Jernie's Hub

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.