(London, Ontario, Canada)
Our summer road trip has begun!
We met some friends yesterday for a hike at Rattlesnake Point Conservation Area, just outside of Milton. The park is located along the edge of the Niagara Escarpment; some of the trails are at the very edge of the steep cliffs. It’s a little disorienting to have such dramatic views of flat farmland! As most of the trails are in the forest, it’s also a great place to escape the hot summer sun.
As we had all worked up quite an appetite, our friends brought us to a recommended Thai restaurant on Main Street in Milton (Canada’s fastest-growing community!). It was an inspired choice: Thai House had a diverse menu and served excellent food. We would happily return there some day.
After a night in the unlikely destination of Mississauga, we set off to the historical village of Kleinburg and the McMichael Collection. This is a very famous collection of Canadian art, with a particular focus on the legendary Group of Seven and Tom Thomson. While this part of the collection was obviously a big draw, we also enjoyed the “new” Group of Seven (actually the Professional National Indian Artists Inc.). This “new” group was formed in the 1970s and included prominent aboriginal artists such as Norval Morrisseau and Daphne Odjig.
It felt like the trip from Mississauga to Kleinburg took forever, due in part to the urban sprawl in the Brampton area. The old part of Brampton was nice enough but the endless suburbs, strip malls and “power centres” were rather discouraging…and doubly so on the way back, as heavy rain lasted for a couple of hours. We wanted to avoid controlled-access highways such as the 401 but were slowed considerably by the extensive development has taken place since the last time we drove through this part of the province.
We finally emerged from the sprawl just outside of the town of Dundas: as we travelled west, our spirits brightened even though the rain persisted. Our first stop was in the very old town of Paris (another place with a French connection!): most stores were already closed but it had a quaint downtown (see photo at the top of this post) that we would like to visit again someday. There was even a store called “A Swiss in Paris”: I’m sure that there is an interesting story behind this gourmet cheese shop.
Our next stop was in Woodstock. This is where my car was made and it surprised us with 2 vinyl record shops within a couple of blocks. Record-shopping is always a fun way to unwind and I managed to find an unexpected gem from the 1980s (thankfully with no “1980s drums”!) before long.
After a long day on the road, we finally arrived in London. We’re here for a couple of nights and are looking forward to our first proper visit to the largest city in southwestern Ontario. Our home here is the beautiful Idlewyld Inn just south of the downtown core. It’s a rambling 19th-century house that has been converted to a rather upscale inn. Our room is spacious and even includes a turret!
After getting our bearings, we went to nearby Wortley Village…and had another great Thai dinner! This time it was Mai’s Cafe and Bistro; the food was very fresh and well-prepared. While it was very enjoyable, and Thai is probably my favourite cuisine at the moment, we will try to have some non-Thai cuisine tomorrow. London has a lot of restaurants; I’m sure that we’ll have no problem finding something!