the.blog @scwleung

More Dark Arts

It’s been a week or so since I previously discussed my dark endeavours and not much has changed. I did make another batch of cinnamon buns for my little sister, but they did not fair as well. I blame the over-copious application of brown sugar and unchopped pecans. Alas, they were eaten and mostly enjoyed. I’ve found an interesting milk based sponge bake I’d like to try sometime in the near future…that will probably be my next project.

Westerly Winds (and a bit of storm to boot)

Myself and my lovely shefriend spent our last three days traveling a bit down Lake Erie towards the Municipality of Leamington, which is about 40 minutes SE from Windsor. While I didn’t feel like taking photos, I will briefly discuss what we did [after the cut].

Our ultimate destination on this trip was not really Leamington, nor was it the small township of Kingsville to the west. It was, in fact, an island about an hour and a half out by ferry known as Pelee Island. For the wine snobs connoisseurs in this readership, Pelee Island is somewhat of a household name known for the myriad varieties of wine that is produced from said island, most renown of which is their Ice Wine and Gewurztraminer. It is, however, important to note that while we did go on a vineyard tour, we also took in some history of the region – Pelee Island itself, as well as Middle Island (the southernmost piece of land in Canada). It is not surprising to discover the wide range of illegal activities that such islands can provide during more…conservative periods of North American history. As a lover of wine myself, I walked away from the island with a bottle of Rosé and a bottle of the Gewurztraminer. She, however, did not allow me to purchase a bottle of Ice Wine. A note to those who are considering making a similar trip; the island is significantly bigger than it looks on the map. Do call ahead to reserve space on the ferry, so that you can bring your car on board.

Besides the island, we were able to take in some sights of the region, such as the great many maps depicting sunken ships in Lake Erie (there were far too many to count), the historic parts of Leamington (including the giant tomato tourist information center), and most interestingly, North Buxton.

North Buxton, for the American history buffs, was one of the final stops of the Underground Railroad, and was apparently, one of the most successful of the four created. It is a recognized national history site that is the second largest in the province behind Algonquin. Their museum was definitely a finely curated collection of facts and objects from that era. The area is still home to the descendants of some of the original escapees, and they have a homecoming celebration every Labour Day weekend to boot. It was certainly a fascinating and unexpected stopover.

This recent vacation was certainly a nice diversion from my typical daily pursuits (i.e. job hunting). However, I am glad to be back and ready to start next week with more job applications.