TRAVEL
Toronto
Tribal Toronto
©1992 The Toronto Government Ministry of Tourism
If wanderlust takes you but your wallet can' accommodate a month of country hopping,
follow Pam
Stoikopoulos as she
samples a cultural smorgasbord of Toronto's diverse neighborhoods.
"Your birthday party looks
more like a United Nations meeting," a small-town ex-boyfriend once commented as we
celebrated at a Swiss restaurant. Puzzled, I surveyed the group of various ancestries and
skin tones before me. As a Toronto-reared kid, exposure to different cultures had never
seemed "unique" or "horizon-broadening": It was part of life.
Toronto is a cornucopia of religion and ethnicity: Christians, Jews, Muslims, Buddhists,
Europeans, Asians, East and West Indians, South Americans and most recently Africans all
live side by side in relative harmony.
While Toronto boasts Canada's largest population (4.4 million) and a host of shiny,
impressive "world class" facilities, the true life of the city lies in its
cultural diversity and in the city's ever-evolving neighborhoods.
Dishing it out on The Danforth
Strolling down the wide eastern avenue known as "The Danforth" the twang of the bouzouki,
and scents of garlic and oregano drift out of the restaurants and onto the sidewalk
patios. It's not difficult to imagine that you've been transported to a clean-air version
of Athens. The retsina and ouzo flow freely while waiters daringly
ignite cheese shouting "opah!" as they unleash the flaming dish onto your table.
If you happen to be there late night on the weekend, you might be fortunate enough to do a
little "opah" dancing yourself before being offered a plate to smash - a
supposed sign of happiness, but more likely drunkenness - on the floor.
Over 100,000 Greek immigrants flocked to the area after the Greek civil war ended in 1952
setting up specialty shops, cafes, butchers and fruit stands to serve the Greek community.
Like most ethnic neighborhoods in Toronto, the street was only "discovered" by
outsiders (i.e. non-Greeks) about ten years ago. While its newly found popularity has
created a demand for more upscale, nouveau dining, many of the traditional restaurants -
which often will allow you into the kitchen to view the chow - remain.
If you really want a taste of the "old-boys' old-country," then venture in to
one of the hazy kafenios where you're bound to catch retired blue collar workers, puffing
on cigarettes, sipping muddy Greek coffee and ranting about the politics of the day.
 |
| Photos by Pam Stoikopoulos |
Little Italy
On the west side of town on College St (just west of Bathurst) stands another great
"old-country" haunt (with better coffee) known as Little Italy. Like The
Danforth, College St boasts a number of cafes, trattorias and boutiques that have
catered to the Italian community - 650,000 strong - for over 50 years. Since it's recently
become a lot more trendy and expensive, purists may want to venture further north (St
Clair West and Bathurst St) to the more authentic Corso Italia district where you'll find
streets lined with family-run food shops, cafes and shoe stores. The area is also a
matrimonial paradise for marriage-happy consumers as the neighborhood boasts the city's
highest concentration of bridal shops.
 Chinatown
You'll know that you have exited the hip Queen West District and entered Toronto's largest
and busiest Chinatown (there are five) when the tinsel tank tops, pierced bellies and
charming silver choker window displays are replaced by gleaming smoked pigs and choked
Peking ducks both pierced onto giant hooks.
Tokyoites who find Toronto's generally spacious, tree-lined streets lonesome and vacant
would do well to take a stroll in the crowded bustle of the Spadina Ave-Dundas St area on
a Saturday. This is when much of the Chinese community (250,000 and growing) is out
shopping for reasonably priced fresh food, jewelry, electronics and imported goods. Study
the ancient art of bartering as aggressive old women push their way past you to haggle
over the price of fresh vegetables and live crab.
Don't be put off by the "distinctive" scents of durian mingled with dried fish,
fermented black beans and soy sauce, as this is the best place in the city to sample a
vast selection of authentic and cheap Chinese cuisine. Other Asian immigrants have also
started to move into the area and Vietnamese, Thai and Japanese restaurants have sprung
up.
Vintage verandas
If you turn off of Chinatown's main Spadina St drag onto the brightly painted houses of St
Andrew St (two blocks north of Dundas St on the west side) you'll enter the Kensington
Market area.
Polyester shirts, leather jackets and faded Levi's swing from porch banisters in the
gentle breeze as if the 80s' ghost of Molly Ringwald were coaxing you to "buy
vintage."
Originally settled by Jewish merchants in the 1920s, the area is the embodiment of
multi-cultural life. Italians, Hungarians, West Indians, Ukrainians, Latin Americans,
Asians and Africans all call Kensington home, often using the ground floor of their
properties to sell every kind of food imaginable, in addition to household goods.
 An alternative church
"Pansies! Pansies!" shout the blue, pink and orange "man-flowers" as
they flitter through the crowd. Meanwhile a float of studded, leather-clad models drifts
by, throwing army tags and condoms to jubilant onlookers (over 750,000 of them) gathered
in the heart of the gay community at Church and Wellesley streets. Whether you're gay,
lesbian or straight, the mardi gras-like atmosphere of Toronto's June Gay Pride day
celebration is not to be missed.
The tolerant, open-minded attitude that pervades in the city is one of the main reasons
that Toronto is home to the largest (about 250,000) gay and lesbian population in Canada,
who can comfortably stroll the streets hand in hand with their partners. Check out the
mainly gay and lesbian-owned shops, restaurants, nightclubs and cabarets. Or catch a play
at Buddies in Bad Times, dubbed "The World's Largest Queer Theatre."
 Other avenues
Make sure to also visit Little India (Gerrard St East) and the historic pockets of chic
Yorkville (once a hippie enclave) or the recently yuppified Cabbagetown where most of the
houses date back to the 19th century.
If nature and greenery are more your thing, then consider enjoying some of Toronto's
10,000 acres of parkland. Take a stroll through High Park, have a picnic at "The
Beaches" (Queen St East), or canoe down the river that runs through Toronto Island.
Toronto boasts a low crime rate and the third largest (only London and New York have more)
theatre community in the world. While you may not choose to immigrate, considering its
attractions and the ridiculously low Canadian dollar (around JY75), you shouldn't miss out
on Canada's cultural capital.
How to get there:
Air Canada offers daily direct flights from Narita to Pearson International Airport in
Toronto.
Information:
Toronto City Page www.city.toronto.on.ca/
Toronto Tourist Guide www.showmetoronto.com
Official Ontario Page www.tourism.gov.on.ca/english/
|
