Travelling, it's still the thing I love most in the world

DAYS 3 AND 4 - 

Predominantly on my jaunt of Ontario and Quebec, I was wrapped up and resembling the Littlest eskimo; cos that's how all the cool cats dress these days. That might not exactly yell 'fashion forward' but the faux fur on the lining of my hefty jacket, kept me warm and toasty. And tbh, I rather enjoyed my strolls; chilly though they often were. 

I was present for the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, which has been held annually since 1922 and is the 'largest fair of it's kind in the world.' Livestock breeders bring over 6000 animals to the event so it's no wonder the barns have a mighty, manurey emanation!! Tons of people come along for the fun and I myself had an unexpectedly awesome time. 

MAJESTIC MARES - I'm not well versed in equestrian ways and never even had a hobby horse but I still got a kick out of the International Show Jumpers World Championships. Rousing cheers from the crowd didn't appear to phase the fillies or their precision in vaulting over the obstacles; clearly they're accustomed to the spotlight from numerous contests. Barkway Topaz and its glossy mane, took home the overall title. After this and the Belgian cart class, I can now say I've begun to understand the pony appeal. 

Alpacas are now up there with my favourite animals because of their cuteness. I could wax on all day long about the delightful nature of these tender-hearted, docile, loving creatures. A lady who owns an alpaca farm (not exactly a species you'd think would frequent Canada!) came to give a demo with 2 of her 40 strong flock. During her Q & A I was saddened to learn that they can be infected by a brain worm parasite which may lead to damage in their nervous system or even death :'(  

THE CATTLE ARE NOT LOWING - The cows had a cow and the cattle got rattled at the men applying the milker under their udders. One rebellious mammal kicked out when their teets were dipped in iodine (to prevent contamination); shouldn't the owners have known not to milk against the bovine's will? 

Samples were in abundance from the exhibitors but these are two of the strangest I scored. 1) Buckwheat brownies which were culinarily manipulative and not even microscopically sweet. Boo, buckwheat, BOO - you're not even good weird and my palate hates you!  
2) An earthy-tasting dead cricket - which Enomo Farms claims is one of the planet's most sustainable superfoods. Let's just say it wasn't one of my favourite things to munch in the whole, wide world but I was left with no psychological trauma to speak of. 

The sweeties within Pizza Pizza's Petting Zoo brought the party themselves and the tiny tots were happier than pigs in poop to stroke and pet the goats and sheep. That was all very cute! I did however doubt the credentials of Daniel Steep at his Agri-magic show. Yes, it was meant for the kiddy widdies not the old biddies but it was donkey dung even if he seemingly made milk leak from a wee lad's elbow and a table levitate!

ILLUMINITE LIT IT UP LIKE IT WAS DYNAMITE - Toronto's miniature version of Times Square was joyfully dazzling and I can't .. I WON'T dial back my love for this city. My bum only had 30 seconds left of feeling before it iced up totally (I was sat on a bench for hours to save my space) at the 9th annual theatrical illuminations in Yonge-Dundas Square. The Stacey Renee band was rocking out some Christmassy numbers and covers of uptempo tunes which had all 12,000+ of us dancing!  

It may have only been mid-November but there's no sidestepping Christmas in these here parts. The LED dances and quirky mime acts were like something out of a neon dream/nightmare. By far the craziest of which was when the grand piano was suspended in mid air by a crane with acrobats dangling off as they somersaulted, before fireworks were set off. 

The 40ft tree lighting itself was not all that spectacular as it was simplistically white in light with no tacky baubles or gauche decorations. Now if it had lit up and sang, that would have been something! We were all in jolly spirits and I in particular had a blast boogying atop of my bench. Right that night, I felt BRILLIANT. 

BURRITO BOYZ - Thou hast shattered my world of taste in the best way possible. My sweet potato, whole wheat 'small' was fully loaded with all kinds of salad, cilantro and guacamole. I could nae finish the 1 lb 2 oz beastie but the warm memories of mouthfuls of mmmmmmm linger. 

I do so very much not like waiting, so to essentially waste 4 hours of a day for the 111th Santa Claus Parade didn't put me in a mood as sunny as the day itself. People had already pitched up to secure a seat, long before the 11am I arrived at which meant I scrapped my plans for a hot chocolate in Christie Pitts Park. 

