Ticking Off the Toronto Bucket List: Week #19

WOW!

What an incredibly packed week!! I mean REALLY PACKED.
I didn't think I'd be able to cram so many bucket list activities into one week!! But it's getting close to crunch time so I'm trying to do as much as I can!

So here we go! Hope you enjoy this extremely long blog post!

Tango Palace Coffee Company 

1156 Queen Street East (Leslieville)

http://www.blogto.com/cafes/tangopalace

This place is open late! That's one of the reasons why I decided to trek all the way down to Leslieville for coffee. I figured why not hang out at a coffee shop till 11 o'clock at night!

This place is super neat. It has a funky interior that reminds me of the 1920s with an 2011 twist. I'm not sure if that's accurate, or if that makes sense, but it's a pretty interesting place! The barista knows everyone by name, and it didn't take too long before we also became acquainted. There were tons and tons of treats to choose from, but I ended up going for the Skor brownie. A regular recommended it. 

I decided to use the "check in" feature on Facebook to tell all my friends where I was... it was only my second time using this app. It turned out that a friend of mine lived just a short walk away! Thank god for social media! We ended up bonding and chatting. It was a lovely evening, and we stayed till the place closed at 11pm! Success!

I'd recommend Tango Palace for anyone. It's a great place for meetings, chatting with friends, studying, reading, etc. It's basically a living room. But a living room with many friends, and one that is equipped with an espresso machine. Who could ask for anything more?

5/5 Smily Smiles! 

Summerworks Theatre Festival 
http://www.summerworks.ca/2011/home.php


Last year I attended the Summerworks Festival to see The Haunted Hillbilly, and thoroughly enjoyed myself! The music was written by the one and only Matthew Barber, so I couldn't resist!

Summerworks is a Toronto indie theatre and arts festival. So, not only do they put on great live theatre but live music as well! Tons to see and do!

Anyway, this year I didn't want to miss the festival, and luckily enough, a co-worker of mine had submitted a play! Actually, it was a musical! Even better!

Written and directed by Kevin Michael Shea, Hero & Leander: A New Musical Comedy is based on an ancient tragedy of the same name. Years ago, Mr. Shea was introduced to this story and became so attached to the story that he created his own modern day version and put it to music! Brilliant! The cast is extremely talented. Great singers, great actors, just perfect! The set and lighting were so professional as well. It was a great piece of indie theatre! I highly recommend seeing it if you are in Toronto during the festival!

Summerworks runs until Aug 14!

The Remarkable Bean 

2242 Queen Street East (The Beaches)

http://www.blogto.com/cafes/remarkablebean

I went to The Beach (that's what the neighbourhood is called actually... most residents and Torontonains still call it The Beaches). Apparently there was a vote to officially change the name to "The Beach". However, everyone knows it as The Beaches. There's more than one! Anyway...

I visited a friend who has relocated to The Beaches, and she lives just a few doors down from The Remarkable Bean! You know what that means right? A coffee shop date!

The Remarkable Bean is located on a hip and laid back stretch of Queen Street East. This neighbourhood is filled with unique shops, baby stores, coffee shops, pet stores, anything your little heart desires. It's also quite close to the beach! Perfect! 

I opted for just a simple coffee. I chose their medium roast, and it was quite lovely. The roast their own beans there! My friend had an iced decaf Americano and a quiche! Yum! She let me try a piece, and it was quite heavenly. I really really wanted to try their savory scones. As we chatted I could see them pulling the fresh scones out from the oven and the smell was so tempting! Maybe next time?!

I really enjoyed this place. There were benches outside, and the seating inside was pretty roomy. They offer free wi-fi but for some reason I wasn't able to connect to it very well.... but that may just have been my own technological glitch. 

Overall, I'd give this place 5/5 Smiles!!! They have fresh pastries baked onsite, and their coffee is great stuff! I'd recommend visiting when you visit The Beaches! Oh, and it's open late! Till 10pm! Perfect! 

5/5 Smiles 

Taste of the Danforth

Aug 5 - 7 2011
Greek Festival in Greektown!
http://www.tasteofthedanforth.com/tasteofthedanforth.php

Greek food! Greek music! Greek Everything!

Taste of the Danforth is an annual festival of everything Greek. It takes place on, you guessed it, The Danforth, more specifically 'Greektown'. Now, I have visited Greektown once or twice in the past, but not enough to actually become familiar with the culture within it. Therefore, Taste of the Danforth was the perfect time to visit and taste some Greek goodness!

