-
Toronto: New York of the North?
Day 226
We’ve both been to Toronto before, but decided to try and approach it like we’ve approached nearly every other city on this journey. Like a couple of noobs acting like spies. Here’s the rundown:
Day One
Our first mistake was trying to slide obese Walter through the narrow streets of urban Toronto in search of an inner city camp site (aka parking lot). It was like trying to squeeze an Oscar Meyer wiener into a drinking straw. The bendy kind. After an hour of sweat and tears, dirty looks, and honks from peeved Torontonians, we managed to suck the proverbial meat from the straw and ended up 40 minutes outside of downtown. A dirty Walmart in the suburb of Mississauga.
Day One Findings
Toronto drivers are assholes. At least on the highway. I shit you not, these people might actually be as bad as Miami drivers. (By the way, what is with major cities and their driver’s complete lack of decency on the road? Is it substandard driver education? Is the high concentration of carbon monoxide turning their frontal lobes into gravy?) Once they leave the main arteries, they seem to cool down a little… unless you are like us on Toronto streets: the equivalent of Rita MacNeil being birthed by Calista Flockhart.
Day Two
After the Rita MacNeil hotdog birth experience from the previous night, we came to terms with the fact that Toronto is just not a good city for RVs. We were forced to the distant edge of the metropolis before finding a campground to house the mighty beast. Although happy to find a safe settlement, the galactic distance to downtown left little to be desired. But hey, we are seasoned champions of foreign transit systems, right?
Our commute to downtown Toronto consisted of a ten minute scooter ride, followed by a 45 minute bus ride, followed by an hour long subway ride. That, plus the ride home came out to nearly FOUR HOURS. This left just enough time to walk down Yonge Street, eat, grab an overpriced drink and go home.
Day Two Findings
Toronto transit is really good… but not if your base camp is in the boonies. Drinks are expensive. Patios can be difficult to find. Yonge Street is loaded with dirty little holes-in-the-wall restaurants which are probably all awesome. We wouldn’t know because we ate at the food court in the mall (!).
Also, the panhandlers in this city will handle you like nowhere else. If you decide to hang on to your cash or don’t have any cigarettes to give, prepare to be accosted. We didn’t see anyone get hurt in the sticks and stones variety, but yelling, insults, and sarcasm seem to be par for the course.
Day Three: Alone Day
It took a couple days to get it right, but I’m marking day three as a success. Instead of wasting our time on transit, we got up, jumped on ‘Bella and scooted the side streets all the way downtown in half the time. Rach and I declared this our “alone day”. I think she got a manicure and a massage or something. While she was getting insulted by grumpy curmudgeons, I explored the city with vigour. Somehow I managed to fit the Art Gallery of Ontario, The Ontario College of Art and Design, a stroll down Queen Street, and a Steam Whistle brewery tour.
After regrouping over a mediocre dinner on a fantastic patio at the Black Bull, we scooted down to the CN Tower to take in a breathtaking Toronto sunset from 446.5 metres (1,465 ft) high. You can actually see the curvature of the Earth. There was also an escort entertaining a portly gentleman who may or may not have been an Ontario politician. I bet she goes up there at least once a week (the tower, perverts).
Day Three Findings
Toronto is a gold mine for creatives. It is a thriving petri dish of art, design, architecture, fashion, film, music and theatre. Inspiration blankets Toronto like oil in the Gulf of Mexico (too soon?). T.O. also happens to be a remarkable town for scooters. I can’t think of any other city where we’ve been able to travel so far on non-scary roads. Plus you can park ‘em anywhere… and people do.
Day Four
We met up with our friend, Mr. Scott Boms, who took us around the city to scarf some epic burritos, guzzle some quality beers, geek out at Silver Snail, take a tequila shot at the legendary Horseshoe Tavern, and meet some of Scott’s awesome geek friends at the lovely Sweaty Betty. During the course of all this madness, Scott pointed out the legendary Greg Keelor sitting in a park, and me and Rach walked by Mark McKinney on the way back to the scooter. Who knew the first celebrity run-ins we’d have would be in Toronto, Ontario?
