Canadian Buffoon's Solo Disney Vacation - Update 07/08! pp99 - Here today gone tomorrow

[orangecats2]

I'm here and reading. I've been dog, cat, and house sitting. And DSS went home.

I visited Toronto twice in 2007. Once in January and once in July. For the July trip I went to Canada's Wonderland. Only managed to see about half of the park, need to go back one day. Went to Rainforest Cafe and Hard Rock Cafe. In January I visited Chinatown, didn't like the food.

 

[pkondz]

I'm here and reading. I've been dog, cat, and house sitting.

I was wondering where you'd gotten to.

And DSS went home.

Is that a good thing or a bad thing?!?

I visited Toronto twice in 2007. Once in January and once in July.

I would suspect that the temperatures might have been slightly different for those trips.

For the July trip I went to Canada's Wonderland.

One place I've not been.
I dunno why. I guess other than Disney, I'm just not keen on going to an amusement park by myself.

Went to Rainforest Cafe and Hard Rock Cafe. In January I visited Chinatown, didn't like the food.

I've been to Rainforest Cafe with the kids too many times to count, including the one in Toronto.
Haven't been to the Hard Rock in Toronto though. Maybe next time.

Ruby & I went to Chinatown for the first time about 20+ years ago.
The dead chickens out on the sidewalk were a bit much for her.

 

[IadoreWDW]

Hello lurker and to the TR!
And another reader from across the pond! I'm glad you're here!

Glad to be here!

And I thank you for that!
It makes it a little bit easier and/or more fun to write when I know people are actually reading!

I can't make promises that I won't scoot back to lurker hood but this is progress!

Uh, oh. So if the next update is lousy you're outta here?

Bye lurker!

Luckily for you I really enjoyed it!

You're going to read it again?!?!?
Really???
You enjoyed it that much???

I really, really, realllllly did. And I am swept up in it again and it is just as good second time around

Holy cow! That just... just... I don't know what to say!
Wow! Thanks for that amazing compliment!

You are very welcome

That's weird! So do I!
We have so much in common!



Where abouts?

Ottawa, Ontario (Hopefully spelt correctly!)

Well, given a choice I'd go to WDW instead of staying here too, so...

One day I might get to the for real Canada, but WDW has a hold over me. I think they call it love. <3


Happy reading!

Thorughly enjoying every moment!

 

[pkondz]

I can't make promises that I won't scoot back to lurker hood but this is progress!

Yes. Yes it is.

Luckily for you I really enjoyed it!

Phew! Close one!

I really, really, realllllly did. And I am swept up in it again and it is just as good second time around

Unbelievable. I can hardly read it the first time!
You must have a very strong constitution.

You ride Orange on Mission Space, right?

Ottawa, Ontario (Hopefully spelt correctly!)

Spelt correctly and I was just there not that long ago.
Probably one of the prettiest Cities in Canada.

One day I might get to the for real Canada, but WDW has a hold over me. I think they call it love. <3

Thorughly enjoying every moment!

More coming up very soon!

 

[lisaviolet]

Refrained because of the personal reasons? Or the cost? (or both?)

Neither. I wish I could say I had more integrity. Laughing.

Short story will go long. Toronto is waiting on Bombardier to deliver on some very late streetcars. They are accessible (Mom needs them.) We could have walked to the aquarium but it was it was getting near closing. So I decided streetcar was best. Wrong. Not that night. Five would pass, and no low new one (they are lovely). And I get on a training car, the only one allowed on but it took so long I said screw it and went to a movie with her instead. And I was glad because although she would have loved it but I would have felt guilty to be there.

Fantastic movie! Me, Earl and the Dying Girl.

Lovely night, took the subway to the streetcar home happy as a clam. And then they short turned the only accessible harbourfront car, you don't know - even the drivers don't tell you - and I blame Dave Grohl as they were playing that night, and a TTC employee called a Wheeltrans after an hour and a half. So out around 8:00 pm, home around 1:30 am.

I was told in my head to cab it or take a different line and walk but I of course ignored. Cause intuition couldn't be right.

