Eastern Canada Trip 2024 Day 15 Tuesday June 18 Toronto to Victoria

 

This is the 15^th and last of a series of posts dealing with my 2024 trip to Eastern Canada. I’ve made minor corrections to these reports (typos, bits I don’t feel like making public). Also, I’ve added additional thoughts with the hindsight of a year later or to add further clarification. These are indicated by “NOW”.

 

With the humidity I slept okay most of the night. I woke up to my alarm and checked out of Neill Wycik Hotel. I walked to the nearest bus stop on Yonge St and took a 320 Toronto Transit bus to Bloor St. Due to construction I had a short hike to the nearest temporary bus stop. I arrived when the 300A Toronto Transit did. I took it to Pearson Airport in Mississauga. I checked in. There was a body scanner but I wasn't the only one to opt out and do the pat down instead; two people ahead of me and one behind me. I grabbed breakfast at Subway. I went with a footlong  breakfast sandwich to carry me over the flight.

 

Another flight with some elbowing from the person next to me. Being so squeezed in with long legs I was in a bit of pain so I stood every so often without actually leaving my seat. A guy in the aisle seat offered me a couple of chocolate coated wafers which was nice of him.

 

The plane arrived at Victoria Airport, North Saanich a bit early. The bus from the airport to McTavish Exchange wasn't for another 19 minutes and I needed the circulation so I walked to the exchange, where I took a 72 Victoria Transit bus home, getting to my place just before 11 am.

 

[NOW; A bit related to my former apartment deleted.]

 

The rest of the day is mostly beyond the scope of these reports, though it was surreal to have flown from Toronto to Victoria and still have a lot of the day ahead of me. I'll probably have some final; thoughts later but for now need to recharge.

Eastern Canada Trip 2024 Day 14 Tuesday June 17 Toronto

 

This is the 14^th of a series of posts dealing with my 2024 trip to Eastern Canada. I’ve made minor corrections to these reports (typos, bits I don’t feel like making public). Also, I’ve added additional thoughts with the hindsight of a year later or to add further clarification. These are indicated by “NOW”.

 

I walked to Yonge-Dundas Square and entered Dundas Station for a daypass; all transportation today Toronto Transit. The ticket from the machine was dated two days earlier so I pressed a button to call for info. No answer. I tested the ticket and it seemed to work. As I started to exit the Station I noticed that the rain had started. After waiting just a bit at Yonge-Dundas Square, I returned to Neill Wycik Hotel early. I had breakfast. By the time I finished the rain had stopped so I walked north along Yonge, noting where a bus stop was. At Yonge-Dundas Square I took a 2 train to Kipling, then gradually walked east back to Bloor-Yonge. It was rainy but it finally stopped; at some point early on I lost the umbrella's bottom handle. Enroute I accidentally got a Pepsi Zero instead of Pepsi at Dollarama and later got a Pepsi Slurpee at the 7-11 closest to Spadina Station. Back at Bloor-Yonge Station I took a 1 train to Finch Station and walked south, luckily most of this route was downhill. There was a slight detour due to the turn in the path to cross Hwy 401. Ironically you have to cross Yonge via overpass and then cross back at street level right after.

 

[NOW: Yonge-Dundas Square is now Sankofa Square. ]

 

I had lunch at the McDonald's closest to Lawrence Station and tried to visit Paradise Comics but once more it wasn't open. I got drinks at two Dollaramas. For the first one youth asked me where I'd been, noting my sunburn. I replied "All over". I visited Yonge's BMV. At a library where I went in for water I promised security not to take pictures. I got a couple trades at ABC Books. I took a 506 streetcar to The Beguiling and got some trades, which meant briefly grabbing a mask. I visited College St.’s She Said Boom! and Balfour Books. Neurotica proved not to be open today so it too missed out this trip. I took a 511 streetcar to Bathurst Station; apparently due to a wait for another streetcar to leave the station there was a long wait before anyone could get off.

 

Bloor's BMV also has a cheap section that I noticed earlier but it too wasn't open today. I briefly visited the main store. My friend Monica had noticed that the Royal Ontario Museum is free at 4:30 third Tuesday of the month but the lineup was huge. I'm not really into more general museums so the line-up far exceeded my interest level, figuring even when it opened it would be hard to get quick pics through the crowds, so I decided to pass. I'm sure I would have found it to be a great museum that I'm not all that into. I much prefer smaller focused museums like the Police Museum: get in, snap 15 minutes of shots, get out. I even found the Royal BC Museum boring the last time I visited, so even iff the ROM is great I might not be its target audience.

