Today was the day. The day of visiting the school I went to as a little girl, and looking at the house I lived in.
After breakfast, we got a taxi, gave the driver the address (and rough directions!), and headed off. It only took about 15 minutes or so, and we were pulling up outside the school. We got out, stood on the footpath and got our bearings. I turned around, and there it was. The old house. I immediately started walking towards it, heart pounding. It was different, but so familiar. Changed, and yet the same. I stood and stared at it for a few moments. Briefly pointed things out to Paul, Patrick, Matthew and Dad.
We then headed back up to the school, and into the office. The office lady asked us to wait while she got the principal. While waiting, we looked at photos of the graduating classes over the years. I looked at the photo of the year I would have been in, and got a lump in my throat when I actually recognised a few faces.
The principal came out to greet us, and got a 7th grade student to show us around. It seemed like it hadn't changed a bit! It was all so familiar, almost as though no time had gone by (except maybe changes in fashion!).
After thanking the student who showed us around and saying goodbye to the office lady, we wandered back outside. We went back across the street to have another look at the house I lived in. I knocked on the door to see if anyone was home (to ask if they minded us taking some photos) but nobody was home. We snapped a few photos, then walked past the school, down some steps to show the boys the "double decker hill". The double decker was a popular sledding spot when I lived there, and the boys had lots of fun running down it as fast as they could!
We then went for a walk around the block, had another look at the old house, and headed off. We went past a park that I remember being taken to as a little girl, and the boys had a bit of a play on the climbing equipment before we moved on.
We walked up to Bloor Street, spotting many squirrels on the way - both grey and black. Some climbing, some with nuts in their paws. We got to Bloor Street in time for lunch, and followed a recommendation to go to guess where? Swiss Chalet! I believe it was the Swiss Chalet (Mum? Was it the one on Bloor Street?). So, we got the photos Paul had wanted to take at the other one! Had a lovely lunch, and headed off once again.
Caught a train to Eaton Centre, a huge shopping centre. Spent about 3 hours there, looking around. Caught the train again, but this time back towards our hotel. The trains are marvellous. Clean, not crowded (even at 5.30pm on a Monday). According to the timetable on the platform, the trains come every 2-3 minutes during peak hour, and every 4-5 minutes during non peak hour! There's the north-south line, and the east-west line. So, it's very, very easy to make your way around, even when you're not that familiar with the city. It was no trouble at all!
Paul's perspective
It was really great to see Meaghan's old stomping ground. The cabbie seemed to have a little trouble finding the place. We had looked it up the night before and knew roughly how to get there, but when he started asking us for directions I got a little nervous. He found it mainly by dumb luck, as Meaghan had mentioned a nearby cross street that he headed for, but we found the necessary street.
It was great to see the school, and the student (Kate) who showed us around did a great job. We gave the school a couple of books as a thank you for letting us intrude on their day (Are we there yet and Aboriginal dreamtime stories).
Wandering around we went up and down the "double decker hill" several times, and went past a number of houses belonging to Meaghan's old friends. It was amazing how many kids all lived so close to each other. We also spent some time at "the park".
The subways again impressed me. This time we caught the east/west and then had to change to the north/south, and it was the easiest thing in the world.
Eaton Centre is huge, and we decided that we would probably go back again later in the week. The variety of boys clothes available in Sears was a big surprise. We find most stores in Sydney have huge varieties of girls clothers, and very few for boys. What there is normally has skulls or other ugly logos on them. There were hundreds of styles available at Sears, and they were reaonably priced and all looked to be of good quality. However we decided that 4pm was not the best time to be getting the boys to be trying on clothes (we had been going since 8am).
Tomorrow we are off to see Niagra Falls....
Todays photos are at
I have also added some extra photos to earlier days - had to upgrade membership as we were already at 30% of the free limit after only 3 days. We were trying to conserve some of the space, but now that is no longer a problem. These should be able to be seen from the earlier links.
6 comments:
Megan was commenting the other day as we read one of your posts how it is a trip down memory lane for you. Today especially.
Well me and food! What did you eat at Shopsy's? Was it as good as you imagined it.
