Mr. Toronto

Fall seems to be the time when Toronto’s arts scene really heats up…live theatre is in full swing (the subject of a future blog, I’m sure) and new museum/gallery exhibits are opening (for example, the fantastic “Chagall and the Russian Avant-Garde” at the AGO). But it’s fall movies and concerts that seem to be drawing on my heartstrings and tugging at my wallet this time of year….

Toronto is known for it’s star-studded TIFF (International Film Festival) in September, but fall is also the season when a whackload of other film festivals take to screens around town, reflecting the City’s amazing ethnic and cultural mix…Google these and check out all they have to offer!

*Toronto After Dark (Oct. 20-27)

*Polish Film Festival (Oct. 21-23)

*Israel Film Festival (Oct. 23-27)

*Brazil Film Fest (Oct. 27-30)

*Diaspora Film Festival (Nov.1-7)

*Regent Park Film Festival (Nov. 1-7)

*Rendezvous with Madness (Nov.4-12)

*Reel Asian (Nov.8-19)

And boy, is there ever music in the air this time of year!  Here’s a sampling of just a handful of the most interesting shows coming to town (according to me, of course):

*Tedeschi Trucks Band at the Danforth Music Hall (October 25)

*Mumford and Sons at the Air Canada Centre (ACC) (same night!)

*DeadMau5 at the Rogers Centre (November 5)

*Trombone Shorty at the Opera House (November 17)

*Jay Z and Kanye West at the ACC (November 23 and 24)

*Feist at Massey Hall (December 1)

*The National with Neko Case at the ACC (December

I’d give you more options, but if you’re like me you’re already hyperventilating!  So just take a deep breath, choose a couple, and c’mon over!

Mr. Toronto

PS.  Although it is totally unrelated to this blog, I would be remiss if I did not mention the tragic – and freaky – passing of Indy Car Driver Dan Wheldan earlier this week.  Especially freaky for me, because I talked about him in a previous blog – and showed a photo of the 2 of us together – just a few months ago, after he won the Indianapolis 500.  He was a wonderful and charming guy who will be sorely missed.

Discovering Graffiti alley south of Queen W

One of Mr. Toronto’s greatest pleasures is discovering something totally new and unique in this wonderful City.  Just when I think I have done and seen it all in my (almost) 25-years living here, occasionally something comes along that makes me go “wow – this place really is amazing!”

Last Sunday I went on a “Toronto Laneway” walking tour.  I can’t actually say this is new; only to me, as the gentleman who has been leading these tours – Graeme Parry – has apparently been doing this for 9 years! Graeme is an incredibly knowledgeable young man who does these tours because he, too, is in love with Toronto and wants to share his knowledge.  As such, he does this as a hobby (I heard someone say his day job was working for the TTC, our transit commission), and they are absolutely FREE!

The tour was fascinating.  We met at the corner of Queen and Bathurst streets, and walked for an hour through “Graffiti alley” south of Queen, leading to hidden

laneway homes on residential alleys that at first glance look like nothing more than long driveways with garages on either side.  The tour ended on Ossington street, which was also great as it is one of the coolest/hippest little streets out there, with vintage stores (I bought a great ‘50s tie!), wonderful restaurants (see one of my previous blogs on Pizzeria Libretto), and funky lounges (Reposado Tequilla Bar is one of my faves).

Unfortunately, this was Graeme’s last walking tour of the season (he does them in summer only), but he also does biking tours, and these don’t end until September 18 (you can bet I’ll be there!).  For more information, visit his website at

http://www.graemeparry.com/Site/Toronto_Laneways.html

And be prepared to be amazed!

Mr. Toronto

No, not quite.  The end of summer is in site, but there’s still plenty of time to visit Toronto with the kids before school starts.  And to help plan, here are a few ideas from The Grid (formerly EYE magazine), which recently came out with a list of “49 Totally Rad (and totally cheap) Things To Do With A Kid In The City”:

1)      Go people watching in (funky) Kensington Market – especially the last Sunday of every month, when it’s pedestrian only.

2)      Explore Lake Ontario in a canoe – rentals available from Canoe Toronto at Harbourfront (283A Queen’s Quay West)

3)      Take advantage of free admission to Ontario Place – in celebration of its 40^th anniversary (though you’ll still have to pay for the great water park)

4)      Have a pajama party at a good old-fashioned drive-in – double features, the latest flicks at Polson Pier (www.polsonpier.com)

5)      Buy cheap seats to a Blue Jays game – lots of fun, starting at only 11 bucks.  And the team is really quite good this year!

