restaurant – First Tesla Road Trip

Featured image: Dakgalbi @ Joon’s Restaurant. Photo credit. Aaron.

Strange Love

It was a nice and productive morning for me. I had breakfast and got some blogging done at a nearby coffee shop, Strange Love, with an extremely high rating of 9.0 on Four Square. It was a cozy coffee shop only a few tables in the back. It also had a good breakfast and coffee menu. I had the maple oatmeal bowl with…

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Toronto Day 1: Tesla Pick Up - Burger's Priest - St. Lawrence Market - Distillery District - Tuk Tuk Canteen

Toronto Day 1: Tesla Pick Up – Burger’s Priest – St. Lawrence Market – Distillery District – Tuk Tuk Canteen

Featured image: Shrimp and crab meat siu mai and braised pork belly on rice @ Tuk Tuk Canteen. Photo credit: Aaron. Lighting credit: Kelly.

We had to go down to Toronto a few weekends ago to pick up Aaron’s new love, the Tesla Model 3. We took an early morning flight and landed in Toronto with just a slight delay. The location to pick up the car was just a quick 5-minute drive away from the…

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Kelowna Road Trip Day 3: Kelowna - Coquitlam - Vancouver

Kelowna Road Trip Day 3: Kelowna – Coquitlam – Vancouver

Featured image: Mountain view on our way back from Kelowna.

Last day in Kelowna was pretty much a travel day for us. The coffee-lovers amongst our group needed their morning coffee, so we quickly stopped by Pulp Fiction Coffee House before our journey home. This was highly-rated online and was as hipster as it gets. I did not have the coffee so I can’t really comment on that; however, I did see…

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Kelowna Road Trip Day 2: Wine and Cheese Tour

Kelowna Road Trip Day 2: Wine and Cheese Tour

Featured Image: Wine tasting @ Quail’s Gate Estate Winery. Photo credit: Aaron.

One of us fell sick overnight so we took it easy this morning and started our day a little later. Luckily, we decided not to join an organized wine tour so our schedule was relatively flexible.

Quail’s Gate Estate Winery

Led by our amazing trip planner, Bear Woman, we headed towards our first winery – Quail’s Gate…

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Kelowna Road Trip Day 1: Vancouver - Abbotsford - Chilliwack - Kelowna

Kelowna Road Trip Day 1: Vancouver – Abbotsford – Chilliwack – Kelowna

Featured image: Elvis Platter @ Memphis Blues. Photo credit: Aaron.

I know. I’ve been slacking on the travelling front. So, recently while we were in Vancouver, we decided to go on a road trip/getaway to Kelowna, BC!

Any awesome road trip should start with a good breakfast. We decided to stop by Scandilicious before we left Vancouver to fill our stomachs before hitting the road. This is the place…

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Top 7 must eats in Vancouver

Featured image: Sho Ka Do Bento @ Raisu. Those who know me would know that I have certain food cravings every time I return to Vancouver. The food scene in Ottawa is not bad if you know where to go, but the selection is definitely not as impressive as that in Vancouver, especially when it comes to Asian cuisine. Here are a few of the items I try to cross off my list whenever I’m back in…

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9 practical tips for travelling carry-on only

It’s been a while. Having to pack again recently inspired me to write this post. Whether you are packing for a 2-week or a 2-month trip, the principles are the same. Earlier this year, I had to pack for a 2.5 month trip across Asia for the 30+ degree celsius tropical climate of Thailand as well as the below-zero weather of South Korea. All I had with me was a carry-on suitcase as well as tiny…

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26 hours in Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Day 2

26 hours in Montreal, Quebec, Canada – Day 2

Photo of the day: Poutine @ La Banquise. Photo credit: Aaron. St.-Viateur Bagels After a late night last night, we decided to slowly get out of bed just in time to check out of the hotel. We drove over to St.-Viateur Bagels for some classic Montreal-style bagels. We picked up two sandwiches – the smoked salmon, cream cheese one on a sesame bagel, as well as a smoked meat sandwich on a rosemary…

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26 hours in Montreal, Quebec, Canada - Day 1

26 hours in Montreal, Quebec, Canada – Day 1

A few weeks ago, we decided to take an impromptu trip to Montreal, Quebec, Canada and of course, my #1 priority is food. 7 years ago, I spent one month living in Montreal as part of the Explore Program, so I already had an idea of what spots I had to revisit. Coffee break @ Pikolo Espresso Bar It was an easy 2 hour-drive from Ottawa to Montreal and after quickly checking into our hotel on the…

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Trip Reflection: Los Angeles

Trip Reflection: Los Angeles

Culture I’ve always been reluctant to travel to the States since I feel that is it too similar culturally to Canada. It doesn’t feel like I’m experiencing something new. This trip made me appreciate these similarities. The currency was easy to understand (although it would have been even easier if our dollar was stronger and at par, like it has been in the past). Credit cards were widely accepted…

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Los Angeles Day 7: Beverly Hills, Barnsdall Art Park, Silver Lake

Los Angeles Day 7: Beverly Hills, Barnsdall Art Park, Silver Lake

Bye bye convertible! All good things come to an end as we embark on our last day in LA. First, we had to return the convertible. Aaron was very sad to let it go, and even contemplated purchasing one, but it doesn’t make sense to have one in Ottawa, where more than half the year consists of snow, snow and more snow! Before we dropped it off though, we had some coffee and pastries at Nespresso. The…

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*Special Civic Holiday Post* - Top 10 things to do in Ottawa this summer

*Special Civic Holiday Post* – Top 10 things to do in Ottawa this summer

It is not necessary to travel very far to enjoy the summer. There’s no need to wait until you’re on vacation to go hiking or to take that fun class or to go to the beach. You can have lots of fun just exploring your own city. And my city is Ottawa. Ottawa’s winters can be cold and long, so why not take advantage of the good weather when it’s actually here! The summer is more than half over, so I…

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Los Angeles Day 6: Getty Centre, Mount Wilson, Silver Lake

Photo of the day: The gorgeous architecture of Getty Centre. Photo credit: Aaron. Getty Centre Aaron had planned to do a road trip up to the mountains today and our first stop was at the Getty Centre, which we did not get to see yesterday. Like the Getty Villa, entrance is free but parking is $15 ($10 after 3pm). Again, if you plan on visiting both the Getty Centre and Getty Villa on the same…

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Los Angeles Day 5: Malibu, Getty Villa, Santa Monica

Los Angeles Day 5: Malibu, Getty Villa, Santa Monica

Today, we drove over to snazzy Beverly Hills to return our trusty Yaris for a more snazzy convertible, A.K.A. Aaron’s happy day. He planned out a whole nice scenic route to Malibu. Unfortunately, we were running late so we had to cut our drive short, since we had already made a lunch reservation at Nobu. Nobu Nobu is a upscale Japanese Restaurant in Malibu. Here you will find refined Japanese…

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Los Angeles Day 4: Los Feliz, Mount Hollywood, Griffith Observatory

Photo of the day: Lone bench on our hike in Griffith Park. Photo credit: Aaron. Los Feliz We caught up on some work this morning, then decided to hang around Los Feliz today. First, we had lunch at Alcove Cafe and Bakery. It had a large patio, so it was a great place to soak in some sun while enjoying our lunch. The service here was great. We ordered at the counter, then found our own seats but…

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