 

[pkondz]

Neither. I wish I could say I had more integrity. Laughing.

Short story will go long.

Oh, goody. These are the best ones.
Hang on, going to get some munchies... BRB.


Okay. Shoot.

Toronto is waiting on Bombardier to deliver on some very late streetcars. They are accessible (Mom needs them.) We could have walked to the aquarium but it was it was getting near closing. So I decided streetcar was best. Wrong. Not that night. Five would pass, and no low new one (they are lovely). And I get on a training car, the only one allowed on but it took so long I said screw it and went to a movie with her instead. And I was glad because although she would have loved it but I would have felt guilty to be there.

Then when (if?) Bombardier delivers, go. Make haste to the aquarium. Be enthralled.

Fantastic movie! Me, Earl and the Dying Girl.

Never heard of it.
So I watched the trailer.
Hard to say from a trailer, of course, but it sure looked good!
Checked Pay per view and it's not there.
Hopefully later.

And then they short turned the only accessible harbourfront car, you don't know - even the drivers don't tell you - and I blame Dave Grohl as they were playing that night

I blame Dave Grohl for everything and anything.
Why not?
Gotta blame someone (No way could it ever be my fault),
might as well be him.

and a TTC employee called a Wheeltrans after an hour and a half. So out around 8:00 pm, home around 1:30 am.

Ugh.

I was told in my head to cab it or take a different line and walk but I of course ignored. Cause intuition couldn't be right.

Always go with your gut. Unless you know it's right, then don't.

Here. Maybe this will cheer you up...

 

[pkondz]

Boom and bust


Wednesday June 10

I woke up early.
Well, early if you're on vacation
and don't really have to be anywhere in particular.
Oddly enough, Toronto doesn't have a rope drop.
Weird, I know.

Nevertheless, I was up early to see Ruby off to her conference.
Of course she'd been up for an hour already.

I, of course, was a perfect gentleman (as always)
and didn't rub her nose in the fact that I got an extra hour of sleep.
Nor did I gloat that I had a day of fun and frivolity planned while she
toiled under the heavy burden of work.

I might not have done those things because she would hit me if I did.
But I prefer to think it was because I was gallant.


Let's go with gallant.
Sure.


After seeing Ruby off to work <snicker... sorry>,
I sadly turned back to the now empty room and gleefully... uh...
I mean sadly, oh so sadly, rubbed my hands together in anticipation.
I mean regret! Rubbed my hands together with great, Great! Regret!


And as I stood there, with an entire day
and a rather largish city at my disposal...
It happened...

You know those "ah hah!" moments that happen on occasion?
I had one of those.
Well perhaps it was less and more

I strode over to the phone, picking up the car rental contract on the way.
I quickly found the number for the agency and dialed.
And then hung up because you have to dial "9" for an outside line.
I redialled (including the "9" prefix.)
A moment later I was connected to the car rental agency.
"Hello. My name is pkondz and I'm in the middle of renting a car from you
and wanted to confirm whether or not I'm being charged for insurance."
"Yes, Mr. pkondz." Came the reply. "We are... for over $500... sucker."
I may have imagined that last part... but probably not.
"Okay." I pleasantly rejoined. "I don't want it and I never wanted it.
Can you take it off?"
Silence.
"I'll have to transfer you to customer service." Came the terse reply.

Missing out on gouging the snot out of your customers
must just about kill them.

After a moment.
"Hello Mr. pkondz? This is _____ with customer service.
How can I help you?"
"Yes." I begin. "I believe I'm being charged $500 for insurance
and I don't want it."
"Oh! I'm so sorry Mr. pkondz. I've marked your file with a note.
I don't believe I can completely remove the charge from this end,
but when you return the car, just tell them there's a note on file
and the charge will be removed.
Is there anything else I can do for you?"

I must admit that I was a little flabbergasted
at the ease at which I'd had the insurance removed.
I should have asked her to grant me the ability to walk on water,
since she was handing out miracles.
But I was just too speechless.
I did manage a "Uh... no... I guess that's it."
"All right Mr. pkondz. You have a nice day."
There was a brief chorus of Hosannas and then the line went dead.