Day Four Findings
Toronto, despite it’s latitude, can produce some pretty mean burritos. Canadian celebrity sightings are quite common. The best parts of Toronto are the places you have to look for. Lastly, Scott Boms is the man (not that we didn’t know that before). A man who knows design, a man who truly understands the web, a man who has shown us our new favorite places in Toronto, and a man who we will always consider a friend. Thanks Scott!
In Sum
We like Toronto. It’s got great art, design, culture, food. On paper it sounds like the ideal city, but something about it just doesn’t sit with us. As great as it is, we could never shake that feeling that it’s trying to be something it isn’t. You could say it’s the New York of the north, but that’s sort of the problem… it isn’t New York, it’s Toronto. If you’re a wiener, don’t try to be a smokie. Embrace your wienerness or you’ll end up looking like a cocktail weenie.
Posted on June 1, 2010
-
Getting the Halifax Straight.
Day 202
I had no idea that Halifax was such a cool city. My only frame of reference was from watching Street Cents while growing up. The only thing I knew was that it was small, cloudy, and filled with smart teens who knew how to question advertisers and combat materialism. Also, Trailer Park Boys (if you are not familiar, I implore you to GET familiar. You won’t regret it). Now that ain’t a bad start.
It’s an old city for North America. It started as an important military harbour in the early 1700’s beginning with the colonization of the British, the Seven Years War, The American Revolution, the Napoleonic Wars, and both World Wars.
In 1917 a French munitions ship exploded and blew the harbour to Kingdom Come, which despite being a major disaster, actually reshaped the city and later helped its reconstruction into what it is today.
It also happens to be home of several post secondary institutions including Dalhousie University and a couple art schools. This probably explains the large population of smart young people as much as it explains the staggering amount of quality pubs and restaurants.
Somehow, this odd mashup of history, education, art, Canadiana, and binge-drinking adds up to one of Canada’s most vibrant and fascinating cities.
It has it all. Smarts, beauty, culture, personality. If it weren’t for the bone-chilling, humid winters and constant grey skies, we would definitely consider calling this place home. I expect we’ll be returning regularly.
Posted on May 8, 2010
-
A Reflection. Pt 1: By the Numbers
Two days ago we hit a major milestone on this trip. We completed a full six months touring the amazing US of A. Here is the trip by the numbers. Maybe when we’re done I can make some sort of crazy infographic, but for now, here is the raw data:
Travel
Amount of days on the road: 190
Amount of days in America: 177
Number of states we hit: 23
Number of cities we stayed in: 69
Hours driving*: 216 hours / 9 days
Ratio of times getting lost per outing: 9:10Distance travelled in Walter: 12,048.2 miles / 19,389.7 kilometres (half the circumference of the earth)
Amount of gas consumed in Walter*: 1506 US gallons / 5701 litres
Cost of gas in Walter*: $4520 USDDistance travelled on Isabella: 754.8 miles / 1214.7 kilometres
Amount of gas consumed in Isabella*: 12 US gallons / 45.5 litres
Cost of gas in Isabella*: $36Amount paid in tolls*: $80
Times Walter required service: 3Cars rented: 4
Accommodation
Number of RV parks: 38
Nights in Walmart Parking Lots: 39
Nights in unauthorized urban camping zones: 20
Nights in Hotels: 9Walter
Amount of propane consumed*: 160 US gallons / 605.6 litres
Cost of propane*: $560 USD
Times we ran out of propane in the middle of the night: 4Sewage mishaps: 2
Grey water mishaps: 4Times we played Rock Band: 4
