Spring fun list update #2

Greetings! The last four weeks seemed to pass by quickly. It's time to review my Spring fun list update #1 and see where I've made further progress. I'll be linking up with a group of terrific bloggers who also maintain their seasonal fun lists.

My Spring Fun List Update #2:

1. View two art exhibitions: Done and enjoyed! I actually viewed six art exhibitions as written here and here, plus two that I haven't written about yet. This has turned out much better than I thought.

2. Attend eight music recitals: Done and enjoyed! The weekly program was exceptionally organized with the following accomplished performers:

• One piano-violin duet recital by Asher Armstrong and Emily Kruspe
• One four hands piano recital by Emily Chiang and Elizabeth Bang
• Four solo piano recitals by Jean-Luc Therrien, Mary Kenedi, Andre Fu, and Vlad Soloviev
• One soprano, mezzo, and organ recital by Allison Angelo, Ariana Chris, and Dan Bickle. Ariana Chris sang the Greek national anthem at closing ceremonies of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics.
• One classical guitar recital by Daniel Ramjattan

3. Watch ten movies: In progress with 80% done! I enjoyed watching The Shape of Water, The Darkest Hour, Coco, I, Tonya, The Post, Film Stars Don't Die in Liverpool and even Paddington 2. I gave thumbs down to Daddy's Home 2. Seven good movies out of eight seen. That's pretty good.

4. Review French 15 minutes daily: In progress. I'm right on target as I have not missed any day. I plan to continue my lessons until Fall.

5. Plan a long weekend trip with my family: Done and enjoyed as written in my spring fun list update #1. I'm now on to planning our summer trip.

6. Meet up for coffee or lunch with my friends: In progress. I was able to meet with my friends for coffee six times and for lunch once from March 21 to date. That's about once a week, pretty good in my book.

7. Visit farmers' markets starting at the end of May: Pending. This will have to wait until after I return from Europe, or I may visit a farmers' market while in Europe!

8. Explore the Baltics: Pending. I will be packing my suitcase and boarding my flight to Tallinn in Estonia in a few days. Feeling excited!

I counted three completed items, three in progress, and two pending. I look forward to completing my Spring fun list by June 20.

Bonus: One activity that I didn't have on my list but I've enjoyed a lot is to visit local parks and gardens in the Spring. The trees and flowers are beautiful at this time of the year here. Their growth is astonishing to me, especially after one or two sunshiny and warm days. The promising visual and fragrant treats make me look forward to doing my daily morning walk.

How about you? How are things going with you? Please share.

An InLinkz Link-up

Spring fun list update #1

Greetings! Back on March 21, I wrote my spring fun list to use as a guide from March 21 to June 20, 2018. Today I'm sharing my progress update and linking up with a group of terrific bloggers who also maintain their seasonal lists.

My Spring Fun List Update #1:

1. View two art exhibitions: Done and enjoyed! I visited the Life in Flight art exhibition at the Sur Gallery, and the Kingston Prize 2017 Canada's Portrait Competition art exhibition at Harbourfront Centre. Both are free to the public.

The Sur Gallery is Toronto's first publicly funded gallery showcasing Latin American Canadian Art. Having recently returned from my trip to Chile, I was delighted to discover this new art gallery.

Welcome to Sur Gallery!

The Kingston Prize is a biennial national competition and touring exhibition for artists working in the media of painting and drawing. This exhibition presents the thirty finalists, chosen from a field of over 430 entries by Canadian artists active throughout the country and internationally. The 2017 Winner is Christienne Cuevas' Portrait of the Artist.

2. Attend eight music recitals: In progress with 50% done! I've attended two duet recitals (performed by Asher Armstrong and Emily Kruspe, Emily Chiang and Elizabeth Bang), and two solo piano recitals (performed by Jean-Luc Therrien, and Mary Kenedi). They're all very talented and accomplished musicians.

3. Watch ten movies: In progress with 50% done! I've watched five movies since March 21. Thumbs up for The Shape of Water, The Darkest Hour, Coco, I, Tonya, and thumbs down for Daddy's Home 2.