Well, that was easy.

Now some of you may be thinking to yourselves,
"Sure. You saved yourself some cash.
But if you so much as scratch that car... you're in deep do-do!"

Well, first of all... "deep do-do"? Really? Are we children here? Please.
A little adult decorum if you will.
Second. Oh boy oh boy oh boy oh boy!! Yippeee!!!!
I saved some money!!!!! Wahooooo!!!!!


Ahem.


And third. When I rented the car, I put it on my credit card.
You know. The one that gives me free car insurance on rentals?
Yeah. That one.
So I never needed the rental's insurance in the first place.

And yes. If I wasn't stupid, I would've thought of that in the first place.
But then again, I find that my lack of brain cells improves the likelihood
of you finding enjoyment at my expense.


Aaaaaaaaand.... moving on.


I headed out to the car and plugged in Betty.
She seemed to like that.
At least she seemed to come alive right about then.
I asked her to take me to my first destination of the day and...
about half an hour later... I was near my quarry, but couldn't get to it.
There was construction on my route and I took a detour
which routed me into a maze of one way streets and dead-ends.
Eventually, I found my way to the desired parking lot.
I rolled down the window and the attendant handed me a parking slip.
I parked the car and got out.
I looked up. The clouds were threatening, but so far, no rain... yet.

I strode to the front lawn and snapped my first pics of the day.

Casa Loma.

Casa Loma is a castle nestled in the heart of Toronto.
It looks like a medieval castle that was somehow
transported over from Europe.

In 1903 Sir Henry Pellat bought land in Toronto.
He had made his fortune by investing in railway
and hydro-electric industries in Canada.
Construction of Casa Loma began in 1911 and three hundred workers
completed it three years later.
The house cost about $3.5 million (about $85 million today.)
The cost of building and maintaining the house
was a bit much for Sir Henry,
so he made some un-wise real-estate investments
and he began to have some cash problems.
During the depression, following WWI,
the city increased the property tax on Casa Loma
from $600 a year to $1,000 a month!
How would you like it if your taxes increased by 2000 percent!!!
I don't know about you, but I complain if it goes up by one percent.

Sir Henry was forced to sell off his art and many of his furnishings.
And after only living in the house for ten years, was forced to leave.

In the late 20s, the castle was run as a luxury hotel.
During prohibition, wealthy Americans would come... for the air.
Yeah. That's it. The air. Sure.
Either way, there was some definite ingesting going on.

In 1933, the castle was seized by the city for non-payment of back taxes.
The castle was almost demolished but was instead renovated
and turned into a tourist attraction.
Which brings me to its front lawn.

I suppose the front lawn isn't really what you want to see is it.
Nooo... You're going to insist I go inside and show you around, aren't you!
Fine! But it costs $24 of cold hard cash to go inside, so you owe me!
Sheesh! The things I do just for my readers.

Entering the castle,
I made my way down to the basement where you could pick up
(at no extra cost, thank you)
a self guided audio tour.
It was essentially a cell phone that you held to your ear,
but it was convenient to have.

Wait....
I'm re-reading that...
"a cell phone that you held to your ear"



"The new K9000 cell phone audio guide!
So convenient! Hands free!
It's the cell phone that you hold to your rear!
Let's you know what stinks and what's a steaming pile of... nonsense.
Buy it now for only 85 easy payments of $79.99!
And if you act now, we'll send you this free bottle of Poo Pourri as a bonus!"

And now you're wondering if Poo Pourri is something I made up.
It's not.

As I made my way down the hallway to the booth to pick up the phone,
I passed posters depicting some of the movies that had been filmed here.

After acquiring my phone,
I quickly visited the theatre to see what was playing.
It was a documentary on Toronto life in the early 20th century.
I didn't stay long.
But I'm glad I went, since originally,
this was an indoor swimming pool.
Interesting to see, if a bit dark.

I headed back up to the main floor.