6)      Visit Kew Gardens playground (Queen St.E. and Wellesley), complete with turreted castles, a swirly slide and even a beach!

7)      Take a “staycation” at the Delta Chelsea Hotel – full disclosure: I work there!  But it made the list, really! Best hotel in town for kids (just voted “Best Family Hotel” by the readers of City Parent magazine).  Amazing Family Fun Zone with huge pool and waterslide, Kids Centre, Teen Lounge, and daily Camp Chelsea programming. (www.deltachelsea.com)

That’s it for their list…now a couple of things to add which are going on now and you shouldn’t miss.

First is the Canadian National Exhibition (CNE, or “The EX”, if you want to talk like a native), on now until September 5^th. Animal and agricultural exhibits, special shows, shopping pavilions, midway rides, FOOD (new this year – deep fried Jell-O!!!).  A real institution that should be visited at least once in your lifetime!

Secondly, the new Cirque du Soleil show is in town until October 9, at a specially constructed tent near Cherry Beach.  I have seen Cirque many times over the years, and I can honestly say this is the best I have seen.  Incredible staging and truly unbelievable acts.  With or without kids, get there!

And enjoy the rest of your summer!

Mr. Toronto

OK, fellow blogees – don’t want to wait too long for my next entry, so I am taking the lazy way out this time and just cutting and pasting an excellent tip from Georgina McCormick, Concierge at the Four Seasons Hotel in Yorkville.  She has written about one of my favourite hidden gems in the City- Riverdale Farm:

“Honks, twitters, chirps and bellows. Familiar sounds of the big city. Imagine having these loud and intrusive noises actually become a pleasant escape. The honking, not from an impatient driver but from a gaggle of geese, the twitters and chirps not from your hand held electronic device but from chicks and rabbits and the bellows, not from construction equipment working on the latest condo development but from a cow attempting to capture the attention of her still wobbly calf. Suddenly, those sounds are inviting, exciting and heart-warming and can be experienced a mere 10-minute drive from “city central.”

The Riverdale Farm, an historical working farm, is an oasis for concrete warriors. For eighty years this site was Riverdale Zoo, Toronto’s first zoo. When the existing state-of-the-art Toronto Zoo opened further outside the city limits, the site was dormant for four years; the grounds were flattened with only three of the original buildings left standing.

The Donnybrook Ruin, the landmark tower surrounded by a lovely wildflower garden is perfect for catching a glimpse of a flitting butterfly, bee or dragonfly. The Island house still stands by the duck pond, and finally the Zookeepers House, originally built by local Don Jail prisoners, now updated and referred to as “the Residence” or “Meeting House,” a farm activity-based neighbourhood centre where many children enjoy having their birthday parties hosted! In the cooler months, it’s a drop-in spot for toddlers to play farm through books, puzzles and community-based programs. To facilitate the new venue, an historical barn from outside the city was donated and its stone, pine and cedar bones were reconstructed on the site along with a Victorian style farmhouse.

The Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation department re-opened the facility in 1978 as a “farm in the city,” allowing children old and young to experience something inaccessible to many. A present day visit to the farm nestled discreetly in the beautiful and historic Cabbagetown neighbourhood immediately whisks you to a different time and a divergent mood from the bustling city streets. The quaint wooden arched entranceway invites you along the herb and wildflower framed winding paths that present surprises at every turn. Enter the barn to watch a cow being milked. Witness piglets suckling from their mother as she lounges on a fresh bed of hay. See roosters strutting proudly and chickens tending their chicks. Outside a donkey brays next to neighbouring horses and cows all surrounded by rustic wooden fences as a farm cat saunters by to find a quiet barn beam to nap on. Sheep, goats, turkeys, bunnies and geese all happily call this urban hideaway home.

If you happen by on a Tuesday between May and October, have a chat with one of the regional Ontario farmers that travel in to sell their wares at the weekly Farmers Market. Stalls are dressed with pictures, stories and history of the farm to educate visitors about how farm life is brought to the Toronto kitchen. Sampling of products is a given! Fresh farm eggs can be purchased daily at the Simpson House farm kitchen right beside the poultry barn, where you can also purchase snacks. The Shop at the Farm is a chance for little ones to part ways with a wee bit of allowance for a unique reminder of their day at the farm. Open daily from 9-5 with no admission fee and no highway travel, this Toronto gem is one of my favourite must sees!”

