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Conference kaosws::canada

Title:True North Strong & Free
Notice:Introduction in Note 535, For Sale/Wanted in 524
Moderator:POLAR::RICHARDSON
Created:Fri Jun 19 1987
Last Modified:Fri Jun 06 1997
Last Successful Update:Fri Jun 06 1997
Number of topics:1040
Total number of notes:13668

978.0. "Things to do in Toronto" by CHEFS::EDWARDSD () Wed Jan 24 1996 09:35

    Hi,
    
    My wife and I are planning a shortish trip to Toronto in March.
    Possibly staying for about 3-4 days before driving to Pittsburgh (via
    the Niagara Falls ?).  I'm in need of some information regarding things
    to do/see etc.  Our interests include eating, drinking, more eating,
    the odd bit of culture (theatre, shows, concerts etc *not* museums, art
    galleries unless they're a bit special), shopping (!)......
    
    Yes, I know there are several similar topics in this conference, and
    having perused them all, I now feel very knowledgable in things
    whirly-twirly, and I also have 101 ways to cook snow snakes !  All of
    which is very useful for, errr, well, something I'm sure, but not quite
    what I was after.
    
    Thanks in advance,
    
    Dave
    
    P.S  I would also welcome suggestions for a good hotel.  My wife likes
    a bit of luxury when we go on holiday, so please bear that in mind !
T.RTitleUserPersonal
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978.1POLAR::KYOBEA pint of rhum pleaseWed Jan 24 1996 10:073
    Sounds like super Dave-:)
    May be you should try the Talisman hotel.
    And for the "more eating"would you please be more specific?
978.2CHEFS::EDWARDSDWed Jan 24 1996 13:106
>    And for the "more eating"would you please be more specific?
    
	Well, any recommendations for good Italian, Chinese, Mexican, 
    Indian, Indonesian etc etc etc restaurants would be more than welcome.
    
    Dave
978.3Thank heavens for lifts~CHEFS::WARRENJBring me sunshine..Thu Jan 25 1996 11:2210
    
    Have you been to Toronto before?  I was there last May and had dinner
    in the revolving restaurant at the top of the CN Tower on the first
    night.
    
    The food was good, but expensive (by Canadian standards - about what
    I'd expect to pay for an average meal in the UK though), and I rather
    enjoyed watching the twinkling city lights.
    
    Jackie
978.4CHEFS::EDWARDSDThu Jan 25 1996 14:0813
    >Have you been to Toronto before?
    
    No we haven't.  Our first and only trip to Canada was a 10-day skiing
    holiday in Lake Louise.  Any suggestions, touristy and non-touristy,
    would be more than welcome.
    
    re: the revolving restaurant - just how high is the CN tower and,
    probably more importantly, how fast does the restaurant revolve ?  This
    conjures up rather unpleasant sickly-type thoughts :-)
    
    Thanks,
    Dave  
    
978.5A true whirley-twirley...POLAR::RUSHTONThu Jan 25 1996 14:4021
    >>re: the revolving restaurant - just how high is the CN tower and,
    >>probably more importantly, how fast does the restaurant revolve ?  This
    >>conjures up rather unpleasant sickly-type thoughts :-)
    
    It's about 600m in height, and with the reduction in cannabis usage,
    it's no longer quite as high. :*)
    
    The restaurant revolves about 1rph (one revolution per hour, a bit like
    Latin America), but that depends on the elevator (lift) usage.  The
    whole system works like a grandfather clock where the weights are the
    elevators which wind up the spring mechanism which drives the gears
    which turn the restaurant.  The more the elevators are used, the faster
    it turns.
    
    Once, it spun so fast that meals and drinks which weren't nailed down
    were flung against the outside window (which, fortunately is 30cm thick
    to prevent patrons from being flung out into space).
    
    Enjoy,
    
    Korff
978.6CHEFS::EDWARDSDThu Jan 25 1996 15:136
    re:-1
    
    err, thanks Korff.  I suppose I should be grateful that this note had
    survived the whirley-twirley gang for as long as it did :-)
    
    
978.7TROOA::SOLEYFall down, go boomThu Jan 25 1996 18:5433
    Toronto has a plethora of chain hotels and by and large they're all about 
    the same, which is exactly the same as the same hotels in most other
    cities. There are four that I can think of that are reputed to be more
    luxurious:
    	The King Edward
    	The Park Plaza
    	The Four Seasons Yorkville
    	The Four Seasons Inn on the Park
    The first three are downtown, the last on the North eastern fringe of
    the real city, it is supposed to cater especially well to families with
    Children.
    
    The revolving restaurant on the top of the Westin Harbour Castle is
    reputed to be a better value than the CN tower and nearly as
    spectacular a view. 
    