Items we lost that haven’t turned up yet: Socks, two hoodies
Days we consumed alcohol*: 166
Legal
Number of parking citations: 3
Friendly encounters with civil servants: 4
Unfriendly encounters with civil servants: 1
Times broken into: 0Amount of goods purchased in the US*: $2550.00 USD
Amount of duty we had to pay: $51.45 CADWeather
Encounters with snow: 2
Days of rain**: 162
Places where the thermometer broke 20°C (68°F): 5Attractions
Museums/Galleries: 12
Zoos: 2
Tours: 11
Amusement Parks: 3
Live music shows: 7
Movies we saw in the theatre: Fantastic Mr. Fox, The Road, Kick-Ass, Hot Tub Time Machine, Sherlock Holmes, 2012, Avatar, Whip It, Visual Acoustics, Where The Wild Things AreAttractions we missed because of weather: 3
Documenting
Number of blog posts: 111
Number of photos taken: 6936
Number of videos captured: 400The Cities
Most loved cities: Austin, TX; New Orleans, LA; San Francisco, CA
Most hated city: Houston, TXFriendliest people: Nashville, TN; Seattle, WA; Austin, TX
Unhappiest people: Miami, FL; Houston, TX
Biggest hippies: Portland, OR
Best facial hair: Portland, OR
Most mutant-like citizens: Kingman, AZ; Moncton, NBBest creative community: Jacksonville, FL
Worst drivers: All of Florida; Houston, TX; Los Angeles, CA
Worst traffic: Seattle, WACoolest Cities: New Orleans, LA; Austin, TX; New York, NY
Best Music: Austin, TX; New Orleans, LA; Nashville, TN; Seattle, WABest food: San Francisco, CA; New Orleans, LA
Worst food: Southern Florida
Best Beer: Portland, OR; Seattle, WABest photography spot: Bombay Beach, CA
Top places that we need to do-over: New York, NY; Boston, MA; Portland, OR
Top places to avoid: Tallahassee, FL; Houston, TX; Fort Stockton, TXPlaces we met with friends: Vancouver, BC; Seattle, WA; San Francisco, CA; Los Angeles, CA; Phoenix, AZ; Las Vegas, NV; Jacksonville, FL; West Palm Beach, FL; Naples, FL; Austin, TX; Baltimore, MD; Amish-land, PA; New York, NY; Lowell, MA
* Rough estimate
** Wild estimateThere you have it! Tomorrow I’ll post some of the things we’ve learned on this trip. Also, look forward to more content about how we actually made this happen, and how you fools could do the same (or similar) if you wanted to.
Posted on April 25, 2010 with 1 note
-
Weekend at Berni’s
Day 189
Just want to make a huge shout out to Mr. Kevin Berni, his lovely wife, Becca… and the crazy animals they live with.
We’ll always have Lily’s poo burps, beers at Dharma Buns, Vic’s Waffles, and Val, you know —the one that introduced yous, to comfort our memory in the cold Canadian dark.
Our readers might not know this, but we were in some serious trouble when we arrived in Boston. The only RV parks around are closed until May. Even worse, our smell had progressed from ripe to rotten. This is why the name Berni is emblazoned on our mantle (if we had a mantle).
In addition to the good times, they lent us a shower, 88 gallons of Walter water ‘down cellah’, a cedar planked salmon, and some New England hospitality (the finest).
Hey, we should totally meet up in Bah Habah (Bar Harbour to those outside of New England).
Posted on April 24, 2010
-
Work For Your Shirt.
Day 143
If you haven’t heard, Rachel and I pooled some cash from our spamaroni fund and got some lovely purple and green Unicat t-shirts printed up for SXSW. Since we were only able to get 20 of these “limited edition” gems made, we had to come up with a creative way to fairly distribute them to our fellow dot-comrades.
The Unicat, you see, is more than just a cheeky logo. It’s a symbol; an icon if you will, of adventure, fantasy, magic, and… unbridled enthusiasm. We would be selling ourselves (and you, my friends) short if we were to give them out namby pamby. Instead, we want you to work for the elusive Unicat. That’s right. Be one with the Unicat beast.