 

I took a 2 train from Museum to Osgoode Station. I revisited Nathan Phillips Square. I got more trades at Edward St's BMV. The Pizza Pizza I ate at last time was gone but I found one near College St. I carried the pizza to Yonge-Dundas Square. A guy, perhaps jokingly, asked for a slice. I declined. Later he and his friend, aside from asking for a slice, made a grab for my camera and then my backpack. They might have been joking or perhaps the backpack was heavier than expected. I moved to a different part of the Square and finished the pizza, then grabbed a drink from Dollarama.

 

I was already planning on ending today early because I have to get up around 3 tomorrow but the altercation cemented that plan. I returned to the hotel.

Eastern Canada Trip 2024 Day 13 Monday June 16 Toronto, Mississauga, Oakville, Burlington, Hamilton

 

This is the 13^th of a series of posts dealing with my 2024 trip to Eastern Canada. I’ve made minor corrections to these reports (typos, bits I don’t feel like making public). Also, I’ve added additional thoughts with the hindsight of a year later or to add further clarification. These are indicated by “NOW”.

 

 

Busy day today so decided to skip the free Neill Wycik Hotel breakfast. I walked to Union Station and got a GO Transit daypass. I took a look at the black people exhibit and then took a westbound train (all trains today Lakeshore West/GO Transit) to Port Credit GO Station, Mississauga. I walked south to St. Lawrence Park, Lake Union then explored Lakeshore Blvd briefly before returning to the GO Station.

 

I took another westbound train to Oakville GO Station, Oakville. I had breakfast at McDonald's across from the station before wandering to Lake Ontario there as well. My route both directions occasionally took me past Sixteen Mile Creek. I returned to the station and took another westbound train to Appleby GO Station, Burlington. I think it was part of this walk that I pulled out the inner lining of one of my shoes that kept wanted to come out the back. I walked to The Beat Goes On. Three minutes after it was supposed to open there was no sign that anyone had even arrived so I walked to Burlington Centre and visited Conspiracy Comics.

 

I worked my way to Brant Street Pier at Lake Ontario, where you can get some nice views of the area; en route it lightly rained a little. Mostly walking along Brant St, I did a slight side trip to A Different Drummer Books before making my way to Burlington GO Station. I took one more westbound train from there to West Harbour GO Station, Hamilton.

 

I walked to Frank A. Cooke Transit Terminal (formerly MacNab Transit Terminal) and got on the 27 bus (all buses in Hamilton are Hamilton Railway, which has no trains, just buses). A street person tried to get on the bus with all his stuff but he was denied entry, partly out of concern that his sleeping blanket might have bedbugs. I visited Big B Comics. It was raining when I got out. After a bit of a wait I took a 20 bus to The Beat Goes On; before going in I went to Subway, which was just a few doors down, so easy to get to in the rain. I got an Ice Age sequel Blu-ray at The Beat Goes On. I made it to a bus stop with a shelter, at which point it started raining harder. After a longer wait I took a 43 bus to Lime Ridge Mall.

 

I put on my poncho for  the short commute from the bus stop to the inside of the mall due to how hard it was raining. I visited Cinema 1 and another Conspiracy Comics. I put on the poncho again and returned to the bus terminal, where I took a 26 bus back to Frank A. Cooke Bus Terminal.

 

[NOW: Lime Ridge Mall’s Cinema 1 has since closed.]

 

By this point Mother Nature had stopped trying to destroy my camera so I was able to casually wander to Gore Park. Despite its name it's actually a pleasant looking park between two streets. There's a nice fountain there. I worked my way to Tabby's Variety, which used to sell DVDs but no longer. I briefly returned downtown. I was going to visit Hamilton Centre but the entrance on the side I wanted to go in was fenced off. I returned to West Harbour GO Centre.

 

I took an eastbound train. The top floor is supposed to be quiet but a young  woman, a bit drunk I think was a bit loud with first her swearing then then her Joker'esque laugh. I decided for time to skip Enter the Battlefield in Oakville but did get off at Clarkson GO Station, Mississauga.

 

I walked to Altered States Comics, a further distance than expected. Realizing I probably didn't have time to reach the next train, I grabbed dinner from a McDonald's before returning to the station. The train I now wanted to catch was 18 minutes late. I tried to kill time with WiFi on my phone, but there was no connection to GO Transit WiFi, at least in the part of the station I was at.

 

The train finally arrived and presumably to make up time became express after Port Credit. I got off back at Union Station, Toronto and made my way to Yonge-Dundas Square. Because the rain and wind had nearly wrecked my umbrella, I got a spare umbrella from the underground PATH. The earlier umbrella served me well, but it probably can't protect my camera if it rains tomorrow.

 

[NOW: Yonge-Dundas Square is now Sankofa Square. It did rain the next day]

 

I walked to my usual McDonald's in the area just to get soda water. I then returned to the hotel. This ends the sidetrips part of the trip.