Jernie's Hub

Christmas is here once again. It is going to be a "White Christmas"!

Last weekend we drove again to the Niagara-on-the-Lake. I was excited to witness the candle light celebration in the church ( a German Tradition). But due to the weather condition last Sunday morning, all activities have been cancelled. It's a pity! We ended-up staying inside the house, enjoyed the sight outside as the winter/snow storm hit the place.


The ladies' car got stucked in the snow. Herbert went out to help them.


Taking the dog for a walk


Looking out from inside



After lunch, we geared-up to clear the snow outside, something I always look forward to. Though for me it's fun but I realised how tedious it is to live in this condition for a couple of months every year. Anyhow, I am enjoying this experience.

We decided to drive back to Toronto early because of the road condition. It was really scary to be in the middle of nowhere, an ocean of snow with very poor visibility. Herbert was quite tensed as the road was so slippery. Along the freeway, it was really worrying to see cars stucked in the snow and abandoned. I was terrified to witness an accident. I can't believe what I saw: a car was just going in circle and the car behind it bumped into it. Oh no! We were just praying that we will arrive Toronto safely.




Fortunately, we arrived in Toronto after 3 long and stressful hours. Until today the streets here in Toronto are still covered with snow which makes it very difficult to walk around.





I am not done yet with my shopping list. I still have a couple of things to pick-up but with the street condition, I am quite skeptical to wander around. But I think this will not get any better in the next months so I have to plunge into it.

With the invitation we got from my friends and ex-colleagues back in Dubai to their home in Brampton, I devised our weekend’s plan to drive to Vaughan Mills (shopping complex) then to Brampton on Saturday. On Sunday, we will visit the CN tower and Rogers Center then explore the Kensington Market.

On Saturday noon time we headed to Vaughan Mills. It took as sometime to reach the place as I had misspelled “Vaughan Mills” so the navigation system didn’t recognize it. I had to get my friend on the line to give us the direction. After a few wrong turns, we finally reached our destination.



As advised, we went straight to the Designer’s Depot to pick-up some winter shoes and clothing. The complex is huge. Apart from the fact that we had limited time, with Herbert it will be a nightmare to go around the place so I was compelled to stick to one shop. His connotation of “shopping” is to write down what you need, target a shop where to go, go straight to the items you need, fit, pay then go. But not for me, I love to go to around, look what’s there then decide what/which one to buy. I promised myself to go back there and spend the day going around the place. We prioritized his stuff as I have more than enough time to shop for my things.As we drove out of the place, the sky was still clear, the sight of snow glistening under the sunlight had caught my attention. It was really nice. I managed to capture it in my cam. I kept on hoping that it will be the same weather the next day as we`re planning to climb up to the CN Tower.





Along Highway 7 going to Brampton, the traffic was manageable. I was very interested to see the residential areas, beautiful neighborhoods. I think it’s a very good location because it’s not too far from the downtown, about 45 minutes drive. It was almost 4pm when we arrived at my friends’ home.

It’s good to meet them again after more or less 6 years since the last time we met in Dubai. They have two pretty and smart daughters. The family has established very well here in Canada. They are both working for a We also met their friend from the Philippines who just arrived two months ago. It was the first time Herbert met them. We had lunch: my ever favorite ‘sinigang na baka’ with fish sauce (patis) was among the dishes on the table. Fantastic! One thing I really appreciate here in Toronto is that we can just prepare all kinds of dishes as ingredients are all available here. My other friends also told me that it feels that they are just in the Philippines; all this time they are mainly cooking Filipino dishes. It’s something we don’t have in Germany. There are also Asian shops there but not as big and as many as here. After lunch, we started to catch-up on many things. We also had so much fun with the girls, especially the two-year old one. She is so pretty, cute and very active who entertained us most of the time. It’s wonderful to connect once again with friends after a long time. Then we were invited again to a sumptuous and extended dinner. Eventually, the group split-up. The gentleman stayed on the table and the ladies found their corner in the kitchen. The stories went on and on, to realize that it was approaching midnight. We wished we have more time but it was time for us to hit the road back to downtown. We really enjoyed the time together.

In downtown, we dropped by the supermarket to pick-up things for the next day. I really appreciate this convenience because I can’t do it in Germany. I assume there is such one in big cities like Berlin, Frankurt etc.

The next day was cold, raining and had heavy snowfall. We opted not to go to the CN Tower because it was foggy too hence, we won’t see anything. Instead, we drove to the Kensington Market and China Town. This area is nice too with colorful buildings/apartments. This is basically known for small shops of antiques, souvenirs, dry goods, etc.





