blogTO | Posts by jennifertse

The Toronto "Drop Fees" Rally Sends Multiple Messages

Jennifer Tse — Thu, 05 Nov 2009 21:50:18 PST

Yesterday's "Drop Fees" rally saw hundreds of university students join their peers in separate feeder marches in front of University of Toronto's Convocation Hall. The group of about a thousand then made its way to Queen's Park in order to protest on its front lawn.

Organized by the Canadian Federation of Students Ontario, this year's iteration of the province-wide campaign stressed the need for the government to lower tuition fees and provide affordable education on account of the fact that high tuition fees contribute to poverty in Ontario.

The jury's still out, however, on whether this was the most effective plan of attack.

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The Humber Arboretum

Jennifer Tse — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 15:38:30 PDT

The Humber Arboretum, located just west of Humber College in Etobicoke, offers a perfect setting for long outdoorsy walks while the weather is still warm and the Fall colours are at their best.

To get there we took the 191 Highway 27 Airport Rocket from Kipling Station. Aside from a lone condo building and some sports fields, the Arboretum remains 200 acres of mostly untouched nature reserve. All that land would likely have become a subdivision long ago if it weren't for the expansive flood plain inhibiting development.

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Toronto at 4am: All Hallows' Eve at the Port Lands

Jennifer Tse — Thu, 22 Oct 2009 01:14:03 PDT

The Toronto Port Lands area is always delightfully spooky and beautiful close to dusk. So, I thought... what could possibly be better than pulling an all-nighter at the Port Lands on Halloween - the spookiest time of year?

In undertaking such daring endeavours, one must not go unprepared. Just in case, I thought I'd bring Optimus Prime along as one of my bodyguards. Because really, you never know.

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The Best AYCE Sushi in Toronto

Jennifer Tse — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 23:34:09 PDT

The best AYCE (All You Can Eat) sushi in Toronto revolves around a core assumption: the more the merrier. The more friends you have in your party, the merrier. The more variety in menu items, the merrier. The more time and stomach room at your disposal, the merrier. This may lead many to think that the enjoyment of AYCE sushi is defined by gluttony. I, however, prefer to call it the art of indulgence. I'm hoping I'm not alone here.

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19th Century High Tea on a Shoestring

Jennifer Tse — Sun, 13 Sep 2009 00:04:56 PDT

Out in the west end, at Islington and Dundas, lies a late Georgian building. In the basement of this building, for a few hours on Tuesdays through Sundays, an Anglo-Saxon tradition is revived. High tea is served.

Well, not quite. Traditionally, a high tea would be an early evening meal combining afternoon tea and the later evening meal. The Americanized term now simply refers to a fancier afternoon tea.

Fancier means pricey, right? Not here. What drew us to Etobicoke's Montgomery's Inn Museum was the fact that their high tea costs a mere $5, as opposed to that of say, Le Royal Meridien King Edward ($28), the Windsor Arms Hotel ($27), or the Old Mill Inn & Spa just down the road ($17). It's generally difficult to find high tea service for much less than that.

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Toronto at 4am: Allan Gardens and the Palm House

Jennifer Tse — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 03:14:48 PDT

Allan Gardens in Cabbagetown is gorgeous during the day. Take a walk through on a sunny summer afternoon and an eclectic mix of characters, from dog-walkers to jugglers and freestylers, will unfold before you.

Unfortunately, the roster of this eclectic mix has a tendency to change drastically come nightfall, and for this reason, Allan Gardens does not have a reputation for being the best place to be hanging out after dark.

Reputation aside, and encouraged by the discoveries we had made on our last sleepless adventure, my friends and I decided to do just that. We hung out in Allan Gardens well after dark, with the hopes of bringing the beautiful side of Allan Gardens to light, in the absence of daylight itself. Who really knew what Allan Gardens looked like at 4am? Maybe we would see something new, something unexpected.

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All Aboard the Chew Chew's Train

Jennifer Tse — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 03:00:54 PDT

Chew Chew's Diner in Cabbagetown takes greasy spoon diner lovers on a multi-stop breakfasting adventure. Located at Carlton and Sherbourne, the restaurant's cozy railway-themed interior and infallible Hollandaise sauce give nearby Johnny G's a run for their money. All aboard!

Read my review of Chew Chew's Diner in the restaurants section.

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Hidden Diary Hunt: Kensington Market

Jennifer Tse — Sun, 31 May 2009 16:00:40 PDT

After my little adventure in search of Toronto's First Post Office, I received a few requests to create a similar mission without the answers, for readers to solve. Now I have just such a mission for you!

Pictured above is a little notebook named "The Omnipresent Diary" (TOD, for short). I have left him somewhere in Kensington Market. Find him, and write something inside. Your name, a doodle, a Shakespearean sonnet... it's up to you. I'll try to include some of the responses in the next TOD post, as well as reveal the location.

You have a month before TOD moves to a new location and the next hunt begins!

Instructions

1. Begin at Wanda's Pie in the Sky.

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Toronto at 4am: TTC's Greenwood Yard, Zanzibar and Other Nighttime Sights

Jennifer Tse — Mon, 11 May 2009 23:37:39 PDT

Once a month I throw my circadian rhythm for a loop and explore the city from around 2AM to sunrise. Sometimes I have a plan, sometimes I don't. All-nighters don't get much better than this.

What's still awake in Toronto at say, 4 in the morning, besides the obvious remnants from the club district and bars? Admittedly, there were many exhausted and slightly frustrated points during my quest to find out when I was tempted to throw up my arms and exclaim, "Nothing!" However, one of my friends pointed out that the aim of this little adventure wasn't to hunt down whatever obscure bursts of daytime energy Toronto might have to offer at the sleepiest hours of night, because let's face it, they weren't going to be easy to find. Toronto just isn't one of those cities.

It was to be, then, an exercise in noticing what was different about the night, and see the effects on familiar sights in the simple absence of daylight and people. And what an interesting experience it was.

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Toronto's First Post Office

Jennifer Tse — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 00:57:52 PDT

An eccentric friend of mine recently sent me on a serendipitous journey to the building pictured above, whereupon I was met with unplanned hassles. It went a little like this...

Instructions

1. Take the subway to King Station.

2. Walk east or take the streetcar to Church St. On the northeast corner of the intersection there is a sign.

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Toronto Ultimate Teams, Leagues and Clubs

Jennifer Tse — Wed, 22 Apr 2009 22:04:41 PDT

Ultimate in Toronto is a serious sport. But ask many people about it and they won't take you seriously. "Ultimate Frisbee? That's not a real sport. Isn't that a game for dogs? Or stoned hippies in a park?"

Few of such doubting Thomases know that the sport is simply called "ultimate", since the Wham-O toy company turned down the opportunity for the word "Frisbee", their registered trademark, to be used in the sport's name back in the 70s. In retrospect, probably not the wisest business move, now that most of the 5 million ultimate players around the globe play with standard 175-gram Discraft discs instead. Not trash can lids. Or dog toys from Old Navy.

Even fewer also know that the recent book release Ninja Cowboy Bear was co-written by a Torontonian ultimate player, and inspired by an ultimate spirit game. Or that Rachel McAdams lists the sport as one of her favourite hobbies. Or that ultimate's inventor, Joel Silver, produced such high-profile films as Die Hard, V for Vendetta, and The Matrix series.

Yes, ultimate is a real sport. It can be jaw-droppingly intense. And it's very, very much a part of Toronto.

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