Archive for the ‘stores’ Category

Namaste, Merry Christmas, and more…

Posted: December 18, 2024 in locations, stores, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Another visit to Little India late one afternoon in December.  In December darkness descends early but with darkness come lights.  Some things are hidden but others are revealed.  Shadows shift and details blur. 

below: “Namaste!  Warning, This Store is protected by Karma.  Steal from here and you’ll soon find out why Karma’s a Bitch.”

sign in store window, with picture of buddha, Namaste, Warning,

below: Christmas lights on poles, and greenery with bows – it must be December in the city!

greenery and white bows in a planter along the sidewalk on gerrard, little india, utility pole beside it is wrapped in Christmas lights

sign painted on side of coffee shop, in large capital letters, you are here. with a decorated christmas tree beside it

seemingly cross eyed santa claus doll in a store window, skinny santa

below: I doubt that it says “Merry Christmas”!  … Nor does it say, “Namaste”.

sticker with arabic writing on it, on a utility pole that is wrapped in christmas lights

below: Love wins, regardless of the season.   A few of the characters on the exterior of a building painted by Al Runt.

two of the many characters painted by Al Runt on the exterior of a building on gerrard east, a sign in the window of the building says love wins

in store, man behind counter, looks out door as photo is being taken of mannequin in the window

portions of saris and other garments in store window, green beaded cloth, bright patterns,

below: A cash register on the counter and shelves crammed full of stuff – mostly household things – mugs, pots & pans, and the like.

looking in the window of a store, cash register on the counter, shelves full of stuff,

below: Looking in gallery windows too

GAS gallery window with large painting on display

north side of Gerrard

below: Baldev Paan – paan, ice cream, soft drinks, and bitcoin.

store in Little India, Baldev Paan, light green painted exterior, many signs in window,

below: Running for the streetcar

streetcar on gerrard,

below: Rana Gems, India Paan, and a restaurant with tacos and mariscos (seafood, en español) as well as a Christmas tree in the window.

2 store fronts on gerrard, India Paan, and both are two storey older buildings, picture taken late afternoon, lights on inside stores

below: Small, smaller, smallest?  or Big, bigger, biggest?  Biggest pencil? Yes!  …..  Karma’s Kitchen is squished in between two larger buildings.

three stores in little india, tall grey building, middle sized blue Neelams store, and short single storey restaurant,

below: More on the south side of Gerrard, Karmas Kitchen again, Sultan Jewellers and, the now empty, Alesha Beauty Salon and Spa.

early evening, three buildings on the north side of Gerrard, Karma Kitchen restaurant,

small metal table on sidewalk outside restaurant, list of food on wall, like lassi, sev puri, panu puri, and gol guppa, evening, street scene

below: Pretty in pink

exterior of restaurant, painted pink

below: Looking through the window

looking through window into restaurant with a large image of a woman in pink on a wall

below: Dancing among the flowers

part of a mural in Little India, two people dancing, woman in purple sari, man in pinkish orange outfit

decorations on a glass door, entrance to a store, lit inside, darker outside, evening

saris hanging up in window of clothing store

mannequins in store window, with sign that says everything must go, also a sign advertising 22k gold

mannequins in a window, evening, yellowish light inside

below: Shiny beaded fringes and reflected lights, playing with windows.

reflections of stores and lights in a window with saris and clothes with shiny beads on fringes, metallic threads,

part of a mural, a woman's portrait on a door, with colourful designs around her, leaves and flowers, stylized

advert posters on exterior wall, faded, both women,

mailbox with white necklace like dangly thing, with fake orange flowers at the end

bicycle parked in front of Lazy Daisy Cafe on Gerrard, bus shelter,

below: Harry’s on the northeast corner of Gerrard and Coxwell

TTC streetcar at Coxwell and Gerrard, in front of Harrys Burgers restaurant

below: Coxwell Variety

coxwell variety store signs, and people on sidewalk

below: Northwest corner of Gerrard and Coxwell

people walking north on coxwell from gerrard

below: Are YOU a Communist?

poster on a pole, Are you a Communist? Now get organized

sidewalk tree planter painted orange

Happy trails!  and a Merry Christmas….  Joyeux Noël …. Feliz Natal … Feliz Navidad to all!

a couple pushes a stroller past of striped bench on a sidewalk, in front of stores

College to Elm

Posted: December 9, 2024 in construction, graffiti and street art, locations, public art, stores, windows and walls
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

…. A short distance but with a lot happening.

An early morning walk with a weak winter sun low in the sky.  Tall buildings that cast shadows, or reflect light.  Patterns of light and shadow.

below: Crossing Yonge from Carlton to College

people crossing intersection of college and yonge, walking westward, towards TTC streetcar that is heading east, in front of College Park, with old red brick building on the north side of college street

below: North on Yonge.  The facade above Shoppers remains.  “….has design value and technological merit as a representative of the 1950s Toronto School of ‘Picturesque Modernism’ in its expressive use of concrete seen in the cantilevered canopy and decorative piercings of the concrete screen for the above-ground parking, in the ‘egg-crate’ elevations designed to reduce solar gain, and in the predominant white aesthetic of glazed white brick and concrete surfaces.” (form City of Toronto report on heritage inclusion)

below: Rising above Yonge and College

tall new condo tower above older red brick building on northwest corner of Yonge and college

below: Looking north, up the canyon that Yonge has become.  The very tall building that is obviously under construction in the distance is at Yonge and Bloor.

looking north on Yonge, from College, towards two very tall condo developments at Yonge and Bloor, shadows because of buildings, blue sky, not much traffic

below:  Empty, boarded up and waiting its turn. Southeast corner of College & Yonge.  I have vague memories of a candy store on this corner although I think that there were a number of businesses that passed through here.

brick building with rounded edge at front, now empty, southeast corner of Yonge and College, construction at street level in front of building

below: The east half of Yonge street in front of College Park is now a construction zone.  An additional entrance on the east side of Yonge along with more elevator service between street and track levels, is being built for College subway station.  Are there any streets in the downtown area that don’t have partial closures for construction?

small construction site on yonge street, taking up space on the street, in front of College Park shops

below: Sunspots, reflected light on the side of College Park

construction equipment

below: More emptiness, more waiting.

metal grille gate covering window of a store or restaurant that is now closed, old doordash sign in the window

below: Granby and McGill are two streets that run parallel to College but don’t actually meet Yonge Street, pedestrians only here

person walking through pedestrian zone between yonge street and sheard street at the end of mcgill

below: Looking back at Yonge Street from the same spot.  When the area was pedestrianized back in the 1980s, the city purchased added the arch.  The arch came from St. Andrews United Church at Bloor and Park Road (not on this site, moved here).  The mural on the wall, right hand side …

old stone arch remains, on yonge street near Sheard and McGill streets

… is The ‘History of Music on Yonge’ mural that covers two large walls on the same building.  This is the south side of that building.   It was painted by Adrian Hayles and features music legends who played in Toronto in the 1950s and 1960s.

