TORONTO - ONTARIO

19th - 24th March 2011

CN Tower

On to Toronto by bus; 2.5 hours up to the NW corner of Lake Ontario. Flat countryside again and from about 50 miles out lots of light industry, warehouses, car showrooms, shopping centres, housing estates etc. I realised that I have not seen a proper hill since leaving Virginia ( Bunker Hill, Boston, was only 50ft AMSL so doesn't count ).
Toronto ( pop. 5m ) is by far the biggest city in Canada and is cosmopolitan, modern, relatively clean and safe, and very 'multi-cultural'. In fact, I was told, 75% of the inhabitants are not of Canadian origin. Originally in Iroquois Indian territory, most of the Indians here now are from the Delhi, Bombay and Calcutta tribes. Lots of Chinese, Greeks, Italians, Philippinos, Portugese and every other nation you can think of are represented. I happened to end up staying in a room above a cheap Chinese grocery in 'Cabbagetown'. It was great, and who cares if the wallpaper is falling off and the paint is peeling! It added to the 'atmosphere', and it had a great pub, the Ben Wicks, nearby. An amusing lady behind the bar there, called Trisha, had an inexhaustible supply of 'Newfy' jokes ( a Newfy is an inhabitant of Newfoundland about whom it is, according to Trisha, traditional to make jokes ). Most of them were rather rude. I don't suppose they get many 'Newfy' customers in, or at least not that would admit to it. Also behind the bar was a charming French Canadian semi-retired semi-professional opera singer, and an expert on 'hockey', from Montreal called Benoit. They were a gas. It was the most amusing place I visited in Toronto, indeed Canada, by far, so far.
Although the city has all 'mod-cons', it lacks in much definitive architecture, special character or any iconic structures, with the possible exception of the Canadian National ( CN ) Tower. This was, when built in 1976, the highest free-standing structure in the world, at 1815ft. It is not now ( either in the structure or tower categories ), and I would argue with the 'free' bit; $38 to get to the top! What a rip-off. So it is now just a 'quite high expensive-standing tower'. Of course, I had to go up it. They have an observation deck at 1200ft with a glass floor, and another at 1400ft. OK, you get a good, if not inspiring, view of Toronto and the lake, cloud base permitting.  
  




Left: View north over Toronto from CN Tower. Not a molehill in sight. For hundreds of miles.









 Right: The view down through the glass floor. I didn't try jumping up and down to test it.

Left: view to the south over the lake and 'city' airport.













Right: It's worth doing a 'cloud-base check' before spending $38 to go up. I'm not sure if you get your money back if you can't bloody well see anything! I doubt it.

There is a fast lift, with glass wall looking outwards, which takes 58 secs to get to the 1200ft level.








As far as I am aware there are three things for which Canada is internationally famous, namely; Mounties, Lumberjacks and huskies pulling sledges. I have been in Canada for a week now and haven't seen any of them. Perhaps Niagara and Toronto are not the best places to look. My eyes will be peeled from now on. I learnt two useful things in the Ben Wicks pub; the heavy bold-checked shirts/coats that the archetypal lumberjacks wear are nicknamed 'Canadian Dinner-Jackets', and the cry 'mush-mush' to get your huskies to run fast is derived from the French word 'marcher, or marche'. Is that interesting?

I visited the Royal Ontario Museum ( the ROM... Canadians love their acronyms or 'three letter abbreviations', TLAs ). It was large and quite interesting and undoubtedly the best bit was a wing dedicated to early Canadian inhabitants; the many Indian tribes. Having seen this I will add to my list of famous Canadian symbols; canoes, beavers and snow-shoes.
It was snowing on the day I went there but still no sign of huskies or, for that matter, snow-shoes.



Left: The Toronto equivalent of the New York 'Flatiron' building. As you can see, it has an interesting 'trompe d'oeil' on the back of it. Only the middle row of windows is real.

Right: The old City Hall. One of the more 'characterful' buildings.

  



Left: The added-on modern extension to the ROM.










