After an excellent salmon and lamb navarin with probably a bit too much of wine-encouraged chit-chat with my travelling companion (thanks to the continual refills of the VIA1 service), VIA Rail dropped us off at Toronto’s Union Station at 8:30pm this past Saturday. A friend had been internalizing work stresses in our neighbourhood of the Plateau Mont-Royal, so I felt since it was my spring break as a teacher anyway, a change of setting would do my friend (and also myself) a bit of good, getting his mind off things. He’ll only visit urban places, had 3 days off, I suggested one of the few logical choices Toronto, he accepted and the rest is history now as of this weekend.
We stayed at the Selby Hotel (Clarion Suites) on Sherbourne near Bloor. I read breakfast was included, that it was in a Victorian mansion, that Hemingway lived there briefly, and somehow imagined it to be a bit more old-world Bed & Breakfast-like than it actually was. In truth, I was disappointed that it mostly felt like a chain hotel with conference-goers, but my friend liked the size of the room and we both liked the price ($110/night) and most definitely central location (we don’t drive, so Sherbourne station on the Bloor Line being right there was A+, plus my friend wanted to be close to the Gay Village). One of these days, I’m going to find an inn in Toronto that’s my style, I’m confident, but I think I’ll probably try somewhere else next go-round.
My friend enjoys bustle, and even though he’d been to Toronto once briefly about 10 years ago, he found it amazing how empty the streets seemed in his mind relative to Montreal (“Toronto is a larger city, right?”, he kept saying), even famous ones like Yonge or Church. Working in the fashion industry in Montreal, finding people ordinarily-dressed by-and-large compared to Montreal, he kept saying “I don’t get how this city is supposed to be Canada’s fashion center”. I’m more used to the different dynamic of the two cities, so I didn’t have expectations in this regard.
On Saturday, we met up with a Torontonian friend for drinks in the Church-Wellesley Village, braving the “deep freeze” as Toronto newschannels were calling the -6˚ temperatures (laughable (or good skating weather) from a Montreal point of view). We went to a mostly Gay pub called The Hair of the Dog on Church and loved the ambience and wood panelling, and were sorry Montreal had nothing like it in its Village. In this area, while walking to and from our hotel, I loved the contrast of Victorian/Edwardian homes that offer a touch of charm amidst the high-rise apartment complexes.
The next day I dragged my friend with me to explore Cabbagetown (which I’ve never seen despite having visited Toronto 5 times). My friend, even while he still was grumbling about the lack of bustle in this area as others we’d seen so far, was as drawn as I was to the angular and mysterious-looking history-filled well-preserved Victorian homes in this formerly working-class section of the city. I’m personally drawn toward older homes, so if money were not a concern, I think I’d probably pick to live either here or in Little Italy. I also appreciated the “petting zoo” (Riverdale Park?) area as a unique urban farm-like ambience that I’ve yet to see replicated in another North American city.
Next stop was the Saint Lawrence market, which be warned on Sunday is only about antiques (the building known for amazing food is open Tues-Saturday only). Next stop, I was glad to finally see the Distillery District, a former warehouse-y area transformed into mostly art galleries/restaurants that seems to be mentioned in guidebooks as a positive trend in Toronto urban renewal. The area was a bit quiet on Sunday I think due to the “Deep Freeze”, but I was pleased about some positive projects rejuvenating this part of the city, like a Deaf Cultural Center. We ate at Mill’s Brewing Company for seafood in the Distillery District… which had more of an ESPN-Zone sweatshirt-wearing hockey-watching suburban-like ambience; my friend who is more used to a Jean-Paul Gaultier-wearing setting told me he was having a bit of culture shock LOL.
Stay tuned: The next day, my friend discovers a part of Toronto that makes his rating of the city go from a 7 to an 8.5!
A Change of Pace from Montreal in Toronto
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daniel, did u miss the sweet petting zoo in beacon hill park here in victoria?
cheers
andrew
The following day, we took the subway to Osgoode Station to begin exploration of the Queen Street West area and Chinatown. I don’t know if we were just lucky, but at this juncture, I wanted to mention what a terrific job the Toronto subway does; we never waited it seemed more than 2 minutes for any train the entire time of my stay. I’m pretty malleable with transit, but it’s truly wonderful to be able to travel around so efficiently (we got day passes at $9 each). Hats off to Toronto transit employees for all the hard work it must take to keep such an operation moving so smoothly and an equal thank you to Toronto taxpayers for maintaining a system you should be proud of.
