Month: November 2010

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Fun in K-Town

My friend Amber from Nugget City lives in Summerland during the winter; that’s just an hour and a bit from Osoyoos depending on traffic. So, we promised that we’d see each other at least once this winter, depending on how long I would be in Osoyoos. Last night she mentioned on Facebook that she wanted to go to a craft fair in Kelowna today. Did anyone want to join her? A craft fair sounded like fun and I’m still not back in my work groove yet, so I replied that I was game. She suggested I meet her in Summerland, almost exactly halfway between Osoyoos and Kelowna, and that she’d drive us the rest of the way. Perfect!

The craft fair is an annual pre-Christmas event. It was a lot bigger than I would have expected. I found that there were more food products than there were crafts. We did a couple of circuits and I decided to buy a few things. The first was a huge bottle of balsamic vinegar reduction, which is vinegar that has been boiled with sugar to thicken it. It’s nice as a dip for bread or a salad dressing when mixed with olive oil, or on its own as a glaze for chicken. The next thing I wanted was a bottle of ‘Moroccan’ spice mix. At $5, that was a bargain since I couldn’t have bought the individual spices for that price. There’s lots I’ll be able to do with that! We were about to leave when Amber mentioned that she wanted a second look at a mustard display that I had tried to avoid. Needless to say, I walked out with another jar of mustard for my collection. 😀 It’s a honey/lime/ginger one that will be awesome on chicken.

Next, we headed over to Cherry Lane mall to grab a bite to eat. There, Amber used her iPhone to check movie listings. We agreed on Due Date and headed off to the theatre. I spent the next two hours laughing. The movie’s a riot! The rare second I wasn’t laughing, I was incredulous. I haven’t seen a movie in a proper theatre in so long I can’t even remember the last time I did and this one was worth the price of admission!

We had a couple more stops after that, then we drove back to her place. I didn’t stay long since I had another hour’s drive ahead of me.

It was an awesome, out-of-the-blue, sort of day, and it was really nice to hang out with Amber in ‘civilization’!

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RV Housekeeping Setup Mistake

When I moved into Miranda, I bought some new things for the kitchen that I thought would be more suitable than the beloved, and well storied, things I’d been using for years. Part of my logic was that the things would get broken on the road. I’ve really regretted it since I’ve discovered that breakables last very well in an RV.

Thankfully, I was talked into leaving some things in storage when I hit the road, so I went through five those boxes during my week in Montreal. They contained so many stories of my pre-Miranda life. Going through them was a real trip down memory lane. I finally decided on two boxes worth of things that I can make room for in Miranda by eliminating other things:

My travels pre-Miranda are well represented here. There’s the ‘Sunday morning’ mug I bought at a museum in Halifax; the Las Vegas mug I’d spied in a gift shop but didn’t buy, only to win it at Circus Circus! You can also see the little bowls I picked up in Ogunquit and the big bowls and plates I picked up on an antiquing spree through Wisconsin. There’s also the cat mug my dad bought me, the newer blue willow I’d pointed out in a catalogue my mother was flipping through and which she surprised me with, a nice big casserole dish with a lid that I’d been giving shortly before hitting the road, and my favourite water glasses.

The water glasses are for Alexander Keith’s beer and I love them because a) they are big, so they hold a lot of water and b) they have a good grip. I had four; one was broken on the way back. That’s all I lost. Air Canada did a great job getting my stuff home! I did leave behind the rest of my beer glass collection, some of the original blue willow set my mother got me (the dinner plates are too big for Miranda’s cupboards) and a variety of casserole dishes and mixing bowls. I have firmly parted with what I left behind.

Now, I need to get everything washed and my cupboards reorganized, yet again!

But before I go, I’d like to share the newest addition to Miranda’s kitchen:

I’d bought collapsible plastic measuring cups and spoons when I bought the rig to replace non-collapsible plastic measuring cups and spoons. I’ve always hated the plastic; the measurements wear off and they cups get greasy and impossible to wash. I’ve been wanting nice, heirloom quality, metal measuring cups for years, but they have been very hard to find. I’ve come across cheap sets I knew wouldn’t last and was resigned to paying top dollar at a fancy kitchen store. So, imagine my surprise on my last jaunt to Omak to come across these Oneida stainless steel beauties for $10 a set at Walmart! My Oneida cutlery still looks as great as the day it was given to me thirteen years ago, so I know these will last me a lifetime.

So, dishes, reorganize the kitchen, get groceries, and cook. Sounds like I have a nice weekend ahead of me. 🙂

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A Long Journey Done

I made it back to Osoyoos!