    As far as "Ethnic" food goes whatever you want you can get it here
    somewhere. If your in the mood to browse for a meal just go to "The
    Danforth" (Danforth Avenue between Broadview and Pape subway stations),
    this used to be an almost exclusively Greek neighbourhood and Greek
    restaurants still outnumber any others but there is a huge diversity
    that wasn't there even five years ago. If you want to go for greek
    avoid the big places like the Astoria Gardens and Mr. Greek that mostly
    just shovel out rubbery "Souvlaki" and hit one of the smaller places
    that do Meztakia (Greek Tapas) like Pan or Ouzeri.  
    
    Another high concentration of restaurants area is "The Beaches" (Queen
    St. E of woodbine) and there are a whole bunch of places just north of
    the Skydome and aroung Yonge and Eglinton. 
    
    Real Torontonians ride the subway and live south of Lawrence Avenue,
    freaks and wierdos live North of Lawrence and North of Steeles (the
    tree line) it's pretty much just Eskimos and caribou.  
978.8I might be miffedTROOA::TEMPLETONNo sugar addedFri Jan 26 1996 01:0512
    -1
    
    Freaks and wierdos live north of!
    
    Be nice Norm, or I might remember that the next time you want me to
    transfer a call for you.
    
    Who knows who you might end up talking to :-)
    
    
    
    joan
978.9Clearly you are the exception that proves the rulkeTROOA::SOLEYFall down, go boomFri Jan 26 1996 14:184
    On usenet they call the end of .7 a troll, i.e. fishing for flames. Of
    course I don't mean that seriously. I was just trying to convey the
    idea that there are two very different Torontos and the further North
    (and east and west) you go the more suburban things get. 
978.10TROOA::BROOKSFri Jan 26 1996 15:4215
    Re: beaches restaurants -> Richards on North side right in middle. 
    Small place, nice owner - usually a fish special if you're a vegan or
    something.
    
    Check with your local travel person - perhaps some of the bigger hotels
    will accept a Digital badge for a discount.
    
    When you get into town, be sure to pick up a 'EYE' or 'NOW' magazine as
    they list everything that is going in at the clubs, theatres, etc.
    (it's free and available many places).  
    
    BTW, Inn on the park is located on the park system that snakes it's way
    thru the city from the lake to Lawrence Ave.
    
    Doug
978.11Watch it TROOA::MCRAMDEC: ReClaim TheName!Fri Jan 26 1996 19:5712
    
    Frankly, living in Newmarket we prefer the term  "Inuit" rather than
    Eskimo.   
    
    The EYE and Toronto Life have restaurant info on the WEB, although with
    a distinct lack of entries that have snowmobile access.
    
    
    
    
    
    
978.12TROOA::SOLEYFall down, go boomFri Jan 26 1996 23:265
    I've eaten at Richard's when he was in his original location on Dundas
    Street near Sherbourne (for the unintiated this is smack in the middle
    of on of Toronto's less wholesome neighbourhoods) and the food was
    fantastic. FWIW vegan implies no food of animal source at all, not even
    eggs or dairy, fish is right off the list.
978.13Tarranna: a wannabe big cityPOLAR::WILSONCstrive to look better nakedSat Jan 27 1996 00:305
    The best thing to do in Tarranna (thats Toronto) is go directly to the
    GO bus station and get on a bus to Hamilton. Much nicer people in
    Hamilton. Not only that, but Hamilton is a very heavily industrialized
    city and the pollution it produces blows over to Tarranna where it
    belongs.
978.14All in fun, maybe!TROOA::TEMPLETONNo sugar addedSat Jan 27 1996 01:4815
    Norm,
    
    -<You are the exception that proves the rulke>-?
                                 ^^^^^^
    You are still skating on thin ice.
    
    I hope you were trying to say  "You are the exception to the rule "
                                        ^^^               ^^
    
    If not, you may get a ruler across the knuckles the next time you hit
    that candy dish :-)
    
    
    joan
    joan
978.15film at 11OTOOA::CROOK&quot;my cat is in the doghouse...&quot;Sat Jan 27 1996 18:226
    and the headlines said
    
     "Joan Templeton Stops Dishing Out Her Candy"
    
    (p.s. hi joan! nice to see at least some of your PC is up and working)
    brian
978.16March break:-)TROOA::TEMPLETONNo sugar addedSat Jan 27 1996 23:4319
    Hi Brian,
    
    Yes my PC is up and running again, for how long, who knows?
    
    Dave, 
    
    It's a pity you will be coming to Canada in March, it is a very
    unpredictable month for the weather but if you stay in downtown
    Toronto, between the subway and the underground walkways, you do not
    have to hit the streets to get around the city.
    
