Two's Company

It was a bit of a damp start as we made our way over the back road, leaving Barlick behind. We were grateful for the lift from Aimee, it seems to have become something of a tradition, her dropping us off as we begin one of our adventures.

A slow train from Nelson, calling at Burnley Barracks, followed by a swift 20-minute change at Rose Grove, saw us heading onwards towards the airport.

The first thing that struck me before we even reached Toronto was the sense of Canada.

That tiny Canadian flag on the front of our Air Transat plane seemed to stand out massively. The maple leaf appeared on food and drink packaging and, everywhere you looked, there were little reminders. All of which left me wondering what the marketing is like on British Airways.

Then again, we weren’t exactly travelling Air Canada… Nevertheless, “This is Canada” was being left impressively yet subtly in your mind before we’d even arrived.

The 7-hour 40-minute flight eventually took its toll, particularly on the knee joints, but arriving at the hotel and taking in as much as possible soon made that forgotten.

We were here.

And didn’t I know it!

Helen was suddenly in a flash — through customs, onto the UP Express, up to Union Station, then onto the Yellow Line subway and off we went. Like a feverish game of follow the leader, I followed as swiftly as my legs would allow.

Open-air Carlton Street…

Our hotel…

And breathe.

We made it!

The evening meal was our first proper Canadian food experience and, I have to say, the burger and fries were stunningly lovely. All topped off with a fine Canadian fruity IPA for me and a Canadian lager for Helen.

Although, to be fair, Helen had the chicken skewers, which were a tad drier than my burger. So tonight the burger wins!

After our evening meal, it was time to turn in. Ottawa is calling tomorrow, so there wasn’t time to explore Toronto properly just yet.

Barlick to Toronto — Day One Complete.