Arriving at Osgoode Station, we walked down Queen Street West. My friend liked this stretch a lot for some of the eclectic shops. He also enjoyed peeking in the studios of “E-Talk Daily” and Much Music, doing some celebrity-spotting trying to see Ben Mulroney or Tanya Kim. (Our Torontonian friends mocked him later for doing this; despite my telling them that for my CTV-watching friend, the E-talk hosts could be considered “celebrities” on a Canadian scale. These particular Torontonian friends didn’t agree… they only thought Hollywood success stories were “stars”. Interesting.)
Now you may be thinking that it was Queen Street West that boosted my travelling companion friend’s estimation of Toronto (as I thought it might be). While that area I believed helped, it was more when we reached Spadina and the uniquely Toronto sight of the red streetcars criss-crossing in all directions adjacent the hustle and bustle of Chinatown that my friend said, “Now this area I like! I feel like I’m somewhere that says ‘Toronto’ now!” My friend and I were struck by the unbelievably low prices of goods in Chinatown (e.g. T-shirts, five for $10) ; he exclaimed that he was impressed having never seen a Chinatown before on this scale (and this area fit well his stated criterion for being happy when surrounded by lots of people). I was a bit surprised that it was Chinatown that would up his estimation of Toronto, as he hardly ever goes to Montreal’s Chinatown, but I was happy to hear the criticisms cease for a moment as he soaked up the energy of an area that made him wide-eyed; he was amazed with the sheer volume of restaurants in this part of town.
Upon a Torontonian friend’s recommendation, we went to Swatow just north of Dundas on Spadina for lunch. Here, I enjoyed the hot-and-sour soup (not the usual North American variety) and my friend looked in heaven with his shrimp dumpling soup and roast duck (something he says he doesn’t get a chance to eat very often). The restaurant may not look like much, but I was thankful our friend suggested us to go, as the food was good and I wouldn’t have known how to begin to pick a place in that area, such is the embarrassment of choices of Chinese restaurants near Spadina and Dundas.
After lunch, we caught the subway to Museum stop and walked over to the Bata Shoe Museum. For those of you (as I once thought) that think the museum is only of interest for shoe-a-holic women-types like Mila Mulroney or Imelda Marcos, think again. I appreciated the museum as a history-lover! Sure, there’s the “celebrity collection” with footwear that Elvis, Pablo Picasso and Marilyn Monroe wore (even Napoleon’s socks are there!). However, there’s also the replica of a shoe from Ötzi man, found frozen in the Alps believed to lived some 5000 years ago, showcases of shoe styles from ancient Egypt, Rome, China spanning through the Middle Ages, Renaissance, 18th/19th century and to modern times. A whole floor is dedicated to Native American shoes; these First Nations’ shoe styles with intricate multicoloured embroidery and patterns make modern shoes look so ordinary in comparison. Discomfort in shoes certainly seems to have long pre-dated stilettos. While the Europeans were masters at making beautifully handcrafted but rather uncomfortable-looking foot adornments (the huge boots of the coachmasters of the 19th century, the high platforms of the rich cutting off circulation), I nearly got blisters looking at some Asian (and their practice of binding women’s feet…ouch!) and African styles as well. Amazing also to think how our feet have grown over the centuries. Anyhow, it’s a terrific historical record and one can’t help but imagine yourself living in a world where the foot decorations were so different from today.
All in all, Toronto offered exactly what we needed. A perfect change of scenery from Montreal, but without too much travelling-wear-and-tear for a 3-day-getaway. Like Montreal, it’s a city that needs time to get a sense of the different neighbourhoods; even though I’ve been a few times, I still feel like I’m still an acquaintance of Toronto only, who is just starting to get a sense of the multifaceted sections of the city. I believe one mistake visitors make is coming snap-judgments about Toronto (I do it, my friend did it, other visitors do it); while yes I’ve found some areas of downtown pretty soul-less, generically North American or not my cup of tea, other parts I find truly special/fascinating. For example, I didn’t especially enjoy the Distillery District (which some people enjoy and have touted), but think Cabbagetown and the Kensington Market area/Little Italy are fascinating city enclaves. Even in the Church-Wellesley Village, I find myself bemoaning the concrete condo-plexes, but loving the Victorian homes miraculously surviving that are squeezed between, giving that part of Toronto a unique look. Some (even some Torontonians) state that “Toronto is just a generic North American city” (which I hate to say it, deters some visitors, in my opinion); this trip, I believe that statement less true.
