Jernie's Hub

Friday, August 14, 2009

Around Toronto with our Friends

Our friends from Germany came over to visit us. Since they have a limited time to see Toronto and Niagara, I opted to go with them and showed them few attractions of Toronto.

During the week, we relied solely on the public transport and during the weekend we had our own. From where we live, GO Transit Bus Terminal at Square One Mall is just a few minutes walk away. GO Transit have trains and buses (called Train Bus) serving the Greater Toronto Area. http://www.gotransit.com/PUBLICROOT/en/default.aspx It is a very effective means of transportation.

GO train buses leave Square One terminal on specific timings. Schedule can be found thru their website above, thru their brochures and at the terminal. It is pretty convenient. If you have no ticket on hand you could pay cash in the bus. Tickets are available in their designated ticket offices/counter. One can buy individual or multiple tickets. One thing one must note though, buses and trains leaves on time. From Square One Mississauga to Union Station at downtown Toronto takes just 45 minutes, almost the same time you'll cover if driving a private car. After 4pm until 7pm, there are no buses commuting to Square One but train to Cooksville station. From there, one can take a normal bus to Square One by just paying 65 cents for the ticket showing your GO ticket to the bus driver.

One day when it was raining heavily, we took a taxi from Duke of York Blvd, Mississauga to Bloor Street downtown Toronto for around 60 dollars.

On the first day, we roamed around the downtown area: from the Union Station, to the old Toronto Area (St. Lawrence Market Neighborhood), then to the Financial District, to the Eaton Center, Nathan Philipps Square, down to the Entertainment District then we took the PATH (underground shopping complex) back to the Union Station..

The Allen Lambert Galleria, sometimes described as the "crystal cathedral of commerce". Designed by Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava, it is one of the most photographed spaces in Toronto's financial district. As pictured above, the interior illustrates Calatrava's signature organic style, with a vaulted ceiling that is intended to evoke an avenue of trees.

Old Toronto Area

: above is our apartment last year at Front St; right below is the St. Lawrence Market

Hard Rock Cafe at Dundas Square

with friends

Graffiti Painting at Dundas Square

At the Nathan Philips Square

Ray Thomson Hall

Canadian Walk of Fame

at the lobby of the Royal Fairmont Hotel

On the second day since it was raining hard, we decided to spend the day to visit the museums at the Bloor Street. We visited first the Bata Shoe Museum, then had lunch, went shopping and subsequently my friends went to the Royal Ontaio Museum.Since I have been there before, I opted not to go in but spend my time around the shopping area of Bloor while waiting for my friends. Not long after, they called me that the ROM was closing early that day. So we continued on scanning through the shops of Bloor St.

The Bata Shoe Museum

The Ancient Egyptian shoes
The Ancient Roman shoes
Ancient Chinese shoes

The space shoes

The Cinderella shoes

shoe sculpture

The next day, the weather was great. My friends went up to the CN tower and I went to the Broadcasting Building to see CBC mini-museum. Subsequently, we met up for lunch by the Harbour Front.

CBC Museum

Harbour Front

Linda Lou Super Yacht behind me. You can details about this in this website. http://www.charterbrochure.com/lindalou/

Later on we took the subway up to the Bloor St. for my friends to visit the Royal Ontario Museum (http://www.rom.on.ca/) and I went to the Gardiner Ceramic Museum (http://www.gardinermuseum.on.ca/index.aspx). It is strictly prohibited to take photos inside the museum.

The Royal Ontario Museum

The Gardiner Ceramic Museum

The ceramic museum was awesome. There was an exhibit of the fine ceramic painting during the Renaissance period. I was in awe looking at the very fine display of items. I don't have a deep knowledge about ceramic paintings but just looking at those paintings on display really impressed me. The place is not that big but it took me a good 2 hours to complete the round. A tip to those who are planning to visit the museums in Toronto, if you have time it is better to go there in the evenings as they offer 50% discount on admission fees.

The posh shops along the Blooor Street

There are a lot more city attractions but we opted to see the few which interests my friends. Toronto City Guide booklets are available in the information centers around the city. There is also a bus sight-seeing tour around the city. Below is a link to the city visitor map http://www.toronto.ca/torontomaps/pdf/visitor_map_page1.pdf

Toronto Islands is also a nice place to see but at that time it was closed due to the city workers' strike but it is now open.

Posted by: Jernie
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Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Loretonians of the US & Canada (LUSCAN) 20th Reunion

LUSCAN was created in 1989 by Loretonians who migrated to the United States with the intention of keeping in touch with each other. The organization is concerned about the communities of their origin; Loreto and Tubajon, Surigao del Norte, Philippines. It is also committed in bringing goodwill by contributing to the educational and cultural needs in the communities of Loreto and Tubajon. Check out their website: http://www.loretonian.org/

I have been in touch to some of the members but never had a chance to attend any of their reunions. They would choose a venue for their annual reunion in different places in the United States and Canada, This year was here in Toronto, Canada; a perfect opportunity for us to join them.

The event started on Friday (July 10, 2009) with a welcome evening and a business meeting in North York, Toronto. Watch the video clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=elcOvqBZ-qc

Saturday (July 11, 2009) was a free day. Everyone went out to explore the city of Toronto, GTA and Niagara. In the evening we had a "Dinner and Dance" party held at the Adult Centre Hall of Square One Mall in Mississauga. Since the venue is just opposite our place, we didn't have to rush. It was around 6:30pm when we got there. We did our registration, bought some souvenirs and joined everyone for the "meet and greet" session. Of course the picture-taking kept everyone busy. We were introduced to the people around and I was ecstatic to meet my friends, relatives and fellow-Loretonians whom I've never met in my life. Cameras are everywhere, flashing almost every minute until the party started. I couldn't even believe it was real; we were part of the LUSCAN reunion. I was so grateful for such an opportunity. The party ran until midnight.

The Canadian Hosts

Message from the LUSCAN President from L.A. California

Dinner time

Philippine dessets prepared by the Canadian members

so yummy...!

cassava suman was the first one to go.....even before dessert time..

Baked by Christine Galido, nice huh!

dancing the night away!

raising fund..., well done girls!

The next morning Sunday (July 12, 2009), we convened in North York, Toronto for the prayer service and lunch. The food was fantastic, mainly Filipino dishes. One thing I loved the most was the salted fish and some native sweet delicacies from our hometown, Loreto. After lunch, they voted for the next year's reunion venue which is Beverly Hills, Florida. We spent the whole afternoon singing some folk songs, exchanging jokes and enjoying each other's company. At 4pm we said our goodbyes to everyone and last minute picture-taking.