The other thing I like a lot is taking the Queen Street Trolly 3 or 4 miles east from down town to the area known as the Beaches. Aptly called because of its extensive beachfront on Lake Ontario, and the cute little town there that originally grew up there to serve summer vacationers and has now taken on a year round life of its own. As well, Glenn Gould just happened to grow up there, which makes it extra special for me because he is my hero, both artistically, and because he is one of the few, or in modern times, maybe the only Canadian who did not feel the need to move to the US once he became famous.
I guess this is a bit like my annual Coney Island adventure, except that the transition is not quite as dramatic, but still a treat.
But the real point of interest turned out to be not so much the destination, as the journey through a section of town called Leslieville and the little storefronts that lined East Queen Street which appears to be an area in transition between the urban grit of east Toronto and gentrified, totally "cute" beaches area. The mix of storefronts here remains interesting and not too cute yet. Here are a bunch. Hope to get back soon and add to the collection.
We happened to be in Toronto the weekend after the premature death of Jack Layton, the leader of the NDP party. The NDPs had traditionally been a small 3rd party who won few seats in parliament, but under his leadership, they won many and became the official opposition. He was from Toronto and seemed to be quite well liked. While we were there, his body was transported form Ottawa, where he died. The funeral was this weekend, August 27, 2011. Here is the headline; " Farewell Jack Layton". You really did seem to have made a difference.
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