I decided to head over on Friday evening. It all started around 6pm on Friday, so I wanted to beat the lines and get there early! When I arrived everything had already begun. People were chowing down on chicken pitas, and baklava. I wasn't sure which vendor to choose to buy some chicken sovlaki. There were so many options and places to choose from! I decided on the one with a) a line b) older Greek men who looked like they've been making Greek food for 50 years. It was tasty! Just your regular chicken and pita combo. Nothing too fancy, but it was the experience that counts :)

I went to the festival alone. I have a feeling that if I had had a partner in Greek crime, I would have stuck around longer. I may have treated myself to more Greek cuisine. Alas, I did not. I had fun, but could have had more fun *sigh*.

Lots of people though. Lots and lots of people. So, if you aren't a crowd person, I wouldn't recommend it. If you are, and if you love all things Greek, go for it!

____

Alright, so that's a wrap on Week #19!! Sure makes up for Week #17 eh?!?

So, I'd say I have approximately 3 real weeks left in Toronto.

Will I make it through my Bucket List?!?

Time will tell!!

Keep Smilin,

Monica

Ticking Off the Toronto Bucket List: Week #16

Hey Folks!

So last week I visited some coffee shops, and ate some yummy food in Kensington Market! You probably think that I'll never get through my bucket list if all I do is eat and drink, but I'll have you know, it's HUMID in Toronto right now. As I type this, the weather network says that it "feels like 42*C" right now... therefore, spending time outside of the house and not cooking at home is the best way to beat the heat! However, I can't forget that I also went to an outdoor screening of the National Parks Project, please click on the link if you'd like to learn more! I'll also explain in further detail down below! I also attended the Home County Folk Festival in London Ontario on the weekend, but I'll leave that for a separate post!

Scoop & Bean

2 Follis Avenue
http://www.blogto.com/cafes/scoop-and-bean

One part ice cream shop, one more coffee shop. It is located very close to where I used to live last summer, and actually, it's still a very short distance away! Why I've never tried it before, I have no idea! But I decided to try it this week. I had no exceptions for this place. When I visited, it was rather empty, barely had any sort of morning treats, BUT when I tried the latte the lovely barista made me, I was pleasantly surprised! It was delicious! The foam was perfect, the temperature was just right. This girl knew was she was doing, and I was extremely grateful. They even played some really great laid back Canadian indie tunes. So I was delighted. Can't wait to try this place for ice cream! Looks like they offer Kawartha Dairy ice cream as well which is pretty awesome stuff for all you non-Canadians out there!

The Burger Bar 

319 Augusta Ave 

Kensington Market 

http://www.theburgerbar.ca/index1.html

So, I've been meaning to try The Burger Bar in Kensington Market for a while now. My friend and I were wandering around one day looking for food, so I thought "let's stop in!". This place is cute. It feels like The Dakota, if it were above ground, but without the music and cool staff. Mainly, it's the look that reminds me of The Dakota Tavern. They serve organic & gluten free options, free range chicken, etc. Quite nice! And they had homemade rooibus iced tea. This made me really happy since it was extremely hot outside!!!

Now, the food came promptly, but the service was... lacking. Not the best service. I wanted so much to be happy with my experience there, but maybe with the heat, etc, the service just wasn't that swell? 

Anywho, I might still recommend it. The food was yummy, and the iced tea was super.  I had the veggie burger with some sweet potato fries that I shared with my friend. It was very filling :)  I'm willing to give it one more try. But not any time soon seeing as I have so much to see and do first!!

Open Roof Festival 

The Amsterdam Brewery 

21 Bathurst Street 

http://openrooffestival.com/

Alright, so I've never been to The Amsterdam Brewery. I actually didn't realize that Amsterdam beer was made in Toronto until a few months ago! I thought only Steam Whistle and Mill Street was from Toronto! When a friend of mine mentioned there were outdoor film screenings at the brewery I couldn't say no! 

The Open Roof Festival's goal is to offer an unique experience where a Canadian bands plays and they screen a independent film. They have beer for sale, and popcorn, etc, etc. It's loads of fun! 

