This weekend Peter, Emily and their friends were visiting from Montreal and Ottawa. We decided to make the most of the sun, and spent all weekend exploring the city and checking out a few of the events that were taking place.
After a bit of lie in on Saturday, we set off as a group for the waterfront, and Sherbourne Common, to check out the Festival of India that was taking place. We knew we were walking in the right direction as the crowds began to gather and the clothing became more and more elaborate and colourful. We didn't really know what this festival was all about, so were pleasantly surprised to be greeted by a parade, music, and a free feast.
Obviously, the free feast was our first stop before checking out some of the entertainment, and a couple of the stalls. While the various stalls made for some interesting reading, we did not come away convinced that reincarnation is backed up by solid science, and none of us were persuaded away from our meat eating ways by the vegetation information booth. We then made our way slowly back along the waterfront before picking up some bikes to cycle the rest of the way.
It was pretty hot and busy out, so we didn't go too far on the bikes, but just enough to enjoy some lakeshore views. We ditched the bikes down by Exhibition Place, which turned out to be right next to the Honda Indy racetrack that had been set up on the streets of Toronto for the weekend! Behind several layers of high metal fences we could here engines roaring by, so we clambered our way through some bushes up to a high platform to catch a glimpse of the cars coming around the corner. Quite a random surprise.
From there, the heat was getting to us so we wandered up to Vicki's apartment for a break, before popping out for an ice cream to cool down by Trinity Bellwoods park. People were out in force, and while we opted for the simple pleasures of a dipped cone from an ice cream truck, a line up had formed across the street, stretching all the way down the block, for black ice cream. People are wild.
Next up on our whirlwind tour of west Toronto was the Vector Festival, an interactive media festival hosted by the Interaccess gallery on Ossington. The exhibit featured installations from six different artists, which ranged from virtual reality experiences, to films created by an AI, to a lamp pointed at an old computer monitor. We enjoyed the little break from the sun to check out some art, before setting out for a dinner of massive burgers accompanied by massive onion rings.
From there, the heat was getting to us so we wandered up to Vicki's apartment for a break, before popping out for an ice cream to cool down by Trinity Bellwoods park. People were out in force, and while we opted for the simple pleasures of a dipped cone from an ice cream truck, a line up had formed across the street, stretching all the way down the block, for black ice cream. People are wild.
Next up on our whirlwind tour of west Toronto was the Vector Festival, an interactive media festival hosted by the Interaccess gallery on Ossington. The exhibit featured installations from six different artists, which ranged from virtual reality experiences, to films created by an AI, to a lamp pointed at an old computer monitor. We enjoyed the little break from the sun to check out some art, before setting out for a dinner of massive burgers accompanied by massive onion rings.
Our last stop on Saturday evening was a nearby performance of the Wizard of Oz. One of Peter and Emily's friends was in the cast, so we joined the packed theatre for some intensely optimistic singing and dancing. We particularly enjoyed the stage debut of the dog playing Toto, who remained unphased by everything that Oz could throw at him, including screeching monkeys, cackling witches and a few pyrotechnics.
We took Sunday fairly easily, but still managed to tackle a casual Escape Room (where we beat the record for time to escape the room!) and a lunch in Kensington Market.
We took Sunday fairly easily, but still managed to tackle a casual Escape Room (where we beat the record for time to escape the room!) and a lunch in Kensington Market.
We had a great weekend with everyone, and definitely managed to cram in a few new experiences along the way.
