Toronto Thrills

Travel Blog By J
Sep 2010


TORONTO.  The cultural, entertainment and financial capital of Canada and its largest city.  Very cosmopolitan, modern and teeming with attractions to satisy every tourist's need to explore, enjoy and shop!

Thankfully, the transport system in dowtown Toronto is very safe and efficient.  We were able to see almost all of the popular attractions by taking the metro and the hop-on hop-off double decker tour -- very touristy, I know :)  The HOHO tour costs CAD 35.00 and has about 25 scheduled stops.  We bought our ticket on the bus at Dundas Square.  We sat in for the whole loop which ran for 2 hours so we could have a general overview of the city.


Here are my trip's highlights:


DUNDAS SQUARE
a commercial, public square surrounded by buildings and shops.  At night, this looks like a mini NY Times Square.


Dundas Squre during the day



Buildings with huge LED screems brighten Dundas Square at night



OLD AND NEW CITY HALLS



Old City Hall, which was replaced later on due to shortage of space. 
This now functions as a courthouse.


Nathan Phillips Square, fronting the new City Hall, which also
serves as a skating rink during the winter




ST. LAWRENCE MARKET
Loved this place for its many gourmet food vendors, fresh produce and seafood, antiques and art.  So many things to see and buy here.  Every corner is interesting!


St. Lawrence Market

Carousel Bakery:  selling the world-famous peameal bacon sandwich

Peameal Bacon is made from cured pork loins trimmed of all the fat and bones. 
Peameal comes from the ground yellow peas with which the bacon was
originally coated to ensure that it had a better curing and shelf life.


A wide selection of meats is also available.



Cheeeeeeeeese!


When in Canada, try POUTINE -- french fried topped with fresh cheese curds
covered in brown gravy.  This dish originated in Quebec, Canada.




One can also find anything and everything in St. Lawrence Market such as this! 



KENSINGTON MARKET
Kensington Market is in an old neighborhood, the narrow streets of which are lined with vintage shops, bakeries, retailers of new and used clothing, art galleries and other eclectic shops.






CN TOWER
We took a harbourfront cruise to see Toronto's skyline, prominently featuring the CN Tower. 

Guinness' Book of World Records state that this is the world's tallest tower at 1,815 feet.  Its elevators can reach the top in just 58 seconds.  Not only is this a towering structure, but it is also a might one -- being built to withstand an 8.5 earthquake.  In 1989, Brendan Keenoy made history by climbing up the stairs in only 7 minutes and 52 seconds!






ROGERS CENTER
This is home to Toronto Argonauts football team and the Toronto Blue Jays baseball team.  It has a retractable roof.








DISTILLERY HISTORIC CENTER
Made this as our lunch stop for the day.  This area is popular for its cafes, restaurants shops and artist studios which are all housed in original buildings of the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery. 


The Distillery District


Appreciate art for free




Try SOMA's chocolates.  Soma, voted best chocolate in Toronto Life,
makes chocolates in small batches directly from the cacao bean. It's a real treat!









YORKVILLE
One of Toronto's exclusive shopping district.  We were hoping to spot some Hollywood celebrities here who attended the Toronto International Film Festival.  Too bad we didn't see any.








CASA LOMA
Canada's most famous castle.  It was built by a prominent financier Sir Henry Mill Pellatt in 1911 as his residence.  It is huge with three floors, a basement, stables and towers.  It now belongs to the city of Toronto, when Sir Henry Pellatt went bankrupt and was forced to give it up.

Tours are offered inside the castle using self-guided audio commentary.





Casa Loma's Main Hall

Of course, not to be missed is Niagara!

NIAGARA ON-THE-LAKE and NIAGARA FALLS
Before heading to the Falls, we stopped by at Niagara-On-The-Lake for lunch.  Niagara On-The-Lake is a charming little town in Southern Ontario where Niagara River meets Lake Ontario.  Travel time from downtown Toronto is about 90-minutes.  This is a nice place to take a stroll past beautiful houses and to look into the little shops that sell anything from clothing, souvenirs and sweet treats. 



NOTL's main street



Prince of Wales Hotel (est. 1864)



Taking the Maid of the Mist ride is a must for every visitor.  This half-hour boat tour takes you to the base of the American Falls and then to the basin of the Horseshoe Falls.  The boat stops for a while here giving passengers time to feel the intensity and power of this majestic natural wonder.  What an awesome experience!




All suited up.  Here we go...




The American Falls, which lies on the US side, is between 70-100 feet. 
Less than 10% of the water flows over the American Falls.




The American Falls






The smaller Bridal Veil Falls, which also lies on the American side.



The Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side
Awesome!


 


And before we left the place, we saw a rainbow across the falls :)



* All the pictures used here are the writer's own.


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Chicago: The Windy City

Travel Blog By J
Sep 2010


Second time in Chicago to visit my brother.  Chicago in October had beautiful bright sunny days and chilly mornings and nights.  What I love best about Chicago is that it is not as busy as some major cities could be.  I love walking the streets of downtown at a leisurely pace, visiting the parks and museums, and taking a cruise along the river.  If you have the luxury of time, you can take a drive to nearby Wisconsin to see Door County (There are lots of lighthouses here!  I will have to make a separate blog for this :)

Here are some of my favorite Chicago stops during my 1st visit in 2008 and my second this year, 2010:

Chicago Architecture Cruise
Fancy taking a cruise like the one Jules (Julia Roberts) and Michael (Dylan McDermot) did in "My Best Friend's Wedding?"