    I agree with the others, there is a lot to do in and around the city,
    check with your travel agent there, they usually have lists of any
    special events that will be happening while you are here, or, if you
    like to do things on the spur of the moment, pick up any local paper
    when you get here, you will find whole pages of whats going on at
    theaters, clubs and sporting events.
    
    joan 
978.17CHEFS::EDWARDSDMon Jan 29 1996 08:0112
    Thanks for all the replies so far.  I will pick up the relevant
    newspapers/guides etc when we arrive, however as we're only going to be
    there for 3-4 days, I thought it would be worth getting a few things
    sorted before we left. 
    
    What about shopping ?  I believe there are quite a few malls in Toronto
    and I don't want to spend the whole time trudging from one mall to
    another.  Is one mall regarded as the best ? (The emphasis here being
    on clothes).
    
    Thanks again,
    Dave
978.18LEMAN::DZIALOWSKIsharks gotta swim, bats gotta fly...Mon Jan 29 1996 12:341
    Are you planning anytime in Sarnia ?
978.19TROOA::SOLEYFall down, go boomMon Jan 29 1996 12:426
    There are several large malls in Toronto, downtown there is the Eaton
    Centre which has all of the usual clothing shops you'd expect. Another
    option is Yorkdale which has a good selection of shops and can be a
    little more upscale. 
    
    
978.20TROOA::BROOKSTue Jan 30 1996 15:3411
    If you are looking for 'fashion', I'd suggest sticking with the Eaton
    Centre.  It's just so big, it virtually has anything you'll ever need. 
    If you are up north, try Fairview Mall -lots of clothes stores.  If you
    go to Eaton Centre, head to the south end, cross the street and visit
    the Bay.  Big classy old store, reminiscent of what I think a Macy's
    would be like.
    Also, for funkier, wilder 'fashion' head West along Queen street
    (between Eaton Centre and the Bay) for approx 1 mile, and you'll be in
    the heart of a very trend funky neighbourhood with lots of shoe
    stores, alternative stores, book stores, and clubs.  
    Doug
978.21An EYE on the Toronto scene...POLAR::RUSHTONTue Jan 30 1996 20:2414
    >>When you get into town, be sure to pick up a 'EYE' or 'NOW' magazine as
    >>they list everything that is going in at the clubs, theatres, etc.
    >>(it's free and available many places).  
    
    EYE magazine has a great Web site with all of the info you need.
    
    Using your favourite Web navigator, type in the following URL
    (Location):
    
    	http://www.interlog.com/eye
    
    Enjoy,
    
    Pat
978.22so how'd it goPOLAR::WILSONCstrive to look better nakedSun May 05 1996 08:373
    
    How wuz yor trip? Twas gewd i hope!
    We Canadians are a real nice bunch, eh.
978.23CHEFS::EDWARDSDFri May 10 1996 14:2123
    Finally found the time to do some noting today....
    
    We had an excellent time - staying at the King Eddy in downtown Toronto.
    Did the usual touristy stuff - CN Tower, baseball game (Blue Jays got
    hammered - seems to be the norm this season !), shopping, Niagara
    Falls, more shopping, Chinatown, more bleedin' shopping ... you get the
    picture !
    
    The only downer was the weather which was a tad nippy.  If/when we
    return to Toronto, I think we'll make it May or September.  Only
    drawback then though is that it will be more crowded , especially at
    Niagara.  Swings and roundabouts eh ?
    
    The friendliness of the Canadian people never ceases to amaze me.  The
    number of people who were willing to give us advice on places to visit,
    restaurants etc etc was incredible.  
    
    My lasting memory of the place will be standing on the glass floor in
    the CN Tower, rooted to the spot with fear, totally incapable of
    looking down.  What a rush ! 
        
    Dave
     
978.24come in we're openPOLAR::WILSONCstrive to look better nakedSat May 11 1996 07:581
    thank-you  please come again
978.25Where to goHAM03::VEEHBescheidenheit ist stumpfTue Sep 03 1996 07:1023
978.26CTHU22::M_MORINMario Morin, Hull CSC - CanadaFri Sep 06 1996 18:5410
For the sports action in Toronto check out:

	http://www.hwy401.com/mall/gamed/sportfan/sportlin.htm

For the shoes, I'm not sure as I don't live in Toronto but I'm
sure the Eaton Center mall, on Yonge st. will have all kinds of
sports stores with all the choice you need.  Other people from
Toronto may know cheaper places.

/Mario
978.27warehouse sports retailersTROOA::MSCHNEIDERNothing witty to saySat Sep 07 1996 13:107
    Wouldn't consider the Eaton Center the best place to buy the shoes, but
    it is a nice shopping center to visit in the heart of Toronto.
    
    There are a large number of sports retailers with very large stores in
    the Toronto area.  They are warehouse size places and are typically in
    the suburban areas, not downtown.  Names like National Gym, Sportsmart,
    etc come to mind.