| It is unbelievable how nine days can just fly | | | | District and the prospect of another vacation |
| by. Today my brother, sister-in-law and our | | | | in Canada to explore the waters north of |
| two Austrian friends are scheduled to fly | | | | Toronto seems ever more likely.Yesterday was |
| back to Graz, Austria, via Vienna. There has | | | | their last full day in Toronto, and we took |
| been an increasingly palpable sense of | | | | our bikes out for a spin one more time. Since |
| sentimentality in the air, in light of the | | | | we all love water we rode down to the Eastern |
| fact that this wonderful time is coming to an | | | | Beaches again, and leisurely explored the |
| end alarmingly quickly.It's also amazing how | | | | waterfront. We watched some lawn bowling, and |
| many activities one is able to cram into a | | | | one of the participants kept coming over to |
| short amount of time. I wanted to give them a | | | | us to explain the rules of the game to us |
| really good taste of everything that I love | | | | since none of us was familiar with this |
| about the city of Toronto and my new country. | | | | sport. My guests commented several times on |
| So occasionally I put a few too many things | | | | the friendliness of people in the stores, |
| on our plates and we ended up racing through | | | | restaurants, in line-ups and even I myself |
| a few of the activities. On the whole though, | | | | was surprised at the approachability of |
| I think our European guests had a fabulous | | | | Torontonians, often known as a more reserved |
| time and they fell in love with Toronto, just | | | | breed of people. But we truly kept having |
| like I did, many years ago.Saturday all six | | | | very positive experiences, equally with |
| of us went golfing to a little par-3 golf | | | | people employed in the service sector, as |
| course in the East end of Toronto. None of my | | | | well as with regular citizens, taking a |
| Austrian guests had ever golfed before, so a | | | | stroll, playing a game of lawn bowling or |
| couple of days earlier we started with a few | | | | going for a walk with their dog.Of course we |
| buckets of balls at the driving range, | | | | admired the inukshuks by the beach, a public |
| followed up by an indoor putting practice | | | | play area for adults with rocks of various |
| session on the carpet. Saturday we would get | | | | shapes and sizes that are used by passers-by |
| to try the real thing. The attempts at the | | | | to create interesting stone sculptures. We |
| driving range didn't look all that great, | | | | watched a few tense points at the Kew Gardens |
| with balls spraying all over the place, to | | | | Tennis Club, and checked out the picturesque |
| the left and to the right. But on Saturday | | | | Kew Gardens park itself. From there we headed |
| afternoon, another gorgeous day, our four | | | | west past the beach volleyball facilities to |
| Austrian guests performed quite admirably and | | | | the little peninsula west of Ashbridges Bay |
| only lost 2 balls in the water hazard.They | | | | which always offers a fabulous view of |
| really enjoyed golf, a sport they had never | | | | Toronto's skyline. We took in the tranquil |
| even dreamed of playing, but the Toronto area | | | | atmosphere and soaked in the sun for a while |
| with its several hundred golf courses, many | | | | before we started our return back along the |
| of them reasonably priced, made it easy to | | | | waterfront. My European visitors commented |
| give this sport a try. All preconceived | | | | several times how incredible it is to have |
| notions about golf only being a sport for old | | | | all this publicly accessible land right along |
| people went out the window, and they enjoyed | | | | the waterfront and how in some secluded spots |
| the challenge of trying to sink the round | | | | you don't even realize that you are in a |
| little ball in the hole.Sunday came our | | | | major metropolitan area.To get back up to our |
| second big excursion: a driving tour through | | | | house we had to climb back up from the |
| the Kawartha Lakes. I had only planned two | | | | waterfront and this time we chose the Glen |
| major driving tours: a wine-tasting tour | | | | Stewart Ravine, where a little brook has |
| through the Niagara Peninsula, and a second | | | | carved a valley into the slopes leading down |
| one to the lake district of the Kawarthas. We | | | | to the waterfront. It is a densely forested |
| started by driving east on Toronto's 401, a | | | | area and when you are in there it feels like |
| 12 to 16 lane highway whose size duly | | | | you are in a remote forest somewhere, not |
| impressed my European visitors. Then we | | | | right in the middle of Toronto.Once back at |
| headed north-east through rolling farm | | | | our house, preparation got started for our |
| country to Peterborough, a rural university | | | | final goodbye barbeque and we had invited a |
| town with a population of about 70,000. From | | | | few extra friends to join us to give our |