History of Music on Yonge mural, south side,

Brown Derby tavern and Steeles tavern part of mural

part of History of Music mural by Adrian Hayles, group of male singers in black shirts, white ties, and black stripe on white suits

On the north side of building, the mural shows Ronnie Hawkins, Glenn Gould, Dianne Brooks, Jackie Shane, Muddy Waters, Shirley Matthews, B.B. King, Gordon Lightfoot, and Oscar Peterson.

history of music on yonge mural by Adrian Hayles, north side, Massey Hall, Gordon Lightfoot, B.B. King, piano player, tall, vertical mural

part of a mural by Adrian Hayles, piano player with multicoloured keyboard

below: Behind Yonge street, between Granby and McGill (Joseph Sheard parkette)

Joseph Sheard park in Toronto, old brick house, with many tall trees, some new condos

new condo towers downtown

below: Looking north up Yonge from Granby

looking north on yonge from granby, just south of college

below: Aura

looking south on yonge by ikea store and fusettes restaurant

below: People on a corner… To the woman in the brown coat – A penny for your thoughts (Does anyone use that expression anymore?)

two women holding bright green coffee cups, talking to each other, man in background crossing the street,

below: The southeast corner of Yonge and Gerrard is still a construction site….

redevelopment of building on southeast corner of yonge and gerrard, old facade being saved

below: …. but now it is on its way up!

redevelopment of building on southeast corner of yonge and gerrard, old facade being saved

below:  On the northeast corner, also Yonge and Gerrard is an older building that is still standing… for now.  An almost obscene 76 storeys with 828 residences.  No car parking; parking for 828 bikes only.   May I recommend the elevator repair business as a career prospect for those who are looking for ideas?  Also, we could have quite the discussion about bikes and bike lanes……

blue and white city of toronto development notice sign

 

man talking on his phone, walks under covered scaffolding, beside hoardings with painted diagonal stripes in yellow and blue

people walking on sidewalk, approaching covered scaffolding at construction site

looking through scaffolding, to west side of yonge, older 1800s buildings with mansour roofs, H and R block, cotti coffee,

yonge street, motorbike parked outside cotti coffee

below: Looking south on Yonge from Elm

street scene, looking south on yonge from elm, towards yonge dundas square, now called sankofa square

upper levels of buildings on west side of yonge, just north of dundas, includingmcdonalds,

below: The Zanzibar Tavern glows in the morning light

view from Elm street, looking north at Yonge, zanzibar strip club glows in the morning sun, condo redevelopment on the northwest corner of yonge and elm

below: Hoardings around the construction site on the northwest corner of Yonge and Elm

artwork titled Homecomings on the hoardings at construction site, northeast corner of elm and yonge,

below: Orange! Even more construction on Yonge, this time the southwest corner of Yonge and Elm

elm street, south side, looking east, at yonge

below: No more pizzas here.

damaged exterior wall on now abandoned pizza pizza restaurant, orange and yellow ties on point, some missing

below: Looking west on Elm

person walking on sidewalk on elm street, walking west from yonge

below:  A quick stop at the Cong Caphe.  That’s an iced coconut coffee!!

bouquet of flowers on a coffee shop table along with a cinnamon bun and an iced coffee drink

 

a walk around Pape station

Posted: November 6, 2024 in construction, old buildings, stores, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,
4

Have a seat!   It’s a rather warm autumn this year, isn’t it?

a pale orange, faded, fabric covered armchair sits by the curb on a sidewalk in front of a house, fallen autumn leaves on the ground

below: A Hallowe’en spider caught in a rather thick web. It doesn’t have much to do with Pape subway station although you might feel inclined to put “scary” and “TTC” together.

big black fake spider on white, on a red shrub, front yard

Anyhow back to the main story…. Pape station is where the existing Bloor-Danforth line is going to meet the new Ontario line.

below: Do you remember when Pape station was being renovated? Now the site is a mess again.

pape subway station entrance on pape avenue, with cranes around it, for construction of Ontario Line

Pape station is a short block north of the Greektown section of Danforth.

orange and black traffic cones, and orange construction mesh fencing, outside pape subway station, for ontario line construction

below: Looking south on Pape towards Danforth

looking south on Pape from beside Pape TTC subway station

below: Across the street from the subway station

buildings on Pape across from the TTC subway station

below: See that bright white building in the picture above?  I bet that it’s not white anymore.

truck with red cab is parked beside a white building that is being painted black, person with a paint roller on a very long pole

below: My idea was to walk around the whole site. …

sidewalk in front of A & W, motorcycle parked there, sidewalk ends with orange fence because of construction, utility pole by sidewalk is wrapped in blue with Greektown Danforth written on it, also a blue and white Greektown banner on pole as well as Canadian flag

below: Looking back at the Danforth and Pape intersection, north side.  The white stone Royal Bank building stands on the northwest corner.  Behind it, the steeple and little green dome of Holy Parish church points upward.

Danforth at Pape, north side of the street, bank building on northwest corner, and A & W on the northeast corner

below: Ontario Line construction along the Danforth, northside.  Metrolinx seems to have a lot of property here.

ontario line construction on the danforth near pape

below: Any idea what this is?  What is happening here?

large yellow crane holds up an very large item, ontario line construction

below: I wasn’t the only one taking pictures!

a man on a bicycle has stopped to take a picture of the construction at pape station, on the danforth

below: Eaton Avenue runs parallel to Pape, just to the east.

Eaton Ave at Danforth, looking west, Ontario Line subway construction site

below: Northeast corner of Danforth and Eaton

northeast corner of danforth and eaton avenue, 3 storey brick building, Papa Johns pizza on ground floor, Mr. Pide restaurant (now closed), Black Pot lounge, an empty storefront and an Asian (Korean?) restaurant.

below: Eaton Ave entrance to Pape station lined with plywood hoardings.  This station isn’t that old – the update was completed in 2013.  I think that it is being retained but it is hard to tell from the Metrolinx website.  A brand new entrance is planned for the Danforth as well (and may be very large and very grand, not quite to scale with the present neighbourhood?).

Eaton Ave entrance to Pape subway station, lined by construction hoardings, plywood, Ontario Line subway construction site

below: Houses on Eaton Ave with Metrolinx construction behind them.

single family houses on Eaton Ave with construction cranes behind them, Ontario Line,

2 large orange storage tanks, wires, crane, ontario line construction site

2 large orange storage tanks, wires, crane, ontario line construction site , orange flags on overhead wires

This area has been serviced by the Bloor Danforth line since 1966.  In general, most of the residences are single family houses, often as some form of row housing.  Smaller houses with small yards seems the norm… i.e. a fairly typical East York neighbourhood.

three single family houses on eaton avenue

Muriel Avenue and Selkirk Street, residential neighbourhood near Pape subway station, single family homes and row houses

Exploring on Pape…..

below: Working on Pape, fixing a porch (or just watching)

reconstruction of a front porch

below: Addis Kidan Church, Greek Gospel Church..

