my trip to toronto

last thursday i packed my bags and headed north for a ten hour road trip alone to meet my blogging buddies, nelly and heathy. nelly invited me to stay at her place with heathy in toronto, which turns out to be the raw food capital of the northeast! many said i was crazy (even i had second thoughts) - but i did it and had a blast!

me, heathy, nelly

here we are at raw aura. i was in heaven, eating raw nachos and sipping fresh pear cocktails with these beautiful ladies, outside on a perfect summer evening. life is delicious!=)

there's heathy getting a shot of the nachos. we all agreed these were fantastic!

another day we ate an even tastier raw nacho platter with some other beautiful bloggers at rawlicious - the sweetest, coziest restaurant i have ever set foot in. (it reminded me of when i tripped to amsterdam). just look at this place - i could live here!

heathy, lisa, camille, marlie, me, nelly, kristen

photo courtesy of our lovely server and camille's camera

you can see recaps of our delicious time together at from nelly...with love..., raw candy, barefoot and frolicking, balance is beauty, and vegan cookbook critic. it was such a pleasure to spend time with and learn more about these girls - i wish we lived closer!

it was also such a treat to have someone else preparing me fresh raw food. these meals were not only gorgeous, but also super tasty. i brought some kelp noodles home to recreate this pad thai that i shared with marlie from barefoot and frolicking.

marlie and i also split a delightful olive salad with currants and pine nuts.

for appetizers, we all shared two orders each of spring rolls and nachos - both were excellent!

and for dessert, a magnificent macaroon, as per nelly's recommendation. i absolutely loved it!

during a day of shopping, nelly, heathy, and i enjoyed a tasty lunch at cruda cafe. the flavors in this gnocchi dish and wild mushroom nut burger were so fresh and vibrant. i'm in love with live foods!!!

here's heathy's salad with fresh figs, and nelly carrying our coconut drinks.

i'd consider moving to toronto for rawlicious and cruda cafe alone!=)

this mural was fittingly right next to us while we were enjoying cruda - i do!

one day after a yoga session led by heathy, i took a little walk to a park on the coast of lake ontario, not even five minutes from nelly's house. it was a cloudy day, but i still got to view the cityline of toronto.

ontario is really beautiful - look at how pretty the flowers are in nelly's backyard!

her garden is so gorgeous and lush...

and we used some greens for a delicious homemade meal of nelly's quinoa curry and some yummy sides, like nelly's shaved salad, kraut, and pesto. mmm!

heathy preparing a salad

nelly truly was a great host and fed us lots of goodies, like cheezy kale and zucchini chips

sweet gratitude's tiramasu she and the lovely camille had made...

her famous moonie pies - undipped with blue mountain vanilla ice cream

and dipped - bliss! you haven't lived until you've tried a raw moonie pie!=)

the girls introduced me to some exotic tropical fruits they picked up in chinatown, while heathy made a recording of our taste-testing to post on her blog. i'm happy to have finally faced my fear of being videotaped - i would have have missed out on a really fun time had i opted out of the recording!

i am so grateful for the wonderful experiences i had on this trip. it felt surreal to be hanging out with nelly and heathy in-person, eating amazing raw food. it was such a joy to meet nelly's friendly family as well, especially these two cutie pies!

hummer and jackson

anyone who knows me can attest to my poor directional skills, so i am also grateful for the navigator that john's father had bought him, and the angels that guided me safely along the way=).

there was no way i was passing niagara without stopping to see the falls, so i made a quick visit on my way home.

the falls are so beautiful and peaceful, yet a little scary and anxiety-inducing at the same time. (kind of like life, eh?=)

this trip was such a growthful experience in so many ways... and to think some silly little fears almost stopped me from going - now that would have been crazy!=)

i leave you with a video of a song that kept playing in my head while i was driving and encourage you to step outside your comfort zone every once in a while. never let fear stand in your way of bliss!=)