Mexico 2013

I just came back from my week long trip to Mexico... also my first time there. I must say that it was a blast! I had so much fun. The stories that came with this trip were too much. Lots of great laughs with amazing people.

What i did during my week long stay:

Wednesday the 24th: Arrived, checked in, and explored the Grand Bahia Principe Coba resort.

Thursday the 25th: Spend the day at the beach.

Friday the 26th: Went to Coco Bongo in Playa del Carmen.

Saturday the 27th: Jessica & Mike’s Wedding

Sunday the 28th: Went to 5th Avenue in Playa del Carmen.

Monday the 29th: Went into Playa del Carmen again, and then went the resort gym before dinner at Portofino Restaurant. 

Tuesday the 30th: Went on an excursion to the Tulum Ruins and then went to snorkelling with the turtles which was FRICKIN' AMAZING! Went for dinner at Mikado Restaurant later that night.

Wednesday the 31st: Good-bye Mexico! Welcome home to Calgary!

Now on to the pictures! (TO BE UPDATED)

Calgary Stampede 2013

I didn't think i would of gotten the chance to go to the Calgary Stampede this year because so many last minute plans came up. Originally i was supposed to go on the first Sunday, which was Family Day, but my girlfriend, Ha, suddenly decided to move from the NW to the SE of Calgary so ended helping her with that.

While running some errands on the second last day of Stampede, we decided to stop by the Stampede grounds to check it out. Since i got there around 6pm, i basically just walked around (twice) to see which new wacky foods to try out... which was quite disappointing. I thought there would be more wacky items to eat. 

The Chip Dog

One of my favorite thing to so at the Stampede besides eating is walking through the BMO Centre. I'm a sucker for shiny things. :-) Not much caught my eye this year... which is a good thing i guess, since i have to save for school. 

I also stop by the tarot card reading booth. 5 cards for $15, not bad. My girlfriend had her reading first which was so accurate she asked me how the tarot card lady knew. Gave my girlfriend some pretty good advise too. I decide to request my reading from her as well (because there was 8 other tarot cards ladies doing reading too) and she said my cards are great... lots of new opportunities (i immediately thought of school) and new doors will open for me. That i felt stuck at my current employment (sooo true!). My reading also showed that my family had mixed feelings about my decision to go back to school this fall... they are happy but they also hope that i opt to settle down and pop out a grand-kid for them. Hahahahaha. Guess they want more grand kids.

After the BMO Centre, we when to the dream home and brought the 20 for $20 tickets. The dream home was quite nice but i find that the few Western element didn't quite fit in my tasting for the mostly modern looking home. We stayed around the Grandstand area to watch the 11:15pm fireworks. All in all, i had fun with the short amount of time spent there and only ended up spending $60! Not bad eh.

WALK OFF THE EARTH at the Coca Cola Stage

Got a FREE shirt from Cowboy Casino

Recipe: Superb Mashed Potatoes

Superb Mashed Potatoes via Silvia Pikal, Culinaire Magazine (page 15)

Serves 4-6

- 4 large potatoes, peeled and cut into chucks
- 1/2 tsp (4 g) salt
- 3 tbs (42 g) butter
- 1/2 cup (125 ml) heavy cream
- truffle oil to taste
- pepper to taste

1. Wash, peel and cut the potatoes into small pieces. Please the potatoes in a large pot and cover with salted water.

2. Bring water to a boil. Reduce hear and cook for about 15 to 20 minutes or until tender. Poke potatoes with a fork to ensure they are done.

3. Do bit drain the water completely. Leave some salted water at the bottom at the pot. Add the butter and mash until smooth, than add the heavy cream and mix well.

4. Stir in the truffle oil. 

5. Season with pepper.

Gourmet Options:

Garlic Mashed Potatoes:
- 1 tbs (15 ml) olive oil
- 4 garlic cloves, chopped
- handful of fresh parsley, chopped

1. Saute the garlic in olive oil until it starts to brown, for about 5 minutes.

2. Add garlic to mashed potatoes after you have drained the water. Mash into potatoes with butter until smooth.

Parmesan and Truffle Oil Mashed Potatoes:
- 1/2 cup ( 60 g) Parmesan cheese, grated
- white or black truffle oil to taste

1. After mashing the butter into the potatoes, fold in Parmesan and mic well.

2. Stir in the truffle oil to taste.

Mashed Potatoes with Caramelized Onions:
- 2 tbs (30 ml) olive oil
- 1 large onion, halved, thinly sliced
- 2 tbs (30 ml) balsamic vinegar

1. Heat oil in a large skillet over medium hear, Add the onion and cool, stirring frequently, until lightly brown, about 15 minutes.