The first room I entered was the Oak Room.
The wooden panels in this room took three artisans three years to complete.
Notice the chairs, the tables, the artwork, the piano???
None of it is original to the house.
Recall that Sir Henry had to sell off almost all his furnishings and artwork.

The pieces you see were purchased long afterwards
to provide a representation
of what the rooms might have looked like.
There still are a (very) few pieces here and there
that were returned to Casa Loma.
I'll point them out when we see them.


I exited the Oak Room and entered the Great Hall....
Quite the room. Immense, really.
Too bad I didn't take a single picture of it.


From the Great Hall, I wandered outside onto the patio overlooking the gardens.
I didn't dally as it looked like it was going to rain at any moment.

I went back inside to continue my exploration of the castle.
After a moment or two more, I noticed that it was getting more and more dark.
I glanced outside through a nearby window and... it was pouring!
Water was coming down in sheets!
I saw an ark drift by.
I was glad I was inside,
but at the same time I was dreading the time when it came to leave.

Well, for now, I'm high and dry so might as well keep touring, right?
Right.

This room is the Library.
It's now used for special occasions such as weddings.

Notice the Herringbone pattern on the floor?
Notice how there seems to be alternating dark and light stripes?
If you look at the floor from the opposite side of the room,
the dark stripes appear light and the light stripes appear dark.
When construction was taking place,
Sir Henry would walk these floors at night.
If any boards squeaked,
he would have the workers pull up the wood and replace them.

Although the above room currently holds a dining room table and chairs,
it was actually a vestibule of the actual dining room.
An orchestra would play here for the entertainment of the dining guests.

The room with the lovely bride was the actual dining room.
The vestibule is behind me.
Off to the right is the conservatory.

The floor is Italian marble.
Steam pipes kept the plants warm in the winter.
If you look closely at the stained glass dome,
you can just make out what looks like wasp nests hanging down.
They are actually ceramic "grape clusters" that are lit from the inside.

Sir Henry's study has two secret passageways on either side of the fireplace.
(I could only get one in the picture.)
When the doors are closed, you'd never know they were there.
The passageway that you see leads up to the second floor,
the other leads down to the wine cellar.

Continued next post!​

 

[pkondz]

Continued from previous post!​

I took the passageway up to the second floor and exited into the main hallway.
I turned left and left again into a guest bedroom.
Would you feel a little bit special if this was your room as a guest???

Lady Pellatt's bathroom.
Notable for a few reasons.
First of all it's at a time when few people had running water.
Second, floor to ceiling marble.

Lady Pellatt's study.
Mary Pellatt took an interest in and became the first
Chief Commissioner of the Girl Guides of Canada.
She would hold meetings with the girls in this room.

Adjacent to the study, Lady Pellatt's bedroom.

Sir Henry's bathroom.
Again, floor to ceiling marble.
The shower was a marvel as it had a rain shower head and body sprays.

Sir Henry's bedroom.
There actually is one item in this room that is original,
but it's against the wall, on the opposite side of the bed.
And I don't even remember what it is!
I think it's a vase or lamp.

After visiting the bedrooms
(there was also a servant's room and a guest bathroom)
at this end of the building, I walked the length of the hall to the opposite end.
Here, I found:

The Windsor room.
So called because Sir Henry had high hopes that King George would visit.
He didn't. But I believe I heard that the Prince of Wales (?) did.
The bed is also original, but was moved into this room from another.

The round room fits perfectly into one of the castle's two turrets.
The most remarkable thing (at least to me)
is that not only are the walls curved,
but so are the doors and windows.

Afterwards, I went up to the third floor which is fairly barren.
There are a few displays and photos from
The Queen's Own Rifles of Canada Regimental Museum,
as well as servant's rooms and other rooms
reserved for administrative purposes.
You can also climb up inside one of the turrets
(the other is being renovated)

The interior of the turret after ascending the stairs...

And the view down the narrow stairs.

And the subsequent view.
A little faded out due to the torrential downpour.
The large green wrapped object is the other turret.

You can ascend another (spiral) staircase to get to the highest point in the turret.