Addis Kidan church on Pape Ave., red brick building with small white cross on roof

below: Tzatziki cafe with the painting above the entrance – interior restaurant scene

Tzatziki restaurant cafe on Pape, with painting above entrance

small commercial building on Pape with a TTC bus shelter in front of it

below: Mixed use – once a line of single family homes, now some are businesses.

a line of two storey family houses on Pape Ave., one is now an upholstery business

two storey duplex

Seranos bakery and food store, sign and parking lot,

below: There is also another construction site at Sammon

machinery in a construction site

wires covered with orange plastic, on a pole above a construction site

below: Looking north on Pape Ave from MacPhail.   There is another station under construction at Cosburn, a few more blocks north but that’s for another day. (Updated 22 June 2025 – there is now an Ontario Line – North Pape blog post)

looking northward on Pape

white arrow pointing right and orange pedestrian sign pointing left

I’ll end instead the way I began – with a little bit of Halloween to distract you from the constant noise of construction.

frontyard halloween decorations, zombie on swing with grey teddy bear on her lap

halloween decorations, outdoors, looks like yellow skull and arm bones are rising out of the lawn

an evening out

Posted: August 18, 2024 in alleys, doors, graffiti and street art, people, stores, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

This used to be Yonge Dundas Square (photo below) – soon it will be Sankofa Square. Or at least I think that’s what’s happening as there was some controversy over the name change. Although the name Yonge Dundas is very dull and unimaginative, that is what we’ve become accustomed to calling it. Some of us still claim that the Leafs play at the ACC or that the Blue Jays call the SkyDome home – yeah, we can be rather slow!

Whatever its name, that intersection is usually a colourful place on a summer evening.

musician, yonge dundas square, people watching red umbrellas

So that is where I started walking late in the afternoon the other day.  The walk was rather meandering, and did include a quick hop on a streetcar or two.  The weather was perfect and the streets were alive.  It was nice to see so many people out enjoying the evening.  Many (all?) of the curbside patios were busy too.

two men and a women talking and walking together

a man waits by bus shelter on dundas outside of H and M store

women walking, summer evening, two are talking, one is carrying a drink

below: Spiderman sits on a chair waiting for someone to hang out with.

spiderman sits in a chair

man sitting on bench inside bus shelter, people getting on and off streetcar, reflections,

reflections in a window, two levels of interior, with drug store and pharmacy on the lower level

a man sitting on sidewalk in blue t shirt, pan handling, two people on bike waiting for green light to cross Bay street

young man, topless, on skateboard, on street

a topless young man wearing a hat and jeans, and carrying a bag over his shoulder, in middle street, police car passes by, people on sidewalk turn to look because police car has short blast of the siren

below: Garfield is not amused (but he is shiny… or is that why he’s grumpy?)

clothing for sale, on sidewalk, at dundas and spadina, flatbed towtruck on street

two motorcycles parked, a pigeon on the sidewalk, and a couple at a table outside seven lives restaurant in kensington

a young couple on a pink motor scooter

below: On a balcony in Kensington, a war protest or at least a pro-Ukraine and anti-Russian statement.   Lots of sunflowers fill the space and Putin (presumably) is hung in effigy.

on a balcony in Kensington, many sunflowers, both real and fake, plants in blue and yellow pots, an effigy of putin, and a sign that says putin murdered over 200,000 men women and children

below: August is tomato season in Ontario!

boxes and baskets of tomatoes for sale outside of fruit and vegetable market

below:Buddha prays (meditates?)

fabric hanging outside a store, one with buddha, praying

below: A rare species spotted in Kensington – a rainbow tree

patio in front of a restaurant with a blue translucent fence, and a tree with trunk wrapped in stripes of yarn knitted

below: Shadow play on a Kensington graffiti wall.

man on sidewalk in front of graffiti in Kensington

below: Laundry time

man with red bag outside a coin laundry in kensington

below: This young man still watches over College Street (mural by Jarus).

mural on upper storeys, an image of a young man seated on ground, by jarus, above fast food restaurant of gyros, shwarma, poutine, souvlaki, felafal, and fries, and more, with new condo in background, people on sidewalk

below: Lord of the Fries!

sign on sidewalk for hogtown, lord of the fries

people walking on College Street

below: A creative use of a few chairs.

three turquoise plastic chairs in front of a store, written in red paint on chairs is the word open and a red heart

reflections in the window of an uncle tetsu cheesecake store

below: Mural by roam_t.o

mural by roam t o

below: Where danger lurks around the corner, unseen and unexpected!  (mural by Tensoe2 and Nick Sweetman)

mural on the side of a dominos pizza, animal with open mouth and big teeth, looks like it is after the people walking by on the sidewalk

below: Nazare Snack Bar

two stores on Dundas West, Nazare Snack Bar, and a convenience store, evening, people on the sidewalk talking

below: Taking a rest from riding on the broom?! Hallowe’en shopping done early!

mother and daughter sitting on streetcar, mother with shopping bag from halloween store and daughter holding a black witch's broom

below: A sign that claims that Ossington is the coolest neighbourhood. Any opinions?

sign on sidewalk on dundas, at ossington, claiming ossington to be the coolest neighbourhood, streetcar and street life in the background

below: Don’t text me!

don't text me

below: “Freedom is a state of mind” (not just another brick?)

graffiti, in white, on red brick, says freedom is a state of mind

below: Graffiti, text on a poster, by Kleeshay, “All the fun things we did when we were kids never stopped being fun we just stopped doing them”

text, black on white, by kleeshay on a wall at spadina and dundas

below: “We are taught to put emphasis on our differences because it would be too dangerous if we ever realized how much we have in common “

graffiti on a garbage bin, text, black on white, by kleeshay

below: A third Kleeshay poster – “You might forget who you are if you’re surrounded by people who act like you aren’t who you are. “

poster on an exterior wall, lots of text that says

below: Turtle Island, bald eagle

bicycle parked beside a metal utility pole, graffiti on pole, bald eagle with turtle island symbol inside it

 

below: Locked up; behind bars

black and white small graffiti of a mans face, behind metal bars of a gate

below: “Respect the Space”, an urban collage on a door in Keningston. “Baby’s first pistol” – yikes!
on a white door in Kensington, mailboxes and graffiti, text saying respect this space, stickers,

below: Another collage, sort of – I find it hard to believe that someone actually taped a coffee cup to a pole… but seeing is believing?
bits of old posters on a utility pole, an A and W coffee cup taped to the pole as well

below: Nothing fancy here, but I was fascinated by the old concrete posts that are keeping this fence up. She walked in front of me as I slowed down for a closer look…..

woman walking on sidewalk, walking past a fence made of concrete posts and metal bar, metal gate

below: This final picture is for the person who mentioned that they once thought of collecting images of all the shopping carts they saw abandoned around the city. Ever since reading that comment, I see shopping carts everywhere!!

a house with small frontyard, an old metal shopping cart in the yard

below: What do you see when you walk around Toronto?

a short walk up Church Street

Posted: July 18, 2024 in construction, graffiti and street art, locations, old buildings, stores
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

Northbound, starting at King…  where this large mural still shines.  Piliriqatigiingniq was painted in 2015 (see link for more info)

part of a mural on a large white wall, a pink animal with blur antlers, also two windows in the wall

below: A yellow parking lot attendant booth, a throwback to an older, less digital age.  Back before machines and parking apps on your phone changed our lives.

old yellow parking lot attendant booth in a parking lot on church street

below: Looking west on Court Street through to Toronto and Victoria Streets (and beyond).  A wide range of sizes and styles all mixed up together.

