Now that Bess and I are settled in, I’ve started accepting custom orders again—including business cards! I’ve designed and printed some really fun cards in the last year, so I thought I’d share! Interested in a set of your own? Email me or check out this listing.
My first impression of Toronto was blue glass studded with bright fall foliage. As you drive in from the airport, the first buildings to greet you once you actually get in to the city are tall, modern, glass skyscrapers, and behind that, the blue of the Great Lakes. We went at the perfect time of year: the air was crisp and the small deciduous trees planted in the well-landscaped green spaces between buildings were fiery shades of orange and yellow and red. It was stunningly beautiful.
We stayed in the financial district, which feels like you’re in the middle of everything when you arrive on a Friday afternoon—the sidewalks and underground tunnels are bustling, restaurants and bars are full of business people—but it’s deceptive. Come Saturday morning we discovered this is not the best area of town to spend a weekend—75% of businesses in the area shut down when the working crowd goes home.
I love that the city’s districts are very distinct. You know exactly when you’ve crossed the street from Chinatown to the Fashion District. Toronto is very walkable, with wide sidewalks and ample opportunities to cross busy streets—and everyone obeys walk signals. (Although Andrew attributes that to innate Canadian niceness). I loved the public art and design throughout the city and definitely could have spent another afternoon walking aimlessly, admiring it all!
We spent our evenings in the King West neighborhood, which seems to be pretty hip, but not over run with 20-something hipsters. (Man, I sound like a crotchety old lady.) Great restaurants abound and there’s a great nightlife scene—with plenty of taxis to get you home. We did have to wait in line to get in to the bar—the locals we were with said that if we had arrived before 10:00 we would have been good to go.
Where to go: I spent some significant time in the fashion district. Every other store front seems to be a massive fabric store. I loved King Textiles—with roll upon roll upon roll of fabric (and real fashion designers placing orders!), it reminded me of Mood from Project Runway.
What to do: Lots of people told us about a giant mall near our hotel. I’m not usually a big mall shopper, but after a couple months in Bermuda, chain stores (and Auntie Anne’s!) are starting to become a welcome, American-feeling sight. We didn’t go to the CN Tower, but I’m kind of wishing we had—however, I’ve heard the food is not very good in the restaurant at the top, so best to just imbibe a cocktail and the view!
Where to eat: We had some absolutely fantastic meals in Toronto—and yes, don’t worry we had poutine. I absolutely loved Sansotei Ramen. They have a handful of dishes that are really just very slight variations on pork belly ramen—I love when a restaurant is so sure of what they’re doing, they only offer you what they make best. Another standout was Buca—an Italian place in King West. The atmosphere is amazing, and so is the suckling pig! (Oh, and the cheese tray… mmmm… cheese….)
Editor’s Note: This first guide is pretty short since we were only in town for the weekend. Do you have Toronto tips? Please feel free to share in the comments or send me an email! Interested in writing a travel guide? Email me at kristink_64@yahoo.com.
Last week boyfriend and I spent a long weekend in Toronto. He was there for work, I was there because… I could be. (Ah, the joys of working remotely!) We had a great, albeit relatively uneventful weekend, filled with new (for me) friends, fantastic meals and plenty of relaxation.
In the last two years, I left North America for the first time (London, Paris); visited countless domestic cities (New York, Baltimore, Philly, Virginia Beach, Charleston, Savannah, and a hundred small towns in between); went on the most spontaneous trip of my life (Costa Rica with four days notice); oh, and moved to Bermuda.
Of all places, it took Toronto to make me realize it’s kind of all the same. Not in a the-world-is-boring-nothing-is-worth-anything kind of way, but in a way that throws fear out the window, imbues you with the self-confidence of self-reliance and mitigates pre-existing notions of “the other” and the us-versus-them attitude that seems so pervasive in our culture right now.
Travel makes the world feel smaller in the best possible way. No matter where you go, you will meet someone kind and fun and wonderful, you will see something so beautiful it takes your breath away, you will eat something delicious that you will never have again. The experience of a place gets lodged in your heart and you will never be able to be hateful or uncaring toward its inhabitants again.
One second while I step down from my soap box…
To that end, I’m starting a new travel feature here on the blog. As I can’t quite afford to populate the section by myself (anyone want to send me on a free trip somewhere?? Anyone?), and I happen to have quite a few good friends who are very good writers, you’ll even get to read something besides my drivel. Look for Toronto tomorrow!
Last week I had my annual order from long-time client Jen, who stocks up on monogram stationery every year around this time. I’m honored that she likes my work enough to re-order time and time again, and dazzled that she writes so many cards throughout the year!
As you know, it takes quite a bit of time to set up and then clean up the press, so I usually try to print several designs per color. I started some new holiday cards (stay tuned!) and knocked out a few designs from the running list I keep of future ideas. My favorite? An old-timey saying appropriate for myriad occasions paired with my sweet little bee illustration. Like it too? Get it here!
Well readers, it’s official, I’m as close to being Bermudian as I’m ever going to get. Not only did I survive my first hurricane last weekend (and first tropical storm the weekend before that), but my principle means of transportation is now a scooter. I’d had a rental bike until last week, which you don’t need a license for, but they have very small engines (so you can’t do much damage if you crash, I assume), and their license plates are a different color, so other drivers know to watch out for you.
Driving here takes some getting used to. Sure, I studied the book, took my written and riding exams… but in practice the rule of the road is all together different. For example, morning traffic on the main roads—relatively narrow, winding roads by U.S. standards—is technically two—but in practice four—lanes. Cars move slowly in both directions along the outer edges of the road while bikes weave in and out in both directions in the center, moving back into traffic when a bus or large truck is approaching. Meanwhile, at any red light in town, you’ll see scooter drivers pass by the stopped cars and come to a stop at the head of the line, often halfway into the intersection, or at least the cross walk. It is also incredibly common for vehicles to come to an abrupt stop with no warning for no apparent reason—until you realize they’re letting in another vehicle that does not have the right of way.
Good thing the speed limit is only 35 KPH! (Although obviously no one obeys that either.)
622 press | LETTERPRESS GOODS MADE BY HAND 