Toronto
Toronto University Graduation Day
June 14, 2007
I was in Toronto for a meeting and fortunately got an early flight the day before
I had to work so had plenty of time to see the city. The trip from the airport to
my hotel downtown took nearly 45 minutes due to the city's sprawling layout, but
once I was in town everything seemed fairly easy to navigate.
The subway system in Toronto is very convenient from my hotel and everything it
seems is only a short walk from a subway stop. My first stop was at the CN (Canada's
National) Tower, from which I could see Lake Ontario to the south and the city in
every other direction. There's a glass floor you can walk on, which is exciting,
looking down there's not a lot to see other than a new perspective.
From here I decided to walk north and quickly realized that street vendors selling
sausages has become a staple to the city's culture. Fortunately, the Polish
immigrant population has also become a staple and their influence demands Polish
kielbasa at every street stand. The sausage was as good as it gets outside of Poland
itself.
My next stop was at Toronto University, which I just happened to stumble across
as the graduation ceremony was ending and the crowd poured into the adjacent yard.
Families celebrated, friends said goodbyes, and I just watched, mesmerized by the
scene from the shade of a tree.
For dinner, I again wandered around until I found a small place called Utsav, an
Indian restaurant, which at first slightly scared me since the place had only two
other customers, however I was hungry so ordered. My host, Suresh was incredibly
nice and the food, much of which he recommended was incredible. As I was finishing
and ready to leave, the place began to fill up. At this time I realized Indians
tend to dine very late, in fact in Punjab, India they partake in Punjabi dinner,
which typically starts at about 10:00pm. I soon became a minority and decided to
free my table for another customer as I headed back to the hotel.
June 16, 2007
At the conclusion of our meeting, there was a lake cruise. The cruise provided great
views of the city and perhaps more alcohol than most of the people on that boat
should have drank. As those on the boat got intoxicated, I felt more and more sober,
however it's difficult to get more sober when you're completely sober.
June 17, 2007
Before leaving today, I went over to the nearby Royal Ontario Museum for a temporary
Peruvian exhibit. The exhibit was impressive as was the entire museum. Plus, the
building itself seemed to be an exhibit in and of itself. The building had a courtyard,
however has been completely covered by modern architecture, contrasting the original
building and leaving me in awe.
View from the CN Tower in Toronto
January 17, 2008
Back in Toronto for another meeting and back off to Utsav for another meal. Incredible.
Royal Ontario Museum in Toronto
June 19, 2009
I again started my time in Toronto with a trip to Utsav for Indian food.
After a couple days of meetings and poutine (French fries and cheese curds covered
in gravy) we finished our meeting with a Wine and Spirit Fest in the Distillery
District. This was my first time in this area and it reminded me of an area in Milwaukee,
where they've gutted out old warehouses and turned them into modern condos,
shops, and restaurants. Here however many of the buildings were part of an old distillery.
The streets are pedestrian and consist of roughly laid out red bricks that match
most of the buildings. The festival had all sorts of wines and tons of food including
ice cream, poutine, and sandwiches. This part of the city has great feel... at great
food, at least for tonight.
Toronto Skyline