Back home

I'm sat in bed with Match Of The Day on TV, something I haven't been able to do for quite some time. The flight back to the UK was ok. I got to the airport easily enough, checked in my bag, switched my seat on the plane to one by a window and made my way through security. I managed to spend my last few dollars taking into account that tax isn't included in the price shown of most items.
 

I was able to kill time at the airport using one of the many free iPads offered. My flight boarded on time but was delayed leaving by about half an hour. I watched a film, ate and tried my best to sleep the rest of the flight. I wasn't too successful but managed enough rest to keep me going. The flight landed in Manchester about 20 minutes late after a while waiting for my bag to come off the plane was through to be met by Mum and Dad who were waiting for me. It was great to see them and nice to relax in the car on the two and a bit hour drive back to Lincolnshire where we arrived shortly before 2.30pm.

I fell asleep this evening as the jet lag started to catch up with me and expect it'll take at least three or four days for me to properly recover. It's nice to finally fully unpack and to have all my clothes and some of my other things available here. Once I've recovered properly I'll have time to reflect on my trip, organise my photographs and catch up on life.

Final day in Toronto

So my North American adventure is almost at an end and it's been a good final day here in Toronto. I was up early, had breakfast and then checked in for my flight online. It took a while and I had to telephone the booking company for the correct reference number then the airline as there were issues with the online system. I went for a brief walk around Kensington Market and then came back to the hostel to pack my bag and check out. I left everything in the hostel's luggage room, got some useful advice on what to see on my planned route for the day from a staff member then headed out. I took things at a very steady pace. My legs felt very heavy and I didn't have the energy to push myself too hard.

I walked east for about half an hour over to the Allan Gardens Conservatory and enjoyed looking around at their diverse collection of plants. It was breezy but sunny but as I walked on after my visit it clouded over and the wind made it feel a bit chilly at times. Maybe it's nature's way of preparing me for a return to the British weather.

From the Conservatory I walked north through the Gay Village then west through Bloor-Yorkville. It's an upmarket shopping area with lots of things way out of my price range and expensive property. I strolled past the impressive Royal Ontario Museum and into the University of Toronto's grounds. I paid a visit to the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library and spent quite some time looking at their current exhibition titled 'Fierce imaginings: text and image in First World War literature'. It really was very interesting. I walked on through the University visiting the Soldiers' Tower and its Memorial Room which housed a number of war medals and other artifacts. I then went into Hart House and visited the small Justina M Barnicke Gallery which hosted a small exhibition of contemporary art.

Leaving the University I looped around to walk through Queen's Park, headed west then south to Kensington Market and back to the hostel. I've eaten something to keep me going through the evening and have just enough cash left to get to the airport by public transport and then to buy a snack there.

It feels like I'm continuing my travels rather than going home. I guess I've been on so many buses, trains and planes over the last three months that it's only natural. As I'm not returning to Oxford or work yet I guess my adventure is going to keep going for some time before I'm actually back to reality.


Allan Gardens Conservatory

Royal Ontario Museum

Soldiers' Tower, University of Toronto

Walking Tour and more exploring

I'm very tired both mentally and physically. I still didn't sleep that well last night despite everything I did yesterday and my legs were sore this morning from all the walking and standing. When I did get my brain in gear I opted to walk to Union Station for my free walking tour. I was in no rush to get there and although it was quite a way I figured stretching my legs may do them some good. There's so much construction going on around the station that I did have difficulty finding the guide but just made it by the 11am start time.

The tour was quite informative although the guide certainly liked to walk fast. It mainly took in the Financial District and was focused a lot on the buildings and architecture. It also took the group into the PATH (underground shopping network) which is huge and like a maze. We finished by City Hall just before 1pm and by then the weather had changed from grey skies to bright sunshine. I went back to the Brookfield Place which we'd visited on the tour to check out the World Press Photo exhibition which was very neat although very busy mainly with school children on a field trip. From there I walked east to St Lawrence Market and around Old Town. Again I recognised much of it from my previous visit. I made my way back to the centre of the city past City Hall and along Queens Street as I wanted to revisit a shop I went in on Wednesday. I brought myself a cool t-shirt there so that's another souvenir from this trip. 

I made my way back to the hostel. It was only 4pm but I was flagging. My legs didn't want to walk and my head didn't want to think. I had some coffee, made myself some popcorn and work out what to do next. When I went out again it had started to rain. I walked north and took a look around the Bata Shoe Museum. It isn't somewhere I would normally have visited but it was Pay-what-you-can from 5pm to 8pm so was an inexpensive visit. It was actually pretty interesting and I did learn some things about footwear from around the world and they did have an interesting, if somewhat eclectic selection of shoes belonging to notable people including Marilyn Monroe, Winston Churchill and Roger Federer.

