Toronto Is A Mess

Before you read any further, keep in mind that I haven't been in downtown Toronto for many years and I fully expected there to be changes. I don't mind change but the inconveniences that go along with those changes can be quite a hurdle for some people.

Yonge-Dundas Square

I actually love Toronto. More so in the summer than the winter but overall I think it's an amazing city full of interesting things to do and a wide variety of people both sane and off the wall.

This past Saturday I had tickets to the Toronto Maple Leafs game. They were playing my favourite team the Montreal Canadiens and I was looking forward to attending the game with my 75 year old father who is a life long Habs fan as well.

We decided that since we hadn't been to Toronto in a bunch of years that we'd go up early, catch the GO Train in Oshawa and take it to Union Station and then go from there.

First off, I have to wonder how many people get to ride the GO Train for free. Me being an honest person, I entered the Oshawa station and forked over the money for my Adult ticket and my fathers Senior ticket which were both Day Passes so we could catch the return train after the game. At no point on either trip did anyone ask to see our tickets. I could have just as easily, and I'm sure many do, walked through the station and just hopped on the train. When the game was over we did the exact same thing walking up to track level and boarding the train for the ride home. I could have saved myself $30.

Dad in the Eaton Centre

That's a minor thing. However, upon arriving at Union Station we were greeted by some bad news. The Subway wasn't working. Judging by the extreme construction going on outside the station on Front Street, I can only assume that was the reason for it. We had planned to jump on the Subway for the short ride up to the Eaton Centre.

It really isn't too far up Yonge Street to Queen Street where you can enter the Eaton Centre from the South entrance. Just a few blocks, but for a 75 year old man who isn't overly active, that's a good hike uphill. We could have jumped on a bus but to be honest, I don't have a bloody clue what bus to take so it seemed a safer bet to just hoof it.

By the time we got there my father was beat. He was shaking from the cold and exhausted from the hike. It took him quite a while to stop shaking but he was days before he had recovered from the walk up and back.

Now after resting and doing a bit more walking at the Eaton Centre we decided the best bet to keep my dad warm was to take the PATH back to Union Station and the Air Canada Centre for the game. I'd never walked the PATH before but it's underground out of the cold and wind so it made sense. It was actually quite a nice walk but all of the restaurants and stores were closed which I thought was odd for a city of this size.

Dad and Me waiting for the game to start at the ACC

My biggest complaint about the PATH was the fact the public washrooms were locked. Every washroom we came across was locked and the further we went the worse we needed one. I finally asked a security guard where I could find an open bathroom. He pointed us south to another closed food court area where we did locate a place to relieve ourselves. I'm sure we couldn't have been the only people cursing the city that day and I know for a fact my father wasn't the only senior citizen down there where bathrooms would be a welcome sight.

Despite the transit mess and washrooms like Fort Knox, we did get back to Union Station. Dad was exhausted and I was tempted to just get back on the train and head home without going to the hockey game but the stubborn old fool wanted to wait to see if he felt better.

Montreal playing Toronto. The Habs won of course!

Well, he eventually did, or at least he said he did and we made it to the game. But not before the poor guy had to walk to the South side of the ACC to Gate 4. I thought I was going to have to get him a wheel chair or carry him after the game to get him home. Once the game ended we made the long walk back to Union Station and on to the GO Train for the ride back to Oshawa. The train was full and after a few stops a seat opened up and dad was able to sit down and rest. I knew he was tired when he handed me the keys to drive his truck home.

I hope to visit Toronto again in the near future to do some shopping but I hope if I do go in the summer, the city is more accessible. I realize that upgrading the cities infrastructure must be done and they try to do it with as little frustration to the public as possible but for some it's just unavoidable. While it isn't an issue for me, there are thousands of other tourists who will rely on the services that weren't available to us on this particular visit.