After viewing the somewhat soggy world from lofty heights,
I decided that I'd seen as much as I was going to see of Casa Loma.
I hadn't seen the stables or the carriage house... and I was okay with that.
I returned the audio guide cell phone and hesitantly made my way to the exit.
I really wasn't looking forward to the sprint to the car in the driving rain.
As I neared the exit... could it be???

The rain had completely stopped!
For the third day in a row, I'd completely missed getting rained on.
I think my Disney luck with the busses
has transferred over to luck with the rain.


I got back to the car, paid for parking,
told Betty where I wanted to go and headed out.
There's a couple of Harley stores in and around Toronto
that I wanted to visit.
Need to add to my poker chip collection, ya know.
One was about half an hour away.
No problem. I'm on vacation. I've got time.
Except... I was getting hungry.
I hadn't eaten anything yet and my stomach was sending up distress flares.

Well, I was in Toronto, right?
The dining possibilities are practically endless!
So what did I do?
Stopped in at a Wendy's.



I didn't feel like driving too far out of the way,
and it was the first thing I saw when I got closer to my destination.

It was... well it was Wendy's.
In other words, fast food and almost edible.
Almost immediately after, no... during the meal, I regretted it.
Should've just gone hungry.
Oh, well.


I arrived at the Harley store a minute or so after eating,
looked around, got my poker chip...
and left.
Not much more to say about it.
Glad I went. Saw some nice bikes. Bought a T-shirt. Adios.


I drove back into Toronto and popped over to the other Harley store.
This one was conveniently located just a few minutes away from the hotel.
Had a nice chat with one of the salesmen and picked up another poker chip.


By then it was time to head back to the hotel.
I arrived in the room just a few minutes ahead of Ruby.

We hung out for a while and Ruby had a quick nap.
When she woke up, we were both starting to feel a little hungry.
I suggested a place I'd found on the internets.

I had Googled Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Toronto.
Apparently, Guy Fieri has reviewed six restaurants in Toronto for his show.
I knew one of them, Ruby wouldn't like.
But the rest were fair game.
We settled on The Lakeview.


We hopped in the car, told Betty to wake up and take us there,
and set out.
Apparently, everything in Toronto is half an hour away from everything else.
Because once again, it took us about that much time to get there.

We found the place (thanks Betty!) pretty easily and parked on a side street.
It was starting to get dark again, but it wasn't raining,
so we decided to not bring the umbrella.
We walked about a block and stepped into The Lakeview and back in time.

Does this place look cool or what???

We grabbed a booth, snagged some menus and perused.
I had seen two things on the show that I knew I was going to try.
Number one on that list was the Apple Pie Milkshake.
They make a vanilla milkshake... then blend in an entire slice of apple pie.
Oh. My. Lord. Absolutely frabulastic. Possibly the best milkshake I've ever had.
And I've had the Peanut Butter & Jelly milkshake at 50s Primetime.

Ruby ordered The Majestic.
A bacon cheeseburger that she said was really good.

And on Guy Fieri's advice, I ordered The Lakeview Clubhouse Stack.

What can I say about this sandwich?
Well.. in a word... disappointing.
It could have been sooo good!
The secret ingredient with this sammie is the chicken.
It's a chicken breast that's coated in corn flakes and deep fried.
The idea is to make it extra crispy... and it was.
But.

Unfortunately there has to be a but.
If you look at the picture, you can see that the chicken is pretty dark,
bordering on black.
It wasn't overcooked, the chicken itself was fine,
but it's obvious that the oil in the fryer was too old
and really needed to be changed.

Now this isn't the first time Guy has steered me wrong,
and I don't really think he did... kind of.
This place is open 24 hours and if it's popular,
then the oil is going to get a work out.
Changing it all the time would be tough.
I get that.
But maybe check the colour once in a while?
And change it when it needs it????

If we get back this way, would I go again?
For that milkshake alone, I would.
I'd probably try the clubhouse again too.
Maybe I just got unlucky.


As we were eating, it started to pour.
And as hard or harder than it had earlier in the day.
So glad that I'd left the umbrella in the car!
I told Ruby that I'd make a run for it and pick her up in front of The Lakeview.
But by the time we finished eating and paid our bill,
the rain had finished too!