Fuming inside though I was, when a family intentionally swanned in front of the barricades (10 minutes prior to the parade kick off!!), parking themselves and their clan of kids using their strollers to block anybody from passing.. I let it go unavenged. The ignorance continued midway into it as another family barged forward, with zero consideration for all the people who had gotten there much earlier in the morning. I find it personally abhorrent that these scoundrels not only trod on my feet multiple times but also stood up directly ahead of children, who now couldn't see a speck. 

HIT THE SNOOZE BUTTON ON THIS SNOOZE FEST - Much of this long-standing tradition wasn't at all Christmas-related as much as I wanted it to be, magically so. A random assortment of cartoon characters put in an appearance like Mario, Pacman, The Good Dinosaur, a turkey and the princesses with Olaf from Frozen. Yet, the wait for the big guy in his sleigh was terminally lengthy! Somehow I'd mistakenly been under the impression that the celebration would consist of hundreds of Santa Clauses but nope just the one. 

From my positioning, (near the beginning) no music heralded the acts which made it largely silent and stilted. The marching bands were marching down an opposite street so none came our way which no doubt contributed to the deflated vibe. It was like the performers weren't sure when to move and waited around for those before them to signal. Was it utterly unrehearsed or was I settled in a less than prime spot? I look forward to never seeing it again. 

PRESENTER PERFECTION - I'm pretty sure I was on live Canadian TV on a local news network (maybe twice) as the hunky chappy spoke to the crowd where I was and the camera was before me. Smiling and waving furiously as I did, I'm bound to have looked like England's greatest loon and a Santa fan girl! Unless I am seeing things, cutie patootie also made flirtatious eye contact with me off air *swoon* ;) All the girlies were pestering him for selfies but I'm smoother than that, plus I didn't have the nerve!

After scoffing a messy fiesta of yummy for my tummy in the form of the trio of tacos from Mucho Burrito, it was time to check out The Hockey Hall of Fame. For those of you who don't know your Gretzky's from your Messier's (like me!) the 60,000 sq ft exhibit may be lost on you. It didn't feel right to be in Canada, the home of the sport without stopping off here. 

Turns out, I'm now a big fan of ice hockey and that's solely from glimpsing the memorabilia and the protective gear showcased. It is larger than I expected with: Tim Horton's Theatre playing reels of archival highlights, TSN showing a 3D movie of Stanley's Game 7 where you feel right in the action and you can even BE a player taking shots or blocking them with real pucks against a computer simulation. This interactive museum provides hours and hours of enjoyment 'amongst' your hockey heroes. 

THE GREATEST GAME ON EARTH - In the SportsCentre Studio, I tried my hand at sports broadcasting which was recorded on camera as you follow along with a teleprompter. No one was around so this is why I gave it a whirl but on watching the replay I realised that my voice was too faint. I'm not exactly quiet so I don't know why the mic didn't pick me up more audibly but the sports anchors of Canada can rest assured that I won't be stealing their jobs!! Best of all, was inside the Esso Great Hall you can touch *THE* Stanley Cup (most recently won by the Chicago Blackhawks), no big deal!

Don't you know how GREAT you are, 5 Guys Burgers and Fries?? What with double patty hamburgers and out of control huge portion sizes - I'd have been better off ordering little fries rather than the regular! Refillable root beer, to boot :D 

I had lovely company that evening with Chloe (from my dorm at the Backpackers) and subsequent to dining we had a walk round the city at night - it's a constant surprise. You could live a nice, happy life here as the T Dot feels so safe, like a smaller, cleaner, quieter and less busy NYC. I am completely charmed by you, Toronto xx

It is wonderful to be in the GREAT WHITE NORTH, EY?