4. Review French fifteen minutes daily: In progress. I've been learning Spanish online fifteen minutes daily. I added French this spring since we're planning to go to French-speaking cities in the summer.

5. Plan a long weekend trip with my family: Done! At time of this post, we're on our way. We have a glorious stretch of sunny weather from Friday to Monday for the trip.

6. Meet up for coffee or lunch with my friends: In progress. I've enjoyed three coffee meet-ups so far. I have three dates next week, and hope to book a couple more dates by June 20.

7. Visit farmers' markets starting at the end of May: Pending.

8. Explore the Baltics: Pending. I mapped out my itinerary as shown in the snap shot below. My stops include Tallinn (point A), Riga (point B), Vilnius (point C), and Warsaw (point D). I'm reading up on each of the four cities. One exciting addition is meeting my Finnish friend in Tallinn.

In summary, I counted two completed, four in progress, and two pending items. I'm enjoying spring, and the activities that I planned on my fun list. Plus I have my wellness goals to work on as well.

How about you? How are things going with you? Please share.

An InLinkz Link-up

Spring fun list

Greetings! I'm back from Chile, feeling energized from the experience, enjoying this beautiful week at home, and making plans for my next adventure.

I'd like to wrap up my winter fun list which I started on December 21 as posted here, with my update #1 in January, and update #2 in February. The last item Explore Chile in March on my winter fun list is now complete. Separate posts to come with highlights of my fantastic adventure in Chile.

Today I'm sharing my spring fun list and linking up with several fun-loving bloggers. I'm excited to be in spring season. I love the sunshine, the freshness in the air, and the increasingly warmer temperatures. In my neighbourhood, I see spring flowers growing and the trees start to look greener. When I walk outdoors in the morning, I hear bird songs and see ducks swimming leisurely in the lake. The sights of new beginnings are invigorating. Bring on spring!

My Spring Fun List from March 21 to June 20, 2018:

1. View two art exhibitions.
2. Attend eight music recitals.
3. Watch ten movies.
4. Review French fifteen minutes daily.
5. Take a long weekend trip with my family.
6. Meet up for coffee or lunch with my friends.
7. Go to farmers' markets starting at the end of May.
8. Explore the Baltics in May-June.

My spring fun list is full of new experiences for me. I'm eager to give it a whirl. Item #8 gives me lots of reading to do. I'm thinking of visiting Tallinn in Estonia, Riga in Latvia, Vilnius in Lithuania, and Warsaw in Poland. My travel planning checklist will come in handy again.

How are things going with you? What do you do for fun this season? If you've been to any of the capitals in the Baltics, please share your experience.

An InLinkz Link-up

6 new experiences

Happy Friday! I wrote on Monday that I planned to explore two new-to-me outdoor farmers’ markets and attend up to three concerts this week. Well, I’m glad I did and now I can share with you not just five but my six new experiences. I'm still smiling thinking about them.

1. Bike Share Toronto had a Free Ride Wednesdays promotion in July so I picked up a bike and went exploring a few new-to-me places in the city centre. As long as I dropped off the bike in 30 minutes at any of the bike stations around the city, there was no charge. Within the city core, I can ride to quite a few places in 30 minutes! Off I went with my helmet and cross-body handbag. It was fun to cycle in non-rush hours :)

2. My first bike stop was at the new-to-me Scotia Plaza Farmers’ Market which is right in the heart of Toronto’s Financial District. It is on every Wednesday, beginning June 14th to August 30th, from 8 am to 6 pm. It is a small market but with its location, and a good selection of fresh produce, freshly baked breads and pastries, artisan cheeses, wines, preserves, etc. it is likely busy at lunch time.

Scotia Plaza farmers' market

3. My second bike stop was at Adelaide Eats which is 2-3 short blocks west of the Scotia Plaza farmers’ market. It’s an outdoor food market with tents and picnic benches. It’s open until July 28th with an impressive list of food artisans. I should have checked this place out sooner. It would have been a terrific place to have lunch with my friends.

