So my first full day in Toronto was a Sunday. My clever cousin decided to take me on a tour of the city to get me acquainted. I had timed my visit poorly, and he wasn't able to get the whole week off while I was there. Because of this, I would be spending some time alone. He thought, prudently, that he should familiarize me with the transit/subway system, and with the layout of the city. Therefore, we spent the entire day on Sunday exploring the city.
So we started the day by catching the bus, transferring to the subway, and surfacing somewhere in the city. We weaved our way through a few streets, and found our first location: the pub where we'd be having breakfast/lunch/brunch. He ordered some sort of Whatzit IPA 5 beer, which brought the owner of the pub out looking for the person who ordered it. I thought that he was going to say that they were out of that particular brew, but no. Instead, he and Craig (my cousin) launched into a 10 minute discussion about beer.
Bored, I looked around and admired the scenery. As can be seen in these two photos, we were on a street comprised of many low-rise brick buildings which housed businesses on the first floors and residences on the upper floors. Brick is the major theme of Ontario building and architecture. Everything from tiny bungalows to many-storied apartment buildings are built using brick. It's depressing and heavy, and I don't much like it. The only bonus is that the owners can grow ivy and other climbing plants without having to worry about cutting them down for painting.
The breakfast was excellent haute pub faire; I had whole wheat cinnamon french toast, and Craig had smoked salmon eggs benedict. We ate while Craig explained in excruciating detail what IPA means (India Pale Ale...see how short the explanation can be). We then started back on our wending way through the city. We walked by the Royal Ontario Museum, and noted the offensive addition a very reknowned architect is smiting the building with. Daniel Liebskind, internationally reknowned architect, is saddling the lovely old building with "interlocking prismatic forms". See for yourself at the website or from my photo.
Personally, I'm a little offended by it. I don't find it clever or esthetically pleasing.
We wandered around the city for most of the day (we apparently covered 11 kilometres on foot). We walked past and through Honest Ed's store. I really wanted to pick up some souvenirs here, but we got lost in the maze of bargains, I panicked thinking that we might never escape, and we bolted for the door. It was really difficult to not pick up a few gilded Elvis busts, but the lineups were foreboding and I couldn't figure out how they would fit in my luggage.
Over the course of the day's wanderings, we managed to find refuge in 4 pubs. This didn't surprise me, but it did disappoint me a little. But I do realize that Craig's comfort beverage is beer, while mine is a frappucino. This cold-turkey quittage of the Starbuck's might be the explanation for my queasiness the next day. Or it could have at least contributed to "the incident". Tune in tomorrow for more details on that.
We made it back to Craig's neighbourhood, which is near High Park. He wanted to show me the most excellent Chapters store ever. It is in a former theatre, and for once, the new owners didn't excavate and recreate. Instead, they kept most of the theatrical atmosphere.
It's a little sad that something such as this thrills me so much, but it did. Maybe it was because this was the first time I noticed the one thing that makes Toronto better than BC. A woman was strolling through the store with her yellow lab. And no-one was freaking out! Well, I was, because I thought it was so cool. Craig and I had a conversation about how Torontonians are able to take dogs into public places...stores, transit, some restaurants. It led to a very heated discussion which I won't repeat, but I will say that it threatened the goodness of the rest of the visit.
Anyhow, he picked up Season 5 of The Simpsons, and we returned to his apartment at a somewhat early hour to watch a couple of episodes. I was exhausted by the 11 kilometre walk, and the humidity wasn't helping. Besides, we had an early day planned for Monday.
So we started the day by catching the bus, transferring to the subway, and surfacing somewhere in the city. We weaved our way through a few streets, and found our first location: the pub where we'd be having breakfast/lunch/brunch. He ordered some sort of Whatzit IPA 5 beer, which brought the owner of the pub out looking for the person who ordered it. I thought that he was going to say that they were out of that particular brew, but no. Instead, he and Craig (my cousin) launched into a 10 minute discussion about beer.
Bored, I looked around and admired the scenery. As can be seen in these two photos, we were on a street comprised of many low-rise brick buildings which housed businesses on the first floors and residences on the upper floors. Brick is the major theme of Ontario building and architecture. Everything from tiny bungalows to many-storied apartment buildings are built using brick. It's depressing and heavy, and I don't much like it. The only bonus is that the owners can grow ivy and other climbing plants without having to worry about cutting them down for painting.
The breakfast was excellent haute pub faire; I had whole wheat cinnamon french toast, and Craig had smoked salmon eggs benedict. We ate while Craig explained in excruciating detail what IPA means (India Pale Ale...see how short the explanation can be). We then started back on our wending way through the city. We walked by the Royal Ontario Museum, and noted the offensive addition a very reknowned architect is smiting the building with. Daniel Liebskind, internationally reknowned architect, is saddling the lovely old building with "interlocking prismatic forms". See for yourself at the website or from my photo.
Personally, I'm a little offended by it. I don't find it clever or esthetically pleasing.
We wandered around the city for most of the day (we apparently covered 11 kilometres on foot). We walked past and through Honest Ed's store. I really wanted to pick up some souvenirs here, but we got lost in the maze of bargains, I panicked thinking that we might never escape, and we bolted for the door. It was really difficult to not pick up a few gilded Elvis busts, but the lineups were foreboding and I couldn't figure out how they would fit in my luggage.
Over the course of the day's wanderings, we managed to find refuge in 4 pubs. This didn't surprise me, but it did disappoint me a little. But I do realize that Craig's comfort beverage is beer, while mine is a frappucino. This cold-turkey quittage of the Starbuck's might be the explanation for my queasiness the next day. Or it could have at least contributed to "the incident". Tune in tomorrow for more details on that.
We made it back to Craig's neighbourhood, which is near High Park. He wanted to show me the most excellent Chapters store ever. It is in a former theatre, and for once, the new owners didn't excavate and recreate. Instead, they kept most of the theatrical atmosphere.
It's a little sad that something such as this thrills me so much, but it did. Maybe it was because this was the first time I noticed the one thing that makes Toronto better than BC. A woman was strolling through the store with her yellow lab. And no-one was freaking out! Well, I was, because I thought it was so cool. Craig and I had a conversation about how Torontonians are able to take dogs into public places...stores, transit, some restaurants. It led to a very heated discussion which I won't repeat, but I will say that it threatened the goodness of the rest of the visit.
Anyhow, he picked up Season 5 of The Simpsons, and we returned to his apartment at a somewhat early hour to watch a couple of episodes. I was exhausted by the 11 kilometre walk, and the humidity wasn't helping. Besides, we had an early day planned for Monday.
posted by kuzcolike at
6:42 PM
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