I’ll be back, Toronto. I’m just getting to know you, but more and more I think you DO have something unique to offer. Thanks for this March 2009 getaway! Daniel.
Andrew: Yes, I do recollect a petting zoo at Beacon Hill Park in Victoria, yes. The one in Toronto though is different, and gave me the illusion of being in a rural pioneer-like farm within a city.
Daniel,
Thanks for the interesting report. I enjoyed visiting the 'neighbourhoods' in Toronto a few years ago. I'd like to go back and see the Bata Shoe museum.
Have you visited 'the islands'? I remember taking a short ferry ride to one and it was a great vantage point for photographing Toronto.
Sassy_cat,
Thanks for reading. There are numerous areas of Toronto I've not been to before; the Islands and the Beaches are two areas I'd like to check out in more clement weather. One of these days, I'll also explore the Danforth and perhaps some outlying historic communities like those recommended to me in an earlier post. (To those that recommended places, thank you; this trip, the time constraints and my friend's preference for an urban setting nixed all but Cabbagetown in your recommended suggestions.)
Speaking of which, I know B&Bs are not especially a part of the Toronto hotel accommodation scene but I tell you if any enterprising Cabbagetowner (Cabbagetownite?) in one of those charming Victorian homes sets up a B&B at a reasonable price, I have little doubt they WILL get business. Not only myself, but several of my friend's clients (he's a hairdresser) were very curious when they thought we'd found a B&B in Toronto.
Sincerely, Daniel
Daniel - as always a thoroughly detailed and interesting report. Nice reminder to move Toronto closer to the top of the "return to" list.
Thanks dfr4848,
As I remember you're a train lover too, here's hoping you get some fun train travels in this year. I'm looking forward to experiencing the contrast of British Rail this upcoming summer (which I've not been in decades).
Montreal-Toronto has some pretty parts BTW on VIA Rail if you've never been on that leg of N. American rail, skirting along the north shore of Lake Ontario for many miles between Toronto and Kingston; the Saint Lawrence River is also periodically visible near Brockville. For me, Lake Ontario is the beautiful portrait I look forward to seeing when I travel on this stretch of track.
Daniel
Daniel - quite correct about trains. Good memory. It's been 3 years since I've been on British Rail. Did a day trip from London to York. Had heard some bad reviews about BR, but had a very nice trip - on time, clean and smooth. No complaints. Very reasonable tickets if you avoided rush hour (after 8:00 if I recall correctly). Really didn't do York justice; well worth a long weekend. Very pleasant town. Anxious to hear about the trip afterward.
Gee, can't believe I failed to mention the National Railway Museum in York. You've probably seen it, but it's an excellent exhibit with some real classic engines and cars. Less than a 10 min walk from the station.
www.nrm.org.uk/
I've never been to York actually...
Since I will only be in the South of England (London area and Southampton area mostly), York will remain an excellent suggestion for a future trip.
Thanks for the link. Daniel
Nice report. One thing I like about Toronto is the different neighbourhoods. Next time you might want to check out the Danforth (some people call it Greektown, but I still call it the Danforth) - on a nice evening, it's quite busy. Also Leslieville is an up & coming area for restaurants (and mid-century modern furniture, if that's your style). Those are the main areas I frequent (along with Riverdale), since I live in Leslieville, but I also like to get to Queen Street West (west of Bathurst).
Hello Susan
Thanks for reading and also the suggestions for neighbourhood exploring on future visits.
Best wishes, Daniel.
Many Chinese in Montreal come on vacation to Toronto, because they can get better and more interesting Chinese food and groceries in TO. Next time you could head up to the Pacific Mall at Steeles and Kennedy, one of the largest Chinese malls outside China. It's not your average cookie-cutter North American shopping experience.