There is no such beauty as where you belong

It's been a busy month since I moved up to Toronto. I've been slowly settling into my new apartment. I've also been doing a lot of reading, reviewing, and studying for grad school.

My new "home" for the next two years.

I wanted to get as much sight-seeing in before the semester started. Since I've been to Toronto many times, I skipped the usual spots, like going up the CN Tower and wandering through Casa Loma. I arrived just in time for Buskerfest and the Toronto Chinatown Festival. Buskerfest is a fair of street performers (carnival acts, musicians, magicians, etc.). My favorite acts were the fire performers, like FlameOz and Liqueur Flambé (violin duo who literally play with fire). I also enjoyed the aerial performances of Suspended Animation Circus, who used a giant helium balloon to hang above the crowd. The Chinatown Festival offered great food and lots of erhu players scattered along the street. That's also where I met John Finley Gilliamson, my new roommate.

John Finley Gilliamson

JFG talking to the snail in his tank

I'm doing my best to take advantage of my current car-lessness. I've been doing a ton of walking around, and treated myself to a new pair of snazzy running shoes. I've also been trying out classes at different gyms, and found a Spinning class that I absolutely love... it just kicks my butt. I'm gonna stick with the Spinning, but I'm glad that the U of T Athletic Center is included in my tuition & fees, because fitness is really expensive here!

Cute and comfortable, I'm content.

I saw this sign walking around downtown. I have a feeling that it wouldn't be called a Philly Cheesesteak if it originated in Toronto. Sorry!

I don't think so...

My colleague and I spent an afternoon exploring the Toronto Islands. The ferry is neat, but a little pricy. The beaches and parks were lovely, and the water was declared fit for swimming, although I doubt I'll have much time for that.

A view of the ferry dock at Ward's Island, with the CN Tower and Toronto skyline in the background.

We also tried poutine, french fries covered with brown gravy and cheese curds. It's really popular in Canada, but I don't think I'll be ordering it anymore.

Poutine. A picture is worth 1,000 words, none of them very pleasant.

This week, I spent a lot of time observing choir auditions. I love hearing the many different voices that make up choirs, and this was a perfect opportunity for that. It helped that I wasn't the one who had to sight-read!

Auditionee's viewpoint, sans adjudicators

I'm a little nervous, but very excited to start classes on Monday. As of now, it seems as though I only have classes THREE DAYS A WEEK! I have a feeling that the other four days will be spend doing a lot of work for those three days of classes.

Cheers!