Christmas Spirit and Hot, Spicy Wine

Nothing is like December! I'm not a winter person, but December brings out that holiday joy and Christmas spirit all over the place.

And I'm not viewing this from religious point of view - whatever religion you're in, or if you're not religious at all, I'm talking about the unique feeling of holiday atmosphere.

Holiday lights on the streets, ornaments on Christmas trees, the general look of the city at this time of year, everything sparkling and smelling of cider and wine - the whole Christmassy feel.

You can hear Christmas songs everywhere, see ideas for presents in every store you walk into and feel that special warmth of red, gold and silver colors, so significant for these holiday moments.



Even though the commercialization of Christmas holidays has taken it too far, with companies decorating and pushing gifts sales already in November, and people feeling pressured about the whole thing, it still doesn't diminish that very holiday sensation that's spreading like a virus as soon as you see the first holiday lights on the streets.

The best place to enjoy the atmosphere in Toronto, at this moment, is definitely the Distillery District.

With the Toronto Christmas Market that is held there every December for the whole month, up until Christmas day, Distillery District becomes a magical place (magical more than it usually is).

Various artisans and vendors are participating and there's nothing you can't buy in their little booths.

You can find hand-made ornaments, gifts, candles and other Christmas merchandise. If you're hungry, you'll be able to enjoy German sausages, roasted nuts, baked goods and plenty of other seasonal stuff.



To keep yourself warm, I strongly recommend the popular mulled wine - which was delicious! So very tasty, just like the wine from back home, which my family used to make every Christmas and which we regularly enjoyed during the whole Christmas season.  I really missed that so I made sure I got enough. Don't overstep your boundaries though - it's stronger than it tastes :)

All in all, a very nice evening out - I loved it! If you're around, make this place a number one on your visit list. Soon.  Even the holiday hater will enjoy :)

The only thing that's missing is snow, to make the whole experience more fulfilled. But, until then, this is the perfect place to hang out one of these evenings, before Christmas, while there's still mulled wine available...



Oh and yes. A huge Christmas tree :) Who doesn't love that?

Cheers! Xoxo

It was busy... just how we like it. Update.

So, the last couple of weeks were pretty busy. Ever since I came back from Croatia, things just kept going on and there was no rest for the wicked.

The work piled up, the house was a mess (I do live with a male) and the fridge was empty (male again).

In between cleaning and restocking, there were moments of some photo opportunities I just couldn't miss.

The first thing after my arrival back home was a party we had - business and private kind of party with plenty of friends, lots of food, drinks and a good band. It was nice and exhausting, and everything ended with a good burnout, as expected.

After that, I was mostly trying out a new Nikon I got recently.

So naturally, I went on all the usual places I normally go and tried to capture it with a new lens.

I must say I'm pleased, even though I could use another telephoto lens. What I have now is actually doing pretty good work on macro shots.

Back home, I witnessed some Philippe Ramette's photographs for an upcoming exhibition that was supposed to take place after my father's - and his work got me thinking a bit. I sort of wanted to try out things he does, so I played around a bit with that. My options were limited and actually didn't have as much time as I wanted, so there is a few experimental shots I got. For now.

I went downtown (which I rarely do lately) to see the Buskerfest and famous Toronto sign on Nathan Phillips Square (which everyone took a picture of yet, but me).

I also visited Distillery district again (I wish I could be there more often - that place is amazing).

We also went to CNE (Canadian National Exhibition) place one night. Too expensive just to get in and leave the car outside, when basically everything else you need to pay extra. I was terrified of the rides (I would kill to ride on the most bad-ass ride when I was younger), but I guess that's adulthood. You kind of become aware that there might be actual mechanical issues and all sort of risks and that you might actually die.

We went up north to a cottage for the long weekend. I got up at 6 am to try and shoot the sunrise. Of course, east somehow ended up being totally on the opposite side of where I was thinking (It's not like I'm carrying a compass with me all the time) so the sun got up behind the bushes and cottages and the image was everything but nice.

We also had a photo shoot going on last week, where I finally got to shoot some real people (in your face, Shelly the hamster). Actually it was a girl, a model, and she did her job pretty well. I got to the conclusion that I need a lot of practice still. It was a good experience. I'm looking for models now.

Last, but not least, I joined Instagram. A huge step for me. I've been kind of avoiding it this whole time, but what the heck. You can see a lot more photos if you follow me there - @sharoncocaine

That's all for now. Rock on, folks.