Happy (belated) Canada D'eh!

(For the record, I tried to post this yesterday, but Blogger was being as asshat and I couldn't get the photos to work...)

So yesterday was Canada Day, and I celebrated it like the patriotic Canuck I am: Sleeping in, French toast with maple syrup for breakfast, and then a play-date in the sunshine. Mr.Q was offered a day of work, so I was flying solo. I decided to take advantage of the day to myself, and the very fine weather, and head to Chinatown. There's a classical Chinese garden down there that I've never been into. The lovely park outside the walls, yes - but not the actual garden itself.

I can't believe I waited so long to go! It's wee. But full of turns and crannies that make it seem a lot bigger than it is. It's a veritable oasis - though it's only 2 blocks from the heart of the Downtown East Side, it feels like it's a world - and centuries - away from the noise and chaos of the city.

I spent a perfect, quiet, ambling hour, poking about the garden, listening to classical Chinese music, drinking green tea while looking at calligraphy scrolls, watching turtles sunbathe among the lotuses...there's definitely something to that Feng Shui stuff...want to see?



After an hour of that kind of scenery, it was quite jarring to turn around and see the city over the walls...
Much nicer to look the other way!

I came home with some sexy-smelling tea that I'm about to brew up just this minute....There will definitely be another visit in the not-too-distant future.