looking west on Court street from church street, highrises

looking west on Court street from church street, highrises

below: The omnipresent condo construction and ubiquitous summer roadworks can be found here too!

a woman carries two bags full of shopping as she walks on a sidewalk beside a blue construction fence in downtown toronto

below: Lots of glass on the northeast corner of  Church & Lombard –  This section of Lombard is also Gilda Radner Way.

new construction on the northeast corner of church and lombard, also called gilda radner way

below: The view on Lombard, looking east from Church. Lots of midrise buildings.

lombard street ooking east from church, new construction on the northeast corner, row of midrise apartments on the south side

below: Crossing Lombard.  Looking north up Church Street

people crossing street

below: Church & Richmond, northeast corner.

church and richmond, northeast corner, ttc streetcar headed north, wild wings,

below: Church & Richmond again but from a different angle, south side of Richmond with McVeighs Tavern on the southwest corner.

church and richmond, southeast, people on southwest corner, streetcar headed north,

below: Flags flying over the entrance to McVeighs (“since 1962”) – a little bit of Nova Scotia and Newfoundland & Labrador.

below: West on Richmond.

looking east on richmond street from church street

a lane off church street

below: A stretch of Church Street was known for its pawn shops and many still remain.  Here we have Simon’s Pawnbrokers as well as two “exchanges”, Five Star Exchange and Toronto Exchange.

pawn shops on church street

big red pawnbroker sign on a building

below: Balconies old and new.

below: Can you tell where this picture was taken?  A little bit of Toronto love on a mailbox on the corner of Church and ???

graffiti sticker on a Canada Post mailbox, I green heart Tdot

below: Peeking over the mail box above is the yellow of the old Shwarma King on the northeast corner of Queen and Church.  It is now being demolished.

northeast corner of Queen and Church, yellow tower on yellow building now being demolished

scaffolding and hoardings in front of a few buildings on church street, awaiting demolition and redevelopment

below: The side of Metropolitan United Church.

below: The north end of Metropolitan United with St. Michaels Hospital behind it (just south of Shuter).

below: More of the mural as well as St. Michaels Cathedral on the other side of Shuter Street.  The mural is “Paint Your Faith” by Elicser, Chor Boogie, Mediah and Siloette

Church and Shuter, St. Michaels cathedral with St Mikes hospital in the background

below: St. Michaels RC Church in the foreground, looking north along Church St.

below: Many more facades that have been preserved during redevelopment.

older brick buildings whose facades were saved when redeveloped and condos built on top

below:  205 Church Street with its green awning; Its neighbour may be feeling the squeeze, just south of Dundas.

house between two larger buildings

below: Looking east on Dundas

looking south on church street

below: Northeast corner of Church and Dundas.

below: Westward along Dundas towards the Bond Place Hotel and its tall blue mural celebrating health care workers and their dedication during the COVID pandemic  (and since?)

looking west on Dundas from church street as a white bus passes by, Bond Place hotel, with a large vertical mural dedicated to health care workers.

below: mmm

Proudly Parkdale

Posted: July 11, 2024 in abstract, construction, graffiti and street art, locations, old buildings, stores, windows and walls
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
2

… a little bit of Queen Street West

sticker on the window of a restaurant that says proudly parkdale

no parking sign, and parkdale village street sign for Queen st w, on a pole

parkdale architecture, old bay windows, oval glass,

below: These late-19th and early 20th century commercial buildings along Queen Street West with their display windows are part of the Parkdale Village Heritage District.  The 2022 draft plan for this district describes this row as  Edwardian Classicism style.  The plan is more than 160 pages long but in case you are interested in the history (and politics?) of it, here’s the link: Parkdale HDC plan (a pdf )

row of brick apartments and store fronts at ground level.

below: South side of Queen West, looking west from Jameson

queen street west, south side of street, west of jameson, row of three storey brick buildings, stores,

below:  A broom for $8.99.  $7.99 will buy you a pair of crocs or six tall glasses.  Chili sauce, lights shaped like lotus flowers or Buddha, wicker baskets, espresso makers, mixing bowls, and frying pans also available!

looking in a store window with many items on shelves, boxes of things, shoes, crocs, a broom,

below: Lightning alert! It’s a potato, no, it’s a cloud!  Or maybe a lightning bug!  Small metal street art by Rocky Zenyk

small metal street art by rocky zenyk screwed onto a wood utility pole, blue background, orange cloud and 5 streaks of lightning emanating from the cloud

sign in a restaurant window that says we're all in this together

people walking past an empty store front in parkdale

on a corner, TTC streetcar approaches a stop, with TD bank in background and people waiting for the streetcar

orange lilies growing in a planter on the sidewalk on queen west, street car in the background

a young woman and her phone, waiting in a bus shelter in parkdale

below: Where the aliens hang out on a hot July day!

exterior of small building painted made to look like an ice cream store with big window and awning, aliens are buying and eating ice cream, also an alien dog on a leash

below: Scaffolding in front of the church – Epiphany and St. Mark Anglican church.   The octagonal belfry is being repaired and restored with the help of a 2024 Toronto Heritage Grant.  It is considered to be Gothic Revival style.  The cornerstone laid October 1880 and the first service in the church was held in January 1881.  The gateway was added much later.

Church of the epiphany, St. Marks, with scaffolding over the entrance

below: Hope over the entrance to the community garden at Masaryk Park

community garden in a park, with sign made of wood that says hope, over the entrance

below: Arty metal panels line the south wall of Masaryk-Cowan community center.  Bonar-Parkdale Presbyterian Church is in the background.

metal 2 d sculptural shapes on brick wall, exterior, presbyterian church in the background, highrise on the left

below: Notice for redevelopment of Parkdale Library and Masaryk-Cowan community centre site.

blue and white city of toronto development notice for queen west and cowan, redevelopment of parkdale library and masaryk cowan community centre

part of mural celebrating 136 years of sunnyside beach

below: Queen Fresh Market

Queen Fresh Market on Queen West, with fruits and veggies and plants for sale, displayed on sidewalk

below: A unique building topper – North side of Queen, at Dunn.

Queen West, old buildings in Parkdale

below: $25,000 winning ticket sold here! Hopes and aspirations… and Canada Dry.

window of a convenience store in parkdale, atm machine, coke and sprite ads,

below: More details on brick buildings on Queen West.

three storey red brick buildings in parkdale, on queen street west

below: Standing alone

3 storey red brick building in parkdale, standing on its own, now Daol Korean restaurant on the ground floor

people standing on sidewalk waiting for a green light, older brick apartment building behind them

below: Tiny Cafe

tiny cafe, a small yellow building with a red and white sign, large window in front, beside an alley in parkdale

upper part of a house with a large canadian flag as well as some paintings on display

balcony on a high rise apartment building that has a large Canadian flag

below: Murals and street art in an alley.  Butterflies and monochrome daisies

street art mural in a parkdale alley

below: Emily May Rose mural in an alley – women, we come in many shapes and sizes.

street art mural in a parkdale alley

below: Hello Kirsten on the far left

street art mural in a parkdale alley, hello kirsten

below: A mural painted by Chief Ladybird.  Mother and child finding peace in the city.

