ACCOMMODATION REPORT :

VALUE FOR MONEY : 3 / 5

CLEANLINESS : 2 / 5

FRIENDLINESS : 3 / 5

NOISE : 3 / 5

Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Sometimes it’s difficult to start these summaries. I stayed nearly a week here and enjoyed some incredible weather, mid-thirties the entire time. Sleeping was not easy, but when travelling it rarely is. The city itself is quite big, serviced by trams, buses and a subway I still found myself walking most places I went. I did a few different things whilst in Toronto, I saw and did some Theatresports, and met some top people while at it. I also spent a fair bit of money on compact discs and also records – I found possibly the best little record shop on the planet in Toronto!

As anyone might tell you, the world’s tallest building resides in Toronto. The Toronto tower (CN tower) is damn high and the best thing about it is the glass lift that takes you upwards at 22km/h allowing you to look out and down as you ascend. If you have a HI membership card, use it for a half price discount, if not you’ll be slugged an incredible CAN$19 for the pleasure of the ride up. Once you get to the first observation level you’ll find good pictures are basically impossible to take (of the view) as there is chicken wire obscuring the view all the way around. There is a glass floor, which is kinda cool, if you get past the three thousand and one children lying down on it so their parents can get a photo of them. I decided not to point out that their flashes would reflect on the glass, and only the children would come out on the shot. The information lady there is wonderful.

Toronto is also a wicked place to see movies. There always at a good price, and one (admittedly rather dirty) cinema (ODEON COMPLEX) has tickets for $2.50 including tax! The Paramount cinemas are really impressive, the decoration rocks!

Toronto is also an excellent place to visit Niagara Falls from.

The Moose Tours journey I took to Niagara falls was quite a tour – in a beat up old school bus (apparently they usually use a rainbow coloured one) but it immediately creates an excellent atmosphere and the cost is only around $35, other tours are usually five times that. After they try to get you to buy some wine from a vineyard, you arrive at the falls. The street leading to the Falls is quite a sight. It’s covered in tacky eateries, haunted house type attractions and wax museums. This needs to be ignored. The Falls are divided into the American and Canadian Falls – the Canadian Falls being slightly bigger. The Maid-of-the-Mist is a boat you hop on and it takes you almost underneath the falls. They give you a plastic coat to protect you from the spray and then let you keep it as a souvenir! (I decided against keeping mine actually. Funny) The tour then took us to pizza and a superb sunset at Lake Ontario. I thoroughly recommend the tour, they can be visited on the web at : www.furtherstill.com

ACCOMMODATION REPORT :

COST : US$17

VALUE FOR MONEY : 3 / 5

CLEANLINESS : 2 / 5

FRIENDLINESS : 3.5 / 5

NOISE : 2 / 5

To be honest I never really ventured into Los Angeles proper, just Hollywood where the streets are wide, the tourist shops are plenty (and you can pick up some darn cheap t-shirts) and the pavements are covered in stars. The main boulevard is quite tacky and just waiting for the tourists. Weather wise, it was quite perfect. Somehow not nearly as hot as Toronto, 24 degrees everyday is just right, with the sun out unbeatable. The smog, as anyone will tell you, is horrible though, but enough said. The hostel was quite friendly and could organise all the tours you need – Disneyland, Universal Studios, Wet N’Wild and a general tour of the stars’ homes. I did only two of those (the first two) as my stay was short, and they’d be the ones you’d do if you were there for only a couple of days.

This was the last stop of my whirlwind tour of the world, and I was a little worse for wear but it was a nice way to finish off I guess.

When Walt Disney came up with this idea, he knew what he was on about. Took a train ride around the whole place to start off, it is its own little paradise. There are a hell of a lot of thrills and spills here, but a lot of quality productions. One that stood out was the Honey I shrunk the Audience. It sounds lame, but it was the most impressive 3-D display I’ve ever experienced. For thrills and spills I recommend Splash Mountain, the final dip gets you wet and is quite a thrill. Another one not to miss is Space Tours, based on Star Wars, a fantastic experience. One’s I can recommend you skip are It’s a Small World, although if you’re into tack it’d be perfect, and the anamatronic Abraham Lincoln. How someone can try and immortalize such a man in a crummy robot is beyond me, but if it was me I’d be so insulted I’d move to Fiji.

The day is topped off by a brilliant show at the same time every evening (the show does change I believe) featuring many Disney characters incorporating boats, the lake, actors, costumes, music lights and fire works. Don’t leave before it, and get a spot early as there are security people (who are down right mean) who won’t let you stand on the paths. Three final things – 1/ try not to go on a public holiday, it’s packed and you will wait forever in lines. 2/ Food inside is, not surprisingly, so expensive it’ll give you a seizure, so pack a lunch. 3/ Don’t be afraid to get a photo with a crazy Disney character. I didn’t and despite the embarrassment I would have suffered at the time, I’d love a photo now. I wouldn’t put it on the web page though.

I found myself the only one on the trip to Universal studios from the hostel strangely enough, and then the bus ran out of petrol as we entered the studios! And this is on the last day of the whole trip. After some serious trouble finding the entrance, I was inside Universal and my day of fun began. Jurassic Park the ride was a good one, as was the one based on Back to the Future. I took a tour around the back lot and saw the house from the original Psycho and many sets used on movies we’ve all seen. (and some we haven’t) and the man taking the tour plugged several upcoming films. Well, what did I expect? There is an exhibition based on I Love Lucy, and an actress dressed up like Lucy gave a lady looking at the exhibit the fright of her life. The Terminator attraction was good – another 3-D one but not quite as good as Honey I Shrunk the Audience. Finally I saw a Wild West shoot-em-up stunt show, which was probably the most impressive thing I saw all day. If you can only see one, I’d choose Disneyland, but both are worthwhile.

<<<<<<<<<BACK TO NEW YORK AND BOSTON

FORWARD TO REFLECTIONS >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>