This is the 4th of a series of posts dealing with
my fourth trip to Eastern Canada. I’ve made minor corrections to these reports.
Also, I’ve added additional thoughts with the hindsight of a year later or to
add further clarification. These are
indicated by “NOW”. After I booked the trip I unexpectedly had to move and was
staying at a friend’s place at the time of the trip, so I was already pretty
tired before the trip back.
Forgot to mention before: drivers noticeably
crazier this year. According to the Police Museum there were only 2 vehicular
deaths last year and 5 so far this year, so maybe the drivers are trying to
fill some sort of quota. Glad I bought my mini-notebook. Only one Internet
computer for everyone, staff included. All travel today Toronto Transit or on
foot.
[NOW: The hostel was The Only
Backpackers Inn.]
I took a Line 2 train (Bloor-Danforth)
from Donlands to Yonge then a Line 1 train (Yonge-University-Spadina) from
Bloor to Lawrence to pick up where I left off on my walk yesterday. I walked
north along Yonge, having breakfast at a nearby McDonald's. I walked past
Steeles Ave to Markham to the lights, then crossed the street into Vaughan,
stopping briefly at Galeria market. I continued south, soon crossing back into
Toronto. I bought a drink at the 7-11 across from Sheppard Centre. The Sunrise
Records in that mall was recently closed down.
As with last year I used a Line 1 train to go from Sheppard-Yonge to
Lawrence, skipping a less interesting and uphill segment. I did a slight doubling back to catch a small
section I missed earlier in the morning, then continued south to Bloor.
It was now just after 11 and I miscalculated
how much I could do in an hour, so I took a Line 1 train north to St Clair,
then a streetcar west to St Clair West Station. I then took a Line 1 train on
the other side north to Downsview Station to see areas of the subway I hadn't
seen before. It was a bad idea but I had an itch to scratch. And then the train stopped entirely just
before Downsview.
[NOW: It was a 512 streetcar.]
The train finally started going back
south after Downsview. Luckily during the brief period when I had reception, I
was able to get my friend Aidan to notify my friend Monica I'd be late for
lunch. I tried 411 but the operators kept insisting there was no such location. I finally made it to Dundas Station and
dashed to [work location deleted], which did indeed exist at the address Monica
gave, and we went for lunch. There was so much food that Monica arranged for me
to have some wrapped up for later.
[NOW: She’s now working somewhere else
in Toronto. I made the call not to post her work history on my blog.]
I bought some more DVDs at the Edward St
BMV Books. I went back to Yonge-Dundas Square, which was mostly blocked off by
a beer event. I went to Queen St and got a 501 streetcar which detoured due to
construction.
I got off at Greenwood and due to the
detour took a 31A bus south back to Queen. I visited Queen's branch of Film
Buff and then took a 501 temporary bus to its last stop. I then had to walk the
rest of the way to Woodbine, and then went south to Woodbine Beach. A bit wiped out from yesterday, I stayed
there about an hour and drank a fair bit from a water fountain.
[NOW: Film Buff has closed.]
I took a 93 bus which passed a sign
saying that yesterday there was a strawberry social/silent auction there...
only it was at a graveyard. I'm not sure I'd eat strawberries from there and
the residents probably aren't very sociable, but I can believe that the auction
was in fact silent. I got off at
Woodbine Station and took a Line 2 train to Bathurst to take a quick look at
the outside of Honest Ed's once more. Walking east I revisited Queen Video and
BMV Books on Bloor St. I walked a little
south on Spadina and took a 510 streetcar to Dundas, and from there a 505
streetcar to Dundas Station. I grabbed a drink from a 7-11 and found a place to
sit at Yonge-Dundas Square despite the beer fest still happening.
[NOW: Queen Video has closed.]
From there I look a line 1 train from Dundas
Station to Bloor, then a Line 2 train from Yonge to Donlands. I returned to the
hostel rested briefly, then went for another walk along Danforth, getting a
drink at the LCBO before returning to the hostel; debit wasn't working at the
LCBO and credit iffy, but cash fine.
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