street art mural in a parkdale alley, seated woman holding baby, by chief ladybird

street art mural in a parkdale alley

mural on a garage door in an alley, curvy line drawings of women faces and heads

street art mural in a parkdale alley

below: Face in the alley

below: And more faces, Picasso like faces and body parts.

mural on brick wall in laneway, parkdale, round characters, faces mostly, in many colours

below: Muisca

street art mural in a parkdale alley

below: Elicser – so many faces merging into one.

street art mural in a parkdale alley, multiple faces in one, by elicser lliott

below: Monica on the moon – “Over the mountains; Under the stars”

street art mural in a parkdale alley, person on a motorcycle with text over the mountains and under the stars

street art mural in a parkdale alley

graffiti on a door in an alley, shape of a large blue bird in profile

below: A few reminders of Parkdale’s grander past on the quieter side streets – lots of old trees and some houses that remain as they once were.

pale yellow brick parkdale house with picket fence, gravel driveway, large front yard, and old garages in the back

maroon brick house with white gingerbread trim, attached to another brick house, orange colour, and beside a larger white brick house

beige brick house with red front door, between two other houses that re obscured by trees and large shrubs

two storey house behind a metal gate

brick house with curved porch with white trim and white railing

brown metal gate in front of a walkway to the front of a house

below: A little bit of religion and a little bit of social justice at the end.

build social housing poster

man in white clothes, standing on sidewalk, by dollarama store

Uptown Yonge as the sun goes down

Posted: June 27, 2024 in construction, locations, old buildings, people, stores
Tags: , , , , , ,
2

Were you an Edmonton Oilers fan?  Did you jump on that bandwagon?  On the night of the 7th game of the Stanley Cup playoffs were you glued to the TV?  Or are you wondering what I’m talking about?!

I usually watch hockey games now and again, especially during the playoffs but I found that watching the Edmonton-Florida series was just too stressful.  Instead, these long June evenings are great for walking!  A little bit of Yonge Street, Uptown Yonge, was my stomping grounds the evening of the last game.

banner for uptown yonge on a hydro pole, stores and new condo in the background, says eat up. street sign for st. Clements avenue as well

A few scenes from Yonge between Eglinton and Sherwood, in no particular order…

evening, coffee shop on Yonge street, also poke bar,

below: Old and new. I like the way the evening light catches the architectural details along the rooflines.

roofline, old brick buildings with architectural details in front of a newer high rise residential building

below: Playing peek-a-boo.  The new pushes from behind.

stores on Yonge street, prism hair salon, vape studio, goa hair salon,


below: Seating!

late evening, getting dark outside, looking at store front, cobbler's corner shoe repair,

ceiling art, white and green cubes with lights inside

round exterior wall of part of rio can yonge eglinton centre, short glass tower,

metal grille gate covers glass doors of now empty and closed store on yonge street

below: Northwest corner of Yonge and Eglinton, Yonge- Eglinton Centre with its updated glass facade.

yonge eglinton centre entrance

When the Yonge Eglinton Centre was built in 1968, Eglinton was the last station on the TTC subway line.  The Y-E Centre was a large development, and was the tallest building in the neighbourhood.   There was a shopping centre, a cinema, an office tower, two tall residential towers, most of which still remain.   Eglinton is no longer a gateway to suburbia; it is Midtown.  The Y-E Centre is just another tall building in a sea of them.

side of concrete building from the 1970s, Yonge Eglinton centre

tall concrete building

below: The new entrance to the Eglinton LRT (unopened of course)  with the Canadian Tire headquarters behind.  Southwest corner of Yonge and Eglinton.

southwest corner of Yonge and Eglinton, new entrance to Eglinton LRT (unopened), Canadian Tire head quarters building, 1970s concrete, new condo behind

Lament for the Eglinton LRT.  Metal fences and torn cloth.  In tatters and disarray.   Still not opened.

front glass of eglinton LRT station, behind metal construction fence and torn green cloth

stores on yonge street

sidewalk tunnel under scaffolding to protect from adjacent construction site

restaurant window, night time, sidewalk

Maybe one day I will be able to walk somewhere in this city and not run into another hole in the ground.  Note the usual – facades being saved, single houses that stubbornly remain.

construction hole in the ground

gravel roadway down into construction hole in the ground

Bus stop all tied up in knots.

TTC bus stop on yonge street behind orange and black cones and yellow caution tape

mural on the side of bmo bank on yonge, flowers, male face, female face, child face, dog, and lot lots of flowers

white car parked in front of a mural with flowers with many petals, and a woman's face

artwork on glass above subway entrance at canada square, corner of yonge and eglinton, a woman is carrying a potted plant, a man in green shirt with tattooed arm is looking at her

three plants in flower pots on a shelf in a room with a blue light, on the left is an orchid,

below: With some paparazzi stalker vibes I’m afraid.

… Back home in time for most of the third period…. Sad to see Edmonton lose, but why is there hockey this late in June?

Danforth – Woodbine – Gerrard

Posted: April 7, 2024 in alleys, doors, graffiti and street art, history, locations, reflections, stores, transportation
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

or thereabouts…

below: Starting point, Woodbine and Danforth

below: Small Mediah painting in the doorway, Danforth

small street art mural by mediah in the entrance to a store, people on the sidewalk, Danforth

below: Another Mediah mural, on the railway underpass on Woodbine just south of Danforth

mural by mediah, geometric shapes and colours, on an underpass

below: And again, in an alley south of Gerrard.

below: East End Love

tall narrow mural beside sidewalk on the Danforth, East End Love

below: “Humming on Woodbine”  – A hummingird and a young woman with daffodils in yellow and purple, a mural by Blazeworks at Woodbine and Danforth.

mural painted by Blazeworks in 2023, called humming on woodbine

below: Closer-up version  –  an old streetcar (when did they stop running on Danforth?  The TTC operated streetcars on Danforth from 1923 until the subway opened in the 1960s.)

below: Two storey brick stores with square facades in front.  Rows like this can be found all over the city although in many places they are being replaced. This row has probably been here for a hundred years; this section of Danforth was developed between 1910 and 1930.  The streetcar provided a commuter route and facilitated growth to the east.  The opening of the Prince Edward Viaduct (Bloor Viaduct) over the Don River in 1918 made access to downtown and the rest of the city even easier.

row of two story brick stores on danforth

below: Some stores have added features such as this little peaked facade at the front and the fancy brick work around the windows.

two storey brick store front on danforth, with small peak in roof on on side

below: Window reflections

reflections in a window of a store on Danforth, cars and stores across the street can be seen.

below: Tims stands alone

two story building with a Tim Hortons, pale pink building, no buildings on either side of it, a woman in a pink coat walks past

below: Ghost sign on Danforth, Burnett Brothers Butchers, The House of Quality.  That would be Alfred and Horace Burnett.

ghost sign for Burnett Brothers Butchers of high quality, on old brick building on the Danforth

below: Remnants of streetcar tracks can also be found on Strathmore Blvd (behind Woodbine station) that abruptly end at Cedarvale

old streetcar tracks in a street, Strathmore Blvd., that come to an end.

below:  Drink Coca-Cola – an iconic red disc. As for the rest of the sign, the font and the style of sign is still seen in many places in Toronto.

