Days 21–24, August 14th–17th: having fun in Toronto!

Greenhouse gas emissions (CO₂eq): loading…◴
Sigurðar saga fóts: 97/252

I have of course been working lots. (He says, hoping he doesn’t sound like he’s protesting too much.) One of the Goon’s observations on Toronto is ‘It’s a better place to live in than to visit’. This is the sort of thing I’ve often said about Helsinki–and not, in my case, in an apologetic way. And as I’ve posted before, I’ve been enjoying just living in Toronto. But I’ve been having fun too! Here are some of the things I’ve been up to:

• A ball game! You can’t come to North America without seeing a ball game! I’d heard a rumour that college sport is more exciting than professional sport here, so I went to see the Papal Bulls (Center for Medieval Studies) play Nine and a Half Weeks (Estates Services, or whatever the UofT equivalent is). In the University of Toronto applaud-if-they-even-hit-the-ball softball league. It was great!
• Improvisational comedy! I keep hearing about this from North Americans. No doubt it happens in Britain too, but Chicago and Toronto both seem to be big places for it, so I thought I should experience some. The Dutchman’s flatmate explained that at Second City on Monday evenings you could stump up $5 and have a two-hour class in improv comedy (as we call it in the business). Okay, so the twenty-odd sub-amateurs who found themselves gathered in this basement (including three British tourists, one third of whom was the presumably inevitable annoying thesp type) were not actually that funny, but $5 to spend a couple of hours essentially playing party games that you haven’t played since you were six is a pretty amazing deal. Points to the Dutchman’s flatmate!
• Playing Rock Band with the Goon and his girlfriend, and a non-sceptical ex-pat! I was rubbish. But we still rocked!
• Afternoon tea with a couple of Russian friends, and also the Art Gallery of Ontario in their excellent company. What a fab museum! It’s free on Wednesday evenings 6–8.30, and it was thronging with lively people. Not a very meditative situation for seeing paintings, but a fun one. And free is free. And a lovely building, with some really amazing paintings! Amongst other things, an amazing way to whet the appetite for seeing some more of this Canada place.

And now I’m going to CHICAGO! After all this excitement, the train ride will be a welcome opportunity to peacefully get some work done.

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