Ok, so we’re gonna vary a bit between writing in Norwegian and English, and seeing that this post includes North Americans, I thought the most natural thing would be to post this one in English.
Yesterday was the best first day we could have asked for. We managed to sleep through the jet-lag and headed towards the city with Vic, who had planned a whole day of sightseeing and stuff to do. It was a bit nippy, but the sun was out and whenever the wind took a short break it got nice and warm. We hopped on the city tram heading west, and the first stop would be the Distillery district; this small but really cool area was converted from an old distillery into a bunch of small shops, cafés and even a theatre and theatre school.We each grabbed a drink from one of the coffee shops (I got a Canadien caffé; a latté with maple syrup. It basically tasted like a sweet latté...) and walked around the area while Vic was telling us about the theatre company there, some of Toronto’s festivals and what the theatre industry is like in Canada/Toronto nowadays. Definitely a cool little area worth seeing, and I hope that if I come again I’ll be able to see a show as well.
After walking around for a bit we hopped back on the city tram and went further into the city. We met up with Lindsay, another AADA student whom I haven’t seen since 2009, and while headed for our new destination we got to hear about the Canadian theater business from a guys perspective. It’s quite different... One wonders why there are so many women fighting over the same roles, while the men are so low in numbers they work all the time. I guess Toronto’s pretty much a safe bet if we run out of work guys, ay?
Dan wanted to watch the Champions League final so we visited Victorias work place «The Loose Moose», a popular downtown sports bar, and stayed there for the match. The Blue Jays (Toronto’s baseball team) were playing at the stadium just a couple of blocks down, but surprisingly enough most people in the bar were watching the screens showing soccer, not baseball. I know this because I was watching pretty much anything but the screen...
After the game had finished and Bayern München had won, just like everyone apparently predicted would happen, we all felt like getting some food and Dan needed to get a postcard. Lindsay and Vic both agreed that Kensington was the place to go, so back on the tram we went and this time heading north. We went up through Chinatown (which smelled amazing btw (yeah, I know we were hungry, but still)) and walked a couple of blocks over to Kensington.
Vic and Lindsay were wondering why people say Brooklyn is the birthplace of hipsters when it’s so clearly Toronto – and after seeing Kensington I must say I’m wondering the same thing... In many ways it reminded me of the East Village, but this was more in the style of a market than anything else. You could feel the artsy fartsy atmosphere just walking down the street, you could smell the I-dont-give-a-shit lifestyle flowing from the shops and open windows and hear the mix of people and cultures coming together at the many coffee shops and organic eateries.
We got some food and some mini-donuts for dessert and left the vivid colors of Augusta Avenue to go look at the city skyline from Panorama, a patio bar 51 floors up. Unfortunately someone had rented it out for a bridal shower (because people apparently have that kind of money...) so we weren’t able to go. Luckily for us, Ray Millers bar/restaurant «Wish» was right around the corner, so we went there instead.
We had an awesome time and we ended up staying the rest of the night there. I don’t think the three of us has been together since we graduated and the whole night was spent reminiscing, laughing and drinking. Around 1am the jet-lag kicked Dan and me in face, so we called it a day and went back for one more night in Victorias amazing apartment.
This sounds FANTASTIC!!!! :o)
SvarSlett