A Day at the Fair

I guess the title of this post is a little misleading as I never really thought of the Canadian National Exhibition as being your typical fun fair/carnival...it definitely has the same elements, but it's so much more than that. The CNE is an event that happens in downtown Toronto every year for about two weeks near the end of August...I don't think I've ever blogged about it because honestly I don't think I've gone there in a while!! I think the last time I went was two years ago to show my cousins around but I never really had a chance to experience and enjoy it...so this year I went together with my friends and made a day trip of it. I had a great time and I'd make an effort to go at least once every year! Coincidentally this weekend was also FanExpo...well, let's just say I'm glad I went to the CNE and not there...^^"

Our first stop was the Food Building. I never really paid attention to it before, or maybe they just revamped it because this place is a foodie's heaven. There are all kinds of food from different countries and odd twists on favourites that I don't think you can try anywhere else! It was suuper hard deciding where to eat, to say the least! The Bacon Nation booth looked interesting!

There was a stall dedicated to Nutella, the hazelnut chocolate spread...I didn't get to see their menu up close but I'm sure they had some good stuff...

Candied apples, typical fair food! They look so pretty...someday I'll try one of these ^^" (I actually brought an apple to eat with me that day though lol...)

Fudge in all kinds of flavours...so tempting!!

All your favourite foods...in a cone.

This burger place closed down because of a recent food poisoning outbreak that left over a hundred people ill due to their cronut burger. I was really paranoid about eating at the food building at all, but I had little to fear I guess as the place was packed with people and it was really lively despite the recent media attention..

My friend ordered a deep fried onion! They take a huge onion and cut it into a flower and deep fry it...you eat it by plucking out the strands like how you would eat potato fries. Greasy oniony goodness!! Since it's only once a year, might as well indulge yourself in something unhealthy, right? ;)

Cooling off with some freshly squeezed lemonade!

I ate a pea meal bacon burger for lunch! I love pea meal bacon (or just bacon in general) but I guess this is a healthier option because there is very little fat and I only wanted lettuce on my burger. It tasted okay, but it was a little on the salty side.

We went inside the Arts, Crafts & Hobbies Building next. They have lots of neat things in there, from gourmet lollipops to sausages, to handmade items and gifts. The above photo was a display of the CNE grounds made entirely from paper.

We went outside to walk around a bit and I attempted to take photos while walking..>_<

We went inside the Farm Building next. Alpacas!!

And also ostriches :D

Sheep! It smelled pretty bad here.. =n=

A sow and her babies..

These piglets were really cute~

A calf~

Holsteins~

We met up with other friends and ate again...this time I was wanting some poutine since I haven't eaten it since forever and didn't get a chance to eat it in Montreal. I think I went to the booth called Bouchard's Poutinerie, there was a really long line up (which only got longer when I left lol) so I assumed it was good, and it definitely was! I wasn't feeling too adventurous and just got their Traditional poutine (fries, gravy, cheese curds) but they had other varieties too that sounded really good (the Mexican had guacamole, sour cream and peppers, and the Cheeseburger...what it sounds like). My friend got a poutine with bulgogi and kimchi on it which was even more exotic but they told me it was delicious!

We went to the International Building after this to walk around. There were some small shopping outlets too but there wasn't anything good...^^" There was also a Casino, a pet show, a sports field and other fun things to do. We didn't go on any rides though because they were all kiddie rides (I'm not one for rides, and plus I was wearing a skirt that day too) but overall...there is lots to do at the CNE. I think the only thing it might be missing is a circus of some sort..xD

The reason we stayed til late was because of the midway games!! Everything looks so much more like a carnival/fair when it's all lit up at night. This game in particular was really popular..I'm sure most are familiar with it!

I really love these sorts of photos, with the colourful lights and retro style booths..I'm still not too confident in my photo-taking skills during night time, but maybe one day I'll attempt to take those bokeh shots that I love..

There were two small Ferris wheels too, but we didn't ride any. I spent the majority of my time watching my friends spend money on various games..xD The prizes weren't very good this year but it was fun watching people play together!

I love Ferris wheels, I just think they're so pretty...*_*

There was a Merry-Go Round too, again very carnival-y and sort of romantic :'D

My friend's sister brought us to this dessert place called Chilly Ribbons, which was all the way at the other end of the exhibition grounds in the kiddie section so we had to walk there. They were getting more shipments of flavours after 8pm, and seemed pretty popular. I got strawberry shaved ice with condensed milk and rainbow sprinkles as toppings. It was really good and was the perfect way to end off the evening! :)