For my first visit I saw a screening of The National Parks Project. I had bought the soundtrack for this documentary earlier on in the week, so when I heard it was screening I just had to go! Here's a quote from their site: 

"The National Parks Projects brings together 52 of Canada's best musicians and filmmakers to create music and film inspired by our most amazing National Parks." 

This year marks the 100th anniversary of Canada's 13 National Parks, hence the special film :) The doc is comprised of 13 shorts, and you can screen them all online at the The National Parks Project website on HD. Not only do they offer the shorts, but you can also watch extended versions of each short. You can explore the parks along with the filmmakers and musicians. It's pretty interesting stuff!! Canada looks so beautiful :) I want to visit each park now! The soundtrack offers music that was inspired by the park's landscape and environment. It's pretty beautiful stuff!! Make sure to take a listen! 

Anywho, it was a fun evening. I'd recommend at least checking out one screening! Oh, and I should mention, Catl were the band who played before the film! They were pretty rockin :) 

Rapido 

Website

1089 Bathurst Street 

How the heck did I NOT visit this place sooner?!?! Literally, it's 4 houses down from where I lived for four months last summer, thus only 10 mins from where I live now. I used to walk by it all the time, but never stopped in. I guess that's what happens when you live close to things. You just never see the need to pop into places that you walk by on a daily basis. Well, my dear friend who still lived four houses way, joined me on our first and possibly last visit to Rapido. Like me, she never stepped into this lovely Italian cafe. 

It was a HOT day. Thank god they offered homemade iced tea! I'm a huge fan of real iced tea, not that sugary stuff! We sat down with our iced teas, and drooled while the chefs in the back prepared pizzas and salads for lunch time. Thus, we couldn't resist splitting a panini when it was lunch time! It was delicious. It's a cute spot, filled with older Italian men sipping on their espressos. 

Awesome place :) I'd love to come back for a proper lunch soon! 

That's the end of Week 16!! I'm behind I know!! I have to write about week 17 soon... though not much happened! Please be patient :) 

------

How many weeks do I have left in Toronto?!? 

Apparently 5 more? I might still be around the city after the time I thought I'd be gone... so we'll see. 

I do only have 7 more weeks until I fly away to Ireland though!!! 

AHH!!! 

:) 

Keep Smilin! 

- Moni

Ticking Off the Toronto Bucket List: Week #15

Hey Folks!

How's life treating you these days? Life has been pretty swell for me, and this past week was filled with lots of experiences, not all Toronto related, but I'm still going to blog about it!

I saw a show at the Toronto Fringe Festival, ate some brunch AND attended the Mariposa Folk Festival in Orillia, Ontario. Suffice to say, it was a successful week for my little bucket list!

Toronto Fringe Festival


http://www.fringetoronto.com/index.htm

"Every Woman I Have Ever Slept With" 

I'm planning on seeing one more show before the festival is up, but I did get a chance to see this one last week! I haven't seen many one man shows, but I do enjoy them! If a single actor can captivate me for an hour while alone on stage without the aid of props or other actors, than I'm in love! This one was pretty humourous too! The play centered around a man on a date with a young lady, and throughout the date he reveals some pretty interesting stories about all the woman he has slept with. Apparently all the stories were based on true events, with some embellishments here and there. I love plays like these because they force me to look back at my own life and reflect on all the relationships I've experienced. I suggest you all do that, reflect on your life... it's kind of fun actually!

Anyway, the Fringe Festival is always a good time in Toronto! The plays were submitted in a lottery format, and if you're chosen than you get to put on a show! Plays are held all around the city in actual theatres to a room with a simple stage and lighting set up. It's fun! If you have the opportunity to see something, I recommend you do! Supporting the arts is always good :)



Le Petit Dejeuner 

http://petitdejeuner.ca/

I've heard so much about this place and it's waffles, so when my out-of-town friends visited, we just had to try it out! Mind you, I didn't have the waffles, but my pal did and I tried some of his! They were delicious and light! Quite yummy. Now, I had the Hungry Gal, but I must say, I was still a little hungry after! I'm sure it was the perfect amount, but I'm used to Aunties and Uncle cheapness and filling portions cheaper! But that's okay! It was still yummy and awesome :) Can't go wrong with peameal bacon.

Le Petit Dejeuner is located near Front Street and is in the "business-y" "tourist-y" side of town, but that doesn't make it any less cool! They played pretty awesome music and have a pretty chill atmosphere :) I'd recommend it for anyone visiting the city for sure!




