Their menu is online and wow does it look wild! Should I get the smoked puffin breast or raw whale meat, sashimi-style? Then again the fried fish chins sound fascinating, but so does the grilled horse fillet. I'm not making this stuff up! For dessert they have something called "Skyr Brulée" which is supposedly strange and delicious and worth a visit all on its own. It's made from "skyr", which is something like a cross between strained yogurt and soft cheese. Those who know of the importance of yogurt in my life (it has taken me months of searching to find The One) will not be surprised to know I must try this dish.
Friday, May 7, 2010
Icelandic food...what?
Here's an interesting article from the New York Times on selling Icelandic food to Americans (hint: it involves Whole Foods). Thanks to Wikitravel I found out about a very interesting restaurant in Reykjavik I hope to try. It's called Þrír frakkar hjá Úlfari, which apparently translates as either Three Brothers, Three Frenchmen or Three Overcoats. Now there's an efficient language.
Their menu is online and wow does it look wild! Should I get the smoked puffin breast or raw whale meat, sashimi-style? Then again the fried fish chins sound fascinating, but so does the grilled horse fillet. I'm not making this stuff up! For dessert they have something called "Skyr Brulée" which is supposedly strange and delicious and worth a visit all on its own. It's made from "skyr", which is something like a cross between strained yogurt and soft cheese. Those who know of the importance of yogurt in my life (it has taken me months of searching to find The One) will not be surprised to know I must try this dish.
Their menu is online and wow does it look wild! Should I get the smoked puffin breast or raw whale meat, sashimi-style? Then again the fried fish chins sound fascinating, but so does the grilled horse fillet. I'm not making this stuff up! For dessert they have something called "Skyr Brulée" which is supposedly strange and delicious and worth a visit all on its own. It's made from "skyr", which is something like a cross between strained yogurt and soft cheese. Those who know of the importance of yogurt in my life (it has taken me months of searching to find The One) will not be surprised to know I must try this dish.
Thursday, April 29, 2010
Sometimes good things happen with money
With the need to get rid of pretty much everything I own, one of the larger concerns has been, will I be able to sell my piano for a good price?
Tonight that question was answered: YES! A friend of a student has bought it! I'm very, very pleased.
My piano disappears from my life the second week of May. I'm itching for a fresh start so badly that I'm not even sad at all.
In other good news: I somehow qualified for a bursary [for my Italian course in Genova] -- of 50% off!!!
Before I talked to the Italian Cultural Institute here in Toronto about the bursary, I thought it would be a total long shot. Or that I would at least have to fill out a big long form or write an essay or otherwise somehow prove I deserve to save money on studying Italian. Here's the information they actually asked for: my name and the name of the school. Seriously! I may have found the one Italian institution that isn't a bureaucratic nightmare!
Happy things like this keep happening. Which makes me think more and more that this trip is meant to be.
Tonight that question was answered: YES! A friend of a student has bought it! I'm very, very pleased.
My piano disappears from my life the second week of May. I'm itching for a fresh start so badly that I'm not even sad at all.
In other good news: I somehow qualified for a bursary [for my Italian course in Genova] -- of 50% off!!!
Before I talked to the Italian Cultural Institute here in Toronto about the bursary, I thought it would be a total long shot. Or that I would at least have to fill out a big long form or write an essay or otherwise somehow prove I deserve to save money on studying Italian. Here's the information they actually asked for: my name and the name of the school. Seriously! I may have found the one Italian institution that isn't a bureaucratic nightmare!
Happy things like this keep happening. Which makes me think more and more that this trip is meant to be.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
You wouldn't find this in Lonely Planet...
Occasionally I visit with an Estonian neighbour lady my grandma's age (90 this year!). During our most recent visit she had some reassuring words about my upcoming trip: "You're going to be just fine. You have beautiful hair....and beautiful skin. You have nothing to worry about."
After eyeing me from bottom to top she also instructed that I leave 'those ridiculous things' (my jeans) at home and wear only skirts in Europe. "You need to dress nicely there, and also the men like to gawk at women's legs."
After eyeing me from bottom to top she also instructed that I leave 'those ridiculous things' (my jeans) at home and wear only skirts in Europe. "You need to dress nicely there, and also the men like to gawk at women's legs."
Góðan daginn
On the eve of my 30th birthday I have done one of the craziest things I've ever done: I bought a one-way ticket to Europe! And it's via Iceland!!!
Yes, on Friday June 4th, 2010 at 9:10 pm, I will say goodbye to Toronto for good and board an Icelandair flight to Reykjavik (which I couldn't even spell a week ago)! I will arrive early Saturday morning and spend three days in the world's northernmost capital city. (FYI This stopover is free thanks to a current promotion with Icelandair. It's a great deal if you're thinking of going! -- Ha, who "thinks of going" to Iceland?! -- Not that there's anything wrong with that...)
Then it's off to London (landing at Heathrow airport) and...well, who knows after that!
Yes, on Friday June 4th, 2010 at 9:10 pm, I will say goodbye to Toronto for good and board an Icelandair flight to Reykjavik (which I couldn't even spell a week ago)! I will arrive early Saturday morning and spend three days in the world's northernmost capital city. (FYI This stopover is free thanks to a current promotion with Icelandair. It's a great deal if you're thinking of going! -- Ha, who "thinks of going" to Iceland?! -- Not that there's anything wrong with that...)
Then it's off to London (landing at Heathrow airport) and...well, who knows after that!
Friday, February 26, 2010
Strings and keys
Went to a wonderful concert (the St. Lawrence String Quartet) last night. It made me excited for all the music I get to experience in Europe! And it reminded me of an organization called the Amateur Chamber Music Players Network, designed for musicians interested in chamber music the world over to meet each other and play together! I sent off a couple of emails to violinists in Paris this morning....
Incidentally, something occurred at the concert that I'm not sure would occur anywhere else in the world. Before the second piece, by Mendelssohn, the first violinist informed us that unbeknownst to the world, this great German composer was once of the first European composers to take up hockey! This was of course leading to his announcement that the Canadian women had just beat the Americans 2-0 for Olympic gold!
Only in Canada...
Incidentally, something occurred at the concert that I'm not sure would occur anywhere else in the world. Before the second piece, by Mendelssohn, the first violinist informed us that unbeknownst to the world, this great German composer was once of the first European composers to take up hockey! This was of course leading to his announcement that the Canadian women had just beat the Americans 2-0 for Olympic gold!
Only in Canada...
Split
Like a city straddling a river (think Istanbul), my mind is Split (like the city in Croatia). Half of me wants to ensure I live a meaningful life in the time I have left here in Toronto (just three months and rapidly decreasing!). The other half can't stop wondering about and planning for the tabula rasa that is the future (nothing but a giant, blank void at this point, which is exciting, because my imagination can paint it with whatever it can, er, imagine).
My friends don't really enjoy talking about my plans to leave, while others have already resigned themselves to the fact and moved on. Three piano students (an entire family, whom I enjoyed teaching) have given notice this week. (Which answered the question How early is too early? to advise clients or employers of future plans!)
My friends don't really enjoy talking about my plans to leave, while others have already resigned themselves to the fact and moved on. Three piano students (an entire family, whom I enjoyed teaching) have given notice this week. (Which answered the question How early is too early? to advise clients or employers of future plans!)
Monday, February 15, 2010
30 days...or 30 weeks
Puoi repetere piu' lentamente, per favore? (Can you repeat that more slowly, please?);
Dov'e' il ristorante migliore in questa citta'? (Where's the best restaurant in this city?) and
Lui e' super bono! (He's really hot!)
The study continues (Il studio continua)!
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