It's been a good few weeks or so since my last blog post and I'm not sorry but that's because I actually took some time off for a slight digital detox from both my day job and blogging. But I will say that it's no surprise that during this time that my foodie partner-in-crime and I ventured to Prince Edward County (once again of course) for a day trip for lunch to visit Picton's newest dining experience - The Marans Dinebar.

Originally from Hamilton, Ontario, Chef Guerin Sykes previously helped revamp the kitchens at Waupoos Winery before taking the leap and opening up his own venture. Featuring Middle Eastern with Asian inspired cuisine, this new spot by Chef Guerin and his wife Jessica puts the emphasis on locally sourced ingredients and all things County including their drink menu. Located right between the Regent Theatre and Picton Library on Main Street in Picton, you wouldn't believe it, but it doesn't have a full commercial kitchen! With only a few induction burners and other equipment, Chef Guerin creates flavourful dishes with such freshness and efficiency, might I add. As comes with small spaces, also comes creative thinking, being wise in how you cook and operate, which means the menu rotates and keeps you guessing every few months.

Scroll down to have a peek at some of the dishes we enjoyed:

When I was younger, I remember being glued to the television screen watching Canadian figure skaters from Jamie Salé and David Pelletier to Joannie Rochette and Elvis Stojko twirling around and seamlessly gliding across the rink. So when Cirque du Soleil announced its first-ever experience on ice, I was over the moon and the little girl inside me was beyond thrilled. CRYSTAL blends circus arts into unchartered territory - the world of ice skating, taking audiences on a unique journey to a frozen playground where the lead character Crystal dives into her own imagination and curiosity as she discovers she isn't like everyone else and out of sync with herself.

To escape her reality, she ventures out on a frozen pond and falls through the ice into an upside world. In this underwater world of her imagination, she sees a reflection of herself. Her reflection guides her through this new world and wakes her up to her own creativity.

Throughout the show, both gymnasts and skaters perform acrobatics on the ice and in the air, combining multiple disciplines together. Synchronized skating, freestyle figures, and extreme skating are featured alongside circus disciplines such as swinging trapeze, aerial straps, and hand to hand. Figure skaters learned how to be pushers on Chinese poles, while circus artists learned how to skate, and extreme skaters learned figure skating moves. Just spectacular!

AND! Did you know the cast of this show represents eleven different nationalities?! All from the figure, extreme and freestyle ice skaters, acrobats, musicians and comic character.

After being wowed by the show on its first-night performance, I was thoroughly impressed by the music, the artistry, the acrobatics, the visual projections and most importantly the show's theme.

When it came to the music, it was lively, intense and intriguing. It was neat to see that CRYSTAL had popular cover versions of well-known pop songs - a first for a Cirque du Soleil show, that included Sia and Beyoncé, specifically recorded for the show that definitely got the crowd going. Cirque also paid homage to the music of Canada's Maritime provinces while preserving the signature sound of Cirque. This was combined with showcasing Canadian pride through a hockey act where extreme skaters performed crazy flips, twists and jumps at full speed, turning the ice into a giant pinball machine. I'm sure kids in the audience were mesmerized and what better way to keep the celebrating going as Canada Day long weekend was just here. As performers zipped by, the best part, was lead character Crystal jumping out sporting a Kingston Frontenac jersey. Well props to whoever was responsible for that neat marketing plug! 

Here's a sneak peek of the act and set design:

Overall this performance is definitely worth a watch and treating yourself! As Cirque du Soleil’s 42nd creation and the company’s first ice experience, you'll be amazed at the level of artistry and beautiful blend between skating and acrobatics. Playing double duty of figure skating while performing stunts such as aerial trapeze, balance poses and straps or playing an instrument, well I was left speechless with all these showstopping moments.

CRYSTAL is being presented at the Kingston’s Leon’s Centre for a limited run of performances from July 3-7, 2019.

Tickets available here.

Enjoy the show!