We strolled casually back to the car and headed back to the hotel.
Ruby had another early morning ahead of her,
so we decided to just watch another movie in the room.


We watched The Gambler with Mark Wahlberg.
Totally not what I expected it to be.
And not necessarily in a good way.
I won't say the movie's bad... but it sure wasn't great.
My recommendation? Don't bother.


So perhaps not a stellar way to end the day.
A not so great meal (excluding the shake... which was marvelous.)
and a not so great movie.


Ah well. Tomorrow's another day to explore and discover.

Toronto Mini TR - Here Today Gone Tomorrow​

 

[pookersmom]

I'm back on the DISboards after an extended absence and just spent today catching up on fun trip reports. Yours here is some fine entertainment! I am also Canadian although I live in Colorado, and I think I relate to your (sort of) distinctly Canadian sense of humor. Or humour. Whichever.

 

[DonnaBeeGood]

.

 

[cinderkelly]

Wow Casa Loma looks amazing, thanks for the pics, they were really cool to see. The marble bathrooms...
Bonus you missed the torrential downpour!
I've always wondered how the places do after they've been on DDD, I like the show but have wondered if they live up to the hype.
I've never been to Canada, Toronto seems like a great city to visit.

 

[pkondz]

I'm back on the DISboards after an extended absence

Well welcome back, and to the TR/Mini-TR!

and just spent today catching up on fun trip reports.

And this one, too.

Yours here is some fine entertainment!

Thanks!

I am also Canadian although I live in Colorado,

You had to pick a spot with lots of snow, huh?
What took you there? (Don't answer if you don't want to.)

and I think I relate to your (sort of) distinctly Canadian sense of humor. Or humour. Whichever.

Humour. Always with an "oh, you!"

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

I, of course, was a perfect gentleman (as always)
and didn't rub her nose in the fact that I got an extra hour of sleep.
Nor did I gloat that I had a day of fun and frivolity planned while she
toiled under the heavy burden of work.

I might not have done those things because she would hit me if I did.
But I prefer to think it was because I was gallant.

Well, sure.

And also because if you're anything like me, you learn from the past.

"Yes." I begin. "I believe I'm being charged $500 for insurance
and I don't want it."
"Oh! I'm so sorry Mr. pkondz. I've marked your file with a note.
I don't believe I can completely remove the charge from this end,
but when you return the car, just tell them there's a note on file
and the charge will be removed.
Is there anything else I can do for you?"

Yeah, I don't really want to actually pay for the rental car, either. Could you remove those charges as well?

I must admit that I was a little flabbergasted
at the ease at which I'd had the insurance removed.
I should have asked her to grant me the ability to walk on water,
since she was handing out miracles.
But I was just too speechless.

Can't blame you there. I would have been trying to figure out what the catch was.

Now some of you may be thinking to yourselves,
"Sure. You saved yourself some cash.
But if you so much as scratch that car... you're in deep do-do!"

Nah. I always tell them I'm covered under my standard car insurance. And I'm an excellent driver.

And third. When I rented the car, I put it on my credit card.
You know. The one that gives me free car insurance on rentals?
Yeah. That one.
So I never needed the rental's insurance in the first place.

Or that.

During the depression, following WWI,
the city increased the property tax on Casa Loma
from $600 a year to $1,000 a month!
How would you like it if your taxes increased by 2000 percent!!!

I complain about paying them even when they don't increase!

I suppose the front lawn isn't really what you want to see is it.

Well, it is an impressive front lawn.

And now you're wondering if Poo Pourri is something I made up.
It's not.

I exited the Oak Room and entered the Great Hall....
Quite the room. Immense, really.
Too bad I didn't take a single picture of it.

Also known as a TR Fail.

Notice the Herringbone pattern on the floor?
Notice how there seems to be alternating dark and light stripes?
If you look at the floor from the opposite side of the room,
the dark stripes appear light and the light stripes appear dark.