When I left the museum it was raining more heavily and it got worse as I got closer to the hostel to the point where I was absolutely soaked through. Most of my clothes are nearly dry but I'm unsure whether my trainers will dry fully by the time they need to be packed. I cooked and ate at the hostel and spent the best part of the evening chatting with a couple of guys from Washington DC. 

At one stage today I had wanted to go out tonight but I'm just too knackered so it seems sensible to stay in and get properly rested for tomorrow, my final day in Canada. My flight to the UK isn't until late at night so I'll have plenty of time to see more around the city.

 

Old City Hall

Bank Vault, The Dominion Bank

City Hall



Walking Toronto and Placebo

It's been a very long day and I didn't sleep well last night. I struggled to get to sleep then kept waking up. I probably got enough sleep but it was so fractured that I still felt tired when I decided to get up. There was a huge selection of cererals and bagels for breakfast so I filled up then took things at a steady pace before heading out.

 I was aiming to start my day by finding a tourist information centre. At least one of those on the map didn't exist and I couldn't find the other. Both were a fair distance from the hostel in the Downtown area and I did get a little warm as although it was a very grey day it was quite humid and drizzling occasionally. I walked down to the CN Tower and the Toronto Railway Museum. I'd been up the tower before and didn't want to go around the museum but did take a look at the trains they had on show outside. I wandered down to the harbour through loads of construction. It seems they're building lots and lots in preparation for Toronto's hosting of the Pan Am games in 2015 (I'm sure there was lots of construction too when I was here before). I made my way along the waterside through the Music Garden and watched a couple of planes land at Toronto City Airport which is located out on an island.

 From there I walked up to Queen Street, check out the Rock and Roll exhibit at the small Analogue Gallery then did some window shopping on my way to visit the Museum of Contemporary Canadian Art. After browsing their exhibitions I walked and then walked a whole lot more all the way along Queen Street through the Parkside neighbourhood. It started to look less desirable as I walked further west so at the end of Queen Street I looped around on King Street and started walking back east. I cut back up onto Queen Street as I wanted to browse some of the shops on the other side on the road from that I'd walked to get to the museum earlier. I took a street north to walk through Little Italy then back to the hostel via a grocery store and one of the greengrocers in Kensington Market. I got back to the hostel about 5pm and immediately cooked and I neeeded to fill up again after so much walking.

I didn't have long before I had to be out again as it was going to take about an hour to get from the hostel to the Sound Academy in the south east of the city for the Placebo concert. I got a tram east then a bus south and managed to find the venue easily which is very out of the way. The gig was great with a good support act then Placebo working through a mix of new and old tunes. The place was properly alive towards the end of their set when they played 'Special K' then 'The Bitter End'. During the latter I got sucked into the small mosh pit and bumped around a bit being spat out closer to the front. I had the same bus driver coming back (he recognised me) and the journey was easy. I'm hot and sweaty but very pleased I went and expect I'll sleep a lot more soundly tonight.

Toronto skyline from the hostel rooftop garden

 

Toronto Railway Museum

Placebo, Sound Academy

 

More Trail Walks and Arrival in Toronto

I was up early this morning as I wanted to be sure of the opportunity to say goodbye to David and Susan. I finished breakfast after they'd left and Jane had gone to work and then set about packing my bag and reading through the Toronto guide I picked up yesterday.

It was warm and humid when I went out for a walk midway through the morning. Nancy was still at the house but also had plans to pop out. I again ventured to Cootes Paradise this time taking Caleb's Walk down to the Ravine Road Trail walking in the direction of McMaster University. I then found and walked the Chegwin Trail which brought me out further around into the university's grounds. The McMaster Museum of Art was just opening for the day as I passed so I took a look around and it was a nice size to kill the time I had and hosted three very different exhibitions. There must have been a break between classes as when I left the museum it was very busy with students wandering every which way.

I walked the short distance back to the house and Nancy had returned from her errands. I read a bit of the newspaper, had some lunch and then Jane arrived home for something to eat. She dropped me off Downtown on her way back to work and I was able to get the 1.30pm GO bus to Toronto. It's a lot like the Oxford Tube offering a very regular service between the two cities taking just an hour to get to Union Station.   

I took the subway four stops and then walked about 15 minutes to my hostel. It's very modern with friendly staff. After a short sit down I ventured out on a 2 hour walk. I wandered through the nearby Kensington Market (think Camden Town but much smaller), out through Chinatown and then across town. I found a few neat clothes shops to look in then walked back around passing the Art Gallery of Ontario on my way back to the hostel. I found I remembered a lot of the area I walked from my visit to the city four years ago.

