Where have I come to?

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When:15th July - 20th Aug 2013

Where: Toronto

Highlights: visiting & living IN the concrete jungle, hunting open space whenever wherever possible, making new friends, visiting all the touristy venues. In short, been there, done that.




Calgary has 1/5th of Toronto's population. This statistic meant nothing to me until I actually felt it. I am not a city person and if this post is biased, well, I cannot help it. Did I come across all the 5 million people in the city? It definitely feels so!




Toronto Eaton Center

Highly over-rated! Expensive! Touristy!

And this feeling after my third(and probably final) visit. Also after a local told me so😞. I just blindly began to believe that shopping is expensive in Toronto as such. I came across other cheaper options. Will mention if I end up going there. Might as well, wait for a bit and go back home to shop!!!




High Park Zoo ****

This is one of our first explorations. I think a local might have mentioned this somewhere in a streetcar. We did not plan on going out to Toronto Zoo, so we gladly settled for something much closer and free. This zoo mainly runs on donations. They also house a small petting zoo which I found very cute and educational.

After initial refusal, S fed all the 4 Llamas, played farmer, petted chicken, bunny and saw 2 joeys. Its amazing when they put these small guys in a bag to imitate a pouch and they actually settle for it.

High Park was once privately owned. It is an oasis in the middle of a concrete jungle. Interestingly, an older worker at the zoo shared that the owner gave his land to the city on 2 conditions:

1. no drinking allowed in the park

2. it should be a free park for ever

We shared views on Toronto being a concrete jungle and actually helped me vent out a lot about my thoughts on the place and the East in general.

By this time, I was ready to head back home(close to the mountains). I hated it in the "city"!!!




Woodbine Beach *****

This was our little venture out to our first beach. We enjoy the streetcar rides. The drivers are friendly and willing to stop an entire car to answer your question. One such driver actually gave me a much-needed TTC map. It was huge help. I hear they keep a stash of these maps at every Subway station. We got on the 501. I told S we would get off, when she says so. We just wanted to get out of the city. We needed some trees, some bugs, some water, some nature and NO CONCRETE!

It was interesting to see the houses around the beach area. Beautiful victorian style homes. Admiring every single home knowing clearly well that I couldn't afford one, we walked down towards the beach.

*For all you ocean-side dwellers, beach here is on the shores of Lake Ontario. No offense to the real salt-water beach, but when this is all one can get, I guess its all OK!*

We found our spot on the sand and enjoyed the heat, the waves, the water. For someone who looks at fresh water *beaches* like next to nothing, I was pretty impressed at the waves and sand.

It was a pretty neat beach and we saw some kite surfers in the waters. Seemed an interesting sport. Swimming is allowed and there were more than 1 life guard.

I found a (probably the only) ladybug in Toronto lost in the sand. Me & S took turns turns exploring her. After a while, when we decided to let go, seemed like she didn't want to let go. We then realized that she wasn't home and S dropped her safe by the grass(after safely carrying her across the entire beach - I was impressed!). She seemed happy as she left us immediately.



We walked past what seemed like at least 30 volleyball courts. After a while at the playground, I managed to pack S back. S was interested in seeing some Monarch butterflies at the nearby park, but none were to be seen. The season starts in Oct(in Bay area at least). We found our way through the Jazz festival grounds. All this took a good 4+ hrs. We headed back to Coxwell @ Queen to get back home.



Riverdale Farm *****

This is another oasis in the middle of the city. S was the main reason that we went here. After High Park, she wanted to pet more animals, but I had to assure more than once that she can only see and not touch them. They feed them enough at the farm, so unfortunately, no feeding either.

It was a neat little place tucked away in a corner. A beautiful corner. We saw the animals. S loved the barn the most. She loved looking at the pigs snorting, the hens clucking and the turkeys peeking.

She climbed up trees, walked the Discovery walk to both the ponds, saw a red winged black bird and visited the barn again. There, she found a new friend who ended up being "Friend for the day!"