old store, now a gallery, with red round drink coca cola sign, also old sign saying confectionery

below: Soaking up the sun in front of Atop Appliances

two people in a bus shelter, one standing, one sitting, in front of store called Atop Appliances which is an old grey building with a black shingle roof

below: Spring blossoms, pretty even if they aren’t real!

mural on the side of Value village, spring scene with blossom tree and green grass, bike share bikes in a row in front of the mural

below: A line of stars

painted along the side of a red brick building, beside driveway, two stripes, a narrow white stripe on top and a wider blue stripe below. On the blue, are eight pale orange stars

below: And stars on fences in an alley

2 large stars as decorations, on old fence in an alley, crooked fence, car parked in alley, dead leaves on the ground, mossy roof on garage next door

below: Aren’t doors fascinating?  Final Notice and 2nd Final Notice.  If a door is a title to the story that lies within, what is the story that would unfold here?

old black door, with yellow spray paint, three times, that says final notice, mailbox beside the door, number 2138, crooked concrete step

below: Many little pots in a sun-filled window, looks like an attempt to jump start spring planting.

row of old store fronts on gerrard, some now home, one has large window with greenish curtains, also a lot of little pots in the sunlight, perhaps growing seeds for spring planting

below: My favorite kind of Canada Geese.  They are quiet and don’t leave little messes behind.

front yard with decorations - in the shape of canada geese with red scarves around their necks

below: Lakeside campfire at sunset on a garage door

painting on a garage door, campfire on a granite outcropping beside a lake with pine trees around it, at sunset, sky in reds, oranges, and purples

below:  Poser bunnies in a mural on Gerrard

poser bunny mural on the side of a two storey structure on gerrard street

below:  I saw a lot of these posters that day – How to fold a fitted sheet.  Once upon a time such posters had a phone number written on little flaps that you could tear off.  Now we have the dreaded QR code.  Apparently there is now something called “quishing” which is QR code phishing (I am not calling this poster fake, I am just ranting about QR codes in general – like how annoying they are on menus because now everyone has to get their phones out).

poster on wood utility pole with the title How to fold a fitted sheet

below: Secret Park  …. sshhhhh  I can’t tell you where it is.

below: Empowerment by the wading pool (this is not the Secret Park!)

below: Toronto Chinese Mennonite Church (formerly Rogers Presbyterian Church), Woodbine

front of brick building, toronto chinese mennonite church

below: Crossing the street, towards Grant African Methodist Episcopal Church, Gerrard St.

woman crossing stret with a dog on a leash dog has a purple coat on, in front of old brick church, grant african

below: Plaque of Dedication for Grant Church

Plaque outside Grant Church

Plaque of Dedication commemorating the relocation of Grant African Methodist Episcopal Church from 23 Soho Street to 2029 Gerrard Street, November 17th, 1991. 
  Grant Church Journey
In 1833 in Toronto, worship began in each other’s homes.  The meetings were held on a site on Chestnut Street.  Later, a church was built on Richmond Street.  In 1856 we moved to a hall at Queen and McCaul Streets.  In 1912 we celebrated the grand opening at University and Elm Streets, and moved to 23 Soho Street in 1929.

grant african methodist episcopal church, brick building, on gerrard,

below: St. Francis National Evangelical Spiritual Baptist Faith, Archdiocese of Canada.

below: Semis on a slope

semi divided houses in a row on gerrard, two stories, with front porches,

below: A newer three storey residential building. I wonder how many units it has? Three at least?

new three story residence beside an older house

below: Layers

car parked in a driveway beside an older house, with a taller glass and brick condo building behind

semi houses, large trees between sidewalk and street

below: Pink house with a lot of stairs to the front door, Woodbine

below: Housing on the hill

below: A bus shelter, unfortunately it seems to be acting as housing as well.

below: May Peace Prevail on Earth in two languages (and more on the back)

4 sided pole about 8 feet high, with words written on it, may peace, also written in another language (different alphabet too)

southern Spadina, from Dundas to Ireland.

Posted: March 9, 2024 in alleys, intersections, locations, stores, transportation, waterfront, windows and walls
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
1

Spadina has many faces –  It starts at Eglinton as Spadina Road where it runs south through Forest Hill.  It’s journey southward then continues through a number of different parts of the city including a spot where there is a block missing at Casa Loma.  Pedestrians can use the Baldwin Stairs but traffic has to detour around the castle.   At Bloor it changes to Spadina Avenue and widens to allow streetcar access down the middle of the road.   Here, it is also the western edge of the University of Toronto.

Just north of College Street,  Spadina becomes Spadina Crescent as it forms a circle around what is now the Daniels Faculty of Architecture building.   South of College Street to Dundas  the neighbourhood is somewhat eclectic with a mix of Kensington Market and Chinatown.

three people waiting for a green light before crossing spadina, a woman in a long yellow and grey plaid coat and a couple talking to each other

on a pole at an intresection, a yellow button for crossing signal plus lots of papers, posters and graffiti, a cyclist goes north on spadina in the background

people buying fruit and vegetables from a market, on the sidewalk,

chinese food store on spadina, with some items on display on the sidewalk

2 asian women on sidewalk, talking together, one has a clear plastic bag with 2 cauliflowers in it.

below: Celtuce and asparagus for sale.  Celtuce was new to me – I’ve never seen it before.  It is also called also called stem lettuce, celery lettuce, asparagus lettuce, or Chinese lettuce.  Unlike other lettuces, it is the stem that is eaten (although the leaves are also edible).

box of celtuce for sale at a fruit and vegetable market in chinatown, also a box of asparagus tied in bundles,

below: Collaborative mural under the window, the work of June Kim and Curtia Wright. East meets West, painted back in October.

mural with tigers and women face, under window on chinatown store

part of mural with tigers and women face, under window on chinatown store

a woman walks along spadina, pulling a shopping bag on rollers, walking past a store with displays on the sidewalk

head mannequin of a young boy, wearing a fur hat, in the window of a store

window display of asian chinese store in chinatown on spadina, metal grille in window as well, tea cups, silver piggybank, porcelain figurines,

below: Holy Chinatown window Batman!

window display, chinese and asian new year items, lots of red, plus one batman toy in blue

below: A Canada Post mailbox decorated originally with an image of the Year of the Rat (from Lunar New Year calendar) stamp issued in 2020.

side of a canada post mailbox with chinese characeters, one male and one female, on the side, also stickers and graffiti slaps on it

below: Waiting for the streetcar

a young man is waiting for ttc streetcar on spadina, standing in front of an advertisement featuring the large face of a woman

a large yellow school bus turns right onto spadina from queen street, two men are standing by the street car tracks

below: Looking eastward along Queen Street West with a web of streetcar wires overhead and many tracks underfoot.   The new Ontario Line subway will cross here with a new Queen-Spadina station being planned.   Between Sherbourne (Moss Park) and Spadina the Ontario Line will be under Queen Street.  West of here the tracks will swing south to a station at King and Bathurst.

looking east along queen street from spadina, people crossing the street, ttc wires above and tracks at street level

below: Another eastward looking view, this time from a bit farther south at Adelaide, a street that has become canyon-like as it makes it way through the older brick buildings in foreground and then the taller glass buildings as it gets closer to Yonge Street and the downtown core.