I ate at the hostel mostly using their free food selection. I had a sit down for a bit and looked for things to do tonight. There was a free punk show at a bar I visited last time I was here so I thought I'd go to that as it wasn't far from the hostel. However when I got down there I asked a member of staff when the bands were on and there weren't starting until 11pm. I didn't fancy either wandering around or coming back to the hostel and going out again late at night so decided to stay in. I made my way back to the hostel via an indirect route recognising more places along the way. I'll have a sit down and work out what to see bearing in mind that some rain is forecast for each day I'm here.

Planet Traveler Hostel, Toronto

Kensington Market bike rack

Kensington Market art

 

Waterfalls and Warplane Heritage Museum

Today was overcast and occasionally rainy. Not ideal weather for Thanksgiving day and doing much of anything. After a slow start to the day Susan made some great crepes for breakfast after which I sat and read and got up to date with the latest news. Emma and Catherine were both very busy studying and keen to get work done before their flight back to Halifax.

Late in the morning I went out with Jane, David and Susan for a walk to see Webster's Falls and Tew's Falls. It was warm out at the time and we had a pleasant walk along the trail between the two waterfalls. In many places there was no fence to stop you falling down into the ravine some way below. It was busy there with it being a bank holiday and there were many more people arriving as we left. Good to see so many people out and about enjoying nature but it would have been a bit too busy had we arrived later with it being quite the tourist spot.

We came back to the house and had some lunch then it was time for the two girls to pack their things, say their goodbyes and David drove them up to Toronto for their flight. Myself, Jane, Susan and Nancy drove to visit the Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum. They had some information on the Canadian airforce and particularly its role in World War II but more interesting were the selection of aircraft on show so many of which were still in a good state to fly. This included a Lancaster Bomber, one of only two still flying in the world. It was great to see it so close up. I was able to sit in one of the Fleet Fort aircraft and enjoyed a less than successful attempt at flying using one of their simulators. I picked up a Toronto guide as we left which should come in handy over the next few days. 

We've used up more of the leftover turkey tonight and some of the yummy deserts. It's very quiet at the house with two of the girls gone. David and I went out just now for a quick walk around the block. It feels a bit humid and is expected to be getting hotter tomorrow when I move on for the final stop on my trip before I head home.

Webster's Falls

Tew's Falls

Lancaster Bomber, Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum

Walking Trails and Thanksgiving Dinner

It's been a relaxed day. It started slowly with a leisurely breakfast after which I looked through Catherine's Economics textbook. The memories from my degree study came flooding back so at least the basic theories and principles are still in my head somewhere despite not having been used over the years.

Late in the morning we headed over to the Arboretum. We walked in bright sunshine along the Bull's Point and Marshwalk Trails and down to the Marshwalk Lookout Tower with views across Lake Ontario. On the way there and back we stopped to feed the Chickadees. They are such light birds and quite skittish. They'd fly down, take one seed from your hand and then fly off again. There didn't seem to be that many of them around but we did have a steady flow of them coming by to eat. We drove back around to the house, had some lunch then I sat and chilled out for a while. 

Jane and Nancy were busy cooking, David doing other chores around the house and the girls studying so at 3pm I went out to further explore Cootes Paradise. I went down the closest trail, Caleb's Walk then along the Sassafras Point Trail. There were a few people out but it wasn't very busy. I walked to the end of that trail and down a very steep gradient at the end for a view across the lake to where we'd been this morning. I clambered back up the slope and walked back along the trail then up and across the Ginger Valley Trail which eventually brought me out into Churchill Park. I wandered the short distance to the shops of Westdale, stopped for a coffee and sat outside reading the news for a bit on my phone. It started to get chilly out as the breeze picked up a little so I could only sit for so long.

I was back at the house shortly after 5pm and sat and read whilst the final preparations were being made for dinner. The fire was on for a while and I could have easily napped whilst sat in the comfy chair. One of the neighbours joined us for dinner which was a quite wonderful meal. We didn't make much of a dent in the huge turkey so there is plenty of cold meat for meals at least tomorrow. There are also pumpkin and apple pies left to be eaten. After we'd sat down and digested I helped with some of the washing up and am now ready to get to bed still with a very full feeling stomach.

View across Lake Ontario from Bull's Point Trail

Feeding Chickadees

Panoramic view of Cockpit Island and Lake Ontario from Sassafras Point

 

Myers Farm and Hamilton walk

The day started slowly with a leisurely breakfast including some great french toast made by Emma. When we were ready we headed to Myers Apple Farm. There we picked a big bag of apples and got lots of vegetables for tonight's meal and the Thanksgiving meal. It was nice to be outside as although the air was quite crisp the sun was shining very brightly and it was slowly starting to warm up.

