friday favourites.

I have two exciting (or at least I think they are exciting!) posts coming up about my trip to London and Copenhagen. This week was spent catching up on work. I love vacations – who doesn’t – but I always gets anxious before I leave and as soon as I get back. Did I remember to hand off everything? Will I be coming back to 300 emails? Do I check my email while I’m on vacation to stay on top of the work load? I am guilty of checking my work email while I’m away, but am trying to be better about unplugging while on vacation. How do you unplug when you’re away from work?

Below are a few of my favourites from the past two weeks.

Favourite street art:

I came across this street art in London at the entrance to an alleyway. Not only do I love Chanel and perfume, but this was the alleyway that was used as the filming location for Knockturn Alley in a few of the Harry Potter films. I am a huge Harry Potter fan and was really excited to see this filming locations.

Favourite meal:

While I was in Europe, this was one of my favourite meals – if you can call it that! It was really dessert, but I ate it for dinner – I walked a LOT while I was there so I figured I could cheat a little and eat dessert for dinner. Crepes, ice cream, berries and wine, doesn’t really get better than that! This meal was at Cafe Norden in Copenhagen. The building was absolutely beautiful, the food was amazing and the decor was really modern and pretty.

Favourite view:

The worst part of a vacation for me is always the flight home. The flight from Copenhagen to Toronto was about nine hours. I read a book, and watched a hilarious movie, but the best part of the flight was this view. I took this picture as we flew over Labrador. It might be naive of me, but I had no idea that Labrador looked like that! It was breathtaking.

xx,
jamie.

friday favourites.

In a mere eight hours, I’ll be on a flight to London, England! Over the next 10 days, I’ll be travelling to both London and Copenhagen, which will be a wonderful break from work. I haven’t’ been to Europe since 2008 – my more recent trips have all been down south – so I am really looking forward to doing some sightseeing and checking out both cities. The days are going to be jam-packed and I’d have to say the thing I’m most excited to go see is the Harry Potter Studio Tour. In both cities, I plan to do a Sandemann’s walking tour which I have been told are one of the best ways to get the lay of the land. I’m going to do a few blog posts when I get back about the two cities I visited.

Some of my favourites from the week are below!

Favourite video:

The new music video for Drake’s song Hotline Bling took North America by storm this week. The video was released during the middle of the federal election and the Blue Jay’s third game of the playoffs. Social media platforms were exploding with all things Canada. The video has prompted hundreds of memes and parody videos – many of which are absolutely hysterical. Everyone I have talked to absolutely loves the original video which is hosted on Apple Music (or else I would have embedded it in this post – I couldn’t seem to find an embed code on Apple Music).

Favourite travel photo:

I took this photo when I was last in Europe on a high school graduation trip. I then went on to study Classical Studies as my minor in university because I fell so in love with the history of Italy and Greece. Rome was by far my favourite part of that trip – there were so many amazing architectural and historical sites to see and the culture was like nothing I had ever experienced before. I definitely want to go back there one day.

Favourite Halloween costume:

I will be missing out on Halloween this year – I’ve come to learn that Halloween is much more of a North American event than a European one. I usually love dressing up for costume parties, which seem far and few between now that I’m getting older. Above is one of my favourite Halloween costumes – a Jack in the Box! I saw the idea on Pinterest one year, and figured it was a cute costume that wasn’t too labour intensive and was fairly cheap to make. I used a printer paper box, some construction paper, a head band and made the hat out of bristol board. The only negative to this costume was that it would get crushed by people in a crowded bar or party.

Have a fantastic weekend!

xx jamie.

friday favourites.

The work week has finally come to an end! Although this work week was technically a short one (Monday was a statutory holiday in Ontario – yay!), it seemed longer and busier than normal. When I reflected back on what work I did this week – in my day-to-day job, my after work job, and the University of Toronto course I’m taking – I realized it felt jam-packed because I managed to squeeze five days’ worth of work into four days. To say I’m exhausted in an understatement.

But it’s Friday! And that means the weekend is upon us and it’s time to relax. I’m leaving in a week for a short trip to Europe (more about that in a future post)! So this weekend will be filled with trip planning, packing and running around to buy all the things I’ll need on my trip – like an adapter for my curling wand, because let’s be honest, I can’t go anywhere without the wand.

Below are a few of my favourites from the week.

Favourite laugh:

If you don’t already watch “Whine About It”, you are missing out. The videos feature Matt Bellassai – a BuzzFeed writer who is absolutely hilarious. These short videos are released every Wednesday, and feature Bellassai at his BuzzFeed desk, drinking a whole bottle of wine, and discussing current events and trending topics. The video about is the first season finale, but fear not, the new season starts October 28.

Favourite song:

By day, I am a communications professional for a utility in Toronto, by night I teach dance at a studio to a fantastic group of kids who make me laugh and forget about any sort of stress I have going on. I teach a number of competition routines, one of which I am super excited about this year. It’s a contemporary solo for one of my older students who is a phenomenal dancer and who can tell a beautiful story with her movements. This year, I chose Hunger of the Pine by alt-J as her piece of music – the song is powerful and moving. I’m so excited to see how her solo turns out.

Favourite view:

View from the sixth row. While the Blue Jays are dominating the Toronto sports scene today (and every day), my favourite Leafs are also playing tonight. I’ll be watching both games – three cheers for dual screen capabilities on TVs! Last year I was fortunate enough to go to a handful of Leafs game, and I’m hoping that I’ll be able to watch a few in person this year.

Happy Friday,

xx jamie

friday favourites.

Friday. Fri-YAY. End of the work week, beginning of the weekend. Friday is definitely my favourite day of the week.

Unfortunately, this Friday hasn’t been the greatest. Our beloved Toronto Blue Jays lost their second playoff game, and as I write this, the Toronto Maple Leafs (my favourite sports team) are losing 2-0 to the Red Wings. It’s been a sad day for Toronto sports and has left me wondering if Taylor Swift really did curse the Jays.

I’ve decided that it might be nice to do a bit of a weekly roundup on Fridays of things I’ve enjoyed this week for this blog. So without further ado, here are a handful of things that made me smile this week.

Favourite food:

This artichoke and spinach dip topped my list this week. I love cheese, and this dish had plenty of it. Eating out and trying new restaurants is definitely one of my favourite things to do in the city, and is probably my favourite way to catch up with friends. Nothing beats a nice glass of wine, a yummy meal, and a few hours spent with friends.

Favourite book:

the good girl – mary kubica. click the photo to go the book’s website.

I am about halfway through this book and I CAN’T put it down. It was recommended to me after expressed my love for Gone Girl (and all of Gillian Flynn’s books for that matter) to a friend. She recommended I check out The Good Girl and I am incredibly happy she did. Without wanting to give too much away, the book is a thriller and bounces back and forth in time (before and after a kidnapping takes place). Stay tuned for a short book review on the blog after I finish the novel.

Favourite quote:

I saw this sign outside of a small shop in Kensington Market and couldn’t help but take a picture. Not only is the calligraphy beautiful (and so Pinterest-worthy), but the quote itself is a lovely daily reminder. Don’t stress, take a breath, and remember that life is an adventure and you’re living just one page at a time.

Happy Friday,

xx jamie