Idyllic Retreat to Toronto Last Weekend
May 2nd, 2006, 09:42 PM
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Idyllic Retreat to Toronto Last Weekend
We are lucky enough to live four hours by car from Toronto and last weekend we crossed the border for a short vacation. Our planning began last fall when I purchased tickets for the Lord of the Rings stage production at the Princess of Wales Theater, starring one of my favorite actors, Brent Carver. We have been fortunate to see him perform many, many times, both in Stratford and in Toronto.
Our hotel of choice was the Sheraton Centre Toronto. We opted for the Club Floor with a great view of City Hall. If you click on the following you will see almost exactly what our room and view was like:
http://www.sheratontoronto.com/
We did enjoy the complimentary hors d'oeuvres at happy hour. The free continental breakfast was, in my opinion, much more than that. We enjoyed freshly made expresso and lattes, along with cheeses, fruit and lunch meats, at the comfortable seating areas overlooking the city.
Two restaurants we can highly recommend are:
lunch at Pangaea (in the Bay and Bloor area), and Brasaii for breakfast (King and Spadina). Pangaea was pricey, but we kept it to a glass of wine each and we split three appetisers: lobster bisque topped with a bit of caviar, fois gras with tiny morel mushrooms, and lamb sausages. I especially loved the decor at Brassaii. Very modern and minimalistic, very cool vibe. I'd come here every week if I lived in Toronto. The food was good and not expensive, especially compared to Pangaea.
Now to "Lord of the Rings". The play was phenominal. At $27 million it is the most expensive stage production in history. That alone would not impress me, but I believe the money was put to really good use. The special effects were eye-popping. I'm not a fan of that genre, yet I was glued to the edge of the very long evening (there are two rather short intermissions). The acting was outstanding across the board. As a musician I was fascinated by the original music, a mix of Finnish and Indian. To top it off, we were even able to have a delightful short visit with Mr. Carver afterward.
Sunday afternoon I noticed from our room hundreds of people gathered in the city hall plaza across the street, waving yellow and red striped flags. I took my camera and went down to see what was going on. It was a Canadian-Vietnamese recognition celebration. As they made their way down Queen street in a parade, I could smell the delicious dishes of the Canadian Indian community as they were preparing to take over the plaza for an all day Indian festival. Their colorful garb and beautiful saris fueled a photo-taking bonanza.
We bade goodbye to Toronto and our perfect weekend, by stopping at IKEA in Etobicoke on the way home, vowing to stay only an hour. (Although Michigan will be finally be getting this store, so far the closest to our house is in Chicago, six hours away.) Three hours (!) later we finally got back on the road home again.
I hope this is helpful to someone who may be considering a visit to Toronto. Thanks, Canadians, for such a fun time in your fair city.
Our hotel of choice was the Sheraton Centre Toronto. We opted for the Club Floor with a great view of City Hall. If you click on the following you will see almost exactly what our room and view was like:
http://www.sheratontoronto.com/
We did enjoy the complimentary hors d'oeuvres at happy hour. The free continental breakfast was, in my opinion, much more than that. We enjoyed freshly made expresso and lattes, along with cheeses, fruit and lunch meats, at the comfortable seating areas overlooking the city.
Two restaurants we can highly recommend are:
lunch at Pangaea (in the Bay and Bloor area), and Brasaii for breakfast (King and Spadina). Pangaea was pricey, but we kept it to a glass of wine each and we split three appetisers: lobster bisque topped with a bit of caviar, fois gras with tiny morel mushrooms, and lamb sausages. I especially loved the decor at Brassaii. Very modern and minimalistic, very cool vibe. I'd come here every week if I lived in Toronto. The food was good and not expensive, especially compared to Pangaea.
Now to "Lord of the Rings". The play was phenominal. At $27 million it is the most expensive stage production in history. That alone would not impress me, but I believe the money was put to really good use. The special effects were eye-popping. I'm not a fan of that genre, yet I was glued to the edge of the very long evening (there are two rather short intermissions). The acting was outstanding across the board. As a musician I was fascinated by the original music, a mix of Finnish and Indian. To top it off, we were even able to have a delightful short visit with Mr. Carver afterward.
Sunday afternoon I noticed from our room hundreds of people gathered in the city hall plaza across the street, waving yellow and red striped flags. I took my camera and went down to see what was going on. It was a Canadian-Vietnamese recognition celebration. As they made their way down Queen street in a parade, I could smell the delicious dishes of the Canadian Indian community as they were preparing to take over the plaza for an all day Indian festival. Their colorful garb and beautiful saris fueled a photo-taking bonanza.
We bade goodbye to Toronto and our perfect weekend, by stopping at IKEA in Etobicoke on the way home, vowing to stay only an hour. (Although Michigan will be finally be getting this store, so far the closest to our house is in Chicago, six hours away.) Three hours (!) later we finally got back on the road home again.
I hope this is helpful to someone who may be considering a visit to Toronto. Thanks, Canadians, for such a fun time in your fair city.
May 3rd, 2006, 05:25 AM
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Hi Maggi,
Thanks for such a great trip report! We have followed Brent Carver's career from the 70's in London, Ontario, and seen him in many productions too. I cannot say enough about his abilities as an actor. How did you possibly manage a meeting...that would have made it very special.
Good info too on the hotel, and restaurant choices..
sure to help others trying to make decisions.
And, I have the same problem in IKEA.....there's always one more thing, and I live fairly close to one!
Thanks for such a great trip report! We have followed Brent Carver's career from the 70's in London, Ontario, and seen him in many productions too. I cannot say enough about his abilities as an actor. How did you possibly manage a meeting...that would have made it very special.
Good info too on the hotel, and restaurant choices..
sure to help others trying to make decisions.
And, I have the same problem in IKEA.....there's always one more thing, and I live fairly close to one!
May 3rd, 2006, 10:22 AM
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Sometimnes we forget what matters to tourists.
IKEA -- well, if there is not one at home...
Yesterday I talked to some teenager visitors who were excited by all the fancy cars they saw. Apparently no Bentley's and Rolls-Royces at home.
That was some sea of orange at the Indian celebration.
BAK
BAK
IKEA -- well, if there is not one at home...
Yesterday I talked to some teenager visitors who were excited by all the fancy cars they saw. Apparently no Bentley's and Rolls-Royces at home.
That was some sea of orange at the Indian celebration.
BAK
BAK
May 3rd, 2006, 05:05 PM
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Tobie T, we used to go to Stratford quite a bit and the first time I saw Brent was as the pirate king in Pirates of Penzance. I have been hooked every since. His house in Stratford was just a few doors down from our B&B and we kept running into him. After awhile, he got to know us and we even corresponded a few times. Despite his talent and his celebrity, he is very humble and keeps a low profile. He's one of the nicest actors and certainly one of the most talented we've ever met.