It felt so nice mothering 2 kids actually. 😊

The farm has a kitchen that sells goodies. It's a little something. And I coincided our visit to the local Farmer's market outside the farm every Tuesday. We got some fruits, enjoyed some hand squeezed lemonade, petted dogs and played some more in the water fountain outside.

We called it a day! A long day!




The Bata Shoe Museum *****

Thursdays 5.00-8.00pm is pay-what-you-can fee. one such evening we landed there. The museum itself is a very short walk from St.George station. It was an interesting landmark in the AAA book. I had never been to a Shoe museum before(who has?) and hence no clue what to expect. So, G and I were in for a surprise. It is a whole world of shoes and shoe-making! A very impressive collection that was initially Mrs. Sonja Bata's personal collection. With Bata's everywhere, I had no clue that Bata would have been the name of a man. Going back on Time machine was just great. I was particularly impressed with their Indian collection as much as their Chinese and Japanese. Who would think of taking shoes off mummies from Egyptian pyramids? How crazy does an old culture sound now? A must-visit in my opinion as it is the only one in North America solely dedicated to the history of footwear.



Toronto Islands ****

Ducked 10 minutes away from land, this island boasts of the best views of the Toronto Skyline. Someone on the streetcar mentioned Ward's Island and this prompted us to head there first.

The ferry is $7 per person RT. Ward's Island beach was very beautiful and S immediately changed into her swim clothes. It was hot but the water was cold as expected. But still, we all jumped in. Literally! We managed to drench G whenever possible. He stayed away from us, eventually. After some mud-baths, we decided to check the beach off our list for the day.

We walked towards the Centre island that houses an amusement park filled with kids' rides.

As soon as we entered, our plans of renting a quadric-cycle vanished. S was planning to stay back for the night. We had to remind her that was not possible. She made some friends that kept the day going.

They took all the rides and had so much fun. We also visited the Far Enough Farm that had the largest Landrace pig we have ever seen. She is Charlotte and she weighs a good 640lbs. It just makes me wild when they say they feed a pig to kill it and eat it as pork or sausage or whatever. What a shame!

Amongst the rides, we all shared a funnel cake. It was a pretty interesting junk food.

The park was almost empty by closing time and we had decided to stay back late to take some night shots of the downtown skyline. It is shocking that they do not have a proper viewing area. I found a way to a small peninsula that jutted out into the lake. It was dark and had I missed a step, I'd be in that cold water. The family could not stay back long enough and protect themselves from mosquitoes. So, they left. So, it was just me, my camera and the skyline. At that time, everything seemed palpable.

As much as I hate this concrete jungle, I have to admit that this is the most interesting skyline I have ever seen. The CN tower is just majestic!

S found yet another friend at the Ferry Terminal. It was cute to see them forget their physical pains and play like the day just started.

It was hard to make S walk back home at midnight. But we did. And we crashed as soon as we landed.

We might probably go back to rent the quadri-cycles. It seemed an interesting place to ride those.




Fort York *****

I had no clue that Toronto had history. So, when I came across this, I was more than eager to go visit.

There is a guided tour every hour on the hour and a music/gunfire demonstration. People wear costumes to take us back 200 years. The fort inspired me. I plan to look up Canadian history to learn more about the battle of York in 1812. Interestingly, there is a mention about this in Canadian Place in Vancouver as well. It was a complete shock that 1 block of Toronto near the lake is landfill. The lakeshore was near Fort York 200 years ago. A chat with a lady who pretended to be the cook threw some light on the life so many years ago.

IMO, this is worth every penny. Though it is a National historic site, it is run by the City of Toronto. In short, your National Park pass does not cover your visit here.



Allan Gardens **

This is a smaller version of the Conservatory of Flowers in Golden Gate Park, San Francisco. Not a must, but could be a neat stop over for a lunch. It is free.



Humber Bay **

We took the 501 and headed W. We got off when S was asking, "Where should we get off?"

Though the map says Western Beaches, it is not quite a beach. At least not a great beach. Woodbine is better. However, they have a huge playground with a water area. S was in cloud 9. It is a neat little place for an afternoon trip. The clouds gathered on our way back and had a good time walking back to the street car station. An uneventful journey brought us back home.