We went around having a glimpse of the place. We stepped into a small shop with nice Christmas decors, picked-up some pretty Christmas decors. It quickly came to my mind the last time we did this was in China. Time really flies so fast (huh).Just wondering where will be our next Christmas. I hope next time will be with my family in the Philippines. (I’m crossing my fingers).




Then I took Herbert to the China Town. We did shop for some Asian products but as usual we can’t stay in this place long. Herbert felt that we were again in China (lol). We were advised to go to Mississauga because the Chinese shop there is huge and clean, we plan to explore Mississauga next weekend. We still have to find time to go to Beer Store or Liquor shop. It’s quite strange for me that here in Canada alcoholic beverages are not sold in the supermarkets in contrary to Germany, where alcoholic beverages can be bought in supermarkets/shops. Although most of the people there go to the “Getränke Laden” (Drinks shops). It is overwhelming to see a line of various beer brands. I still have to find out how many different brands of beers there is and the different classifications of beers.

I planned my itinerary based on the info I got in the net and from the city-tour brochures. I aimed to see these places during the week because during weekends we intend to drive out of town.

The St. Lawrence Market being the closest to where we live is on top of my list. I was told that this is best visited on Saturdays because there are more vendors and stalls lined outside but surely it will be full-house by then. I personally prefer to visit a place when it’s not crowded.

St. Lawrence Market

Its history: In 1803, Governor Peter Hunter issued a proclamation, following recommendations made as early as 1796 that all the land north of Front, west of Jarvis, south of King and east of Church Street was to be designated officially as the "Market Block." Since 1901, the South St. Lawrence Market has been known primarily for its fruits, vegetables, meat and cheese. For many years, few people realized that Toronto's original City Hall had been incorporated into today's south market. The history of the South St. Lawrence Market also includes the north "farmer's market" and St. Lawrence Hall as well. In March 1979, The Market Gallery of the City of Toronto Culture Division opened as the official exhibition centre for the display and storage of the City's art and archival collections. Located inside the South St. Lawrence Market on the south-west corner of Front Street East and Jarvis Street, The Market Gallery is on the second floor in the original council chamber which was part of Toronto's City Hall from 1845 to 1899.
Source: http://www.stlawrencemarket.com/about/history/index.html





The South Mall is known for shopping fresh sea foods, meat, vegetables, fruits, some Asian products and other delicacies. I went around the place to have an idea which things I can buy there better than from the supermarkets. The sea foods looked very good and fresh. There were a number of Chinese and Greek shops. In one of the meat shops, I was assisted by a Filipina lady. Well, here it’s pretty normal to see Filipinos everywhere. I couldn‘t really see anything which I can’t buy somewhere else. I just dont know how it is on Saturdays.




At the North Hall they have antiques and some souvenirs items. There was nothing really special so I didn’t stay long. I was heading to my next destination.

The Historic Distillery District (http://www.thedistillerydistrict.com)

I was walking alone towards this district. Though the sun was up and the sky was clear, it was windy and freezing. I was at the place after 20 minutes walk. The place was eerie quiet, nothing was going on. There were very few people walking around. I walked into few shops but I had the feeling that there’s nothing much to see then. I guess it’s better to go there when there is an event or activities going on. So I decided to walk back to the apartment.





The China Town

I heard a lot about the China Town here in Toronto, so I decided to go and see the place. Looking at the map, it’s quite a distance but I did believe that it can be reached by foot. Hearing from friends and some people that snatching/robbery is also happening here, I always take the major streets where there are many people. When I hit the street, the sun was up, the sky was clear, so I thought it will be a good time to take a long walk. But after just 15 minutes it was getting dark, and then came the very cold wind and snowfall. I was feeling cold already so I went down to the underground shopping concourse (path) going to the Queen St. On my way to the Spadina Ave the wind was getting stronger, it seems that I am not heavy enough to stand the strong winds so I had to take shelter again in one of the shops. When the wind subsided I continued walking until I reached my destination.

It was really a China Town, it reminded me of my shop hopping in China. I chose to get into the Chinese Supermarket, relatively huge place with a good variety of Asian products not only Chinese. I was particularly happy to stand at the shelf where many Filipino products are displayed. I didn’t even expect they have that many. I just picked-up things which I could carry. We have to go there again with the car some other time.





In the area, there were lines of typical Chinese dry goods shops and on the other side of the street are even bigger Chinese stores. I needed to go back there again to explore the place and proceed to the very famous Kensington Market. It was getting dark then, so I had to take my way back to the hotel. I had to go again through the underground shopping concourse to avoid the freezing wind. It took me sometime to find the King Street because this place is huge. Well, I had been here three times but I still I couldn’t map it correctly.