With my family.  Lots on board the cruise as it is
one of the most popular tours offered in Chicago.



Skyscrapers stand proud!



John Hancock Observatory
100 stories, 1,127 feet tall; the 6th tallest tower in the world.  The entrance ticket covers the use of an audio commentary narrated by David Schwimmer (Ross from the hit TV show F.R.I.E.N.D.S), a Chicago native.



View of Lake Shore Drive from JH Observatory


Chicago's concrete jungle as viewed from JH Observatory

Willis Tower (formerly known as the Sears Tower)
108 stories, 1451 feet tall; the tallest buidling in the US and the 5th talllest building in the world!

Went here late in the afternoon to catch the sunset.





sunset view from the Sears Tower





View of the Chicago Skyline from the Adler Planetarium


Sat on the grass and enjoyed the view Chicago's skyline...



Lincoln Park Zoo
Open everyday and free!







Millennium Park
"Millennium Park is an award-winning center for art, music, architecture and landscape design. The result of a unique partnership between the City of Chicago and the philanthropic community, the 24.5-acre park features the work of world-renowned architects, planners, artists and designers."




Jay Pritzker Pavilion - an outdoor concert venue

The Cloud Gate -- which reflects the city's famous skyline


The Crown Fountain.  A unique fountain which projects video images
of various Chicago citizens which appear to spew water from their mouths.





John G. Shedd Aquarium
An indoor public aquarium that houses over 25,000 fish.




Navy Pier
Originally built to function as a storage facility for lake freighters but is now a popular attraction with rides, boat cruises and gardens.




Ride the 150-foot high Ferris Wheel to get a bird's eye view of the city.

Buckingham Fountain
A beautiful fountain located in Grant Park.  It is one of Chicago's famous landmarks.



Buckingham Fountain and the city-scape

And while in Chicago, you MUST try Uno's  Deep Dish Pizza!
It pioneered Chicago's Deep Dish Pizza -- generously topped with tomatoes, meat and cheeeeeese!  Worth all the calories :)



Goodness in every bite!


Can't wait to visit Chicago again! :)





* All photos used here are the writer's own.


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New York, USA

Travel Blog By J
Sep 2010

For my second visit to New York, I did not go to the Statue of Liberty, the Empire State Building, Ground Zero, Wall Street or Battery Park anymore.  This time, I made sure I had time to really enjoy Central Park and to satisfy the foodie in me by trying as many desserts as my pants would allow.  All these, together with a super fun reunion with my best friends of 20 years!

Here are some of my New York Moments:

Biking in Central Park
I told my friends that I wanted to see more of Central Park since I was only able to see the Alice in Wonderland sculpture the first time I was here. It was the perfect sunny day to ride a bike and go around the park!


...and here are some of the stops we made along the way:


Belvedere Castle

The Great Lawn

Strawberry Fields


Long Benches Under The Trees!

A Walking Tour of Greenwich Village
We had a free Wednesay morning so we searched the web for a free walking tour of 'The Village," popular for its old red-brick houses that date back to the 1800's.  I found the free walking tour here. Here are some of the buildings I liked:



F.R.I.E.N.D.S. Apartment Building
90 Bedford Street




The narrowest home in New York City is #75 1/2 Bedford Street.
This house is only 10 feet wide!



Harrison Ford's former home at 66 Morton Street.



a charming street lined with old apartments



Broadway, Broadway
An NY experience must have at least one Broadway Show in it.  This time, I was 'greenified' by Wicked (really, really loved it!) and Promises, Promises that starred Sean Hayes (Will and Grace), and Kristin Chenowith who was the original Glinda in Wicked.



"Wicked" was wickedly good!






The Unisphere
A giant steel globe located in Flushing Meadows in Queens. This was used as a shooting location of Men In Black  and Iron Man 2.







Gray's Papaya (402 6th Avenue and 8th St). 
Yes, the hotdog that was made famous by movies and sitcoms too many to mention.  There was a Recession Special:  $4.45 for 2 Franks and a Drink!  Must try their Papaya drink!




Magnolia Bakery
Okay, this is part research and part guilty pleasure. I liked their Chocolate and Devil's Food Cupcake.





Junior's Cheesecake
I learned of this through Bobby Flay's Throwdown.  When I watched that espisode, I knew I had to try their Devil's Food Cheesecake!  This is also a good breakfast place.




Veniero's Pastry
Delicious cakes and cheesecakes.  This shop has 115 years of baking experience behind its name so it's definitely a must-try.  I tried their chocolate velvet cake (very chocolatey), cannoli and assorted pastries.









Carmine's
Huge servings meant to be shared.  Gotta love their Fried Calamares, Mixed Seafood Pasta and their Shrimp Fra Diavolo.  Very, very satisfying!



Mixed Seafood Pasta



They serve remarkably juicy burgers in a soft, tasty bun!  They also serve hot dogs and frozen custard.






'Good Morning, America' Show
We got tickets to be part of the audience of GMA. Lined up as early as 6am and went on air at 8am. I had my 12-seconds of fame! Yey!



Hosts Robin Roberts and Juju Chang came out after the show for a photo!




GOOD MORNING, AMERICA!!!



* All photos used here are the writer's own.


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