Toronto

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We had a 7:30am flight to Toronto with Air Canada so we were up bright and early. At least we could just drive to the airport and not have to worry about cabs. I manage to successfully navigate our way to the airport and then it’s a short one and a quarter hour flight. The Air Canada flight crew are once again really nice and we’ve enjoyed flying with them.

We catch a cab to our hotel, the Fairmont Royal York. It’s in the same chain as the hotel at Lake Louise so I’m already prepared for Tim to not like it. It’s one of the oldest hotels in Toronto and directly opposite the railway station, and it’s also on the stop line for Greyhound buses. This is the main reason I picked this hotel to make tomorrow when we go to Niagara Falls a little easier.

The hotel itself looks big, old and grand. They let us check into our room early, and it’s a nice room. Some of the hallways are so long, maybe 200-300 metres and then have other wings coming off those as well. The staff were really nice, but the hotel lost brownie points (especially for Tim) when the bellman dropped our bags off and then stood there waiting for his tip, even adding that he has change! Unfortunately things are different here than at home, love it or hate it, tips are EXPECTED and it’s easier to go along with it. We just doesn’t like the expectation, tips should be for good service not just because.

After a bit of a nap we had a walk around downtown on the way to Hard Rock café for lunch. Lots of shops to check out and the town has a very different feel to it than Montreal, a lot more relaxed yet it has an upbeat feels to it.

Hard Rock café is located very centrally next to an open area with fountains coming out of the ground that you can run through (run because it’s still on the chilly side!), but heaps of kids play under them till the parents get them dry before hypothermia sets in. But it’s a fun atmosphere, lots of people, dogs, tourists and kids. There are big screen t.v’s (probably would have been a good place for the World Cup Grand Final) playing assorted shows and music videos. The double decker bus on/off tour also departs from here. It’s quite expensive but it’s valid for 2 days so if you are going to use it a bit it would be worth the money.

The service was really good and we sat outside near the fountains so it was a nice place to relax and watch the world go by. A guy went racing by with another man in hot pursuit with a woman yelling her bag had been snatched. Things livened up a bit for a moment and then everyone back about their business, like it was a normal part of the day.

We walked to the CN Tower stopping along the way at a small park to watch the dozens of chipmunks run around, they are so cool to watch - only for tourists because the locals don’t even bat an eyelid!

CN TOWER

The tower had a bit of a line due to the tight security, they even had a metal detector that blew strong air up and down you which was pretty funky!

The elevator going up was all glass, even the floor, so even the simple task of going up was great.

It was quite crowded up the top but it was still large enough for everyone to have a good look at the huge city. Across the river there is a small island that has an airport on it for smaller planes, so we were able to watch them taking off and landing. For the size of the airport, it was really busy.

There is an outside verandah like in Melbourne that we went out on to. And just like Melbourne, it is super windy, because of the height and just because it’s Toronto I’m guessing! There was also a glass floor section where you look straight down at all the little teeny ant people walking below. It feels a little surreal lying down on it looking below…

We wait another half hour in line to go up to the sky-pod which is another 15-20 stories up and with a completely unobstructed view. On the levels below there is a restaurant so you can’t see the whole city. Great view and we could see our hotel which you can tell is a lot older than the rest. Our hotel was originally built to service the rail road; hence it’s age and history.

We walked the short way to Hooters for dinner and for the first time were disappointed. The food was still as good as always but the service was lacking. Not cheerful or prompt, but hey, they can’t all be perfect! At least we walked away with contented bellies!

After a walk back to the hotel it was an early night looking forward to our big day at Niagara Falls tomorrow. I like how centrally everything is located if you are staying in the central area, and even though it’s the middle of the city, there is still a nice feel to it.

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