Thanks, Georgina!  So get out there, y’all, and enjoy a beautiful fall in T.O.!
Mr. Toronto

I can’t let this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity go by without reporting a bit of “coverage” (mainly for my out-of-town readers who may be unaware). Which leads me to my first reflection…how can an event that is so huge, and has such an impact on the host city (and supposedly the world!) have such little awareness just miles away? For those of you who need to be brought up to speed, Toronto has just finished hosting the semi-annual meeting of world leaders (it used to be just 8, but they’ve swelled to 20). We have been preparing for this event for months, and have spent over a billion dollars, mainly for security.

And what security — chain-link fences surrounding the downtown core where the meetings took place; public transportation and office buildings shut down; thousands upon thousands of police in riot gear ready for action…

In Toronto the safe, clean and genteel? What kind of action could there possibly be? Plenty, as it turns out. Protesters and hooligans were imported from all over the world to turn the City into a disaster zone, the likes of which we have never seen…smashed store windows, burning police cars…it looked like the set of one of those “Armageddon” movies….thankfully, no casualties or serious injuries. And now it’s all over.

Yes, all of this money, violence, craziness — for a 36 hour meeting. Toronto turned into a Police State, something out of the novel 1984. Was it worth losing our innocence for?

I suppose we should feel honoured and flattered that Toronto — which is such a fabulous city — is a leader in so many ways that Presidents and Prime Ministers from around the globe wanted to see the place. But what kind of place were they seeing? The inside of a convention centre, hotel, concert hall…in the meantime, the “real” city that they had supposedly come to see was under lockdown, fenced in. Stores and restaurants closed. Theatre productions and concerts canceled. Baseball games moved out of town. Highways shut down.

I have a suggestion — why don’t all the countries that participate chip in a few million dollars, and build a five-star hotel and airstrip on some remote island somewhere and use that as a permanent facility to house these meetings. And every meeting they can choose another country to host and showcase — the leader can show a nice video of his or her country, and order take-out flown in to give an authentic taste…now wouldn’t that be sweet.

Thanks for letting me vent

Mr. Toronto

Apologies, fellow bloggers.  It’s been a while since my last entry, but I’ve just been so darn busy with all that my favourite City has to offer, that it’s been hard to slow down and write…. last night, for instance, went to my first Raptors game of the season.  Basketball is probably my favourite Toronto sport to watch, for a number of reasons.  First, we’re actually good at it – we have one of the best teams in the NBA right now, one that is sure to make the playoffs this year (you heard it here first!).  Secondly, it’s fun to watch – not just the game itself, which is fast paced and exciting – but the cheerleaders, fans, activities during timeouts…. and thirdly, it’s quite reasonable.  Unlike NHL hockey tickets, which you have to sell your firstborn to buy in Toronto, Raptors tickets start at $15 (if you’re lucky) and move their way up in slow increments before hitting those stratospheric amounts…

What else has kept me busy?  Went to the opening of a fun new show here, The Toxic Avenger.  A “campy” musical based on a comic character, it’s kind of in the genre of the Rocky Horror Picture Show (meaning it’s not necessarily for everybody!). There are only five actors, but they play multiple parts, and are incredibly talented (including Louise Pitre, who was nominated for a Tony award on Broadway for Mamma Mia. The costume changes are lightening fast and very clever, and the music is a lot more memorable (and fun!) than some of the Andrew Lloyd Webber stuff you hear nowadays. It’s playing for an indefinite run at a lovely little venue, the Danforth Music Hall, which is in Greektown, so lots of great places to visit and eat at before and after the show as well…

Finally, went to the opening of the King Tut exhibit at the AGO last week.  I have to admit I was a bit sceptical…I went to the first Tut show back in the 70’s (I know, really showing my age here), which was great, but the world has changed a lot since then and we have all become more “sophisticated” – and cynical…. well let me tell you, the show lives up to its hype. Really well done, with some breathtaking objects.  My only disclaimer is that this kind of thing is SO much more impressive when you can have a moment “alone” with the object you are looking at, which isn’t very easy when you are jostling for space with dozens of other people.  So my recommendation is to try and go/get your (timed) tickets for as off-peak a time as possible…the show is here til April 2010.

Best news of all is that the weather is holding u and you don’t need snow boots and parkas yet – so come on over and have some fun!

Mr. Toronto