Downtown Barrie: Chavo Crêpes and Flying Monkeys brewery

Hot chocolate @ Chavo Crêpes

After snowtubing, we headed to downtown Barrie to grab a bite. We checked out Chavo Crêpes which boasted of serving authentic French crepes. We all ordered some hot chocolate to start. While the girls enjoyed it, I think it was pretty bland and watered down—especially for the price of $3.50 each. I much prefer a thicker, richer one like the non-diluted ones we get at Soma.

Hubby got the Bulgarian Village Sausage with pepper, tomatoes, mushrooms and onion. Pretty good.

Bulgarian sausage @ Chavo Crêpes

I got the Parisian (well, I was having French crêpes was I not?) ham and cheese. The buckwheat crêpe was absolutely delicious and the Dijon mustard was perfect for the ham and cheese. The girls did not care for the mustard so much and ranked my dish the last among those we’ve ordered.

Parisian Ham and Cheese @ Chavo Crêpes

DD#1 ordered Blueberries with lemon curd which was a wonderful combination.

Blueberries and Lemon Curd @ Chavo Crêpes

DD#2 ordered a classic which we would all also choose in a heartbeat—Hazelberryana (strawberries, sliced bananas and Nutella). Simply divine.

Presentation was beautiful, service was great and value was just ok (serving not huge relative to the price), ranging from $10-15. It was a nice spot with delightful crêpes. We would definitely come back if we are in the area again.

Hazelberryana @ Chavo Crêpes

But before we headed home, we crossed the street to bring home some Flying Monkeys beer. As we were with the girls and with hubby driving, it would have been too boring for me alone to have a drink at the Tap Room nor join the brewery tour. So, we just got some goodies!

Flying Monkeys Brewery at Barrie

Anyway, as I was not too satisfied with my hot chocolate, I decided to get the Chocolate Manifesto—yes, beer with chocolate. 

Chocolate Manifesto @Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery

With three kinds of chocolate in the brew, I absolutely enjoyed it! It was dark brown in colour with a thick layer of foam. It smelled of rich milk chocolate and cocoa. It was creamy with the right amount of bitterness to balance it out. Great for dessert!

Things to do in Barrie—if you don’t ski

Winter in Barrie

We don’t ski. DD#1 is the only one in our fam so far who does ski. So what do we do when we want to enjoy some winter activities? Play in the snow! And by playing, I don't only mean building forts and snowmen. We also do snowshoeing in trails and snowtubing. One Sunday in winter, we headed out to Barrie to go snowtubing at Ski Snow Valley. We haven’t gone in a long while so we all really had a blast. Be prepared for line ups to get tickets and to line up for the tube lift.

Tube lift @Ski Snow Valley

Once you get to the top of the hill, you can either go down with your tube by yourself or hold on to another one’s tube and you go down together. I’ve seen a group of four who connected themselves but we didn’t try it. It is extremely fun. Just make sure not to open your mouth so wide when you scream as you might end up with a mouthful of snow! 

Snow tubing @ Ski Snow Valley

Ski Snow Valley also offers snowshoeing and skiing, of course. From the posters I’ve seen, they also have some fun rafts and other cool activities at night. They have a cafeteria as well to grab a bite. But we decided to have find something to eat at downtown Barrie instead. Winter activities are not necessarily limited to skiing or snowboarding. There are other things to do to avoid cabin fever!

Things to do in Las Vegas for non-gamblers and families

A conference took me to Las Vegas where we stayed at the Bellagio. I’ve been to Vegas many times before and have stayed at MGM,

MGM @ Las Vegas

Harrahs, 

Harrah's @ Las Vegas

and Caesar’s Palace. 

Caesar's Palace @Las Vegas

All were pretty good. I remember MGM's suite to be quite grand (but then again, that was on my very first trip so everything was grand!!). Bellagio's Run of the House room was nice, especially with awesome views of the fountains. But I have some complaints and that story is for another time...

Run of the house room @ Bellagio, Las Vegas

Run of the house room @ Bellagio, Las Vegas

We hardly had time to walk around, so this blog will be a compilation of all the trips to Vegas.  The girls have been to Vegas twice, though they have no recollection of it, whatsoever. Was that a case of whatever happens in Vegas…?! Hahaha…Anyway, I have only tried my hand a few times at the slots and I have deposited more than I have withdrawn. So, needless to say, pretty much all of my trips to Vegas do not involve the casinos.

So, for non-gamblers and families, here are some things to do in Vegas:

Catch the free hotel shows. These are short shows in and outside of the hotels and happens on certain intervals (every hour, every 30min—depending on the day of the week and time).