Adelaide Eats sign and entrance

Adelaide Eats picnic benches

4. My last bike stop was at City Hall Farmers’ Market which also runs on every Wednesday, beginning May 31 to October 18, from 8 am to 2 pm, rain or shine. This farmers’ market looks like the biggest that I’ve visited this summer. Aside from the fresh produce, there are treats for humans, as well as dogs! Yummy all around :) In case you get thirsty, there is a cool-looking water truck in the square. You can turn on the tap located along side of the truck, and fill up your water bottle.

Toronto City Hall farmers' market

Fill-up and Go water truck

5. A nice bonus to the City Hall Farmers’ Market is the City Hall Live! music showcase which features local artists on Wednesdays, from 12:30 to 1:30 pm. D.be Jayri and a friend were performing when I was there. Strong vocals by both artists and very good acoustics considering the size of the stage and the civic square. There are tables and chairs where people can sit, have lunch, and enjoy the music.

D.be Jayri and friend

6. On Thursday, I went to another farmers’ market at David Pecaut Square to listen to Sol de Cuba’s performance. As soon as I saw the name of the band on the Indulge Your Senses program, I knew it would be fun and I was right. The quartet played cha cha cha, mambo, lambada, and similar beats. Their passionate performance was contagious. Although only a few people got up to dance, many more in the audience were tapping their feet, clapping their hands, or singing along. All in all a great show!

Sol de Cuba

I’m so enjoying and appreciating farm fresh food, live music, arts, and quality time outdoors this summer!

My plans for the weekend:

• Attend a concert at the Tirgan music festival Friday evening
• Swim 50-55 laps on Saturday morning
• Spend time with my relatives before they leave on Sunday
• Run 6K on Sunday morning (adding an extra 1K)
• Shop groceries for the week
• Step up my preparation for our trip to Spain (we're leaving in less than 2 weeks!)

I'd love to hear your fun plan for the weekend. Have a great one wherever you are!

Cool Thursday

It's a cool, cloudy day today with isolated showers and high only 17C (or 63F). I decided to walk to the farmers' market and attend a music performance by Oh Susanna.

On my walk, I saw some colourful flowers that made me smile and stop to take pictures.

The fresh produce at the farmers' market looked so good, too. They gave me simple ideas for a healthy dinner! Grilled vegetables and chicken would work, right?

Tomatoes and zucchinis

The rain stopped in time for Oh Susanna's performance. She has a strong voice and plays her guitar so well. I admire people who can do song writing, singing, performing, and playing different musical instruments. She has her own web site so you can read more about her and her awards here, or on Wikipedia. It was a pleasure to listen to some of the songs on her newly released album "A Girl in Teen City".

Oh Susanna performing

The weather forecast looks like we'll be back to warmer temperatures tomorrow. I've lined up some fun activities for this weekend:
    •    Check out the Toronto Outdoor Art Exhibition (in its 56th year)
    •    Visit the Waterfront Artisan Market
    •    Picnic at HTO Park which has grassy hills and a sand beach
    •    Attend the Shield to Shore music festival

How about you? What's your plan for fun this weekend?

Farmers' market and music

Last Thursday sunny weather was perfect for a stroll to the local farmers' market at David Pecaut Square. The sky was clear blue and nearly cloudless, the wind was calm, humidity was low but UV index was high. Time to wear sun protection while enjoying the outdoors!

At the farmers' market there were tents sent up for vendors to sell fresh produce, baked goods, cheese, honey, jam, deli, flowers, and quick take-out food. I visited all the stalls, and really loved the sweet smell of ripe strawberries.

Farmers' Market

Tomatoes and Asparagus

Carrots and Parsnips

At 12:30 p.m., Angela Saini and two friends performed her songs for an hour. She had a strong voice and her music was upbeat. The lunch crowd showed their appreciation with loud applause.

Angela Saini performing

Such a nice treat to be able to visit a farmers' market on a gorgeous day, and listen to live music for free at the same time. I look forward to doing more of this in the summer.

Have you been to a farmers' market this season? Are there similar events where you live?