Our final stop of the wheelchair van road trip was Toronto. Julia
arranged for us to stay at the Grand Hotel in a two bedroom suite. We
were walking/power chair distance to everything. Service was
outstanding. The free breakfast was really, really good. The staff gave
us a special service dog gift box that included a travel water dish,
chew toys, and poop bags. They did everything they possibly could for
us within their power. The suite did not end up being accessible at
all, but we knew that going in. We couldn’t find any accessible hotel
rooms downtown for our party of three.
On our first day, Julia took Justin to the Hockey Hall of Fame, while
I walked the streets of downtown and then stopped at a basement bar for
a Guinness and fish tacos. After we met up, we went to the Craft Beer
Market where I enjoyed an IPA, and Justin ate Fast Food Sushi (
Cheeseburger and fries wrapped in bacon and presented sushi style served with jalapeño cream cheese and BBQ sauce). Maybe it was the two beers, but I really liked this sculpture in the downtown area.
Later, after getting settled in the hotel, Julia and I ventured out
to the St. Lawrence Market where we picked out cheeses, sausage, fruit
and freshly baked crusty bread, bringing our groceries back to the room
for dinner. We did that both nights to save money over an expensive
restaurant. Additionally, the neighborhood around the very nice hotel
was a little sketchy at night. As might be expected, we saw great
wealth and style in Toronto, but we also saw a lot of homeless people
down on their luck and some in need of mental health services. Many of
these folks were staying at shelters close to the Grand Hotel, while
others slept in nearby parks. We didn’t have any problems, but it was
eye-opening for Justin.
On Day 2, we walked down to the Toronto Harbor and then over to the
CN Tower. Julia, Justin and Elvis stood in line and went up to the top.
I went off in search of….a brewery, which was just across the street so I didn’t have to go far.
Steam Whistle has one style of beer: a pilsner. While a dry, crisp,
light pilsner is not my favorite style of beer to drink or brew, I have
great admiration for a brewery that executes its style perfectly. In
any event, it was a great way to pass the time while the rest of the
crew went up and down the tower.
Next, we walked over to Chinatown for a late dim sum lunch. With dim
sum, waiters continuously bring out trays of Chinese small plates. You
pick and choose which dishes you want to buy and eat. I think the
total bill was $25 Canadian, and we all felt full and tried some very
interesting foods. We had pot stickers, noodles, fried shrimp, shrimp
dumplings. We turned down the chicken feet and beef tripe, but we
couldn’t resist the octopus.
That
night, Julia and I enjoyed the rooftop jacuzzi, while Justin and Elvis
watched the Blue Jays baseball game. We got up early the next morning
and drove all the way back home. It was a long drive, but we were all
out of hotel reservations. We were all ready to sleep in our own beds at
home after a long road trip.
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