When we got back to the house the girls headed to the mall. Jane had an exercise class in the early afternoon and David was out so I took the opportunity to walk out and towards Hamilton. I walked at quite a fast pace from Westdale where the house is into Downtown Hamilton. It took about 40 minutes to get there so not too long. I found the First Ontario Centre easily where I wanted to pick up a ticket I'd brought online for a concert next week in Toronto. I paid a quick trip to the tourist information office for a city map and then wandered around a few nearby streets before heading back towards Westdale. At times I was overheating so took my jacket off although it did occasionally get chilly when I wasn't in the sun. I took a walk up to the imposing Cathedral Basilica of Christ the King but was disappointed not to be able to take a look inside. As I neared the house I took a slight detour into Cootes Paradise Sanctuary. I walked parts of a couple of the trails there and would definitely like to go back and walk around some more as it's very peaceful and picturesque. I got back to the house at 3pm by which time I'd been out for 3 hours.

I had a snack and in the late afternoon took a walk to the supermarket with David and Catherine. This evening we had a lovely meal and I've sat watching TV with Jane, David and Nancy. The older girls went out to catch up with friends and Susan had friends around to the house.

I'm pretty tired after my walks. Tomorrow I hope to be able to explore some more and maybe walk some different trails. I'll need to get out and about to build up a good appetite for the Thanksgiving supper that we'll be having a day early.

 

Myers Apple Farm



Cathedral Basilica of Christ the King

 

 

 

Arrival in Hamilton

I made it to Hamilton and am making myself at home with my cousin Jane and her family. Angela took me to the bus station in Ottawa this morning. It was very busy with people trying to get away for the long weekend. My bus wasn't even from the Greyhound fleet as they had extra buses to cope with the volume of travellers. I didn't get my preferred window seat and the journey to Toronto felt very long. I read a bit, snacked a bit and looked at the scenery. It was always going to be tight to catch my onward bus to Hamilton but I did think for a while I'd miss it when we hit really bad traffic with about an hour left on the journey. 

I guess the schedule allows for these things as we actually arrived in on time. The Toronto bus station was quite confusing with so many people and some construction but I eventually found the right queue to join and the bus to Hamilton was quiet so I could stretch out. The traffic getting out of Toronto was horrendous so we ended up being half an hour late arriving at 6.30pm. I sent Jane a text and she was soon by to pick me up and drive me the short distance to her home.

David, her husband, Susan, her youngest daughter and Nancy, her mother in law were here to welcome me. We had supper then David and Susan went to pick up Emma and Catherine, their other two daughters from the airport. They've been catching up a lot this evening and I've been sat back relaxing. I'm not sure what the plans are over the weekend but I'm happy to just go with the flow.

Jane and David's house, Hamilton

 

Gatineau Park

For my last day in Ottawa we headed out and across the Ottawa River to Gatineau Park. The park is enormous, a lot bigger than it comes across on the maps I'd looked at prior to our visit. It took us a while to get there and we headed first to Pink Lake which had a great lookout point from which to admire the view. From there we still had quite a long drive through the park to get to the visitor centre. Sadly by the time we arrived it was raining heavily and our aim was to do some walking but we would have been soaked if we'd have stayed out in it for long and gotten cold as there was quite a chill in the air.

We had a very early lunch and headed further around the park in the hope that we could at least get out at some of the other lookout points marked on the map we'd picked up. We drove to the Champlain Lookout for great views of the Eardley Escarpment and Ottawa Valley. It stopped raining just after we got there so we took a walk around the 1.4km trail which gave further good views and plenty of opportunities to take in the autumnal colours and nature around us. Although the trail wasn't too long it was up and down a lot so took a while to walk.

We drove on and to the King Mountain Trail. This was said to be 2km long but felt much longer and wasn't an easy trail as it included a number of rocky passages and climbs up and down steep gradients.  Both trails featured a series of interpretive signs telling primarily about the ecology on show but neither were particularly well signposted and it did feel like we were almost off the trail at times. Again there were some fantastic views to be seen and a wide range of trees and plants growing around the mountain dependent on conditions in particular areas. That walk must have taken a good 50 minutes. 

We drove out of the park and back to Angela's apartment to have some tea and then to Osgoode to first see my cousin Kate's daughter Samantha who's in town for a few days (I'd not seen her since I was about 10 years old). We went around the corner to see my cousin Sarah and her sons, Colin and Michael and then back to Angela's apartment via the grocery store. 

My laundry has been done and we've had a good supper. We're both tired after all the exercise and fresh air and I need to finish packing including fitting the things into my bag that I left here on my previous visit. My bus leaves midway through the morning so it won't be a rushed start tomorrow.

With Angela at Pink Lake, Gatineau Park

Panoramic view from the Champlain Lookout, Gatineau Park

Black Lake, Gatineau Park