Settling in


Our first weekend in Toronto has been a heady mix of shopping, culture and bagels. Inevitably we’ve become familiar with a whole new family of national shops, from the upmarket designer labels in the Eaton Centre and the department store Hudson’s Bay through to Best Buy – the Canadian equivalent of Curry’s – and Canadian Tire, which sells, well, everything really, from pots and pans to paint and popcorn. They even offer a blade-sharpening service for your ice skates. Most appliances are the same as back in the UK, with the occasional exception: all Canadian toasters, for instance, come with a bagel warming setting for those chilly winter mornings. Suffice to say that after numerous trips back and forth our condo now feels much more homely.



We’re living in the St Lawrence district, apparently one of Toronto’s hotspots with a reputation for fine dining and tiny dogs. It’s named after the St Lawrence Market, Canada’s answer to Oxford’s Covered Market, which is just around the corner from our building and renowned for its fresh and varied produce. There’s also a delightful florist called the Greenery Patch. The district is home to a stunning variety of restaurants, coffee shops and bars representing a range of national cuisines. For our first Canadian Sunday lunch we headed to Hogtown Smoke for Kraft dinner (macaroni cheese), which is reportedly the nation’s favourite dish. To be fair, it was delicious.



Shopping and eating aside, we’ve also enjoyed some glorious music this weekend. A memorable concert of French choral music at St James’ (Anglican) Cathedral was followed the next evening by a stunning performance of Verdi’s Rigoletto. The Four Seasons Centre for the Performing Arts, home to the Canadian Opera Company, is a remarkable space, impressive for the vastness of its architecture and the warmth and immediacy of its acoustics. The opera itself was performed with extraordinary beauty and intensity, and we’re eager to return soon – although, having seen the impressive outfits sported by many of the other patrons, we’ll need to up our sartorial game next time. But for now, after a lovely weekend, we're looking forward to the week ahead and getting stuck in to our new jobs!



Comments

  1. Caroline B22 January 2018 at 02:57

    Looks fabulous, so pleased you are settling in, enjoy this week. Just read "Six months in Sudan" Robert, very thought provoking, thank you for recommending it. CB

    ReplyDelete

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