McDonald's Around the World: Toronto - Featuring the McLobster!

Ah, Toronto. The last time I was here, it was 20 below and freezing. This time around I was here on a layover and had a couple hours to run into the city. Naturally, I wanted to check a couple local specialties off my list, which happened to include a peek into McDonald's to see if they had one of the great myths of Canadian McDonald's: The McLobster.

 Oh. There it is. Is there anything else that I can do double down on the Canadian-ess of this meal?

Maple bacon McDonald's poutine? Don't mind if I do! Naturally, I have to say that this was for the experience. I mean, non-breaded and fried seafood at McDonald's? That just sounds a bit risky, but the McLobster exists and I had to tried it.

First up, the appetizer. There's real maple syrup on there, in addition to the bacon, cheese, and gravy. Overall, it might not have been that bad without the maple syrup. Or if you were horribly drunk and stumbling home, I imagine.

Truth in advertising here: "Get ready! You're about to try something new!"

I really didn't know what a $7 lobster sandwich from McDonald's was going to be like, but here it is. It exists. The lobster meat is cool, rolled around in mayo, with bits of standard MickeyD's lettuce. Did I try it? Yes. Did I finish it? After this, I had a 9 hour flight ahead of me and the last thing I needed was a parting gift from Canada that involved getting sick, so I was satisfied with my three bites.

Maybe things will be better at McDonald's where I'm off to next?

McDonald's Around the World: Mexico

Sadly, I did not much ability to take photos in Mexico. The manager there with his hand up was not very happy with my camera coming out. I will not understand why these guys don't want free advertising... From the looks of it, pretty standard except for that chicken sandwich on the left might be a little fancier than usual...

...But, we did end up trying the cones above. Dulce de leche is a pretty common flavor in the latin world and here they had dulce de leche cones. Quite good! The Oreo version I had tried before in Buenos Aires, but the dulce de leche I had to try. Overall, the best McDonald's cone I've had!

Noise Cancellation Performance - Sony MDR-ZX770BN

This is a follow up to the overall review that I wrote over here. The last time I had a bluetooth headphones (Sol Republic Tracks Air), I found that they were nice overall but pretty useless on a plane. Since my handle is "SeattleFlyerGuy", that shortcoming is a big one.

My new headsets needed to be put to real world tests and my recent flight to South America provided the perfect opportunity to test the noise cancellation features of my new Sony MDR-ZX770BN headphones. I am happy to say that they ended up performing well. I am sure that the Bose probably outperform there (for another $100), but there is something to be said for the around-the-ear design and comfort of this set.

I'll keep 'em.

Hola from Puerto Vallarta!

...On to something a little more relaxing...

Although April ended up being a very busy month for travel, my trip to Puerto Vallarta was the only one that I actually planned as a vacation a couple months back (everything else came up pretty unexpectedly). This was my first time in Mexico and I ended up getting a good deal on Alaska Airlines for a direct flight from San Francisco. Usually when I travel I pack in as much as possible (9 days and 4 cities ? Sure!), but this time I really had three basic goals: Do nothing, have a couple beers by the beach, walk around and see the city a bit. It is difficult, but I managed to avoid trying to do too much this trip.

I stayed in Zona Romantica, which is the opposite direction from the newer all inclusive tourist resorts and just south of the Cuale river. The area here is still very touristy, but it doesn't feel like you are on the set of The Truman Show: Tropical Vacation like in some resorts. Although you are definitely being catered to as tourists here, there is more interaction here with locals. The "hotel zone" was built from the ground up north of the airport for tourists is more like a different world. It is designed to keep people apart.

What's the fun in that?

For those concerned about safety, Puerto Vallarta is just fine. The streets felt safe, people were friendly, and nothing we encountered raised concerns. The only big advantage to staying in the hotel zone on this front is that there are probably fewer people on the beach trying to sell you stuff, but that's about it. We were out at all hours too. No issues.

I didn't get a chance to ride these below, since taxis were pretty cheap and walking got us most places. Just to the north of the river is the main boardwalk area. It has been built up more recently than the Zona Romantica, but it a bigger draw of people at night. We ran into a night market/family night on the boardwalk one of the nights that we were there. Nothing wrong with a little street food and people watching.

Overall, I'll be back at some point. I enjoyed my couple days on the beach with no plans whatsoever. :)

Stockholm in a Dozen Pictures

I am not going to share too much about my trip to Sweden this time. I was there due to rather sad circumstances and much of it isn't really sharable in the usual way. Instead, I'll just share some photos from the journey.

McDonald's Around the World: Oslo

Lunch time in Norway. I have a long history of seeking out McDonald's when I travel and this time was no exception. Scandinavian menus are pretty standard between Sweden and Norway. They have most of the same things and follow the same general formula: Offer the classic menu, some variant on the Big Tasty, offer cheap cheeseburgers (which is what they sell most of), and then add on a limited time theme menu. It's like when the McRib pops up, but a little more creative.

This time around, they were featuring... 'MURICA!

How could I say no? It's the California menu! I live in Oakland! It's made to be. So, what does California mean to Norwegians? Well, barbeque, "cheddar", and bacon. Overall, not bad, but McDonald's... if you are going to play this game, do it right! Guacamole should be on there instead of barbeque. California is all about the guac!

8 Hours in Oslo - Wandering around Town

Downtown Oslo, near Central Station

The Royal Palace

Public play equipment: This is one of the popular tight ropes that are often seen being set up between two trees. By providing this, Oslo is helping engage passers-by and activate the space. People stop and watch and even chat a little due to this thing just being there.

Vigelandsanlegget in Frogner Park

They match. :)

Uh, Children?

...you shouldn't be doing that...

See?

 Oslo's efficient subway system. I also got a chance to add a new transit card into my collection!