Posted on by Mitch&Katy

Days 24 & 25 – A Big Toronto Goodbye

Get your tissues ready for us, we’ve come to the end of our holiday (the first one) ;).

So here’s another combined day not for lack of content but because we got home at midnight last night and I was not in the headspace to string a sentence together.

We woke up on Thursday already thinking about lunch time since we had booked into Aloette at 3pm but we still had some hours to kill first. We decided to head east in the city since we had mostly been exploring the centre and west side. We picked up some coffees and a bagel to keep us going but not ruin our appetite for the afternoon.

We headed first towards St Lawrence Market as it was on our way to the next location. While not as impressive as Granville Market in Vancouver; there was still ample choices of fruit, veg, seafood, meats, cheese, wine, bread and pastries. We wished we had come earlier in the week and picked up some of the beautiful fruit for the fridge but alas we’ll remember for our next country.

After wandering through we set off towards the “Distillery District”. If you guessed that it’s where they used to distill whiskey in the late 1800’s – you’d be correct. Also depending on the area, some of the street signs are labelled with the district or suburb.

Fun fact: a way to quickly tell whether whisky is made in North America versus Scotland & Ireland is to look at whether it is spelled with an “e”. Whisky = Scottish and Whiskey = North American.

The district is heritage listed so many of the buildings are still exposed brick and the streets are cobbled. There’s a variety of things to see such as galleries, independently owned boutiques, jewellery stores and of course bars and restaurants.

We popped into Spirit of York Distillery because of the smell emanating from the building which turned out the be the bartender making their home made sugar syrup for one of their cocktails. Here they make gin, vodka, whiskey and aquavit. Mitch and I had discussed earlier how we were surprised to see that gin hadn’t really taken off in Canada like it has in the U.K. so it’s nice to see that it’s making its way over.

We decided to forgo the “flight of spirits” which was essentially a shot of each of their spirits which you sip on (no mixer, no chaser) and instead enjoyed a cocktail and in Mitch’s words “the best gin and tonic I’ve ever had”.

We had about an hour to get from the east side of Toronto to Aloette in the west; making a pitstop at Sephora so I could grab a new foundation. We walked 15,000 steps this day so you can imagine that this was a fair distance.

This time at Aloette, armed with our booking, we were sat in a cosy booth by the window and as a bonus it was happy hour! To give you an idea of how small this restaurant is it probably doesn’t seat more than 26 people, maybe 30 at max so this makes sense that their restaurant is always full and their books are filled weeks in advance.

Mack wasn’t lying when he said the food was amazing. We decided to just order mains after looking at our neighbours portion sizes and it was definitely the right decision.

I had fried chicken with marmalade wrapped in lettuce leaves and topped with hot sauce. Weird combination – yes, tasty – absolutely! Mitch went with the roast pork belly with salsa verde and white bean salad. We got convinced by the waitress to share the apple pie sundae (since we had all that extra room from not over ordering) and it didn’t disappoint. I mean I need to see my dentist urgently since my teeth might have dissolved from the caramel sauce but it was worth it.

From here we decided to have a rest until we met up with Mack and Kevin. These are our two friends we met on the Croatian boat trip we took in 2016. We saw Kevin last year for a few days while he was in Scotland with his family but haven’t seen Mack since the trip. He has the most amazing apartment; shared with his girlfriend Collette; in Downtown Toronto that faces the CN Tower. It’s spectacular!

We hung out in Mack’s for a few hours until the rain died down and Kevin appeared then headed to a nearby pub for a drink and catchup before finishing with an A&W burger. All in all, a great evening spent.

Friday

Our last day has come in quicker than expected. We’ve been in Canada for 4 weeks seen 6 different cities and walked 215km during our time here.

We finished packing and dropped our cases at Mack’s apartment since he lives and works in downtown. After this we headed to Porchetta a recommendation from my cousin Dave. Definitely a not-to-miss if you’re in Toronto.

We followed this up by walking 25 mins to Ossington Avenue to grab an ice cream sandwich from Bang Bang Ice Cream. We passed this place earlier in the week but were too full to get anything so we were excited to try it. They home make all their ice creams and cookies. It was sickly sweet so I would suggest doing the half sandwich since Mitch felt a bit sick after finishing his full one.

After our cookie and ice cream detour we set off towards Yorkville which is north Toronto. It was a nice (but long) walk helped by the beautiful weather we had.