Another thing I have noticed travelling USA and Canada is that in all the bars they have banks of TVs. In the USA they were, exclusively, showing basketball matches ( it must be the season ) but nobody ever seemed to be paying the blindest bit of attention. In Canada they show ice-hockey and some basketball. I, personally, as a Brit, do not really appreciate TVs in bars/pubs ( sacrilege...it would never be allowed in The Grapes ). I notice that basketball is a game played by enormous black men wearing over-sized shorts taking it in turns to throw a big orange ball into a net. Ice-hockey is a game played by enormous white men wearing over-sized shirts whacking an invisible ( to the naked eye ) object into a net. The teams are all known by their nicknames such as ' Killers', or 'Dragons' or 'Fairies' or 'Munchkins', so you never know where they come from. These sports must be an aquired taste. I remember we only played basketball at school, in the gym, when severe weather ( so rarely ) prohibited playing proper outdoor sports, and ice-hockey we played badly, in winter, with upturned walking sticks, on a frozen pond and it always ended ignominiously when someone fell through the ice and had to be rescued.

So, onwards and westwards...........I had intended to take the 'Rocky Mountaineer' train across the Rockies from Calgary to Vancouver, but due to a bit of snow and ice they do not start any of the touristy stuff until the end of April. I am now due to board the VIA ( this is not a TLA, I think it just means 'via'! ) train here and go direct to Vancouver. This is a 41/2 day epic. I sincerely hope to see a few Mounties, Lumberjacks and Huskies pulling sledges en route.....and maybe the odd beaver in a canoe wearing snow-shoes. All aboard!

NIAGARA FALLS - ONTARIO

16th - 19th March 2011

Horseshoe Falls. Damn near lost my hat taking this.

Arrived at Penn station, New York, at 0230hrs and had to wait until 0715hrs for the Amtrak 'horse' to Niagara Falls. At least there were cafes open and they had a comfortable 'monitored' seating area for those with tickets, plus free wi-fi ( as in all the New York stations ) and a police patrol and I had a book to read. Not too bad really.
The journey to Niagara Falls took 9.5 hours. I must admit I kipped on much of it. We went north following the line of the Hudson to Albany, then west along the Mohawk valley via places like Utica, Syracuse and Buffalo. I must say, from what I saw, the countryside we passed looked flat, drab and boring, or downright inhospitable; all black and grey scenery with rather grim spindly forests, bogs and some unattractive farmland. The towns looked even worse. I thought I had seen the epitome of urban grot in the UK with places like Hull and Cowdenbeath, but Utica, Syracuse and Buffalo ( as seen from the train ) beat them hands down! These places, almost indistinguishable from one another, looked seriously dire urban wastelands. They could, literally, be described as 'dumps'. They would probably only feature in any guidebook as 'Places to Avoid'. I have a couple of photos below of typical countyside and town ( it doesn't matter which 'cos they all looked the same ).  

somewhere

Left and below: Countryside scenery en-route

somewhere else

and the towns, below. I think the old train was the only memorable sight that I was awake to see. It might have been at Utica. Or not.

The 'town' below is Syracuse, or maybe Buffalo.                                                       

A town

So we finally arrived at Niagara Falls, twice, because you go through the USA version before crossing the river to the Canadian side. This involved an 'everybody off the train' customs procedure, but no grief from the Customs people. They are Canadian therefore most polite. And here the scenery changed dramatically.

A bit about the area. The Niagara river flows, unusually for rivers, from south to north, from Lake Erie to Lake Ontario ( 35 miles ) down the Niagara Gorge and over an escarpment, hence the 'falls'. The border between USA and Canada around the falls area runs more or less down the middle of the river hence the 'American' and 'Bride's Veil' Falls and, wait for it Bernie ( he has a thing about them )........Goat Island, are on the US side, whereas the 'Horseshoe' Falls are on the Canadian side.

Originally this was Iroquois Indian territory ( the name Canada originates from an Iroquois name for 'settlement' ) with Seneca and Mohawk tribes living locally. French and British fur trappers were around in the early 17th century ( and fighting each other as normal ) and later, following the War of Independence in America, loyal colonists and other Brits. The French had been successfully booted out. It was originally known as British North America, then Upper Ontario before the whole place became part of what is now called Canada. This war of 1812 featured strongly here, a fact that a Canadian cousin of mine stressed and told me ( correctly ) that I was an ignorant git not knowing about it before. OK! I admit, I slept through most of my military history lessons! As it happens, his Great x3? Grandfather, General Sir Isaac Brock, originally from Guernsey, was mortally wounded leading the British troops to victory at the crucial Battle of Queenston Heights in 1812 and is regarded, locally, as a hero. Actually, as I was again reminded, this war was the first, and will probably be the last, British military defeat of the Americans.
The ( Canadian ) town of Niagara Falls is partly very ordinary and partly designed to attract tourists. The touristy bit is  a mini tinsel-town of casinos, amusement arcades, fun-fairs, fast-food joints, and other brightly lit neon tackiness, but jolly nevertheless. I will try to show, below, some of the sights.