| there we drove north into the Kawarthas, a | | | | Austrian guests a proper sendoff back home. |
| gorgeous lake region set in the rocky | | | | We enjoyed some excellent food and they |
| landscape of the Canadian Shield.Our first | | | | sampled a few more varieties of Canadian |
| stop was Buckhorn, where we watched the | | | | wines and beers, all of which they had |
| mechanics of lift locks of the Trent-Severn | | | | commented quite favourably on. We didn't |
| Canal that links Lake Ontario with Georgian | | | | sample much restaurant cuisine since my |
| Bay. We saw how several boats assembled | | | | brother is a talented chef, but the fresh |
| inside the lock following by an opening of | | | | ingredients that he purchased in Toronto's |
| the sluices and the water level equilibrating | | | | various markets made for some truly delicious |
| itself with the level of the lower portion of | | | | dinners.In the evening we took one more spin |
| the river. The Parks Canada lock supervisor | | | | in the car, first to revisit the Distillery |
| explained the whole process to us and it only | | | | District at night. Luis had wanted to buy |
| took about 10 minutes for the boats to reach | | | | some beer glasses at the Mill Street Brewery |
| the lower level.From Buckhorn we drove | | | | as a souvenir, but unfortunately the brewery |
| through rocky and marshy countryside to the | | | | and restaurant were closed. The whole |
| quaint village of Bobcaygeon where we took an | | | | Distillery area was a little quiet, not |
| extended stroll. We had a nice waterfront | | | | surprisingly, since it was Labour Day, the |
| lunch, looking across to the marina, seeing | | | | last official day of summer, and the final |
| the the boats come in an out of the canal. | | | | day of respite before school would begin |
| Particularly our Austrian friends Luis and | | | | again. We continued our driving tour with a |
| Isabella love boating and seeing the many | | | | little spin through downtown and up Yonge |
| houseboats on the Trent-Severn Canal gave | | | | Street before we turned east on Bloor Street. |
| them a few ideas for future vacations in | | | | We crossed the Bloor Street Viaduct and |
| Canada.The lunch was delicious and we took a | | | | arrived on the Danforth, Toronto's Greek |
| little stroll around this charming town, | | | | area. As always, Greektown was quite busy and |
| admiring the waterfront parks and picnic | | | | people were milling about. We sat down on the |
| facilities that allow great access to the | | | | patio of one of our favourite restaurants and |
| water. From Bobcaygeon we drove on to another | | | | enjoyed some Greek snacks before we headed |
| little picturesque country town: Fenelon | | | | home after another long day, all of us a |
| Falls, whose name comes from a waterfall in | | | | little sad, commenting how nine days can pass |
| the middle of town that has been used for | | | | so quickly.Today we'll have to take their |
| electricity generation since the 1870s.After | | | | four rented bicycles back and around 2:30 |
| a sizeable line-up we picked up a few | | | | we'll have to start the trek to the airport. |
| delicious cones of Kawartha Dairy ice cream | | | | It's been a fabulous 9 days, an extended |
| and strolled over to the bridge over the | | | | sleepover with four great people and we won't |
| falls and then down to the little peninsula | | | | forget this holiday for a long, long time. We |
| that sticks out into the river. From there | | | | are already hoping for another reunion, |
| you can look into a rocky gorge where both | | | | either in Austria, or back here in Canada, to |
| sides of the river are surrounded by high | | | | deepen this fabulous connection.Susanne |
| rocks.Again, we watched boats being lifted | | | | Pacher is the publisher of a website called |
| and lowered, this time in lock 33 of the | | | | Travel and Transitions( Travel and |
| Trent-Severn Canal System. This is another | | | | Transitions deals with unconventional travel |
| town with a beautiful little park right by | | | | and is chock full of advice, tips, real life |
| the locks with lots of opportunity for | | | | travel experiences, interviews with |
| barbeques or simply for a relaxing snooze in | | | | travellers and travel experts, insights and |
| the sun . Time was flying by and by this time | | | | reflections, cross-cultural issues, contests |
| it was already 3:30 pm so we had to start our | | | | and many other features. You will also find |
| return to the city. We only took back roads | | | | stories about life and the transitions that |
| and my brother lost count of the numerous | | | | we face as we go through our own personal |
| golf courses that dotted the landscape. It | | | | life-long journeys.Submit your own travel |
| was a nice relaxing drive through rolling | | | | stories in our first travel story contest( |
| countryside and we made it back to Toronto in | | | | and have a chance to win an amazing adventure |
| less than 2 hours. All four of my Austrian | | | | cruise on the Amazon River. |
| guests had fallen in love with the Lake | | | | |