Well, it's been awhile since I have written anything...it's been a long while since I have slept in my own bed. As an aside, though I am back in TO, it does not feel like home...I suppose that that is a function of time and people who make it feel that way...but I digress... ;-)
The past few weeks have been interesting...so lest I forget all the details, I will pen them down for your sedation:P Here are some of the highlights (and lowlights:P)...
Montreal, Quebec:
-Spent 4 days there, the conference was terrible, but the city was great. I still like Quebec City more, but it was really nice to be back in Montreal again. The locale for the conference was beyond reproach...in Vaudreuil-Dorion (on the 40 about 30 mins from downtown)...right on the edge of a lake...couldn't be better!
-I had attended another conference in Columbus, OH the week before (sponsored by the same company)...and it was light years ahead...this was a tremendous waste of time!...but who's complaining?!?:P
-In any case, enough about work:) Ma fan girl came out and we did a little sight-seeing...she loved Vieux Montreal...she went in and out of every shop (or so it seemed).
-Tried the best of Montreal's famous smoked meat - Schwartz's (for lunch) and Le Main (for dinner)...both on St. Catherine's...the former was much better...haha, but can't complain!
-And to top it off, on the last night in Montreal, we went to the top of Mont Royal...the view is pretty amazing...a bit of a hike, but on a clear evening, the view of the city is unparalleled! If you ever go, it's close to Le Lac de Castors (Beaver Lake, I hope I got the French right!:P)
-Almost forgot, we also drove to Ottawa to visit my uncle, aunt and their sons...they were very accomodating...and did the touristy stuff with us...the most memorable moment was when we were all in the elevator going to the top of the bell tower in the Parliament buildings...ma fan girl decided to take her sweet time photographing the stained glass windows, much to the chagrin of everyone in the lift:P She definitely marches to the beat of her own drummer:P
Omaha, Nebraska:
-Stats: approx. 500,000 ppl; known for their steaks; 2nd best transplant center in the US, 2 medical schools.
-Spent two weeks in a short course (Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology, ASPET) at Univ. of Nebraska Medical Center.
Interesting Tidbits
-Lived in dorm with 3 other students (total of 12 in course).
-Ate four steak dinners,
-Discovered Jimmy John's is pretty good
-Went down a giant slide in the middle of downtown at 11 pm
-Rode in the back (the very back) of an SUV for the first time (there were 7 of us, and only 5 seats)
-Drove my roomie's truck 3 times (all b/c he was drunk)...the 2nd time included us getting locked out of our dorm. Actually, we got in the building, but were stuck in the stairwell before we realized we didn't have our keycard). And to make a long story short, we had to throw stuff at our other roomies' windows...I was going to throw a rock, but thought better of it...threw bark mulch instead...my dumbass, drunk roomie, threw it at the wrong window on the wrong floor...and incurred the wrath of it's inhabitants!
-Saw tigers from 3 feet away, as we got the behind-the-scenes tour with the director at the Henry Doorly Zoo.
-On my last day, made reservations for a cab to take me to the airport at 530 am (710 am departure)...the cab was 45 mins late...turns out the driver had just left the police station, as he had just been robbed (and all the other cabbies went home, as the suspect was still at large)...then ended up being the last person on the plane...
-Midwest Airways is the best! Leather seats, extra-wide and I got to sit in row 1:) But they ran out of breakfast:( Now I am only a shadow of my former self...boo hoo hoo:P
However, my biggest thrill was the opportunity to work with an exceptional cardiovascular physiologist...he must be 65+ years old...however, his hands in surgery are more stable than mine (though that is not saying much, haha!). It was truly an honour...I did my elective with him (for 1.5 days)...and I have to say that I will remember that for a long time! If the opportunity presents itself, I would like to go back for an internship...I just have to convince the powers that be, that there is value in this!;-)
Enough rambling...time to get the clothes out of the dryer:)
Until the next time I bore you to tears...
The past few weeks have been interesting...so lest I forget all the details, I will pen them down for your sedation:P Here are some of the highlights (and lowlights:P)...
Montreal, Quebec:
-Spent 4 days there, the conference was terrible, but the city was great. I still like Quebec City more, but it was really nice to be back in Montreal again. The locale for the conference was beyond reproach...in Vaudreuil-Dorion (on the 40 about 30 mins from downtown)...right on the edge of a lake...couldn't be better!
-I had attended another conference in Columbus, OH the week before (sponsored by the same company)...and it was light years ahead...this was a tremendous waste of time!...but who's complaining?!?:P
-In any case, enough about work:) Ma fan girl came out and we did a little sight-seeing...she loved Vieux Montreal...she went in and out of every shop (or so it seemed).
-Tried the best of Montreal's famous smoked meat - Schwartz's (for lunch) and Le Main (for dinner)...both on St. Catherine's...the former was much better...haha, but can't complain!
-And to top it off, on the last night in Montreal, we went to the top of Mont Royal...the view is pretty amazing...a bit of a hike, but on a clear evening, the view of the city is unparalleled! If you ever go, it's close to Le Lac de Castors (Beaver Lake, I hope I got the French right!:P)
-Almost forgot, we also drove to Ottawa to visit my uncle, aunt and their sons...they were very accomodating...and did the touristy stuff with us...the most memorable moment was when we were all in the elevator going to the top of the bell tower in the Parliament buildings...ma fan girl decided to take her sweet time photographing the stained glass windows, much to the chagrin of everyone in the lift:P She definitely marches to the beat of her own drummer:P
Omaha, Nebraska:
-Stats: approx. 500,000 ppl; known for their steaks; 2nd best transplant center in the US, 2 medical schools.
-Spent two weeks in a short course (Integrative and Organ Systems Pharmacology, ASPET) at Univ. of Nebraska Medical Center.
Interesting Tidbits
-Lived in dorm with 3 other students (total of 12 in course).
-Ate four steak dinners,
-Discovered Jimmy John's is pretty good
-Went down a giant slide in the middle of downtown at 11 pm
-Rode in the back (the very back) of an SUV for the first time (there were 7 of us, and only 5 seats)
-Drove my roomie's truck 3 times (all b/c he was drunk)...the 2nd time included us getting locked out of our dorm. Actually, we got in the building, but were stuck in the stairwell before we realized we didn't have our keycard). And to make a long story short, we had to throw stuff at our other roomies' windows...I was going to throw a rock, but thought better of it...threw bark mulch instead...my dumbass, drunk roomie, threw it at the wrong window on the wrong floor...and incurred the wrath of it's inhabitants!
-Saw tigers from 3 feet away, as we got the behind-the-scenes tour with the director at the Henry Doorly Zoo.
-On my last day, made reservations for a cab to take me to the airport at 530 am (710 am departure)...the cab was 45 mins late...turns out the driver had just left the police station, as he had just been robbed (and all the other cabbies went home, as the suspect was still at large)...then ended up being the last person on the plane...
-Midwest Airways is the best! Leather seats, extra-wide and I got to sit in row 1:) But they ran out of breakfast:( Now I am only a shadow of my former self...boo hoo hoo:P
However, my biggest thrill was the opportunity to work with an exceptional cardiovascular physiologist...he must be 65+ years old...however, his hands in surgery are more stable than mine (though that is not saying much, haha!). It was truly an honour...I did my elective with him (for 1.5 days)...and I have to say that I will remember that for a long time! If the opportunity presents itself, I would like to go back for an internship...I just have to convince the powers that be, that there is value in this!;-)
Enough rambling...time to get the clothes out of the dryer:)
Until the next time I bore you to tears...
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