Left: The American Falls, with a viewing platform to the left side. Bridal Veil Falls are a small separated bit on the right-hand end.










 Right: The Canadian Horseshoe Falls. This is the bit that all the idiots went over in their assorted barrels. The first person to do it, in 1901, was a large 62 year old lady called Mrs Annie Taylor. She survived, battered and bruised. I wonder what part Mr Taylor played? He had the hammer and nails perhaps. About 25 people subsequently did this and, surprisingly, only about 5 of them died.
Others, some fatally, negotiated the rapids further downstream in a variety of craft. Captain Matthew Webb, British, the first chap to swim the English channel, tried to swim down the rapids in 1883. He drowned.
Mr Blondin, the first in 1859, and several others have tight-roped across the gorge in a variety of strange ways. Surprisingly, only one person died doing this; a guy called Steve Peere, and only because he did it at night, wearing his street shoes and not entirely sober.

Horseshoe Falls

American Falls lit up.

The 'authorities' have now rather put a stop to all these stunts. Anyway, they have become a bit passe. I must say, I wasn't really tempted. I think you need a pretty good barrel. With some whisky in it.



 

A bit of Glitzy Naff Niagara Falls.

It is possible to walk over the 'Rainbow Bridge' to the American side and view their 'falls' from the viewing platform. This is them on the right. During the 'season', which I am not in ( too much ice at the moment ), they have a lift which takes you to the bottom and you can look out from a cavern behind the falls. I presume you get a good view of........water!
I also walked over the bridge to, .... wait for it again Bernie,.........Goat Island. I can definitely say that there are no goats there now. Sorry to disappoint you.

On the 17th, St Paddy's Day, I was persuaded to go on a tour. The day did not start well. I thought I had carefully avoided all the Oirish shennnanigans, but NO WAY! Breakfast, and everyone, ( apart from me of course ), including the waitresses, wearing their blasted green shirts and flashing shamrocks and irritating 'diddly diddly doo ra dah' fiddle music playing non-stop. I went into serious Victor Meldrew mode. I told some poor passing Canadian victim that I was English and only celebrated St George's Day. He asked me when that was. Of course I didn't know.
Our tour, a family of 4, and me, in a 60 seater bus, was conducted by Rob who both drove the bus and gave the running commentary. He did it in a manner that suggested he had done it a few times before ie he was on 'fast-forward' and 'auto-pilot'. It transpired that he had indeed been doing this since 1994 and was a bit bored of it. Really?? He said he was thinking of doing something else. I was dying for him to say, a la Monty Python, " I don't want to be a bus driver, I want to be a.... LUMBERJACK!" Sadly, he said he wanted to make cabinets ( well, I suppose it has a 'timber' connotation ). 
We went down the Niagara gorge, past the 'rapids', the 'whirlpool' where the rapid-shooters ended up dead or alive, hydro-electric power stations, parks, and of course, the monument to General Sir Isaac Brock at Queenston Heights. Down towards Niagara on the Lake, known as NOTL, which is a very swish township and, en-route, some seriously luxurious houses. Lunch in NOTL at a British pub, The Angel ( London Pride beer ) and then on to visit a Winery/Vineyard. There are several 'Winerys' around the area. I was persuaded, by myself, to buy a couple of bottles. Ever heard of 'ice wine'? I have now. Any comments Antonio? We also visited a chocolate factory. They told us that they were expanding because they had spent $26,000 to pay a Rabbi to bless the place and filled in tons of paperwork to get a 'certificate' to call exactly the same chocolates 'Kosher'. There is a big Jewish market. The lady telling us this rolled her eyes and looked at the ceiling.

Above: Rob, our tour guide who wanted to be ...........a CABINETMAKER, leaping form tree to tree etc. He never took his leprechaun hat off all day.