people crossing Adelaide Street at Spadina, looking eastward along Adelaide with Yonge street in the distance, large tall buildings on both sides of adelaide

below: And a little bit more south again… the CN Tower rises into the fog as it peeks out between two glass condo buildings at King and Spadina.  South of King is the new development “The Well” that opened recently.  I have blogged about it previously (Well, Well, Well, 27 Nov 2023)

CN tower peaks through between two highrise glass condo buildings, above where two people are repainting a billboard

Spadina is also a major access point to Lakeshore Blvd and the Gardiner Expressway.  This section of the road is rather barren if you are on foot (unless you are a concrete aficionado LOL)

below: Another eastward view – Both Lakeshore Blvd westbound (but not eastbound!) and the Gardiner Expressway are elevated and they run parallel as they cross over Spadina.

ramp to the gardiner expressway, plus upper levels of the gardiner, looking east from spadina

below: Standing on the northwest corner of Spadina and Queens Quay.  This is where Spadina ends – at the waterfront with some of the docks and parks that have been redeveloped in recent years.

a couple stands on the northwest corner of spadina and queens quay

below: Looking north up Spadina from Queens Quay.

view from queens quay looking north up spadina, with gardiner crossing over, lots of ttc streetcar wires overhead

below: Look!  Continue walking towards the waterfront but be careful crossing the bike lanes of the Martin Goodman Trail!

on the street, paved with bricks, the word look has been painted in blue on white background,

below: Spadina Wave Deck

Spadina Wave Deck on Queens Quay, where the sidewalk arches up over the water, glass condos rise up in the background

below: The Omni Coastal, a tug boat, is docked at Spadina Quay.

a boat tied up at a dock, with city street scene behind

thick grey rope wrapped around a metal post

below: Pulling back a little farther… the CN Tower is still hiding in the fog.

toronto waterfront at spadina quay, omni coastal tug boat is docked, condos on the waterfront, CN tower obscured by fog, grey cloudy day

below: Ahoy matey!

caution sign on a wood tree planter that someone has written the word pirates on, so sign now says caution, pirates!
below:   It’s a much quieter scene in the winter when fewer boats are here.  In the background, the Canada Malting Company silos still stand strong.

view of Toronto waterfront, looking west from Spadina Quay, towards large Canada Malting Co silos, boats in the foreground, but not many because it's winter, some wrapped in white, foggy grey day

lamp post, black with downward curved top, in music garden, with condos behind,

below: Looking for the signs of spring and finding the beginnings of tulips and daffodils in the Music Garden

small daffodils and tulips starting to grow in a garden in front of a large willow tree

small wood bird house with a blue roof hanging from the branch of a tree

below:  Some useful information: “Bathrooms, Where can they be found?”  Number one on the list is Billy Bishop Airport and I can attest to the fact that yes, they have bathrooms (check in the ferry terminal building).

sign on sidewalk on waterfront re information on where to find a bathroom in the area

below: Another red tugboat in the fog – this one is the Radium Yellowknife.

red fire boat docked at Toronto waterfront, on a foggy day

below: The silos have been under wraps as they have been renovated.

scaffolding and blue tarps around the curved ends of the canada malting co silos

below: Built on reclaimed land in the early 1900s, the silos have been empty since 1987 and  had fallen into disrepair.   Although they are now missing a couple of letters, the silos are in much better shape.  I am not sure if there is any use planned for the structures but the site is being turned into a park, Bathurst Quay Common.

below: If you walk past the silos, you come to Ireland Park with its memorial to those who fled the Irish famine in the 1840s.   The park also has seven sculptures cast in bronze by Rowan Gillespie of Dublin Ireland. The installation is called ‘Arrival’.  These figures match an earlier installation on the Customs House Quay in Dublin, ‘Famine’ (1997).  A third installation in Tasmania Australia completes the trilogy.

In Ireland Park statue of man, very thin, ragged clothes, upraised arms, representing Irish immigrants to Toronto during Irish famine in 1847

head and shoulders of a cast bronze statue of an Irish immigrant at Ireland Park on Toronto waterfront, part of a memorial to Irish immigrants to Canada during the famine years in the 1840s

below: Along the exterior walls of the silos, a few signs have been posted that tell the story of Irish immigration to Canada.  This is one of those signs.

sign half in English and half in French that tells the story of the ship called The City of Toronto that brought irish immigrants to Canada in 1847.

Arrival of the City of Toronto – When the steamer City of Toronto dropped anchor at Rees’s Wharf on Sunday, 6 June 1847, City officials had no way of knowing the boat was a harbinger of the chaotic and overwhelming migration season to come.  The City carried 700 people.  More than half of the adults on board were “indigent” migrants from Ireland, all traveling at the expense of the government. 
Given reports of ongoing distress and hunger in Ireland, the volume of immigrants was expected to be high that year, but Toronto was still unprepared for the tidal wave of Irish Famine immigrants now cresting its shores.  Toronto, with its population of 20,000 would eventually receive 38,000 immigrants in 1847. 
Steamships arrived filled to capacity with passengers exhausted and sick from their weeks-long journey.  Many of those who had been deemed healthy by doctors at Grosse Ile were beginning to show signs of typhus.  
The logistics of receiving, triaging, housing, treating and transporting (or burying) this wave of newcomers fell to a group of municipal and provincial officials, who had to make do with rudimentary medical and settlement infrastructure and resources.

black and white photograph of a woman sitting at the back of a streetcar, looking through the window

 

from Harbord to Dundas via Kensington

Posted: January 18, 2024 in alleys, doors, graffiti and street art, locations, reflections, stores
Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
0

…. or thereabouts.

It started with a stop that was earlier than planned.    I was on my way to meet a friend in Kensington but that morning my walk started closer to Harbord because the 510 car wasn’t going anywhere.  An incident on a streetcar involving the police means the whole route gets backed up.

streetcars stopped on Spadina, police car with lights flashing stopped beside the one in front

below: This building on the west side of Spadina (372/374 Spadina) has languished for a few years.  It falls within the Harbord Village HCD (Historic Community District) and there may have been a change of ownership.

large old houses on Spadina near harbord

below:   I tried researching the present status of the property but I came up empty. There is a building permit in the window but there are no signs of work being done.

old large brick house with front porch, building permit in window

below: My fellow TTC travellers and I walked the curve in Spadina.

people walking on the sidewalk, walking past large old brick houses

below: At the south end of the curve is Lord Lansdowne School which was built in 1960/1961 to replace an older school nearby and to accommodate the post-war population growth in the city.  The main part of the school is a nine-sided circular building with 18 tapered steel pylons radiating outward like flying buttresses.  The roof consists of folded concrete plates,

part of exterior of lord lansdowne school

below: A big chunk of anorthosite sits in the schoolyard.   Some of the rocks brought back from the moon are anorthosites.  But this isn’t a moon rock!  This type of rock isn’t found in many places in North America but there is some to the north of the city in the Canadian Shield region.  It is composed predominantly of feldspar.  It is an igneous rock which means that it was formed from the cooling and solidification of molten rock (such as lava).