2. Stir in the vinegar and cool 1 minute longer. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. When your mashed potatoes are ready to serve, top with caramelized onions. 

YYC Burger Week 2013

YYC Burger Week had come to an end this past Friday. This is the first time Calgary has had burger week and i was fortune enough to know about it and went to try 5 feature restaurants out of 16.

I’m no food critic but i know what i like to eat and what i don’t like. Here is my review of these 5 burgers for charity that i was able to have in my tummy.

Friday, May 3^rd: NOtaBLE (4611 Bowness Road NW)
Went to NOtaBLE for their feature burger made just for YYC Burger Week. Instead of the hour wait for a table, I decided to do take-out, which was only a 15 minutes wait. NOtaBLE burger for charity was pretty good. The patty was thick (bang for your buck), juicy and sweet. It was a bit burnt from the grill which made a backyard BBQ feel while eating it. The truffle mushrooms and THICK-cut bacon added a nice touch to the burger.

Saturday, May 4^th: Anju (507 10 Street SW)
Went to Anju Restaurant for another YYC Burger Week feature restaurant this late afternoon, and because it was such a beautiful day out, I decided to do take-out and sit at the park in Eau Claire. Did you know you get a FREE CD for every feature burger (for charity) you order?!?! I didn’t know this. They also pack their take-out orders with everything, forks, loads of napkins, wet napkin, and the right sauces. I think they may have read my mind about eating in the park because the wet napkin came in handy. VERY IMPRESSED ANJU! :-) Now onto the feature burger, BiBim Burger, which was so amazingly yummy. The patty was just the right size and had a Korean kick to it with the loaded mixed gochujang veggies and kimchi butter... and the runny yolk of a fried EGG on top! Yummy burger for a picnic in the park. :-)

Tuesday, May 7^th: Ship & Anchor (534 17 Avenue SW)
initially we went to check out Naina’s Kitchen but it was closed at 3pm. Fine Diner was the closet stop to where we were, which was also closed at 3pm. Since it was during the afternoon rush hour, called Market to see if they were open, unfortunately they only serve their feature burger for charity during the lunch time.
Next on the list (that was close to us) was Ship & Anchor, they were open and they did serve their feature burger for dinner. Their feature burger, Phat Duck Burger, was okay. It was missing some ingredients that were listed, for example, i wasn’t able to taste their fried chicken liver pate, and their pulled hickory duck. I mean it was there, but it was tasteless. The patty itself was flavourful but dry. Another disappointment was that it wasn’t served with the 3 onion rings and a choice of side... just some fries, which were crunchy and good. I’m disappointed to say that this was the first burger of YYC Burger Week i wasn’t able to finish.

Thursday, May 9^th: downtownfood (628 8 Avenue SW)
My 5^th stop of YYC Burger Week was to downtownfood, which is now where Opus Nightclub was. The feature burger, Double Down burger was quite impressive. They served it open-faced with a soft poached DEEP FRIED egg on one burger bun. Deep fried!!! I never thought an egg can be deep fried beautifully and was still runny. So i poked the egg so the yolk can drench the pastrami on the other burger bun. Their bacon and pickled leek added a really nice crunch to the sweet patty. It was served with some fries and a broxburn strawberry shake. So the feature burger was very delicious, but i do wish it was bigger cause i couldn’t get enough of it.

Friday, May 10^th: The Fine Diner (1420 9 Avenue SE)
Last day of YYC Burger Week, i was able to get off early and thought i would give Finer Diner another try. Don’t worry, we called ahead to see if they were open... and yes they were! Their feature burger, Texan Diner Burger was quite delicious with abit of a kick to it because of the jalapeños, which was a nice touch to the burger. Even tho the jalapeños were quite spicy with my nose running abit, i couldn’t stop eating their burger. I loved their house-cured bacon which was thick and sweet, paired with some avocados. If they still have this on their menu when burger week is over, i’ll defiantly be back... but i may have to request that they put the jalapeños on the side.

Yesterday, Tuesday the 14^th, they announced the winner of this year’s YYC Burger Week competition,

Congratulation to Naina’s Kitchen!

One YYC Burger Week feature burger i wasn’t able to try. I did write a tweet to Naina, and YES, they will keep the winning burger on their menu. Guess i know what’s for dinner tonight. J

CALGARY COMIC EXPO 2013

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New Love: Baby Nephew

Brought my brother-in-law some coffee at 10AM.

