On The Road Again

I had a few things planned on Friday but they fell through because, paradoxically, I was working longer despite booking half-day vacations. The first item scratched off was a second community class at Yogaspace because I simply didn't want to eat another late lunch.

There were several boutique shops between Lansdowne and Gladstone. As far as gentrification goes, something other than a café or restaurant was a net positive in my opinion. Yet this stretch of College St. was not lively or gentrified enough to make these stores viable because I have seen mostly failures over the years.

At Gladstone, I decided I didn't want to walk all the way to Spadina for Toronto-style pizza at Fresca. So remove that item from my to-do list. I also wasn't feeling in the mood for a Moroccan tea at Arabesque. Instead I headed up to Bloor for 241 pizza. Previously, there have been encampments at Dufferin Grove Park. The first occurrence was a cluster of tents in the field across from the outdoor rink. Then during the pandemic, several were set up by Indigenous folks next to the campfire to protest the discovery of mass graves at residential schools. There were none during my visit in June but they have returned. This time, they were spread apart, covering almost the entire tree-lined slope opposite Dufferin Mall. I wondered how the local residents felt about losing 1/3 of the park.

In the evening, I headed East again from my rental to Symington and Bloor. This crossing, essentially 2 3-way intersections side-by-side, was notorious for confusing drivers. During the brief time that I passed by on my way to Taqueria Vegana, several cars were "stuck" in no-man's land, enduring a flurry of honking from more experienced motorists. There were several restaurants right at that intersection that could provide me with an entertaining view of the chaos.

I had a good feeling stepping inside Thai Nyyom. First, all the staff spoke Thai to each other. Second, the menu on the chalkboard was only a handful of regular items plus one daily special. I ordered Khao Soi Chicken ($15.04) and Thai Iced Tea ($5.31). The drink was excellent and as a bonus, not as sweet as other places. As for the Khao Soi, it was also wonderful. The broth was flavourful with a slight kick and the chicken fell apart in your mouth. The crunchy topping provided a nice textural contrast. The only problem was that now that I've had the spaghetti version known as Khaose, Khao Soi simply wasn't quite as great a dish. Al dente pasta was a better base than soft rice noodles.

I had an early evening because my bus back to Ottawa was at 7 am. When I got to the terminal Saturday morning, I realized my mistake. Apparently, Rider Express was successful enough to now expand to several daily trips between Ottawa and Toronto. This early one was not a direct route but a "local" detour that went through several small towns include Marnora and Madoc. My last such ride, with the defunct Greyhound company some 20 years ago, took almost 8 hours. Luckily, this one was not on a full bus during winter so it was only 45 minutes longer than my usual 5-hour ride. But I'll have to pay attention to the full itinerary the next time I book online.