I've always wanted to get a hot dog from a street vendor like they have in New York. What do you put on them?
I'm enjoying your holiday greatly!?!?!
Hi happy travellers
Boy what a lovely way to bring back so many happy memories by just looking at your photos and reading your notes. Meag, I know what you mean by a lump in the throat.
I take it by the comments that the boys did not get a chance to actually sit in on a class situation - would that be because of some kind of insurance situation maybe???
Yes, that was the particular Swiss Chalet!!!! Just along from Prince Edward Drive & Bloor Street intersection.
You all certainly see to be having a great time and I know that shopping would be great. Tell me, at the Eaton Centre, did you happen to see the statue of old Timothy Eaton. Most people like to rub the toe of his shoe for good luck. There is also a church downtown called the Timothy Eaton Memorial Church.
Will close now. I know you will have a wonderful time at Niagra Falls tomorrow - they are truly spectacular.
Until next time, God bless you all and take care.
Love and kisses to all.
Mum
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo
PS Sambo is still behaving although I'm convinced he is part greyhound!!!!!
Mum - no, the boys didn't get to sit in on a class. I think Matthew was a bit disappointed, but still loved looking around. Matthew in particular had a great time running down the double-decker hill, hollering his head off! Yes, it was the Swiss Chalet along from Prince Edward Drive! We didn't see the statue, but by the time we got to Eaton Centre it was about 2pm. We plan on going back tomorrow after breakfast so that we have more time - will look for the statue then.
Roseintatters - Welcome to our blog! Glad to have you commenting!At Shopsy's, the boys had hotdogs and fries, my father-in-law had corned beef with saurkraut on rye, Paul had the Bill Cosby sandwich, and I had a turkey/bacon/lettuce/cheese sandwich that I think was called a Maple Club? When we've been getting hotdogs, we've put tomato sauce (ketchup) and mustard on them. They also have containers at the end of the cart with pickles, peppers, saurkraut, onions and relish that you can add to your hotdog.
Have to run now - need to get ready in time for the bus to Niagara! Will post again tonight!
Hi Ryans,
I have checked in today on both St Andrew's travellers blogs. It sounds like everyone is having a wonderful time and that prayers are most certainly being answered. Have you had anything covered in maple syrup yet? I kind of missed that you actually spent time in Canada as a little girl - how wonderful to revisit so many memories for you. I hope you all continue to enjoy every moment and continue to make new happy memories to treasure. I'm actually using Sam's identity. Bye for now. Suzie J
Patrick & Matthew,
Is the trip going well? I bet the shops are great because I love shopping, too. What was your favourite part so far? Shops, heh? (ha, ha, ha!)
From Fiona
We are missing you. We are enjoying reading your blog. Did you get really wet or just a little wet at Niagara Falls?
From Megan
It sounds like you are having a really good time. There's no fun without you. What's your favourite bit so far?
from Tom
We're off up the coast for about 8 days. I'll be able to catch up with your blog up till Monday and then I'll have to get creative. What is your itinerary? When do you go to NY and when to California?
From Sharon
My favourite part was when we went to the Eaton Centre - I got 2 Ben 10 toys (cheaper than Aussie prices). We got super-wet at Niagara Falls.
From Matthew
Hi guys, we're having a wonderful time. So far the best part about our holiday is absolutely everything! We got really really wet at Niagara Falls. At Niagara Falls my favourite thing was going on the Maid of the Mist which is where we got really wet. The thing I've liked best about the shopping is a shop called ToysToysToys. It was huge, and had so many toys. You guys would really like it. There was a great variety, with with almost everything you could ever want!
From Patrick
Hi Sharon!! Today is Friday morning, Toronto time. We leave for New York tomorrow morning, 11.15am. We are in NY until Friday 3 Oct. when we fly to LAX. It's been great so far, Toronto has been fantastic - so clean, easy to get around, public transport really efficient and convenient. Shopping has been good too *wink*. Megan, Fiona and Tom have been featured in quite a few conversations, as in "Imagine if Megan, Fiona & Tom were here", "Tom/Megan/Fiona would love this" etc. I hope you have a great time when you go up the coast - relax and enjoy every minute of it!!
Meaghan
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