[Keanu Reeves Face] Whoa. [/Keanu Reeves Face]

Sir Henry would walk these floors at night.
If any boards squeaked,
he would have the workers pull up the wood and replace them.

I have a railing on my front porch that is falling off, almost completely disintegrated. It's been like that for 3 years now.

Now that's impressive!

Sir Henry's study has two secret passageways on either side of the fireplace.

Awesome! If I ever become wealthy enough to build my own house from scratch, it's definitely going to have secret passageways.

The rain had completely stopped!
For the third day in a row, I'd completely missed getting rained on.
I think my Disney luck with the busses
has transferred over to luck with the rain.

Man, you need to buy some lottery tickets or something. Is that horseshoe still up your butt?

Well, I was in Toronto, right?
The dining possibilities are practically endless!
So what did I do?
Stopped in at a Wendy's.

This needs more

I had Googled Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Toronto.
Apparently, Guy Fieri has reviewed six restaurants in Toronto for his show.
I knew one of them, Ruby wouldn't like.
But the rest were fair game.
We settled on The Lakeview.

Hey, I think I watched that one! I seem to remember milkshakes...

I had seen two things on the show that I knew I was going to try.
Number one on that list was the Apple Pie Milkshake.
They make a vanilla milkshake... then blend in an entire slice of apple pie.
Oh. My. Lord. Absolutely frabulastic. Possibly the best milkshake I've ever had.

That's the one! Oh man, that sounds amazing. I would go there just to order that.

Sorry the sandwich wasn't up to par.

Ah well. Tomorrow's another day to explore and discover.

An excellent life motto.

 

[pkondz]

I think I might be a slow learner. I don't know how many times I overpaid for individual trip insurance, before finally signing up for the trip insurance coverage with my credit card, for 1/10th of the price.

That rental car coverage (from the car company) has got to be their biggest money maker.

Oh, so glad you got to see Casa Loma. I did not get a chance on my Toronto visit years ago - I chose Niagara Falls instead.

I did Niagara Falls last year, so I was good there.
Plus, having already done some of the big attractions,
it let me finally do one that I'd heard of for years, but never found the time to do.

But, should I ever win the lottery, I'm going to refer back to this castle, and build the 3 bedroom version. But I will need to have a stained glass window. And perhaps a spiral staircase. And maybe even a cute little turret.

Gotta have a turret.
And if you're gonna have a turret, might as well be a cute one.

And I'll also need a secret passageway, into my library.

This goes without saying.
And I want the library to look like the one at Casa Loma... except books on all four walls.

And definitely a marble bathroom!

Sorry your sandwich wasn't up to expectations. I ate at Guy Fieri's restaurant at The Quad in Las Vegas. The pulled pork sandwich was the best I have ever tasted! Although, that may have also been due to the 3 absolutely fabulous Lynchburg Lemonades...

The drinks might have had something to do with it.

 

[pkondz]

Wow Casa Loma looks amazing, thanks for the pics, they were really cool to see.

You're welcome! Glad you liked them!

Bonus you missed the torrential downpour!

Twice! And just that day!

I've always wondered how the places do after they've been on DDD, I like the show but have wondered if they live up to the hype.

I've been to (that I remember) three of them.
One place in Minneapolis (The Wienery) was really run down and dirty... but the best hot dog I've ever had.
Another place, north of Minneapolis was lousy. The house specialty that Guy raved about was just meh.
The rest was just not good.

I've never been to Canada, Toronto seems like a great city to visit.

There's certainly not a shortage of things to see and do.

 

[DisneyAndrew]

Ahhh...reading this brought back all of the memories of visiting Casa Loma. What a neat experience! In fact, after reading through that, I recalled that some parts of the castle were closed when we were there because they were filming something (I can't remember what).

Now that makes me want to go dig out all of the pictures from when I was there. Of course, mine are probably not beautiful because they were taken with a 35mm camera and film (there may be some on the DIS who aren't sure what those items are). So, naturally, that means that there was no way to review the pictures as you took them ::GASP:: Say it isn't so!

Anyway, really enjoyed the trip down memory lane, and if I can find any of my pictures I may share them for comparison purposes.

