Downtown in the 6ix

   We've moved. Again. We finished our stay by the lake in the west of Toronto a week ago, spent a couple of days at Jen's and now we're in the heart of the city in the middle of everything.

  For those of you who know downtown Toronto, we're in a condo building midway between the Dome and the Ex, next to Fort York. To our right, we're at eye level with the Gardiner Expressway and to our left is the old Tip Top Tailors. Not much of a view from our balcony but we're a short walk to lots of interesting stuff. Not too shabby.

  That's us on the left.

  Our current home is small and contains the necessities, although this is the first place without a toaster. Coffee comes from an espresso machine. Y'know... all the grinding and infusing and brewing to get an ounce of mud. A decent amount of coffee in the morning requires brewing six shots. Yep. We're awake.

  The young couple we're sitting for are very nice and I'm sure they spend a lot of their income at the local eating and drinking establishments so who needs cooking paraphernalia? I'm not sure I'd be that different if I lived around here.

  It's noisy here in the city. Traffic sounds drift in twenty-four hours a day. Sirens wail, commuter trains rumble, streetcar wheels squeal around corners. These are familiar noises I remember from growing up in the city but we've lived in Newmarket for thirty-five years and the difference is a little shocking. Of course, it's a trade-off. Newmarket's quiet... and boring. Life is noisy.

  This week's animal is a cute little cat named Belles. She's a bit shy but she likes to play and seems ok with entertaining us with her acrobatics. It's always nice sitting for a cat as we don't have to rush home for feedings and walks, etc. It allows us to do some exploring and, even though I've lived in the Toronto area for most of my life, there's lot around here that's new to me.

  Our first few days here have been spent with me running up to Bradford to continue with David's basement project. It's not a bad commute since I'm going against the grain. The ninety minute city-bound drive is only forty-five minutes going north. Maybe the sextuple espresso has something to do with that.

  Much progress has been made with all the old stuff having been finally torn out, new framing complete and plumbers in today to rough-in the bathroom. Since I can't work while they're jackhammering the floor Penny and I decided to do some exploring and we picked the perfect day for it, 22C and sunny which, for the end of October in Toronto, is... not too shabby.

  We're a ten minute walk to the new Stackt Market which is a series of shipping containers turned into boutiques, restaurants and bars with event spaces for bands. It looks like fun and we'll likely head down there this evening. We also headed to The Well for lunch, a new spot for international take-away eats that's received terrific reviews since it opened this past spring. I counted outlets for dishes from at least a dozen countries. No KFC, McDonalds, Taco Bell, etc. Real food. We even have a Japadog, which is a thing in Vancouver. If you were reading this blog last summer you'll now about my corn dog affliction. The Japanese version interests me.

  Our stroll took us north on Spadina Avenue through some gentrification and into the old Chinatown.

  This area, until the 1950's, was home to most of Toronto's Jewish community and has a lot of significance for my family history. Both my parents grew up near here. My mother worked at the Labor Lyceum as a bookkeeper when she met my father in 1948.

  They would have been married seventy-five years last week. My grandfather on my mother's side was the business manager for the garment workers' union and was instrumental in organizing it in the 1920's, shortly after he and my grandmother arrived from Poland.

  It's a fascinating area where the new mixes with the old. So many of the buildings have been repurposed for both commercial and residential use. It's a nice walk if you haven't spent much time down here. And for those of you upset with grocery prices, head down to one of the Chinese markets where you'll see prices the major supermarkets haven't seen in years, like a pint of strawberries for a dollar. If I lived down here I know where I'd be shopping!

  Of course, like all the walks we take in places familiar and unfamiliar, there's always a surprise in store. Here's an old friend of Toronto baseball fans, soon to be blocked out by a new condo building going up next door.

  We're only here a short time, back to Jen's on Tuesday for a short stay, before heading back to the city for a seven week stay which will take us to New Years. After that... who knows? Someplace warm, we hope.

Cheers!