Posts Tagged ‘Videos’

Video Battle Report – Chaos vs Fists

Sunday, April 18th, 2010

I was able to get in a 1250pt game of 40K with my buddy Jarrett this weekend. He is trying out some HD video battle reports (which you can see more of here, so we gave it a go for our game. I think it turned out pretty well, save for serving as a record where we cheated (I think you *should* be able to auto hit something that deep strikes that turn! :p )

Part 1:

Part 2:

Cheers,

Robin

Here We Go A-Leafing

Saturday, October 11th, 2008

Fall greetings!

Pumpkins!

Pumpkins!

 Robin and I finally stumbled into old Montreal with eyes wide and a child-like compulsion to explore. Tunnels and cavernous cobbled streets were lined with iron signs protruding from the entrances of shops. It was nothing short of Muggle “Diagon Alley” with posh galleries, and hip restaurants boasting “best poutine in town” speckled throughout. Horse drawn carriages clip-clopped their way down the alleys, and wealthy folks on holiday bounced in those carriages in all their finery admiring the views of the port.  To my dismay, the chocolate shops were few and far between! The docks at the port jutted out into the St. Lawrence river, and were swarming with seagulls. If you turned around, you could see the towers of Notre Dam, the steeples of other gorgeous ancient churches among the skyscrapers, and Mont Royal Mountain.

Still hoping to find my favorite chocolate on earth, I trekked to Jean-Talon Market by metro. Jean-Talon market is an enormously good time for anyone who enjoys grocery shopping the way it should be. Outdoors, and under countless tents. There were kiosks dedicated to selling pumpkins of all sizes, garlic and dried peppers, vendors who’d combined exotic berries in baskets to create irresistible displays. You could find giant figs that had to be bought individually, and shops specializing in hard-to-find spices. The cheese shops were so busy that the Montrealers had to shout their orders over counter tops and shove each other ever-so-slightly. I bought currants as bright as cherry candy, Concords, a few giant figs (because I do not fool around), and a handful of artisan chocolate- but still no sign of that darn Porcelana chocolate! I am beginning to have bad dreams about finding my favourite chocolate on store shelves, but when I get close, the packages turn into cd’s. It is very frustrating!

Sutton

Sutton

 As a very thoughtful birthday gift to Robin, Joan and Deirdre rented us a car for one whole weekend. So, Robin and I drove out to the Eastern Townships (Cantons de l’Est) during the first weekend in October, which might have been the very best time to go! The mountains in the distance were on fire with oranges and reds, yellows and greens. There were leaves blowing around the streets of those little towns too, and pumpkins on almost every doorstep! It was heaven! Robin and I stayed in Sutton the first night, at Gite Vert le Mont, a lovely B&B run by a British woman and her mother who kept us in stitches the whole time. The next morning was overcast and chilly, with the sent of woodsmoke drifting in from somewhere, and we decided to go for a drive.  Because of the cloud cover, we were unable to get the pictures we wanted. But Robin and I will be able to recall the colors in our minds- we were speechless! I was lucky to find two lavender farms during our travels that day- but of course, all the lavender had been harvested so there was little more to see than the gift shops. We drove on and on through the most scenic towns, each with their own little churches and graveyards, until we stopped in Knowlton. Knowlton is where Deirdre grew up and I must say that she is a lucky one! It was the most charming town we had seen yet, surely the most sceninc town to spend Halloween in, and we got to spend the night in the historic hotel on main street! Robin and I went book shopping, and wandered around the town crunching leaves under our shoes. Delightful! We spent one more night at the B&B in Sutton before heading back to Montreal.

Full picture gallery here.

Love and pumpkins to you all,

Liz

P.S. Here is a little video from Robin, of a seagull we met on the pier who kept having to chase his hard-won prize:

Rollercoaster Robin

Sunday, September 28th, 2008

That was fun!

After going to a Habs game on Friday night (they beat Ottawa 5-0), I spent my birthday yesterday with Liz and Jessica. You can view the full photo album here.

We started the day having breakfast at L’Avenue, a very trendy and tasty restaurant. The food there is awesome, and the bathrooms are epic (they make you feel like you are at a rock concert… audio, video, everything).

Liz and Jessica

Liz and Jessica

 The rest of the day was spent on Ile Stainte-Helene, one of the islands south of Montreal.

Us on Ile Sainte-Helene

Us on Ile Sainte-Helene

After walking around enjoying the sights, we ended up at La Ronde, a giant amusement park on the island. We hadn’t planned on going, but what a great way to spend my birthday!! :) In the end, we went on a ton of rides, including 6 or 7 different rollercoasters. It was the first time I went home feeling sick after my birthday when beer wasn’t involved :p

The Goliath

The Goliath

Here are a few videos I took of the Goliath. It reaches speeds of 110 Km/h. I am still amazed we managed to get Liz on it.

There is also a video of the full ride on youtube, if you want the 1st-person experience.

P.S. Squirrels!

Liz and I have been surrounded by squirrels in both Toronto and Montreal. The other day Liz and I were laying around one of the parks, eating chocolate. We started noticing a gang of squirrels approaching… apparently we were on their turf, and they wanted their cut off the chocolate. Here’s a video of their leader… I think his hame was Bruno.

Cheers,

Robin

Bonjour, Hello! We are now in Montréal.

Wednesday, September 24th, 2008

It is wonderful to be in a city where you are almost always greeted in both languages. You hear “Bonjour, Hello!” as if it were one whole word. According to our cousin Jessica, who has been in Montréal for four years, if you don’t speak and give away your preferred language, those greeting you will sometimes just keep speaking both English and French just to be sure. Très intéressant.