 

[Practically_Perfect]

I had Googled Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives Toronto.
Apparently, Guy Fieri has reviewed six restaurants in Toronto for his show.

Been lurking and following along. I love reading TRs done by fellow Canadians (a solo travellers)! I have a trip coming up in September - still deciding on whether to write a TR or not...

You should also try googling "You Gotta Eat Here!" restaurants. It's Canada's answer to DDD. The Ottawa restaurants featured are all very good, and I'm going to be trying out one of their recommendations in Moncton in a couple weeks (Catch 22 - yummy, freshly caught lobster!!); hopefully I won't be steered wrong

YGEH Winnipeg restaurants include: Blondies, Kawaii Crepe, Red Top Diner. Never been to any of them. When I'm visiting YWG friends I tend to get taken to the Forks or Earls (since there's none further east than MB).

 

[GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes]

"Look, Daddy. Teacher says, every time a Kardashian is mentioned a brain cell dies."

And I have so few left to be frittering them away on such trifles.

I swear, the average IQ of the planet is slowly but surely being lowered by TV.

Or it’s just accentuating the deficiency that was already inherent in the populous.

True. Not too much different anywhere democracy is in place, I suspect.

I think it’s got more to do with the transition in news away from information and analysis…
toward entertainment and “perceived” drama

Had a co-worker who was once asked to possibly open the hatch .
(He didn't have to, thankfully.)

He said he was just sitting there, relaxing when the attendant told him.
He was like "Uh... what???"

That’d quickly suck all of the joy out of an airplane flight.
Oh wait… what joy?

Wha? Where?!?!?!?

Just over there… see?
You need to pay more attention.

That much seems fairly obvious.
When I see that he's leading the polls....

I think that fact illustrates a different and probably more disturbing unspoken truth.

Well, sorry to say but I think you'll be in for a little bit of a let down.
While I did do a couple of touristy things, I didn't do much.

No, no…
You’ve already shown me more of Toronto than I’ve seen for myself.

 

[KatMark]

I'm not going to lie...I'm going to tell the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. I SKIMMED!!! After 9 days in Disney, 11 days back at work trying to get caught up and packing for our move in 94 days (and a trip to Florida before that), I just haven't been able to catch up the way I'd like.

First and foremost... for your trip being booked to Disney. That is absolutelya wesome and I am very, very happy for you and your DD.

I'm glad you straightened out the insurance on the car. We never get insurance on our cars and hate when they try to "sell" it to us.

LOVE the pictures of the castle...absolutely stunning.

 

[pkondz]

Well, sure.

And also because if you're anything like me, you learn from the past.

No. I don't learn.
Unfortunate.

Yeah, I don't really want to actually pay for the rental car, either. Could you remove those charges as well?

If I hadn't been so shocked, I might have asked for a discount... but...

Can't blame you there. I would have been trying to figure out what the catch was.

Nah. I always tell them I'm covered under my standard car insurance. And I'm an excellent driver.

I complain about paying them even when they don't increase!

Good point.

Also known as a TR Fail.

Mea culpa.

[Keanu Reeves Face] Whoa. [/Keanu Reeves Face]

I have a railing on my front porch that is falling off, almost completely disintegrated. It's been like that for 3 years now.

Time to put it out of its misery. Set fire to it.

Awesome! If I ever become wealthy enough to build my own house from scratch, it's definitely going to have secret passageways.

I did build my own house from scratch (well... I paid someone to do it.)
and I neglected to add in the secret passageways.
Some day I hope to renovate the basement....
You better believe they'll be one then!

Man, you need to buy some lottery tickets or something. Is that horseshoe still up your butt?

No. It set off the alarm at airport security and I had to remove it.

This needs more

I know.



I'm so ashamed.

Hey, I think I watched that one! I seem to remember milkshakes...

That's the one! Oh man, that sounds amazing. I would go there just to order that.

Sorry the sandwich wasn't up to par.

Here's a hint. If you try to make that shake yourself,
first make the shake... and then add the pie.
Don't over blend.

Trust me on this.