large grey rock in a schoolyard with a plaque on it describing the rock

Plaque: “This basic igneous rock was found at a depth f 12 feet during the course of excavation for this school.  The composition is a very rare type and is  assumed to have been carried here from Caribou Lake north of Parry Sound by a glacier during the Great Ice Age approximately 12,000 years ago. “

below: Every Child Matters on the schoolyard fence

orange ties on fence to spell words every child matters

below: Also on the fence, parent and child walking hand in hand past the playground.

painted cutouts on a chainlink fence around lord lansdowne school, a mother and child holding hands

below: Intersection of Spadina and College, looking south.

intersection of college and spadina, looking south on spadina

below: A small disc mounted on a concrete pole – a tribute to Saul Gwartzman by Rocky Zenyck.  Gwartzmans Art Supply store is still on Spadina Ave.

circular brass piece, mounted on utility pole, a face in the middle of it, with words marked on it

Engraved in around the face on the disc, “We remember. Saul Gwartzman. Born on Spadina Avenue above the store where he supported artists in Toronto for decades, 1936-2019”

below: Walking on Spadina, south of College.

spadina, south of college, west side of the street, Smoke and Variety store, El Macombo tavern, people on sidewalk winter time, no leaves on trees,

below: Canadian souvenirs are unavailable at the moment!

store front on spadina, closed, with canada flags on door,
stores and buildings on the east side of Spadina, old brick buildings,

below: Dragons on the wall, Oxford Street.

dragon mural on red brick building

below: One of the Kensington poles with a globe at the top.  Another site in limbo – the hoardings are still around the lot on the southwest corner of  Baldwin and Spadina.  I wrote about them in Dec 2020 (post: a long time lingering) and they were old then.

Spadina Ave, pole for entrance to Kensington, with globe on the top

There were not many other people walking around Kensington that morning, we were a bit early for that.  Even without people, it is a neighbourhood that is full of colours and full of life.  Parts of it are run down and grubby but that rarely stops a photographer!  The next photos are a random sample of what we saw that day.

below: Looking west on Baldwin.  The king is on the wall.

looking west on Baldwin, yellow wall with painting of man with crown on head, on the side of one of the buildings

below: Kids for sale!

items in the window of a kensington cheese store, an old picture of queen elizabeth with words eat more queso, a piece of wood shaped like a goat with words kids for sale

below: Mice in the cheese store window.  There’s Mickey Mouse and the little brown mouse, Jerry, from another cartoon series as well as some not so famous rodents.

items in a cheese store window, toy mice, mickey mouse, flags of Greece, Serbia, and Singapore

below: Uncle Vintage at the other end.  The mural on the right is “When Math Meets Art”

looking down an alley in kensington, view of Uncle Vintage clothing at the end, murals on both sides of the alley

below: From a different angle. It was painted by Sasha Q (aka Oleksandra Stepanenko)

mural in blues and greys with title Math Meets Art on old brick building in Kensington

 

below: Mural of a blue crab by Nick Sweetman,

blue crab mural by nick sweetman

below: Look Mom Paint!

large words painted on the side of a building that say look mom paint

below: Three old black and white photos of Kensington scenes in the window of the Peruvian food store,

three old black and white photos of Kensington area in the window of a Peruvian store,

below: A bright and cheerful red daisy keeping an eye on things.

street art in a small corner on Baldwin Ave in kensington

below: “And then the streets became my notepad – GOD”

written in large black letters on a pinkish salmon coloured brick wall, and then the streets became my notepad, god

below: More hoardings and the consequent graffiti covering them.

below: It’s difficult to see, but some of the words written on the hoardings are “It’s hard but ur strong”.

below: Mark has left his mark.

a man with a walker walks past a white wall with a large purple painting of the name Mark in capital letters

below: The backside of Moonbean Coffee as seen from the alley behind.  Little faces in Paradise.

graffiti and street art on upper back part of moonbean coffee as seen from the alley behind

below: Yummy!  Mini Boston Cream Bombs on display in the window.

boston cream bomb donuts in the window of a donut store

below: Not so yummy?!

looking in the window of a fruit and vegetable store, large green squash and a pile of oranges beside the window

below: Pigeon fanciers, this one’s for you. It seems there were some takers.  Sorry, but I didn’t follow up with the research on this one so I am not sure what happens if you call!

poster on a wall with a street art face painted on it, poster is looking for pigeon fanciers to interview

below: Union Jack either faded to pink, or in trans colours?

hand painted union jack on a fence but the red has faded to pink

below: Super Serve on Dundas, across the street from People Hair Salon.

below:  It looks like Rowell Soder mural although he rarely paints the eyes – the mushroom top should give you a hint as to what this store sells.

below: I like yellow rubber duckies but I doubt that I would wear this many at once!

below: You grow girl!

below: She leans left.

below: Little yellow bald guys as well as some words written on a wall; they are Leonard Cohen lyrics.

“From Leonard Cohen Book of Mercy, …I heard my soul singing behind a leaf, plucked the leaf, but then I heard it singing behind a veil. I tore the veil, but then I heard it singing behind a wall. I broke the wall, and I heard my soul singing against me. I built up the wall, mended the curtain, but I could not put back the leaf. I held it in my hand and I heard my soul singing mightily against me. This is what it’s like to study without a friend.”

below: Mirror, mirror, on the wall..  A Sigil is a sign in magic or witchcraft or similar.

below: Mannequins in feathers….

below: … and mannequins in hats

a Kensington laneway

rusty white metal gate at the end of a walk in front of a blue house painted with white gingerbread trim

below: The mural on the left features a white egg with a large open mouth.  The text above it says, “Feed Eggs”.   Any ideas?

alley in Kensington, looking towards turquoise building, Courage my Love vintage clothing store

below: It’s Dick Dastardly and his dog Muttley

mural in alley, Dastardly and his dog muttley, cartoon characters

below: A mandolin player by SashaQ and a Phillip Saunders portrait in blue.

murals in a kensington alley, in the front is a mandolin olayer, then a portrait in blue.

 

below: Leftovers from both Halloween and Christmas

outside a house in Kensington, both halloween and christmas decorations, snowman

below: An eclectic collection of posters and notices cover a restaurant window… pictures of food as well as posters for  young Asian musicians.

signs and posters in the window of a chinese restaurant on spadina

below: Fight Your Demons

written on a wall in black paint, fight your demons

below: South on Spadina

spadina, looking south,

below: Spadina and Dundas

With many thanks to Merle for walking with me on that grey day!  We enjoyed wandering around the street and alleys and discovering what Kensington has to offer.  It was fun to have someone helping to find all the little bits and pieces that often get overlooked.   Here we found a party, or at least the remains of one.   All those little coloured blobs are actually shiny words that say “party”.   I hope that it was a good party!

woman wearing pink hat taking a picture with her phone of confetti on the sidewalk that is bits of shiny paper spelling the word party

Merle has a blog too where she meets and interviews interesting seniors (or seniors who are doing interesting things), Super Bubbies!  I forgot to ask her how old one needs to be a Bubbie and am I old enough?!!!  If you are interested in the photos that she took on this walk or you’re curious as to what makes aa Super Bubbie, check out Super Bubbies!  I find it fascinating how different people can walk the same route and come away with quite a different recollection of the walk.

Keep exploring!  Keep being super!

Older Entries
Newer Entries