I’m here in a hotel room somewhere near Philly’s airport. A mechanical issue prevented us from flying tonight, so here I am far from home longing for my parent’s arms 
Soon, soon, soon I’ll be home 
I am definitely going much more local than ever. This started when I was living in Ottawa and loved to get my fruits and veggies at the markets rather than going to a big surface store with frozen stuff. Then it extended to other kind of goodies from food to clothing, home articles, etc. Good thing is that I’m not the only one embracing this new lifestyle. Of course, I do still shop at big stores and all that. However, I try to get things from local producers as this is a way to contribute to my region’s economy. And also, having a more direct contact with the brands for assistance is a big plus for me.
Nutcraker Market 2013
Anyway… I am happy to say that to properly close the year, in Montreal we’re having two (maybe more, but I only got news for 2) local shops fairs!! The first one going from Nov 28 until Dec 8 is the Nutcraker Market. Since 2010, Les Grands Ballets organize every year this non-profit Christmas Market where you can find a lot of good gift ideas. And merchants give 10% of their pre-taxes sales to the Nutcraker Fund for Children! In their own words:
“This fund allows children from underpriviledged neighbourhoods to attend educational workshops and a performance of the ballet, as well as towards production costs of The Nutcracker.”
Awesome right??
Salon des métiers d’arts de Montréal, 2013
The second fair is the Salon des métiers d’art from Dec 6 to the 22. This event allows the public to discover local artisan´s work. Could be food, toys, clothes, beauty products, kitchen products, home decor and related goods. A great occasion to enjoy local creations and also get a few unique Christmas gifts!!
I’ve been to the first one and definitely is a go to place! And I´m so looking forward to putting my feet on the Place Bonaventure for the Salon! What did I get from the Nutcraker one? Well, I’ll mention it and maybe will post on the products once I try on them haha.
First, a nice cleaning, hydrating package from Zorah Biocosmetics (Certified Bio and fair trade Montrealer beauty brand). Then, a nice rose scent diffuser made from essential oils sold by Montreal’s Aromas Naturales. Finally, a nice cranberry-honey balsamic vinaigrette by Quebec city based company Nutra Fruit.
I can´t wait to try all that!!
Even though I´ve been super busy at school (last course to go yaaay!!) and at work, these last weeks have been also awesome in so many ways. Given that Winter is around the corner, I’m trying to enjoy my favourite activities that don´t require me to be outside with a thousand layers (haha ok, maybe 5).
For instance, visiting Atwater Market makes me super happy. I start by getting a pastry at Première Moisson with a hot tea and my newspaper. After getting my fruits and other stuff for the week, I love to buy flowers. There are a few stands, but there is one that I particularly like. This one is owned by a cool lady who is super nice and always helps me deciding which bouquet I should buy (there is a wide selection and it´s difficult to pick just one bouquet!).
Another thing that I like is when some mornings I would drive to go to work and one of the red lights is on just in front of Parc Lafontaine, the view is simply amazing… especially now with some trees still having their leaves. And the great thing about having most my friends in Montreal is that there is always an occasion to go out and enjoy a tasty drink, like a mango-peach daiquiri from Carlos & Pepe´s!
Life is good 
I have a confession… Although I like art in general, a lot of things are unknown to me. I actually like graffiti, maybe it’s the Mexican in me (Rivera, Siqueiros are two of the greatest Mexican icons) that gets inspired by the social messages expressed on the walls. Despite this, I have to say thay before my last trip to NYC, I’ve never heard of Banksy! Upsie??
Then, while hanging around low town with some friends, I got a first glimpse of Banksy’s work. Since my stay in the city was very short (longing for a week at least some day), I only got to see two spots where Banksy left his mark.
Wanting to know a bit more about him, I surfed the net and apparently, the guy is a polarizing figure. You love him or hate him. In my particular case, I can’t say one or the another… However, I’m more in the love side. Even if for some, Banksy’s work lacks originality, for me it created a sense of exploration and surprise. I mean, we walked around for about an hour or so, looking for Banksyies (did I just invented a word, or do you usually call Banksy’s pieces banksyies?) and then once discovered, the treasure came with a crew of equally amazed people making all kind of manoeuvres to take a decent picture… That adds some fun to the experience!
I am so not an art connoisseur! So I’m not judging if the work he made was compelling, wonderful, original or quite the opposite. I am just an ordinary girl and as such, I go by the emotions a figure on a wall can make emerge. And boy, sometimes I am so emotional haha…
I am Karla © (Please note that my drawing skills are work in progress haha)
As usual, I went to NYC over the Canadian Thanksgiving long weekend. Although I only stayed for two days, it was a neat experience. NYC is a magical place, no doubt of that. It has everything, good restaurants, a wonderful artistic scene as well as fashion and music. This time I got the chance to meet new people and enjoy new places, like Persepolis, a persian food restaurant simply delicious!! It was my first time with Persian food and I adored it!! More »
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