For those of you without access to the internet; firstly how are you reading this? And secondly June is Pride month; happy pride to those who celebrate! Nearly everywhere we’ve been there’s been rainbow colours and flags galore. I thought it was a nice touch that many of the churches had gotten involved so snapped a pic of the entrance stairs.

Yorkville is a lovely suburb but definitely one for the affluent judging by the shops around.

We pretty much just wasted time the best way we know. Drinking and shopping! Mitch got another pair of swim shorts and we both enjoyed ice-cold ciders at a very friendly dive bar. Dinner was quick and consisted of steamed dumplings. Mothers dumplings is supposedly voted best Chinese for 5 years running. We weren’t blown away. So that wraps up our final meal in Toronto and the end of our Canadian trip. We picked up our bags from Mack’s and headed for the airport. As I type we’re in Reykjavik airport waiting to board our last flight home. We’ve enjoyed keeping everyone up to date with our goings on. The next time you hear from us we’ll have been to Glastonbury and we’ll be packing for Greece and Italy.

Hope you’ve enjoyed – Katy xxx

Posted on by Mitch&Katy · 1 Comment

Toronto + Blue Jays Baseball

Yo friends and family, it’s your latest instalment of “What’s Katy and Mitch Up To?” Today was a busy day with… yep, you guessed it, lots of walking! We ambitiously set our alarms for a reasonable hour and laughed at that choice in the morning as we turned them off to continue sleeping. When we eventually lugged out of bed and got ready to leave it was time for some food. We had a brilliant recommendation from friends of our who live here in Toronto. There’s a few people we met back in 2016 on our boat cruise of the Croatian islands. Since then we’ve kept in touch and have seen some of them sporadically. They mostly live in Toronto so have given us lots of tips and places to eat and things to see while we’re here.

We walked to a small but famous place called “Aloette” since Mack (Canadian friend) had told us it was the sister kitchen to Canada’s number 1 voted restaurant. We arrived and there was no queue which we thought was brilliant until we asked for a table for 2 and they informed us it was over an hour wait. So we booked into one of the few lunch spots left for tomorrow and set off to find somewhere else to eat. We knew we were heading west towards an area we had been told had lots of shops, resteraunts, breweries and a general good vibe. We stumbled across a healthy fast food type place that did delicious salads and healthy burgers etc. It was called “b.Good” and I would advise anyone to add it to the top of their eatery recommendation list.

I was deceptively full after my meal. I kept thinking “how can I be sooooo full after a bowl of kale” until I realised it also sprouted copious amount of quinoa which is high in protein and is a known superfood at keeping you full.

We then headed for Ossington, the area Mack told us would be great to walk around. It much reminded us of the suburban streets in Toorak, Melbourne as it has lots of overhanging trees mixed with suburban houses and independent boutique stores ranging from startup clothing to fancy ice creameries.

From here we marched towards a known park in the city that is popular with the locals. I can’t put into words how far apart these places are, we really don’t mind because we need the walking to counter all the eating, but let’s just say we were happy to sprawl out in the park for a good rest of the legs.

Toronto is massive. Much like Sydney in that there’s lots to see and do but they’re all so spread out and it’s impossible to hit all the best spots in 5 days. But we’re certainly trying!

The park was full of dogs people lazing about in the warm sun. Remember Marijuana is completely legal here so a lot of Canadian parks are also full of people “chilling out” 🤘🏼

There’s a biggish island just off the main part of Toronto aptly named “Toronto Island”. We had heard it was great to ride a bike around and walk through the parks and see the beaches so that was our next stop. After our much deserved rest in the park we strolled through a new part of town towards Toronto Island. We came across these renovated historic gates that were apparently erected to show mutuality between the Canadians and the Milanese (Italy). They were massive and in such a random spot but worth a photo of course.

WE THE NORTH is the slogan for the Toronto Raptors basketball team so you can imagine it is plastered all over the city 🙂

Eventually after much walking through parks and taking photos of chipmunks and petting all the dogs that would allow it, we came to the bicycle hire place right before the ferry that takes you over to the island.

The very nice (as usual) Canadian man in the bicycle shop informed us that most of the cycle track on Toronto Island is flooded. We weren’t happy but decided to hire the bikes anyway and ride around the outside of the mainland part. We had a great time not really knowing where to but got some great views of the city as we were aimlessly pedalling like lost tourists do.