Ontario Science Centre ****

G decided to skip a visit here. So, we came here on a weekday. It is way bigger than the one in Calgary by space and exhibits for the same price of $22. I found a 20%!o(MISSING)ff coupon online and that brought down the total price to $28. A steel I would say. So many of them had the same coupon, btw.

I reminded myself that the visit was for S. I can easily get carried away in such places. 😊. So, we hit Kids Spark instantly and S was immediately at home. There were kids from at least 5 different day camps and I had to yell to be heard. It was in vain. Thankfully, they all left by 3:00 pm and the whole place seemed less crowded. It was pretty educational and interactive. Their IMAX was running a Monarch Butterfly film and I was extra confident that S could not sit in one place for the entire duration. So, I didn't bother.

Level 4 & 6 are a must if you have kids. Level 6 was more scientific and we made our own home and a hat from the rags and odds they had. It was interesting.

After playing a little bit and knowing about electricity and electro-magnetism in kids level, we encountered the science room. We would've completely missed it as it was neatly tucked away from sight. It was well past 6.30 pm so we missed the last planetarium show. Anyways, I wasn't sure if S could sit through watching stars for 40 min. Well! She will never miss something she did not know of. We continued playing. Just when they announced the closing of the premises, we walked out. There is stuff to do for more than 8 hrs in a day. So, I would hit the lines as they open. Worth a visit, I would say!




Niagara Falls

Don't get me started. A dedicated post follows. 😊



Toronto Public Library ****

Library card is a must for S. Thankfully, we got one without paying a fee thanks to a helpful staff. Of course, we provided the needed documents to show that G was working here. The city hall library is not the place to go with kids. They do not have a huge kids collection. We have been to 2 other locations. They have a huge network. 78 branches in all. As opposed to 12 in Calgary. Incomparable! But the Vancouver Central library is the best so far!

Unfortunately the reading programs in Toronto weren't that great. So, just reading for this summer. No badges or the likes to be a Super-reader!




Chinatown/Kensington Market ****

Nothing can beat the Chinatown market in price. Found some great fresh fruits here. People behind the counter were rude but seemed normal about it. Guess, its an Asian thing!😱

Kensington Market was cool. Some organic shops but not an area I would want to hang around with a 5 yr old. It seemed safe, but if you are young(in age) you probably have more things to do in the area.



Orfus Road

A resident mentioned that no one shops in Eaton Center. Its mainly for the tourists! I should have guessed. She mentioned other options where people actually buy clothes. Orfus road came top on her list. I do not have a city style dressing sense and almost gave up shopping plans in Toronto or GTA(Greater Toronto Area for the uninitiated). But I had a free day and decided to check the road, with S(I sure have high plans!!!). The road is shops galore! All the outlets. I found some interesting stuff in Le Chateau. But still wasn't convinced enough to buy anything. After walking till the end for search of that "perfect" shop, I had to walk back convinced that there was nothing in here.

There were many outlet stores and there was quite a bit of crowd. Unfortunately, there is no place to eat decent food or go to the bathroom. As mentioned in many reviews, if you have a huge bag, you cannot carry it into each store.



Dufferin Mall

Houses a Walmart Superstore. Nothing worthy enough to mention.



Overall Toronto experience was educational. I could live here if I had no other choice or for better reasons, but it would not be my favorite choice. Ever!

With all due respect to the place, I need more space. Natural space. And with all due respect to homo sapiens, lesser(much) of that species would be great!



It was a humbling experience to be in a city. It made me think a lot. People looking at the watches or checking their smartphones and zooming by, no time to even look at others, the J walking, the honking, the impatience...I am glad to be in a place a third as big as this. Big city, you? As S would say, "No thank you!"



Hopefully back home soon and a camping trip maybe!😊



Adios amigos,

~travelbuffs

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No city should be too large for a man to walk out of in a morning. ~Cyril Connolly

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Photos

Swan ride
Centreville