Mariposa Folk Festival 
Orillia, Ontario

http://www.mariposafolk.com/


Attending Mariposa has become a bit of a tradition for my friends and I. We attended last year after winning some tickets, and we decided to go again this year! It is located in a park that is surrounded by Lake Couchiching, which my friends and I took a dip in! Watch out though, it can be a bit rocky! My feet ended up getting a little cut up after our swim, but that's okay! That's what folk festivals are about!
We ate our traditional Mariposa delights like grilled corn on the cob with dill butter, samosas, ice cream and beer! You can literally live off the corn and samosas all weekend. Trust me. It has been done!

The festival is a great place to hang out with friends and peacefully watch some great folk and rock musicians. The crowds aren't too large, and people are quite nice! They have fewer bands than other fests, but loads of opportunities to see them play in workshops throughout the weekend! It definitely has a different vibe from festivals like Hillside or NxNE. People are more relaxed and just plain happy. It's nice :) We ended up seeing Jim Bryson play many times. He was backed up by The Weakerthans for two of his sets, so that was a nice touch.Yukon Blonde & The Beauties just blew the roof off the Mariposa Pub stage Saturday afternoon. It was a loud and sweaty set! Brilliant! Than a special guest appeared in the evening, his name: Danny Michel. It was a great way to end a great weekend!

I highly recommend Mariposa for 2012!


 For week #16 I'm headed to the Home County Folk Festival in London Ontario!
I'm sure there will be other small adventures along the way!

6 more weeks?!?! Holy Crap!

Keep Smilin,

Monica

Ticking Off the Toronto Bucket List: Week #12

I know I know! I'm almost done my 13th week and I haven't even written about week 12! Well, I'm ready to re-live last week, so here it goes!

Last week I attended the NxNE Music Festival in Toronto. I had a wonderful time, met lovely bloggers from the CBC Radio 3 community and saw some great bands play their hearts out. I even hosted a picnic last Saturday entitled the "MoniSki R3 NxNE/Goodbye Picnic". For those of you who may not know, I am a R3 Blogger, and my blog name is MoniSki! It may sound quite nerdy, but I promise it's not :) It was a picnic for people in the R3 community, and also served as a going away get together for myself.

Anyway, the picnic was in Trinity Bellwoods Park and all the R3 bloggers met up to watch some great live bands. Mr. Grant Lawrence, a host at R3, was so kind to actually get some awesome artists to play the picnic! Nothing beats listening to the lovely tunes of Wayne Petti (Cuff the Duke), Matthew Barber and Graham Wright (Tokyo Police Club), on a warm summer's day during a picnic. It was brilliant!

I made a lot of new friends this past week. I'm going to miss them :) I'm also going to miss this festival a great deal, but maybe I'll be able to come back some time in the future to experience it again!

Anywho, here are some photos from all the festivities that took place :) It was great :) I didn't really tick off anything from the bucket list, but I at least took advantage of Toronto and spent a lot of time wandering its streets, parks and venues.

9 more weeks to go!

Keep Smilin',

Moni

Ticking Off the Toronto Bucket List: Week #9

Hey Everyone! 

Well, this week was a busy week!!! Tons of eating and experiencing new things! I'm pretty sure I'm going to spend all my money on food this summer. Who needs money in Ireland right?!? 

Anyway, here's what I did! Enjoy! Maybe it'll motivate you to get out there and try something fun this summer in Toronto! 

Thor Espresso Bar 

35 Bathurst Street 

http://www.thorespressobar.com/

Thor is a fairly new espresso bar that opened up in an area which was in need of a cafe that wasn't Starbucks or Second Cup. Located near a bunch of condos, Thor is a nice change for all those condo dwellers. I assume this must be the case anyway... So, I walked to Thor after work one day and I was in need of a cold beverage! I decided I'd get their iced mocha, and it was pretty yummy! 

Nice and refreshing! Not too bitter or anything. It was nice :) 

If you're into grab and go type places, and aren't planning on sitting here for too long this is your place! If you enjoy more of a sit down place then I wouldn't recommend Thor. It has cool looking tables, and tons of interesting magazines laying around, but it's not a place to really people watch or catch up with friends! 

3/5 Smiles! 

The Grind House 

281 Augusta Ave 

http://www.blogto.com/cafes/grind-house-toronto

The Grind House in Kensington Market! First of all, what an interesting name for a coffee shop eh? Almost creepy? 