Yes, they’re my newest Lululemon shorts. 3rd lulu addition and wallets feeling a lot lighter, but they’re great 🙂

We stopped at various random spots when we felt a picture was necessary. Also I hope all you readers appreciate the action shots of us riding. I nearly went through the wall of that cave trying to get a cute candid photo of Katy effortlessly cycling away. That wasn’t the only time either, I severely overestimated my cycling abilities to start with- I think maybe Vancouver game me a heightened sense of confidence 😂 I sped off cycling one handed with my phone in the other trying to get pictures of the surroundings and nearly ended up in a group of unsuspecting pedestrians. Lesson learnt 🚴🏼‍♂️

After we cycled for a long while we eventually handed our bikes back and made our way back to our apartment for a shower and to get ready for the baseball game. Yesterday we bought tickets to a Toronto Blue Jays game that was being played tonight against the Los Angeles Angels. After rushing home, showering and getting ready we were running late to leave for the game (in true McSporran fashion). We rushed through the businessmen and actually caught up with Mack in person for the first time since we’ve been here. He has been busy working but was on his way home from work and intersected us on our walk to the arena. We’re meeting up with he and others tomorrow night for dinner/drinks.

We made our way to Rogers arena which isn’t too far away, it’s right in the city but still a 30min walk when it’s busy with people and stopping for traffic lights. We managed to get in the gates in time before it started but the first ball had been thrown just before we could make it up to the nosebleed section. Second row from the front of the top section. These were our seats.

The baseball was great. Obviously being my first time I had a ball “pun intended” it’s quite a long drawn out game similar to cricket. I can see how I’ve heard from some people that it’s not their cuppa tea but I could appreciate the skill of it. We saw a few home runs and some skillfull defensive plays. My sports attention span is a little longer than Katy’s but eventually we decided to leave and apparently nobody stays till the end. This was also compounded with the fact that the Blue Jays are having one of their worst seasons in history- I didn’t think they were that bad but people kept saying their performance tonight was good for them so maybe I saw them at their best. We left about 2/3 way through the game which they went on to lose as expected. We were there for over 3 hours so as I said they can be long games.

Also, I had to purchase a Blue Jays had as a memory. Katy already had one from her last time in Toronto so I had to get one of my own 🙂

I really really enjoyed the baseball. It was exactly how it’s portrayed on tv and in movies. They do the dance cam and all the extra entertainment in addition to the sport you’re watching. I really relished the experience and I’m happy to have seen what it’s all about.

Another big day tomorrow

🤙🏻 M

Posted on by Mitch&Katy

Days 21 & 22 – Toronto!

Hello to everyone reading; we’ve reached our last city in Canada before we fly home to Scotland on Friday.

We started early Monday morning by packing the car and saying bye to my Canadian relatives. Hopefully not for too long because I think they’ll be making a trip to Australia soon to visit my cousin Jordy in Melbourne.

It was a very long drive to Toronto and somehow we always end up taking an hour longer than the sat nav says. I don’t know if it’s stop signs or driving at the speed limit but what was supposed to be 4 hours 20 took us 5 hours 15 with a 20 minute stop for lunch. 🤷🏼‍♀️

Anyway we dropped off the rental car with no issues and got a shuttle to the airport where we caught the train to the city. We knew the Raptors homecoming parade had started at 10 so we were hoping to miss the crowd buuuuut no such luck. The train in was fine but once we got to union station it was HEAVIN’!

The queue to get on the train we had just come off of was through the station and out the door. The streets were packed and to top it all off, it was rush hour so on top of trying to drag our cases through the crowds we also had to meander past the cars that had pulled onto the crossing and avoid being hit by the traffic at the same time 😰. As it turns out our Air BnB is super central but also only 2 streets away from where the parade finished in Nathan Philips Square; if we had been a day earlier into Toronto we would have had an incredible view of the action without the crowds but alas we weren’t to know.

We later found out that there had been a shooting during the ceremony part of the parade; we didn’t hear or see any commotion at the time but saw it on the news reports later that day. Thankfully nobody died and they caught the people who fired the gun pretty quickly since the city was swarming with police.

We went for walk after the crowds had dispersed a bit and grabbed some dinner but decided on an early night since Mitch has caught a little cold and I had an appointment the next morning.

This is the aftermath of the crowd, apparently approximate 2 million people were on the street to watch the homecoming. They had already started the cleanup by 7 and it’s already back to normal today (Tuesday).

Tuesday

Our morning started early with my appointment at 437 swimwear. They’re a Canadian boutique swimwear company based in Toronto who I planned to buy some bikinis from online until I discovered the shipping and U.K. Customs charges 😬. So instead I booked into their showroom here to try on the styles I liked.

