Sunset and River

 

Somewhere outside of Ottawa. I don't know where since I was led there. I think it's a popular tourist spot. 

TV Dinner

 
I haven't had TV dinner for a long time. A while ago the supermarket had some on sale, so I bought some to try. The way I remembered it, TV dinner usually gives you a slab of mashed potatoes, a conservative portion of corn kernels, and exactly two thin slices of meat. This new Hungry-Man frozen dinner I got is similar, but with everything doubled in size. Seeing how huge it is, I had to buy some to try. It certainly looks good on the cover, but the inside is another story. Although the meat portion is a bit more generous than past experience, the texture didn't feel like real meat. I'm guessing it's just some leftover stuff and they squeezed it into a steak shape. On the other hand, the brownie included is actually pretty good. Anyway, I must say it is acceptable for a quick hunger fix. Just don't expect a gourmet meal out of it. 

Bon Echo Provincial Park

 
I went to camping for a couple nights at Bon Echo Provincial Park here in Ontario with my dad and girlfriend. The hiking trails there are excellent. Unlike many other trails in southern Ontario, this one actually has lots of hills and valleys to climb. The shower station near my camping site are also top notch. They seem very new and is well maintained on a daily basis. The showers themselves have good water pressure. One thing I don't like about camping there is the close proximity of the camping sites. I stayed on site Sawmill 59. It is surrounded by 3 other sites each just a few trees away. It's also pretty noisy at night as people stayed late. If anyone intends to stay there, I'd recommend some of the 60's numbered site in Sawmill. They're up the hill and provide more privacy. Overall, the place is okay, but I have no plan to return there as there are a plethora of camping places in Ontario. 

Kenneth Cole Entrance

 

Kenneth Cole's store front (above doors) in New York. 

A traditional street market in Hong Kong. Only a handful of these are still in existence. So in addition to the bargain items, they are also good for sight seeing. The photo is of 花園街 (Garden Street) in Mong Kok, which is much preferred by locals than the nearby 女人街 (Lady Street), as the latter place has become a tourist trap. The buildings at the side are worth mentioning too as they are also from a previous era. I don't know much about these buildings although there are probably some history behind them. The only fact I know is that most, if not all, of them are without elevators, so they are a lot cheaper (almost half) than newer units. And because of the fact that they're old, of course. Considering that Hong Kong's real estates are fairly expensive in most standards, these buildings are preserved because of demands from low income families. Nevertheless, the government has been very active in upgrading low income families to safer and cleaner buildings. There are countless government subsidised properties throughout Hong Kong for people in need. However, even with the many social assistance available, you're bound to run across a beggar or two in Hong Kong, just like any other metropolis of the world. But I have never once been approached by a panhandler in Hong Kong, which is completely opposite to what I experience here in Toronto. In Toronto, I've seen young, able bodied, and cleanly dressed "panhandlers" on the street of downtown Toronto. Most of them evidently don't look like they're in poverty, yet, they have the audacity to ask me for change. Everytime, I have to hold the urge to just tell them to "Get a job, pal!" as they're obviously exploiting the kindness of strangers. Noting that minimal wage here is about $7/hour and people have tendancy to leave at least a dollar or two, this is definitely a better "job" for these lazy people that have no moral. But, I digressed.

The Hope diamond, est. US$250 million. At the National Museum of Natural History in Washington D.C. The colour is suppose to be blue, but the camera lighting skewed it. You can read about its long and dramatic history from this link. The centre diamond is a natural blue stone around 45 carats, there are 16 white diamonds surrounding it with 45 in total for the whole necklace. From what I've read, the blue diamond is the rarest of all natural diamonds and this particular gem is the biggest of them all.

Speaking of diamonds. This company sells artificial diamonds of a different kind. They've been around for a few years and I've seen them on the news a couple of times. At first I was skeptical, but they seem legitimate and is actually doing well (seeing that they're still around after some time).

Took this picture back in July of this year. A clear sky.