When we boarded the plane in Vancouver, we were warned that there was ‘fair’ visibility in Penticton and that there was a good chance we would have to turn back to Vancouver. That would have sucked! Thankfully, we landed without incident. Except for some turbulence over the prairies, the whole trip back was very smooth.

I used my baggage allowance to bring back some of the kitchen things I had in storage in Montreal; I’ll do a post about them once I’ve had some sleep. I was surprised that the boxes made it to Penticton, what with the tight connection in Toronto! We’d wrapped everything in foam and stamped the boxes fragile, but I was realistic about everything making it across the country on three planes in one piece. So, when I heard the distinctive tinkle of broken glass, I wasn’t surprised, but I was curious. I broke open the boxes tonight and discovered that what had broken was the only thing I didn’t mind getting broken. Yay to Air Canada getting priceless (to me) antiques (and modern stuff) here safely!

The drive home from Penticton went well, too, and Donna had staged a lovely homecoming, what with thinking to put on the porch light and remembering to crank up the heat! *hugs*

The kitties and I are very happy to find each other again. 🙂

It was a great trip. Certain happenings in the last couple of weeks have made this eastern jaunt a bookend to yet another chapter of my RVing life and tomorrow I will return to a life similar to the one I left a week ago, but different, too.

Well, I should have hot water by now, so it’s time for a long shower and to get my body clock back on track. It’s 3:30AM right now back east, but my normal bedtime here, so in theory I should wake up on time tomorrow. But I try not to think too much about such things; it’s been my experience that not dwelling too much on the time change is the best remedy for jet lag. Still, zzzzzzzzzzzzz.

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Tight Connection

Whew! I made it to Vancouver! There was only forty-five minutes between my inbound Montreal flight and my outbound Vancouver flight at Toronto… and we ended up circling the airport for nearly a half hour! I had only enough time to bolt to my gate and grab a quick bathroom break while the priority customers boarded. I have some checked luggage for this return trip and I will be very surprised if it is waiting for me in Penticton.

Security screening in Montreal was a piece of cake. I didn’t have to take off my shoes and I didn’t even beep when I went through the metal detector so I was saved an invasive groping by the staff. I paid for that dearly on the flight to Vancouver, however, since, despite my checking several times that I would have a window seat, I was seated in a middle one! YUCK! At least, we were in the emergency row, so the leg room was luxurious. My neighbour to the left was very cold and sighed each time I moved around well within my designated buffer zone. The neighbour to the right, however, was quite friendly (and generous with his cashews) and we shared a few laughs as my, thankfully empty, beverage glass kept on leaping off my tray! I was glad I’d brought a snack of dried fruit flat bread, cheese, and clementines since the options for food in Montreal were dismal and I didn’t have time to grab anything in Toronto.

YVR has a burger jointed called Vera’s where I caught a very late dinner. I’d been looking forward to udon at one of the Japanese kiosks, but that restaurant was clear across the airport. The veggie burger piled high with fresh veggies and the fresh-cut fries we’re a very yummy, and inexpensive, surprise, though, so I’m not disappointed.

I only have about a half hour left in Vancouver before we start boarding for Penticton. If everything goes well, I’ll be there in two hours and home in three. I miss my cats and my bed!

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Falafel Heaven

I was out and about with my mother today. We were sitting in the horrible Montreal traffic at 6PM, heading home, and famished when she took a detour. I didn’t think anything of it until we stopped in a near-residential neighbourhood. There, she told me we were picking up falafel and baklava for dinner!

We entered a world I had nearly forgotten existed. A Lebanese bakery with racks piled high with sweets dripping with rose water and honey and a deli counter with all manner of manaeesh. The sandwiches are made to order and authentic; I can always tell that they will be good when their maker bosses me around and makes me take ‘everything’ even though I’m not crazy about the marinated turnips!

Oh, that falafel was like finding the oasis in the desert. Perfectly spiced, coated with sesame seeds, drizzled in tahini, and resting on a bed of parsley and mint then wrapped Lebanese style in a thin pita. I realised then that, for me, the concept of ‘home’ is intimately tied with food.

Everything I ate this week convinced me that the cuisine of western and northern Canada is generally bland. The teeming mass of mixed cultures in the most populated provinces, namely Quebec and Ontario, make for dishes that electrify the taste buds. I went to a restaurant on Saturday where an option was za’atar encrusted halibut. I haven’t seen za’atar on a menu in two years!

Asian dishes, like the sushi I also had this week, are the only thing I find ‘as good’ out west, and that’s because the immigrant population out there is pre-dominantly Asian. I’m not saying there aren’t any good restaurants out there, just that the savory cuisines I took for granted growing up aren’t as readily available.

My week in Montreal has come to an end (!) and it can best be summed up as a gastronomic journey. What did I do all week? I ate! 😀