Left: The monument to the bold General Sir Isaac Brock. It had been damaged by lightening and was being restored, so I couldn't go up him. 

Right: Part of the rapids leading down to ..........

........whirlpool. The cable car was not yet in operation, thank goodness. I don't like cable cars.

 Right: The history of Niagara. This sign was in NOTL.

Left: This church, near NOTL, had seating for a max 7 congregation.

It would suit most Brit Cof E parishes. The place behind it is a 'winery'....  a German one from what I remember.

Right: The Angel Inn, NOTL. Is the Union Flag the correct way up? Good Shepherd's Pie and London Pride beer.

Left: The Prince of Wales Hotel, NOTL. Rooms about $500 per night. The horse is called Bert.

Right: Two of the staff in that typical English pub, The Angel. Neither I, nor she, could quite work out the Viking connection here. I'm sure I must have missed another history period ( asleep again ). Doubtless someone will inform me.

Left: I have now been in Canada for 4 days and have yet to see a real 'Mountie'. This one here seems to have thrown-up over his boots and had an unfortunate accident with a broom-handle.

Now, as the Lone Ranger might have said as he was being chased out of America, "On to Toronto Pronto Tonto!!"..................... and more to follow in due course.

BOSTON - POST SCRIPT

16th March 2011

Following on.......I will try to attach the photos that I was so rudely told by my 'blogmeister' that there wasn't room for. I managed to escape Boston before St Paddy's Day, you will be relieved to hear. Phew!

Left: This is the statue of John Harvard who founded the University. Note: He does not have a traffic cone on his head. This decorative formality has not yet caught on in American seats of learning.

Right: Their library. Forgotten the name of it. I'm sure it holds the complete collection of the great Terry Pratchett's 'Discworld' novels, and a few other good books.

........and some general views of the 'campus', which are pretty boring but may be of interest to those few who are interested in Universities. Very few 'students' around. Not many good pubs around the local area either (Cambridge). They probably all drink in 'shebeens' or similar.

Left: Statue of ducks in the Boston Common Gardens, entitled 'Give Way to the Ducks'. Someone has added on the necklaces.

Right, that's definitely it from Boston. Now have to back-Amtrak a bit to New York ( 5 hours ), wait 5 hours in Penn station until 0715hrs the next morning,  then ( 9.5 hours ) to Niagara Falls. I might be looking for someone who makes good barrels...............

BOSTON - MASSACHUSETTS

7th - 14th March 2011

 The Massachusetts State House, Boston

I may have mentioned it before, but arrived in Boston, Back Bay station, after 23 hours ride on the iron horse ( changed steeds at New York ), a bit 'saddle-sore' and am therefore having a bit of a pit-stop. Back in Yankee territory so I didn't ask for the 'Rhett Butler Suite' at the YMCA hostel. The first day here was cold, but blue skies, then it became cold and overcast, then cold and rain.  Then, luckily, sunny again.This was the first rain I had experienced since arriving in USA! I hadn't read up a lot on Boston and my knowledge was restricted to the infamous 'Tea Party', lots of Irish immigration following their spud shortage ( was that really all they could grow? ), the song about 'Charlie on the MTA', and lobster sandwiches. I have found out a little more since.

First impressions of the place included the fact that, probably due to the cold weather, Bostonians looked rather dour and pinch-faced compared to the Southerners, and New Yorkers for that matter. Also, the higgledy-piggeldy streets of the old Northside were good for wandering around, which was just as well considering the lamentable street signage and indecipherable tourist street maps. The locals agreed with me about this! Fortunately Boston and, just north over the River Charles, Charlestown and Cambridge, is not a big area. I was led to believe that Boston is a city of High Culture. My first night here I noticed a long queue of people trying to get into the Boston Opera House. What was on show and such a draw? Mary 'effing' Poppins! ChimChimCheroo, gor blimey!

A little background info. The Boston area was originally the home of the Massachuset Indians. It was colonised in 1630 by Puritans who had been kicked out of England because they were too boring. They established several colonies in 'New England', and named Boston after the town in Lincolnshire where some of them came from. The Bostonians became increasingly bolshy over being taxed by the British which resulted, after the Boston 'massacre' and the Tea Party incident, in the 'Revolutionary War' in 1775 of which the first shots were fired at Lexington, then Concord ( both about 15 miles west ), then the battle of Bunker Hill, in Charlestown ( a British victory, as it happened ).

