Frozen lake and a bison buger

We just got invited to go to clear lake, Manitoba. We were excited to see the northern lights. Which was one of the reasons why we wanted to go to Canada. After about an hour and a half drive, we arrived at Clear lake.

Clear lake is a very small town with a population a little over 2,000 people. Majority of the people that have property here, tend to come during vacations/summer. The place feels like a great community to raise a family. Never met such wonderful and down to earth people.

As we drove deeper into this small community, we saw the frozen lake. This was the first time in my life to see a lake completely frozen. Being able to walk on the lake was mindblowing.

The lake had at least a foot and a half of ice covering it. I jumped a few times to see, if it was real. Luckily, it was.

One of our friends, who is a local, informed me about quinzees. A quinzee is a shelter made of out snow that is hallowed out. They are actually very warm. They were made from the indigenous people of Manitoba to survive the winters.

Since coming to clear lake, people kept telling me about this creation called the bison burger. I was really interested by this. The locals kept telling me it was very similar to beef. I had to try it for myself.

We finally found the place were they serve bison. To my surprise, it really did taste like beef. Bison is actually more healthier than beef. Makes you wonder, why beef is more common than bison. Probably, money is the root. Sadly, we did not see the northen lights as a group. I saw the northern lights at my host’s house, later that night.

Thank you guys for taking your time to read this post. I love you all! You are all awesome!! Next week we go to NYC!!! Much love and stay healthy!!

April 29, 2016 22

Ethiopia in nowheresville Canada

My host invited us to eat at an Ethiopian restaurant. I was so excited to try something new. The food looked and smelled amazing. It was an experience, I will never forgot.

As you first walk in, you can smell the goodness. Ethiopian food was a new category for me. I heard from friends how good it was. I was so excited to try it for myself.

As a person who loves spicey food, I ordered the hottest thing on the menu. I was warned by the waitresses that this should not be my first Ethiopian dish. They wanted me to build up the tolerance, so I will not get scared of eating Ethiopian food again. Even with all their warnings, I tried it anyways. It was beef covered with Ethiopian spices. The taste was out of this world. Beef was chewy and the spice gave it a wonderful kick to it. I was completely shocked to how good Ethiopian food is.

I would definitely recommend Ethiopian food, if you are a vegan or into veggies. A lot of the items on the menu were vegan friendly. My teacher tagged along with us becuase of the veggie options. The Ethiopian cuisine is amazing and worth the try.

Thank you for taking your time for to read this post. Much love!! Next week we will be on a frozen lake! Stay healthy and have a great week!

April 22, 2016 38

Capoeira with Canada’s indigenous

Canada is such a beautiful country with many incredible people. Sadly, no country is without social issues. A major social problem we saw in Canada was the many challenges the indigenous people face.

Many indigenous people live in reserves with self goverments. The others that live outside of the reserves, tend to have harder lives. The I’Ds in Canada mark you as indigenous or not. Also, although Canada is not known for it’s violent crimes; however, there are gangs created by indigenous. Most local gangs in Manitoba were run by indigenous people.

All of these social issues, was what inspired us to teach capoeira for free to the indigenous people. After a 45 mins drive, we were at wayway. Wayway was a school on an indigenous reserve.

The reserve and the school was very beautiful. The children were amazing and wonderful. About a hundred kids showed up. Teaching them was an incredible experience. The light in thier eyes, as they picked up some of the move was a great feeling. Some of them may not have a lot positivity in thier life. Hopefully, some will pick up the art and/or maintain a positive lifestyle.

Thank you all for reading this post. Much love!! Next week we will have a taste of Ethiopia in Canada. Have a great week and stay healthy!! Take care to you all!

April 15, 2016 29

Brandon, the city that doors are unlocked

It was a two hour drive from Winnpeg to Brandon. Not much to see on the way there. The ride was extremely dull. Nothing but flat corn farms for hours. Luckily, I had made two new friends. Which made the ride survivable.

Brandon, Manitoba discovery center, Hugo Morel

Once we got into Brandon, the city reminded me of my hometown. Slow, small and it gave a chill vibe. I met the person who was I staying with. Luckily, she was a very nice person. It was a couch-surfing experience I will never forget.