• Bellagio has the dancing fountains

Dancing fountains @ Bellagio, Las Vegas

• Bellagio also has the Conservatory with some amazing floral arrangements. The arrangements and themes are changed from time to time.

Conservatory @ Bellagio, Las Vegas

Made of flowers! The Conservatory @ Bellagio, Las Vegas

• Caesar’s has the Atlantis show by the Forum shops. The show is very old and can definitely use an update. Still, it was an okay one with fire and water. There is also a huge aquarium in the same area. 

Forum shops @ Caesar's Palace, Las Vegas

• Mirage has a volcano show—pretty cool!
• Treasure Island has a pirate show
• Circus Circus has classic acts with jugglers, clowns, acrobats
• In Downtown there is the Fremont Street Experience, a huge LED canopy for the light and sound show
• At the M&M store, there is a free 3D movie

Coca Cola and M&M store @ Las Vegas Strip

For a fee, here are some things to do with kids:

• Mirage has Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat where you can check out dolphins, White Tigers, White Lions and Leopards
• Go up to the observation deck at the half-scale replica of the Eiffel Tower

Replica of the Eiffel Tower at Paris hotel @Las Vegas

• Ride the 203ft high roller coaster at New York New York

New York New York @Las Vegas

• Ride the gondola (complete with singing gondoliers--sometimes; either way, they are dressed for the part!) at the Venetian--it takes you inside and outside the hotel!

at the Venetian, Las Vegas

gondola @ the Venetian, Las Vegas

• See one or more of the many family shows, including Cirque’s Mystère, magic shows and more
• Free trams connect partner hotels so it is a bit easier to hotel hop

Aria-Crystal shops-Bellagio tram

If you cannot handle all the walking, there are also buses running the strip (current rate is $6 for 2 hours).

Transportation in Las Vegas

For side trips outside of the Strip, you can check out the Grand Canyon tours—by helicopter for about half a day with a picnic meal or coach tour for a day with a side trip to the Hoover Dam.

Hoover Dam

Grand Canyon--my camera did not do this view justice!

Red Rock Canyon (hiking, trails, rock climbing) is also only less than 30 minutes away! Red Rock also has a scenic loop where you can just drive and stop to have photos along the way. The views for both Grand Canyon and Red Rock are just breathtaking!

@ Red Rock Canyon

@ Red Rock Canyon

Vegas has fantastic shopping (high end designer and cheap souvenirs) and dining as well! As the hotels are themed and mostly luxurious, even window shopping is fun since it is like being in another country!

Le Boulevard--shops at Paris @Las Vegas

Grand Canal shoppes at Venetian

Shops at Crystals

There are also many art galleries in several hotels. Bellagio has a Chihuly exhibit at the lobby and also has the World's Largest chocolate fountain!

Chihuly at Bellagio lobby

World's Largest Chocolate Fountain, Jean Philippe Patisserie at Bellagio. The milk chocolate was divine.

Anything fun you can think of, you will find it here. It is indeed one big party and I’ve only begun to scratch the surface! There are so many more hotels I have not covered here or many more I have not even been to! 

Aria @ Las Vegas

One thing I know is you don’t have to gamble to enjoy Vegas--though you do have to pass through the heavy cigarette smells of the casino floors (yes, even with kids) to get to the lobby from your hotel room. 

Ramen series: Sansotei reigns!

Tonkotsu black ramen @Sansotei

The fam and I have tried many ramen places. Especially in the winter, we crave the wonderful broth to warm our tummies. So far, the best ramen place we’ve been to is Sansotei. They have a branch downtown (and apparently a new one midtown) but we go to the Markham location.

My and hubby’s favorite is the Tonkotsu black. The original Tonkotsu broth has the creamy pork bone flavour.  Tonkotsu black has the added roasted garlic oil. IT.IS.SO.GOOD. The Tonkotsu is topped off with 2 pieces of chashu (pork belly), a soft boiled egg, black mushroom and green onion. The broth is the best we’ve had. The noodles also have a nice bite! The chashu is tender and the egg is beautifully soft-boiled.

DD#2 orders the Shoyu (soy-sauce based) ramen. It has bamboo shoots along with the chashu and soft boiled egg. 

Shoyu Ramen @Sansotei

DD#1 enjoys the Tomato—on the light side, it has a piece of chashu, Hokkaido scallop, a soft boiled egg, baby shiitake mushrooms, tomatoes, and shredded chilli pepper. We always mean to try the Spicy Tantan but when we get there, we always revert back to the Tonkotsu black…oh well. I will not stop trying!