(these photos are not my own)

DAYS 1 and 2 - 

NYC twinkled beneath me like fairy lights on a Christmas tree as we came in to land. I could look at that happy, sparkly sight for hours on end or 'til it stopped being magical. The entire flight was smooth-flying, save for my dumb 'oops' moment where I'd left my hand luggage on a free seat (which was not my own) while I took out what was needed and then stowed it in the overhead compartment, before taking my own seat. Unbeknownst to me, my water bottle had leaked all over another passenger's chair and it wasn't until a small shriek was heard to the left of me, when she sat in the puddle of water, soaking her bottom... that it dawned on me - this was my fault. Did I confess? No, I didn't dare, rather than explain how the mishap occurred, I drooped down in my own dry chair!!! The cabin crew cavalry came to her aid and replaced it with a dry cushion; so after that I was free from my guilt. Sorry, to the lady of 39H!

The sassy madam steering the queues at immigration got all cranky with those who had joined the queue from our flight, for showing up so late after landing. Pardon us, for being near the back of the Boeing and that everyone in front of us exited snail sloooooowly. I got off and lined up immediately after so I'm not sure who spilt water on her chair!!!! :D 

(again, these are not my own)

Nuttily, when the shuttle dropped me off across the road from the bus terminal in Times Square - I couldn't believe where I was! The razzle dazzle brilliance of ogled me but I had a bus to Toronto to catch so could not stop to flip out over my surroundings. 

SEEDY SORTS ON THE COACH - Why oh why do the lunatics have to be seated beside me? Can't the nice girls be left alone, safely? Replete with unease, I had to playact that I was asleep when a Buffalo, ghetto guy was next to me for an hour or so. I kid you not, he rapped to himself vehemently for 30 minutes straight about his n-words and other things too terrible for me to write. I wanted to punch him in his rotten face or scream like a mental patient for him to get away from him, as his profanities were yelled endlessly over 50 times. How immense was my relief when he left!!!

I could have opted to travel via train but no, no I selected HELL. The bloggeress in me doth exaggerate - it wasn't so bad apart for the aforementioned and when the Canadian bus man took over and walked in on me using the onboard WC. I wanted to flush myself down with the mortification! 

As I'd napped for so many hours out of the 32-ish approx travel time, I was ready and raring to tour Toronto, after showering. First pit stop was at Pita Pit, as I'd not eaten in over half a day and was indeed famished. I'm plugging the Chipotle chicken on wholemeal as it is wholly hearty nourishment. We should have pitas more often and forego the cake, I feel. 

DOTING ON TORONTO - Though there's a crisp, chill in the air in this windy yet infectiously cool city it's actually rejuvenating. Given my course plotting skills, I'm not trusting my navigating but it will be much easier than other places I've visited, knowing I can use the CN Tower as a compass of sorts, as it lies south and I must head towards it to get to my backpackers inn. 

QUEENS PARK - There's a romance about the delightful, old campus buildings which make up part of the historic Toronto University. Canadian flags flap in the breeze patriotically and the black, bushy tailed, sprightly squirrels infiltrate the domain as they seek out sustenance. Sweet, wee nippers! 

The Royal Ontario Museum is pretty cool as museums go, for you are met in the grand entrance by the gigantic, bone structure of a dino. A cute little lad was nonplussed by the sight he beheld yet he knew the prehistoric beast wouldn't bite him :D With over a million visitors a year to lay their eyes on over 6 million items, it is one of the largest museums in North America. Most impressive to me, were the sparkling gems on display in the Earth's Treasures gallery; some of the specimens date back 4.5 BILLION years! Explore artifacts from the First People of Canada, to the bat cave, to meteorites from the moon, you won't be short on rarities. One of the star attractions is said to be the Stair of Wonders.. and as I wandered, I wondered where it was as all before me were regular staircases. (To my mind!) Before I left, a band were having their sound check so I listened a while but my body was too exhausted to stay from all the travel. Shame, as it was set to be a museum rager, judging by what I heard!!

I OWNED THAT CHEESECAKE - Let's face it, I have long since been a devout worshipper of cheesecake so to desert dessert (after my butternut squash soup and teeny toast triangles) at Carole's Cheesecake Cafe would be highly discourteous. Opting for the rocky road was an inspired choice for it was rich and oozed with chocolatiness. The nutty bits and marshmallow filling manifest through each forkful; that was a whole new level of delicious. 

Canada has always been this wonderful possibility of audacious jubilance for me and my wayward soul; so here's to great things happening here! I have the world on a string, I'm sitting on a rainbow and I get the chance to be venturesome for weeks to come :) xx