Golfing At Timber Creek

So today was a beautiful and sunny day.  After the massive storm last night the humidity is all gone and we can be outside and enjoy the weather once again.  Don't get me wrong, it's still hot but just not humid.

Today we went to Timber Creek Golf.  It at 12772 Ninth Line in Stouffville.  Just in case you want to have a look at this place their website is:  www.timbercreekgolf.ca.  They have two courses.  One is The Shipwreck and it's 19 holes and the other one is The Logging Camp and it's 18 holes.  Both of them are very fun.  This place has batting cages, and real golf driving range as well.  We love it here and we've now been about 5 times.  It's a great place to bring your kids, but it's also fun for adults without kids as well.

Our Stroll Through Kensington Market

This afternoon Neal and I took a stroll through the historic Kensington Market area.  There were lots of weird and interesting things to look at.  Like this car planter.  In this area there are fruit and vegetable shops, a fish market, and lots and lots of T-shirt and book shops and restaurants.  On the last Sunday of every month they close the street to traffic and turn it into a pedestrian mall.  If you are in Toronto you should go for a walk in this area.  If you cross the street you can also see our China Town as well.

Boys Of Major Lane

 On July 7, 2013 a laneway in the back of Major Street in downtown Toronto was the focus of attention as it was finally given a name.  Here my dad is seen walking through the laneway.  There were a number of boys who fought for Canada in WWII who lived in this area who grew up on Major Street.  This laneway is dedicated to them including my Uncle Solomon "Solly" Kay.

 Here I am under the covered street sign seen along Harbord Street near Major Street.

 Rory "Gus" Sinclair, the past-president of the Harbord Village Residents' Association is about to speak to the assembled crowd.

 The moment arrives as the unveiling of the name proceeds.

 Myself and Rory "Gus" Sinclair share the proud moment.

 My family attended the event on behalf of Solomon "Solly" Kay who was honoured with this laneway naming.

 Debbie and I posing with the street sign that will forever etch the boys into Toronto's history.

Councillor Adam Vaughan and I exchanging pleasantries.

St. Jacob's Farmers Market

Neal and I had a really nice trip to St. Jacob's today.  We wanted to get some fruit and vegetables and this is one of the best places to get it.  We got some grapes, cherries, peas and zucchini that were picked that morning right from the farms in the area.  You can't get more local than that.  I really think we should support our local farmers.

While you are in town you can walk around and see what people are selling and food and then when you are in need of some air conditioning you can cross the street a go into the outlet mall.  The outlet mall is a bit disappointing as there are a lot of empty stalls now, but it's still nice to walk around there.  Then when you are all finished there you can either take a horse and buggy ride or drive your car into town and there are more shops and restaurants.

The town of St. Jacob's is a Mennonite town.  Unfortunately, with each passing year we see less and less Mennonite people.  If you are going to visit the town of St. Jacobs then you should go on Saturday but be prepared for lots of walking and a really difficult time finding a parking spot.

Should you want to visit the farmer's market here is a link to the directions:  http://www.stjacobs.com/maps-directions

Collingwood - Blue Mountain

 For part two of our summer vacation we drove up to Blue Mountain which is in Collingwood.  Here you can see this beautiful flower garden specially grown for the Jazz Festival that is going on this weekend.

 Here I am on our hike on top of the mountain.  It was Neal and I and about a million bugs of all different kinds. 

 Here is Neal rock surfing.

 Here is a view of summer gondolas and the village from above.  Blue Mountain is a great place to visit in the summer.  If you want to go swimming there is a place in the village called Plunge.  It's a swimming pool that is both indoor and outdoor.  The kids would love it.  We're two big kids and we loved it too.

 Here's Mountie Moose and me.

 We visited Craigleith Train Station.  This use to be an actual working train station.  Now it's no longer in service but it is a wonderful museum and tourist office.  It's a nice place to stop on a rainy day.  Just to the left of here is a great beach where you can rent kayaks and SUP's.  The water is very nice.  There is also a beach area for you to swim.  There is parking right at the beach area as well.

New York City Take 2

 We have just returned from New York City on a bus tour.  The company we traveled with was called Comfort Tours and they were wonderful.  This is the same company that I went with last time and I couldn't rave enough about them.

On our way down we stopped at the Corning Glass Museum.  This is a great place to visit.  You can watch people making things with glass, blowing glass into various thing.  It's like a science centre for glass.

 Here was an art instillation at the Hyatt in New Jersey.  That was our hotel.  I highly recommend this hotel.  They had a wonderful breakfast, the rooms were comfortable, their staff were all very friendly and helpful and they had a really nice swimming pool, hot tub and fitness centre.

 Here is a clock tower just outside of the Trump Tower.  Wow Mr. Trump's building was amazing place to walk around and have a look at....Oh and a little known secret.....his washrooms are open to the public and are very nice.

 Here is the flat Iron Building.

 Part of our tour took us to Grand Central Station.  If anyone is interested in architecture you should really go and have a look.  It's a beautiful place and they have a great food court and shopping area.

 Here we are at Central Park.  One of the highlights of the trip in my opinion.  This is a quiet oasis in the middle of a busy city.  The fountain was in an episode of Dr. Who.  Some of you might recognize it from the episode called Angels Take Manhattan.  The angel at the top and the cherub babies came to life.  Very scary!

 The tall lady was our tour guide Suzanne and the shorter lady was our city tour guide Karen.  Karen was a true New Yorker through and through (attitude and all).

 Here was the best part of the entire tour....I got to go to the Cake Boss Cafe.  Ok so it's not Carlos' Bakery in Hobokin, NJ but this was just as good.  Just in case you watch the show on TLC and wonder if his bake goods are as yummy as they look.....they are.  I had a Carmel cupcake and Neal had a chocolate cup cake and we LOVED them.  So much so we forgot to take a photo of them.  The only bad part was that I didn't get to meet Buddy or any of his family.  Thankfully he hasn't mentioned this place on his show yet so the line up isn't too long.  It's right near the Port Authority Building.

 Here we went on a walking tour of the Highline.  Now this use to be a railway that ran along up above part of the city, but it's no longer being used for that purpose.  They have now turned it into this beautiful park.  I think we could have stayed there all day.  It's quiet and relaxing and a great use of space.

 Here we took a boat ride around the Statue Of Liberty as it's still damaged from hurricane Sandy and not open to the public yet.  The boat ride was a lot of fun.

Here is the old wooden escalator at Macey's.  Yes folks the escalator is made of wood.  There are many floors at this mall and the prices are great.


Well, that was our short trip to New York City.  We had a great time and the weather was fantastic.  There was so much more that we could have seen but we just didn't have enough time.  If you decide to visit NYC my one tip to you.....wear comfortable shoes.  There's a lot of walking.