Anywho, I read on blogto that the Grind House served clover coffee, so I thought "why not finally try some clover coffee". It's sort of like a french press but different. I recommend just googling it if you want to find out more. Basically, each cup of coffee is freshly made with your choice of coffee bean! FYI, Clover Coffee was bought out by Starbucks...but lets not think about this fact. The barista was super nice at the Grind House. He helped me choose my coffee bean, and after I finished my coffee he recommended what I should try next! He even opened by the bean bags and let me smell the beans! He told me that the darker the bean the oiler it gets, but that I should try the "mexican" blend next time. It's one level lower than the darkest roast but not as oily! I had a medium roast (Guatemalan to be exact!). It was tasty! I drank it black!! I rarely, if ever, do that! It was yummy :) 

I recommend coming here if you want to learn a bit about your coffee and need a place to chill after a morning of shopping in Kensington. Great people, lovely place, go here! 

5/5 Smiles! 

Doors Open Toronto

Elgin/Winter Garden Theatre 

Last year I visited a lot of buildings during the Doors Open event in Toronto. This time around I had picked out a bunch to visit, but because I had invited my lovely parents, I decided not to make the schedule too intense. Our main attraction was the Elgin/Winter Garden theatre located on Yonge Street, across from the Eaton's Centre. What a fantastic theatre! Beautiful! I learned so much after my visit. 

Here are some fun facts!

- Built in 1913

- The Elgin was used for vaudeville type shows which would play throughout the day, whereas the Winter Garden right above it would play the same show but only once a day. It cost 20 cents more to see a show up there. 

- The 1920s began the demise of the Elgin Theatre. Talking pictures came so they started to play movies there and the Winter Garden was closed down for 60 years. The Elgin even became a porno house in the 1970s! Lovely eh?! 

- The Elgin was basically destroyed and lots of things were gutted and ruined throughout the years. But thankfully, in the 1980s, Ontario Heritage bought the theatre and started to restore it! 

- The restoration brought the theatre back to it's glory and gave it wonderful facelift!

- oh, and the ceiling in the Elgin is fake. It's a hanging ceiling since there's another theatre right above it! 7 stories to be more precise! 

- The Winter Garden was eventually reopened and restored as well after 60 years! There was so much grime on the walls that the only way to clean the walls without ruining the original paint was to use bread dough! Who knew?! 

- The Winter Garden is supposed to resemble a garden in the spring time! That way it's always the spring when you visit! 

There is so much more I could keep going on about... but I'll leave it at that for now! 

GUU 

Japanese Restaurant 

398 Church Street 

YUM! 

This place was amazing. It's expensive, but it's the experience you're paying for! Getting to Guu is a little strange. You don't really know how to get into it, but once you're in it's awesome! On the outside it looks like a strange grey rock with little windows in it, but inside it's the coolest place in town! Thankfully, I visited Guu with my Japanese friend and didn't have to put to much effort into picking what to eat! I would have been sitting there for ages trying to figure it all out if I were on my own!
 But first, I should start with what happens upon entering Guu! Upon entering, you are greeted with a very loud Japanese welcoming by the entire staff. Now, I wish I remembered how to say it in Japanese, but all I know is that they yell "Welcome" and you instantly feel like you're part of some crazy cool Japanese community inside the restaurant. When you leave they yell "Arigato!".

The food was delicious. Again, I would explain what I ate, but all I remember is that it was tasty! Lots of chicken, and beek, and noodles and rice! So good!!

 Favourite Japanese Children's soda! You have to push the top with something and than a marble drops and makes everything fizz! It's fun!

YUM!


My First Blue Jays Game

Roger's Centre (a.k.a Skydome!)

I never thought I'd have so much fun at a Blue Jays game! I know nothing about baseball, and used to think it was super boring to watch. However, I felt that as a citizen of Toronto, I needed to attend a game! I have friends who said it was fun, so we went! Low and behold, they were right!! I had so much fun! I even bought myself some expensive baseball peanuts and they were delicious!!!
I totally recommend attending a game. It's different watching baseball with friends and in person!

Loved it!

phew!!! What a week!!!

This coming week will not be as hectic with ticking off the list. But I'm slowly getting there eh!?

12 weeks to go!

Keep Smilin',

Monica