The Barking Crab

The first thing I did was to go down to the harbour for my lobster sandwich at a tent-cum-hut called 'The Barking Crab'. Do crabs bark? I didn't know.

It was very good, and so it bloody well should have been seeing as it cost $24! The barman took my credit card before I ordered it.

As always, excellent service and pics here of the place and member of staff.

  

While down at the harbour I thought I had better go and have a look at the Tea Party Ship and Museum. The Tea Party occurred in 1773 when some locals, protesting ( as usual ) about duty on tea and the contract to ship it being given to a British company, dressed up as Mohawk Indians, went on board and tipped the old PG Tips into the drink. This upset the British Government and resulted in more troops being sent to the rebellious colony. Unfortunately, I discovered that the ship and museum had burnt down 5 years ago ( hit by lightening apparently? ). It was 'in the process' of being restored.

Ex-Site of the Tea Party Ship and Museum

The other thing which upset the Bostonians ( they always seemed to be at some level of dissatisfaction ) was what they like to remember as 'The Boston Massacre'. This occurred in 1770 when a large murderous mob, armed with clubs and bricks, surrounded a section of 8 'red-coats' outside the Town Hall. After repeated warnings by the doubtless frightened soldiers, they opened fire. 5 of the mob were killed. Now, I don't know about you, but I don't really call that a massacre. The retreat from Kabul in 1842, or Amritsar in 1919, or even the recent England versus Australia 'Ashes' Test Match series, now these were proper massacres. What happened in Boston, in my opinion, was merely a 'Regrettable Incident'. Or, more probably, an 'excuse' for trouble to follow. They erected a monument to this and always hark back to it as a typical example of British brutality.

Monument to the 'Boston Regrettable Incident'

Paul Revere ( a Boston silversmith and revolutionary ), you may have heard of him, rode ( not through the streets of Boston ) to warn of the British army sailing down the river in April 1775. He rowed across the Charles river, 'borrowed' a horse from a vicar in Charlestown and galloped off to warn the 'Minutemen' ( coined after the phrase "I'm just popping down to the pub, dear, I'll be back in a minute" ) in Lexington and Concord. The 'Revolutionary War' then started. I wonder if the vicar got his horse back?

After skirmishes in Lexington and Concord, the first big fight was in Charlestown at Bunker Hill. In fact the battle was fought on Breeds Hill, about 1/2 mile away but, for some reason unknown, it was called the Battle of Bunker Hill (probably a map-reading error). It was where the order "so wait 'til you see the whites of their eyes before shooting" was first given by the American Colonel defending the hill. It didn't work, they lost.

Paul Revere on the vicar's horse, turning right.

As expected, they built a monument to this battle (on which hill I didn't gather). What I do know is that there are 294 steps to the top because I made the mistake of going up the damned thing. Knackered. But I took some photos from the top which, because of the effort I went to, you can jolly well look at.
There is a statue at the bottom of it of, who I took to be Quentin Crisp ( one of the self proclaimed 'stately homos of England' ) in bad disguise as some Yankee Col Prescott. I hope no relation to YKW. Photo of this features 'below below' because I cannot move it up!

Bunker Hill Monument

View from Monument South towards Boston

Left: Quentin Crisp aka Colonel Prescott.

















Right: Mr and Mrs 'Spud' Murphy and their daughter looking a bit peckish. Good panhandling technique.

Another chapter of Boston history involved the mass Irish immigration following the potato crop failure and subsequent famine in Ireland from 1845-1850. About 1 million Irish? (can't remember, lots anyway) emigrated to New England and were sympathetically looked after by the Boston community. Incidently, it is thought that the potato 'blight' which caused the crop to fail in all of Europe, not just Ireland, was exported by trading ships from the east coast of America in the first place. Maybe they felt guilty?

The statue above is part of the Boston monument to the 'Irish Famine'. It shows Mr and Mrs 'Spud' Murphy and their daughter looking a bit peckish.

There are, therefore, a plethora of 'Oirish Bears' in the town and all seeking to claim authentic Irish Traditions. Pubs such as The Kinsale which advertises itself as, and I quote, 'an historic Boston Irish Pub with great snacks, burgers, hearty appetizers, salads, chowder and pasta'. I suppose it didn't have potatoes, so that's OK then.

