Today I finally got to the cathedral church of St James, Toronto. It was fairly lovely in its way but it seemed rather disconnected from the city around it n a way the church of the Holy Trinity wasn't. The only invitation to visitors was to sign the guest book. No suggestion of taking some time out to think or pray. There was no explanation of what Christianity and the cathedral are about. There was an opportunity to light a candle and a card to go with it but a dollar a candle seemed rather acquisitive to me.
I did try to have a little quiet time but the woman rather noisily sweeping the pews didn't make that possible really. There were some fairly good stained gass windows; some modern, some quasi old. I suppose I just expected more. Though at least you could easily get INTO the cathedral unlike Christchurch, Oxford!
After the cathedral I headed into St Lawrence market which is JUST FANTASTIC! It makes the covered market in Oxford look small, rather pathetic and of dubious quality. I had a plate of mussels that was cooked freshly in front of me at Barney's Cove and a freshly squeezed blueberry, banana and raspberry juice ffrom the juice bar. There were at least three cheese shops, a multiplicity of charcuteries and butchers plus fishmongers wit exciting live lobsters and tiger prawns the size of my hand. The proliferation of sumptuous food made me WANT to cook - haricots jaunes, ten types of rice, myriad pulses, fresh pastas, banks of dried fruits, fresh fruits and bizarre varieties of squash. I'm going to have to persuade Kerry to drop her amazing hostess hospitality which doesn't let me do anything and let me cook her dinner!
After that I took a walk down to the quayside of Lake Ontario and watched the maple leaves dance on the water. It was wonderful.
I then schlepped back to the city centre via the Royal York hotel which looked splendidly luxurious.
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