View the Montréal photos here.

Arriving in Montréal, lanterns light our way

Jessica and Liz

Jessica and Liz

Speaking of Jessica, she greeted us at the VIA train station the day we arrived, and took us out for supper. We all had wonderful lasagna at an Italian restaurant themed after witches (we were in the gay-bourhood, and Robin spotted a man with his slave on a leash). We had taken the five hour trip from Toronto on Friday afternoon, hoping to see the fall colours, but which we are still eagerly awaiting – the green is only starting to leave (is that a pun?). 

Seahorse lanterns

Seahorse lanterns

A few nights later, Jessica invited us out to see the Chinese lantern display at the botanical gardens, and we were accompanied by her roommate and good friend Liz (yes, that made things confusing). We went at night so we could see the lanterns lit up and it made us feel like kids at a carnival. Please do check out the pictures, it was a gorgeous display. A riot of colour (Liz’s words).

Tea party in the park

Our good friend and long time co-worker/office-mate, Dups, also lives in Montréal (it is awesome to have friends in so many places). We smuggled in a copy of Rock Band 2 for him and his friends, which we purchased in Toronto, since Québec language laws don’t allow RB2 to be sold here, as the songs aren’t translated into French. Although, we all mused at how funny it would be to hear “Hungry Like A Wolf” en français.

Dups graciously invited us to a tea party in the park Saturday afternoon in Parc Jeanne Mance, where a group of his friends were gathering to say au revoir to one of them that was about to travel to Rwanda and beyond. There were blankets sat upon the grass, and as time went by, more and more people arrived bearing a variety of teas and dinosaur-shaped sandwiches. The nutella brontosauruses were particularly tasty. It was a beautiful day, and we met many friendly and charming people, who made us feel at home.

Downtown, the Underground City, and Mont Royal

Mont Royal

Mont Royal

After slowing our pace for a few days while Robin recovered from a brief cold, we headed out to explore once again. Our destination was downtown and Mont Royal. We didn’t know this before, but not only is Montréal a big ass island, but it has a mountain just north of downtown (or at least a very tall hill at 700 ft), Mont Royal. Once you hear the name pronounced in french, you realise that Montréal is named after Mont Royal. We really enjoyed hiking up the mountain, even though the main entrance pathway is undergoing construction of some sort. The views from the top are spectacular.

rue Crescent

rue Crescent

Downtown Montréal is fun. We always assumed it would be similar to Toronto, but we find it is quite different. Not quite as looming, and much more relaxed! Overall we get a calm feeling in Montréal (at least, once Robin got over his anxiety about not speaking french fluently… which hasn’t been a problem at all). 

Spiral staircase

Spiral staircase

The most interesting architectural feature has been the exterior spiral staircases leading to second and higher floors of the older houses. You see them everywhere. They are quite beautiful, but at such sharp inclines, the practicality of such design during Canadian winters is somewhat questionable :) Speaking of winter, downtown features an extensive Underground City, where one can escape from the fierce cold outside (though currently it is mild and lovely). The Underground City is essentially West Edmonton Mall, but underground (sans waterpark and pirate ships).

Overall, we are enjoying Montréal immensely.

A bit more Toronto

Before we left Toronto last week, we had the chance to take in a few more activities.

View the Toronto photos here.

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At the Science Centre

The Science Centre was fun, and we enjoyed a lay-down in the planetarium, but overall it showed us how impressive the Edmonton Science Centre really is in comparison.

Liz Loves Früli

Liz Loves Früli

We visited the Bier Markt (beer market) with Cecilia, a restaurant with 100′s of beers and a great patio near the distillery district. We all sat in the intermittent rain under an umbrella and drank beer with our meals for hours. Liz fell in love with the Belgian lambic beers (they are mixed with fruit juices). Früli, a strawberry lambic, was the top pick for her. Robin tried many beers, including Hobgoblin beer made in Wychwood. Ooooo. Cecilia tried a cool beer that was made with tequila and lime called Desperados. Surprisingly enough, it was made in France, not Mexico.

Mmm... Hobgoblin

Mmm... Hobgoblin

We took a mix of buses, trolleys, and trains to get out to the Toronto Zoo (1.5hrs one way!) We didn’t have all the time needed to see everything, so we prioritized. Our favs were a pygmy hippo, a wrinkly rhino, orangutans drinking what looked like tang, and the coral reef exhibit. We took a few videos of the awesome jellyfish tank, and Liz pocketed a few acorns.

Videos: Jellyfish, Seahorses, Anemone

Omakaze dish #4

Omakaze dish 5

Takesushi was a restaurant recommended to us by Ray Lim, specifically the chef’s special, called Omakaze. We needed to order it in advance (the most spectacular of which actually requires 3-days notice!) We didn’t know what to expect, but couldn’t have been more enchanted with the nine course Japanese meal that unfolded. We shared the medium level Omakaze at $85, and we savoured every dish (and we are still fantasizing about it). The dishes ranged from the most elegant sushi we’ve seen, to simple traditional soups that exploded with flavour. Robin also had his first raw oyster, pictured, served with two types of uni (sea urchin). Yum!

We will leave you now with a tranquil video of the bubble machine on Kensington that greeted us each time we ventured to that market…

Video: Bubble machine

Until next time!

Liz and Robin

Au Revoir

Au Revoir