Unfortunately, my host had to work. So I was stuck at the home for a day. She informed me how she never locks her doors. Of course, I was completely shocked. There was so much trust in this small city. No locks! Unless, it is late at night. This still surprises me.

I was introduced to two new furry friends. These guys were wild and crazy at times. Waking me up and jumping on the bed my host let me sleep on. It was hard not to develop feelings for these little guys. They would eat anything and I mean anything. Caught one trying to eat a rubber-band.

Starbucks with french and English, Hugo Morel

inside of Starbucks, Hugo Morel

After the first day of being stuck inside, one of my teachers came. To find something entertaining, we tried to explore the city. That was over in 10 minutes, literally. The city only has 6 main streets. So we decided to hang out in Starbucks because of free WiFi. Long story short, we stayed there for two hours and some crazy guy kept trying to talk to me. He kept asking if my teacher, was my girlfriend. It was very awkward!!

wolf, Hugo Morel

Wolf with Santa’s Hat, Hugo morel

bear and beavers, Hugo Morel

Brandon, Manitoba is home to some very interesting wildlife. The southern part of the province, there are normal bears with black fur. As in the north, there polar bears and penguins! Also, it’s rumoured Santa Claus lives in the most northern part of the province. He also has wolves helping. One of them, was in the picture above.

20160127_091132 — Brandon’s downtown in the background, Hugo Morel

Thank you for taking your time for reading this post! Drop a like and a follow. Next week we will be visiting my friend’s Maple Syrup factory. Much Love!! Stay healthy!!

March 25, 2016 46

I’m going to Canada, hopefully

New year, new me as the saying goes. For me, new year means new adventures. It was the end of January 2016. New York City just survived a record breaking snowstorm. I was invited to go to Canada for a Capoeira event. The event will have masters of the art to teach us. The thought of it filled me with joy. Little did I know, it would be a journey just to get there.

One word of advice, never call your mother during a storm and your flight is the next day, after the whole city closed down. Yeah, the city that doesn’t sleep had to shut down at 2:45 pm; yet, any mother makes a situation seem more awful than it actually is. Okay yes, the blizzard was bad enough to close the city that never sleeps down but I was still alive. After a few “Are you alive?” calls, my mother convinced me to go three hours early to the airport. I’m still trying to figure out how she did this. Once the taxi dropped me at the airport, I knew I was in for a long night.

As I got into the airport, the place looked like a dead zone. Everything was unusually closed down. The airport is open 24 hours on a normal schedule but a storm just passed. The airport looked like a homeless shelter. The food court was filled with people who were stuck in New York City. Their flights were canceled and the local hotels were closed. The only choice they had was the food court. This was a sight from a horror movie and a traveler’s worst nightmare.

people sleeping at the food court, Hugo Morel

the storm’s aftermath, Hugo Morel

After three hours of waiting, it was take off time. To save money, I bought a connecting flight, New York City to Denver international. The flight was full, due to the storm. They kept asking for handbags and luggage to be put on another flight. The kind person would be rewarded for a thousand dollars worth of flyer points. They asked four times and waited until someone actually volunteered before taking off!!

Denver International airport, Hugo Morel

At Denver International, I was surprised how big the mile high city’s airport was. It felt bigger than JFK. There was a mile long walkway (pun intended) and even a mall. I expected to see the cast of South Park here. This was mind-blowing!!

After all the trials, I was finally in Canada. The country that is the home of Justin Bieber, Drake and maple syrup. Of course, instead of seeing Santa Claus and the north pole, I get a not so jolly welcome. Long story short, the immigration center kept me for about 20 mins trying to understand my story. It’s hard to explain to people, what Capoeira is. Lesson learned, never say you are going to stay at someone’s house that you met on Facebook and learn from a master that you never met in person.

Thank you for taking your time to read this post. Drop a like and a follow. Much love!!! Next week, we go to the city of Brandon. Stay safe and healthy!!

March 18, 2016 32