There were also many Italian immigrants who colonised the Northside area. A war memorial  ( next to the Paul Revere statue ) shows those killed in the World Wars and after to be almost exclusively of Italian origin. Many good Italian restaurants, therefore. 

I show below some Irish pub scenes:

If you can enlarge the photo below you will see that the 'Bumpin' Uglies' are due to perform on St Paddy's Day. Almost worth staying to watch.

Below: I think I know how he feels ( or doesn't )

.... this one, right, advertises that well known Irish brew, Budweisser.

Another 'sight' I went to see was the USS Constitution, or 'Old Ironsides' as she was nicknamed. It is kept at the now defunct Charlestown Naval Dockyards. It fought valiantly apparently, in the war against the British in 1812. I didn't even realise there was a war v America then! I thought we were far too busy fighting some megalomaniac French dwarf at the time.  They told me that the Constitution had never been beaten in battle and won a memorable victory against a ship of the Royal Navy, HMS Guerreierre, in 1812. Built of 'Live Oak' ( remember that stuff? It's grown in Carolina/Georgia and very hard ), the British cannonballs bounced off the side, hence some yankee sailor called the ship 'Old Ironsides'. It is built entirely of wood. Apart from the cannon-balls of course.

I think Capt Pugwasche would have been proud to command this ship. Our guide, a US Navy body-building fanatic to look at him, gave us lots of warnings of what not to do during the guided tour. The main warning, shouted at least five times was "do NAAAT pick up the cannon-balls!!!!" As a final reminder he glared at all the children and re-iterated "I'll be watching you! So, do naaaat pick up the cannon-balls......".  I think we got the message. I have no doubt that another cannon-ball went missing during the tour.



Left: Some of the guns ( 24 pounders ). The cannon-balls were at the back of the deck with lots of children trying to pick them up when Able Seaman Muscles was not watching.










Left: A further gun on the upper deck. No cannon balls here. Probably thrown overboard by previous tourists.


The best way, I found, to get around Boston was to walk, despite the lack of street signs and a useless map. Indeed I walked the 'Freedom Trail', a 2.5 mile marked ( by a red line ) route which takes you around the 'historic' bits. The older streets are narrow and congested and taxis therefore take ages and cost a fortune. There are 'tour buses', but I was told they too spend most of the time static. I did use the 'subway' system, known as the 'T' ( from the acronym MBTA, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority ). It is not too bad, although I was told the Bostonians curse it. ( I suspect Bostonians curse most things. Maybe they have an inherited bolshy streak! ). The Boston subway system is the oldest in America. It was started in 1889 and known then as the Metropolitan Transit Authority ( the MTA ) with only a couple of stations and the strange ticketing policy that you paid a 'nickel' to get on and then had to pay another 'nickel' to get off! Hence the song about Charlie on the MTA. Charlie paid to get on but didn't have a nickel to get off, so continued forever on the train, or trolley as they were then called. His wife used to come down to the station at 2.00pm every day to pass him a sandwich through the open window as the train came by. It is not clear why she didn't pass him a 'nickel' as well. As a result the tickets you now buy are known as 'Charlie tickets' or Charlie cards'. Neat, huh?





Left: The 'Charlie Card' for the 'T'.

I paid a visit to Harvard University. It is situated in Cambridge (on the river west of Charlestown, north of Boston). I was merely curious. It is a large, quite impressive, red-brick campus built around spacious grassy quadrangles. It has a big library, surprise surprise. The place was founded, can't remember when, by John Harvard. He was one of those Puritan chappies so, presumably, did not admit to enjoying a good night out with the boys, a flutter on the horses or a visit to the 'red light' district. Well suited to founding a university I suppose. I doubt if he would approve wildly of what goes on in our present day British establishments. For what it's worth, photos below: Whoops, no they're not. My 'blogsite' tells me that I have run out of space for photos, you may be relieved to hear. I will send them in the next one, maybe. I have an interesting photo of some ducks to show you.

That is more than enough for now. I must pack and get well away before the St Paddy's Day mayhem starts in a couple of days. They have been winding up for it all week-end with the green shirted, silly hatted faux-Irish brigade practicing getting drunk and singing badly.

Onwards and upwards....................