Funny story here is that I booked this appointment 6 months ago trying to be prepared and in that time the showroom has moved to a different location. We turned up at what is now their main packing & distribution building. Thankfully they still let me try on the bikinis and even offered me 20% discount because I didn’t get to experience the “loft showroom” which is more spacious and instagramable.

Here are my new kinis which will get a good workout in Greece and Italy I suspect!

After this we wandered the streets looking for somewhere for lunch when we stumbled upon a Mediterranean restaurant called Ricarda’s. We both had salads (go us) and as is becoming a trend in this blog, forgot to photograph until i was halfway finished. We headed back to the apartment to drop off my bikinis, catch up with my mum and chill on the balcony for a bit since it was such a lovely day.

We popped out in search of a drink (preferably on a rooftop balcony) to enjoy the afternoon sun. This is where we found Carlotta a hotel with a rooftop bar open to the public. It was a beautiful little sun trap in the late afternoon.

From here we went on a mini walking tour of Toronto (just a short 10k) and picked up some tickets to tomorrow’s Blue Jays game. They were playing today as well and there seemed to be a good turn out so we’re looking forward to it. I should point out neither me nor Mitch are particularly invested in baseball, we’re just going for the experience.

We had dinner tonight at La carnitas which is topping my list of the best Mexican food I’ve had (I haven’t been to Mexico yet so I’m happy to be disproven later on). Might have to make a trip back again before we go.

Which brings us to the end of the day. Hope you enjoyed a 2 day update!

Katy xxx

Posted on by Mitch&Katy

Ottawa

Wassup friends and family?! Yesterday we wearily woke to the rain whispering to us “your flights in 3 hours”… oh wait that was Keiran. We got an Uber to the airport and boarded our giant yellow aeronautical people mover (after a “spotto” punch to the shoulder)

We landed in Toronto airport and had to meet up with Katy’s sister. It seemed like an easy enough task until you add the fact that Kirsten’s in a completely different terminal without realising and is trying to give us instructions as to her whereabouts. The penny dropped when we were standing at Door C and Kirsten said she was standing under the same door, but was nowhere to be seen. After catching the inter-train to our terminal we said our hellos and went off to hire our car. We added Kirsten to the drivers list and set off for our 4 hour drive through to Ottawa (where Katy and Kirsten’s family are located). 😀

Driving through Toronto in bumper to bumper 6 lane traffic was bad enough, but remembering to stay on the right hand side of the road certainly added to the difficulty.🚙

Toronto was massive (geographically) and took at least an hour to get through. Once I made it through, with the directions of my trusty sidekick (Katy) it was pretty smooth sailing all the way through to Ottawa. We arrived at Ottawa around 1:30am, let ourselves in and went straight to sleep.

The next morning we woke to say hello to Katy’s family and thank them for having us stay. We are staying with her (correct me if I’m wrong Katy) second cousins Coleen and Buck.

Bucks mum is Katy’s grandmas sister

Their house is lovely and we’re staying in their freshly decorated basement with our own bathroom and living room. We chatted for a long while and drove down to Tim Hortons for a breaky sandwich and a coffee. By now it was time to head to Katy and Kirsten’s other family member Sheena and Tony’s house. They have a massive house a little bit further out with huge front and backyard and an amazing outdoor decking with a pool and bathroom and outdoor setting etc

Almost the whole Canadian side of the family arrived and I was introduced to everyone as I tried to piece the family tree together. Everybody made a lovely point to come and say hello and ask about my travels. For once, it’s not my accent on the chopping block, it’s the two Scottish girls I arrived with. Canadian people seem to find Aussies easy enough to understand but Scottish accents particularly difficult to decipher. (The server at Tim Hortons would agree)

We spent the entire afternoon swimming and laughing and eating and drinking. We had a massive bbq with a giant salad spread. I apologise for the lack of photos, I spent the entire afternoon swatting and avoiding mosquitos. Seriously the mosquitoes were bad, so bad infact I found myself asking about the presence of Zika or Malaria in Canada (particular mosquito driven viruses). After petting the three dogs all afternoon and conversing with all of Katy’s family members we headed back to Coleen and Bucks house to wind down for a shower before bed. The weather has been 26C and sunny, we really have lucked out with the weather since we’ve been in Canada.

Tomorrow we drive out Neil and Estelles (Buck and Neil are brothers; according to my mental family tree) cottage out by the lake just over on the Quebec side of the border. Hoping it involves various lake activities as it’s meant to be even hotter tomorrow.

Hope everything is well back in Australia

M 🙂🤙🏻