Asian Express: September 2011

A day after arriving back from Las Vegas, I attended the wedding of my mate Michael Boskovic (he’s Croatian) out in Vaughan about 45mins out of Toronto. Kayla accompanied me so I wouldn’t be a loner. The ceremony was joyful and the food was impressive. Ever since I have known Mike, he always had a sweet tooth. We would eat ice creams during the day or just desserts at lunch. The initial dessert was a vanilla ice cream crepe covered with chocolate sauce then an hour later, the assortment range of pastries, cakes, fruits and fondue covered the table for 10 metres; I was well stuffed.

Time flew and before I knew it, it was time to check out of the hotel (not just any hotel, a Hilton but don’t let the name fool you because it was only $120 CAD and 3 star), one night back in Toronto and fly out the next morning to windy Wellington.

I was back home in time for the start of the Rugby World Cup (Go All Blacks!). I had forgotten how beautiful Wellington is. I am surrounded by hills, coastline and the snow covered mountains are within reach. I left 30 degree Toronto for 10 degree Wellington but that did not stop me from getting out on the golf course.

In New Zealand, I am still somewhat a tourist. Since I’m a local, I tend not to engage in the local activities available to me so the next calm day, Ryan and I rented Kayaks and paddled out to sea. It wasn’t the best of timing as it was cold and windy which made it even harder to paddle but the crisp air and fresh salt water smell was enough to make good of this bad choice.

Bunce shouted me a ticket to the Australia vs. USA game at Westpac Stadium. I had forgotten how great NZ beers were; beer after beer after beer and before we knew it, it was already 6 down and we hadn’t even made it to the Stadium. The seats were great but the atmosphere was a letdown due to the New Zealand Australia Quade Cooper debacle. I am very disappointed at you New Zealand.

Boskovic Wedding photos available here but wait, theres more! New Wellington photos here

Sam

Bride & Groom – 13.2 MB
Hora / Chair Dance – 14.1 MB

Happy Couple

Midnight Fondue

Stabproof vest

It's On!

Massive Storm

Proud Aussie

Damn Head

Good Seats

Drink number 10?

Chicago, the land of gangsters and murderers. Johnny Depp portrays the infamous gangster John Dillinger brilliantly in the movie Public Enemies. John Dillinger was gunned down during a gunfight after leaving the Biograph Theatre on July 22, 1934; he was 31 years old.

Chicago has a population of 2.7 million people. It also has famous landmarks like the Sears Tower (now known as the Willis Tower after London-based insurance broker Willis Group Holdings) and is the fifth tallest freestanding structure in the world at 527 metres. The lookout is on the 108th floor; 442 metres above ground.

My mate Martin decided to join me in Chicago from Washington D.C. We stayed at Getaway Hostel which is one of the most modern hostel I have ever stayed in. We purchased a CityPass which gained us entry to the top 5 attractions in Chicago.

The John Hancock Tower was completed in 1970 and famous for its visible X-bracing exterior beams, it has 100 floors, 344 metres tall and the height at the antenna is 457 metres.

The Shedd Aquarium has the largest indoor marine mammal facility in the world with its main tank capacity of 11,000,000 litres. Pacific white-sided dolphin, beluga whales and other interesting mammals made it a fascinating place to visit.

The Field Museum, well it was just crap; don’t bother. It’s just a museum with collection of everything but there wasn’t anything that caught my attention. Its basically competing with the American Museum of Natural History in New York and the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C.

The Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum is all about space and galaxies. Well it was part of the CityPass so why not........aaaand that’s all.

Chicago is also known for its famous deep dish style pizza. It looks like a quiche but instead of eggs & milk, it is filled with peppers, Italian sausages, onions, lots of cheese and topped off with a layer of tomato paste. Bon appétit.

Chicago is surrounded by a beautiful shoreline, good layers of sand and access to the lake; technically still a beach but to me, if it’s not the ocean, it’s not a beach.

There is also a very well known sculpture called Cloud Gate that you would have seen in movies like Source Code and The Break-Up. It was completed in 2006 and is said to have been inspired by liquid mercury.

Coincidently, my mate Bunce was in Las Vegas for the VMWare Conference so it made sense for me to catch a flight from Chicago to meet him for a few beers. This trip for me was more about R&R (Rest & Recreation). Sitting by the pool, working on my tan and gambling.

A new hotel has also opened up on Las Vegas Boulevard called The Cosmopolitan. The name tells all; modern and lavish to accommodate rich young professionals.

While looking for food, Bunce decides to walk through a set of unmarked doors which took us into a room, down a set of corridors, around the back of the kitchen, up the service lifts, around offices, out to a balcony on the 17th floor, back into the hotel and as he opened the doors, we were greeted with “Hi Guys, what are you looking for?”. Haha, it was brilliant! The security guard was very calm as they must have been watching us for the last 30 minutes.

We also shot machine guns and pistols at the Las Vegas Gun Range. I chose the M16 machine gun and a 9mm Glock pistol. Bunce decided to use the famous Magnum .44 pistol. The sheer power was ridiculous! Check out the videos.

Then it was off to the Pinball Hall of Fame to play machines from the 50’s, quick feed at In and Out Burger and the red eye back into Toronto via Chicago.

Chicago gallery available here. Updated Las Vegas gallery here.

Sam

Shedd Aquarium – 9.4 MB

Cloud Gate – 11.4 MB

Cosmopolitan Hotel – 14.2 MB

Gun Range – 7.4 MB

Sam M16 – 11.4 MB

Bunce M16 – 8.5 MB

Sam Glock – 15.1 MB

Bunce Magnum – 18.9 MB

Sam Magnum – 8 .6 MB