On the morning of April 27, 2013, my sister welcomed a beautiful and healthy baby boy at the Peter Lougheed Centre in Calgary, AB, Canada. We are so blessed to have this wonderful addition into our family. I love this little guy more and more each day. *muah*

Congratulations mommy Linda & daddy Loi!

via @ladytdoublee 's Instagram

.GIF made by @xohuynh

Photo slideshow video #1: [... bấm hình dưới đây để xem phim.]

Photo slideshow video #2: [... bấm hình dưới đây để xem phim.]

[... more pictures to come. nhiều hình đang đến.]

CLICK HERE to see the baby's room.

Last Minute Date Nights

April 11th
Dinner at Towa Sushi (2116 4 Street SW)

Snack & Desserts at Charcut (889 Centre Street SW)

April 12th
Game 21: Calgary Flames vs Phoenix Coyotes

Our seats were in Section 212, Row 15, Seat 19 & 20

Some pictures from the 1st period. Score is 1-1

It just got serious! Tied score with 5 minutes left in the 3rd period.

WE WON!!! 3-2 in overtime.

April 15th

Dinner at The Rimrock (at @Fairmont_PAL Hotel)
*Monday nights is their Death by Chocolate night.

I ordered their lamb with truffle mashed potatoes, of course

My 1st Brazilian Wax Experience

I always wanted to try this type of hair removal for my lady parts for years but never had the courage to. I remember going to those hole-in-the-wall salons, which are normally run by Vietnamese ladies, for manicure and i would hear screams from the room down the hall from someone getting their bikini waxed. I know that because the lady doing my nails told me... which by the way don’t know that i’m Vietnamese also. Their screams would always make me think that waxing South is very painful. I was wrong.

Since i’ll be going on vacation this summer, i decided to make an appointment for a Brazilian wax with Frilly Lilly after following the company on Twitter and viewing their website. I chose their Mission location because it was the most accessible location for me. So on their website, they offer 4 types of “down-there” waxing, all at (surprisingly) affordable prices. I chose their “The Brazilian: Nothing’s Left... That’s Right, Nothing” for $68.

Time for my appointment. As for any appointment that you make, it is polite to arrive 10-15 minutes prior to your schedule appointment. It’s just common courtesy. As i walked into Frilly Lilly, the place looked like it jumped out of Pinterest! Everything was so girly and dainty yet had a French tea house feel to it. The colors and their product all set out nicely throughout the whole place. I totally wanted to be Asian about it and whip out my camera to take some pictures but i was already nervous about my appointment... since it was my first time and all.

After a quick glance of Frilly Lilly, i was greeted by the guy standing behind computer (didn't  catch his name) and Erin, who i had the appointment with. Erin then lead me to a room and gave me instructions... i wouldn't go into details but as i was so nervous, she was very understanding. For me, the Brazilian wax DIDN'T HURT AT ALL! It was quite painless and there was no screaming from me, maybe a few filches here and there. Oh and when they mean “Nothing’s Left... That’s Right, Nothing” they really do mean NOTHING LEFT. Hahahahaha.

Now let me tell you about the wax they use, some amazing product. They don’t even need wax strips. The wax just goes on and once it cools on the skin, the wax itself becomes a “wax strip.”

I would totally, 100%, recommend Frilly Lilly for your waxing needs. Seriously their prices are very decent and they provide out waxing services as well. Check them out at www.frillylilly.ca to see if there is one in your area.

P.S: Here are some pictures i had managed to take. :-P Enjoy.

Happy 1st Birthday Giuliana

It was one of my good friends, Peter & Jessika's daughter 1st birthday yesterday. I can't believe that she is 1 already... and that she can walk. I meant i have seen pictures and videos of her but to actually see her walk, it's pretty amazing.

Dress came with a hanger, couldn't find a gift bag to fit it so i improvised.

What the ALDO box looked like after.

Yup. She just threw her present on the floor. Lmao.

These 2 rockstars were pooped... taking a nap anywhere. Hahaha.

Sushi Date: 04/03/2013

I don't know why i've been craving sushi so much this past week... it's probably because they are so yummy. I haven't been to Red Ember since my birthday back in February, so i thought we should venture through rush hour traffic to fulfill my sushi craving. Sushi is always perfect here and it's the only place that serve salmon tempura, one of my favorite dishes here. At the moment, they are having a promotion that if you pay cash, you get 10% off. :-)

My Sister's Baby Shower

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