Mr. Toronto

So – I had another topic planned for this blog, but then the weekend happened…and I just had to share it with you, because it highlights everything that is so great about the City – the neighbourhoods, the excitement, the variety, the multiculturalism…

I won’t even share my whole weekend with you, just a 24-hour slice!

It started after sundown Saturday with a walk through Kensington, one of the funkiest areas in town…though the small, hip boutiques were closed for the day, the cafes, restaurants and pubs were just heating up…and new ones are being added daily – from taco joints to vegan restaurants to authentic Italian pizza, it’s all there…

Then, a short walk across the street (Spadina, at College) to Grossman’s, an “institution” in Toronto, offering up live music – all FREE! – 7 nights a week.  Home mainly to blues (Belushi/Ackroyd’s Blues Brothers actually “formed” here, fashioned after the city’s Downchild Blues Band), on this particular Saturday night, my favourite local band, Caution Jam, had the house rocking til 2am…

Then it was to bed for a few hours, and up in the morning to head over to Yorkville, to catch iceFest 2012, this trendy neighbourhood’s annual ice-carving festival. (see photo) Though we’ve had a particularly mild winter, it was still cold enough to see some incredible sculptures, while grazing on gourmet mac n’ cheese and hot cider from the food stalls set up throughout.

Then it was just a short stroll along “Mink Mile” – the fancy stores along Bloor Street – to the Royal Ontario Museum.  Along with their special Maya exhibit, what really brought me there was a special movie screening, free with admission.  In honour of Black History Month, the ROM was showing “RasTa: A Soul’s Journey”, a documentary about Rastafarian culture done by Bob Marley’s granddaughter, Donisha Prendergrast.  And the icing on the cake?  Donisha was actually there for the screening I went to, and did a Q&A after the flick (see photo).

Which brought us back to sundown – and the end of a very cool, very Toronto 24-hours.

Gotta get some sleep before next weekend!

Mr. Toronto