May 2018 - Toronto ON
John and I headed back to Kensington Market this week for lunch and to visit some other spots we hadn't done last week.
It was quite chilly out so rather than walking from Union Station as we did last week we took the subway to St. Patrick Station and walked west along Dundas West.
Click here for some photos on Dundas West, our lunch and Jimmy's Coffee Shop.
Near Spadina you are approaching one of our Chinatowns.
Click here to discover what else you can see in the area of Spadina.
It doesn't matter how many times we come here, there is always something new to discover in the offbeat and diverse neighbourhood.
There are no chains here, everything is locally owned and operated from the health conscious restaurants to the multitude of ethnic cuisines you can find something for everyone. They have quite a few restaurants that cater to gluten free diets and even have Bunners, a gluten free bakery.
You must venture down the many alleys to discover great street art.
Along Augusta St.
On College St.
Baldwin St.
Side of a fish shop.
Behind a locked gate.
Inside a fish shop.
Kensington Ave.
I showed this in an earlier post but have to include it here too.
Elicser Elliott, a well-known muralist, was working on a piece along with some others in a lane.
There is a lot of odd and unique architecture in the area.
Augusta St.
Baldwin St.
And sometimes odd or historical architecture on College St.
The city has recently voted to preserve some of these buildings.
Right across the street there is a very special church on College St. St.Stephen-in-the-Field that has a Homeless Jesus panhandling outside.
The eight-storey tower, added in 1899, possessed a lookout at the top, where firefighters scanned the surrounding streets in search of fires. The tower was also where the fire hoses were hung to dry. In 1911, the station received the first motorized fire engine in the city of Toronto. It replaced the horse-drawn wagons that had previously been in use. In 1922, another bay was added to the station.
In 1972, while the men were out fighting a fire, an arsonist set fire to the station. When it was rebuilt, a third bay was added. The clock in the tower was severely damaged in the fire, so was replaced with a replica. Originally the station was # 8, but is now # 315.
View from the tower, c.1911, looking southeast. The clock tower of the Old City Hall is visible on the horizon. In the left-hand bottom corner of the photo is the Church of St. Martin in the Fields, on the southeast corner of College and Bellevue. The tower of St. James Cathedral on King Street East is also visible on the distant horizon. Source
You could walk down Kensington Ave. for years and not notice the little sign that says "to Kensington Place," an eclectic little cul de sac of former workers cottages hidden from the bustle of the Market.
There's lots to see here, including a house that's been designed as a tribute to the Azores.
.
Along these same streets you can find more food shops, fish markets, cheese places and even buy herbs and spices or plants for your garden.
Pizza...
It is like a trip around the world's various cultures in an afternoon.
And then back to the subway through Chinatown and by the art galleries near the Art Gallery of Ontario AGO.
Mural by Flips.
Spadina at Dundas. Chinatown sprawls around this area.
Toronto's Chinatown first appeared during the 1890s with the migration of American Chinese from California due to racial conflict and from the Eastern United States due to the economic depression at the time. The earliest record of Toronto's Chinese community is traced to Sam Ching, who owned a hand laundry business on Adelaide Street in 1878.
The Great Wall of China.
In 1972, while the men were out fighting a fire, an arsonist set fire to the station. When it was rebuilt, a third bay was added. The clock in the tower was severely damaged in the fire, so was replaced with a replica. Originally the station was # 8, but is now # 315.
You could walk down Kensington Ave. for years and not notice the little sign that says "to Kensington Place," an eclectic little cul de sac of former workers cottages hidden from the bustle of the Market.
There's lots to see here, including a house that's been designed as a tribute to the Azores.
Along these same streets you can find more food shops, fish markets, cheese places and even buy herbs and spices or plants for your garden.
Pizza...
It is like a trip around the world's various cultures in an afternoon.
And then back to the subway through Chinatown and by the art galleries near the Art Gallery of Ontario AGO.
Mural by Flips.
Spadina at Dundas. Chinatown sprawls around this area.
Toronto's Chinatown first appeared during the 1890s with the migration of American Chinese from California due to racial conflict and from the Eastern United States due to the economic depression at the time. The earliest record of Toronto's Chinese community is traced to Sam Ching, who owned a hand laundry business on Adelaide Street in 1878.
The Great Wall of China.
Marvelously eclectic! The second mural is my favourite.
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