Having a Royally Good Time : “The” Wedding and a Dinner Out with Friends

Hello! On this Wednesday following the Victoria Day weekend, when Canadians had a three-day weekend in honour of Queen Victoria, (whose birthday we've been celebrating since 1845), I'm going to conveniently run with the "Royal" theme, and stick two stories together.

Of course, the big wedding was on Saturday!

We got up at the crack of dawn and tuned in.

As you probably know, Harry and Meghan began their relationship in Toronto, where she was living during the filming of Suits. One afternoon Nick saw Harry's motorcade going up Spadina Avenue, on their way to her place. At least on that occasion, getting him there was quite a spectacle, with motorbikes leading the way, stopping traffic at each block. Then four identical black cars with tinted windows went by (they used several, so no one would know exactly which one the prince was in). These were followed by more motor bikes.

I don't really remember the previous royal wedding being a big thing here, but the fact that Harry and Meghan first dated in our city seemed to have caused quite a lot of interest in their wedding. In addition to the viewing parties held in people's homes, the "Princess of Wales Theatre" on King Street West held a big one with every one of their 2,000 seats being filled and people all dressed up. This theatre was named in honour of Diana with her consent. (I posted about it here, if you'd like to see pictures of it).

There were also events at the The Royal York and King Edward Hotels, who both hosted fancy tea parties. I read that the lobby at The Royal York was transformed with an English garden installation, which must have been beautiful to see.

We didn't go out for it but we did plan ahead, making sure we had the right groceries to prepare a themed breakfast, and some rum to make a spot of "Nick's Sinners' Tea" (recipe here).

After waking to the 5am alarm I quietly brought my pillow and a blanket down to the living room, just as the guests were beginning to arrive at Windsor Castle. Nick still hadn't stirred so I thought I'd be watching solo, however, he made his way downstairs just as Meghan's mother was arriving at the ceremony.

At Bellwoods Brewery

If you asked me to name a place in Toronto that always has a line-up whenever I pass by, Bellwoods Brewery would immediately come to mind. Now that I've been myself, I can tell you why I believe that is -- In no particular order : they offer great micro-brewed beer, made onsite in large vats which are on full display and add to the decor; their servers are attentive, cheerful and helpful; the place is small, made cozier with those aforementioned vats, that take up a significant portion of the floor-space.

The line-up shouldn't stop you from going though, as it moves pretty quickly -- on their site, they state that a spot for a party of 2 or 4 will usually be had within 10-20 minutes. My friend Julie and I went on a Friday evening and found that it wasn't too bad. Granted, given the popular time we chose to go, our wait was on the long side at about half an hour, but there were friendly people around us who we chatted with, and hey, this fine lady and I first met while waiting in a line-up, so I'm not going to knock them!

Oh, and we were there when it was still too cool to open the outdoor patio, which is large and doubles their capacity (You can see a photo of it in this post, when I wrote about the Ossington Street Festival last summer). Since our weather went from hats, mitts and boots to full-on summertime in the blink of an eye, it is bound to be open now. All those additional tables will surely lessen the time until you're seated with a delicious cold beer in hand.

Or, if it's more the beer you're after, you can skip the line-up altogether and buy some to take home in the attached shop.

Here's a look at Bellwoods Brewery, located at at 124 Ossington Avenue (west side between Queen Street West and Dundas) ...

Toronto Neighbourhood Exploration : Parkdale

ass="aligncenter size-full wp-image-39416 blk-brdr" src="http://www.loulou.to/wp-content/uploads/2018/05/parkdale-queen-west-near-king-roncesvalles-toronto.jpg" alt="" width="640" height="480">Hello and welcome!As I often say when posting a "Neighbourhood Exploration" story like this, since first reading this list of “25 Daily Habits That Will Make You Smarter” three years ago, I've made more of an effort to get out and see parts of Toronto that I don't get to normally. In point #20, the article recommends that “If you can’t travel every day, at least try to find something new within your hometown. You’ll meet different people, learn new facts, and understand something new about the world.”.So, Nick and I had a good walk and presumably made ourselves smarter recently by visiting Parkdale.Parkdale borders Queen Street West, between Roncesvalles Avenue on the west and Dufferin Street on the east. When first established in the 1850s, it was a village separate from Toronto. Back then, the City of Toronto (called "York") ended just west of Bathurst Street (at Niagara Street), about 4 kilometres to the east of Parkdale. Between the two were large rural properties, with homes here and there.It was an independent settlement for 40 years, until being amalgamated with Toronto in 1889. Following that, it became a sort of resort/holiday area, where the affluent built large homes, and people went for fun. Much like The Beaches Neighbourhood to the east of the downtown core (which I wrote about here) people visited Parkdale to go to the beach which existed on the shore of Lake Ontario. In 1922, an elaborate bathing pavilion, where people could change into their swimsuits, was built. It included a whopping 7,700 lockers, so clearly, people were flocking to the beach! There was also a boardwalk and a large amusement park called "Sunnyside" located there, near the foot of Roncesvalles.All that changed and much was destroyed after someone made the (bad!) decision to build the expressway along the southern border of the city in the 1950.(Parts of the old resort area still exist, including the Pavilion, a huge swimming pool, the largest one in Canada when it was built in 1925, a canoe club, and a dance hall -- I plan to get down there this summer and will report back.)After the highway was built the character of Parkdale Village changed dramatically. The rich moved out, leaving their mansions and lush low-rise apartment blocks to be split up into rooming houses. There was also a building boom in the area, with apartment towers replacing what were previously single family homes.The abundant and relatively inexpensive housing attracted a community of artists and immigrants from many different countries. Also, in the 1970s the Government of Ontario decided to release many long-term care mental illness patients from its Queen Street and Lakeshore Psychiatric Hospital facilities, and integrate them into the community. Since there was plenty of low-cost housing in Parkdale, this is where they settled.Like so much around Toronto right now, things are in flux in Parkdale. Recent articles I've read indicate a neighbourhood in a state of gentrification, with exponentially increasing rents.While change is inevitable, as our city is growing rapidly these days, here's hoping that the unique look of Parkdale is appreciated and maintained, and that progress does not render the village unrecognizable.Here's a little look ...

The Kate Nash Concert at The Mod Club

I mentioned in my previous post that, as a birthday treat, Nick had gotten me tickets to a concert. They were for the Kate Nash show. I actually knew in advance that they were part of my gift because he had to make sure we didn't both end up buying tickets.

Photos Throughout a Day : My Birthday 2018

Hello! It was my birthday recently and my love made sure it was wonderful.Here's how the day unfolded ...I awoke to find a large brightly wrapped package on the table, and instructed to look at the card first.It had this excellent print of Amy Winehouse on the front -- (Nick knows how much I love(d) her) -- that he picked up at "his" store. Valhalla Cards and Gifts is at 791 Queen Street West and if you asked me what it was like inside, I'd have to say that, although I've received many great cards and gifts from there, I have no idea what it looks like inside. That's because, a long time ago, Nick requested that I stay away from it so he would have a place to get me things that would always be a surprise.