Varick, Jon, Katy, Woo. You four are trailblazers. You stood up, took the challenge by the horns and earned your purple and green with courage and vigour. Those shirts are badges of honour. Wear them with pride, my friends. Wear them with pride.
If you think you’ve got what it takes to ride in the same class as these brave individuals, it’s time to put your money where your mouth is and show us what you would do for a Unicat shirt. Every day this week, we will be bringing out a few shirts for those that call themselves mighty.
Here’s what you need to top:
- Changing t-shirts in the middle of the pub (after having beer spilled on it by yours truly).
- Running though the Austin streets with no pants.
- Downing three Irish Carbombs
- Announcing your love of the Unicat at full volume to a packed Buffalo Billiards house
We will post the video highlights at the end of SXSW. Look for contest details at http://thestraymuse.com.
You are champions!
Posted on March 12, 2010
-
SXSWalter
Today we arrive in Austin, TX for one of the single most anticipated events of this entire trip. South By Southwest (SXSW). SXSW is a music, film, and interactive festival held every March in Austin. Geeks, musicians, and film nerds flock from afar to learn, converse, and drink their faces off for ten days in balmy Texas.
This is the first year I am attending without an actual conference pass and the first time Rachel is attending at all. Despite missing out on the interactive panels, we should have a great time crashing parties, meeting up with friends old and new, and reuniting with a plane load of Cowtownians flying down to attend.
The real beauty of SXSW isn’t what happens inside the disorienting walls of the Convention Center, it’s everything that surrounds this magical week. Here are some of the things I plan to accomplish this year.
-
Give away all 20 of our fancy new t-shirts printed specially for this event.
We’re not giving these away without a little work. I’ll post the details on how you can get one on the home page of The Stray Muse on Thursday. For the rest of you, we have the store! -
Get into at least one Badge-only parties this week.
I don’t care which one, but I’m going to try and get our sneaky asses into a couple. Worst case scenario, we fail and start our own party a block away at any of the other 50 gazillion pubs in the area. This is to prove (mostly to myself), that SXSW is possible without a badge. -
Prove to Rachel that geeks are actually pretty fun to hang around with.
Don’t let me down people. Even if its all a big lie, let’s talk about something other than our iPhones for five minutes. -
Get up early. At least one day.
I’ve made one commitment this SXSW, and that’s the photo walk put on by Grant, Scott, and Luke. Some of my favorite internet people are organizing and attending this thing, so I better not let them down (plus it should be a blast). -
Refrain from drunk tweeting.
At least make an effort to make any drunk tweets not sound like drunk tweets. -
See at least three shows.
As usual, there is an incredible lineup of bands this year. We have the luxury of staying a couple extra days into the music portion of the festival. So let’s rock it. -
Get a sunburn.
Okay, this has been a goal I’ve had since the beginning of this damn trip. I’ve sort of achieved it once, but I’m still pale as a ghost. This MUST change. -
Meet more people.
Okay, this is really a stupid goal. This is kind of the point of the conference… at least it is for me. In fact, if it weren’t for the first two SXSW’s, we probably wouldn’t have anyone to visit on this trip, and wouldn’t have anyone to talk to on these interwebs from day to day.
Nothing like setting lofty goals right?
Joking aside, this geek summer camp has always been a source for good friends, great conversation, and awesome ideas. I look forward to it more than Glorbis.
Posted on March 10, 2010
-
Give away all 20 of our fancy new t-shirts printed specially for this event.
-
Merry Glorbis to all!
Day 63
We hope all of you and your families are having a safe and wonderful holiday season!
Since we tend to have our own way of doing things these days, we’re celebrating the holidays a little differently than most. If there’s one thing we’ve learned from living in 300 sq. ft. rolling habitat, it’s that possessions really aren’t that important. It’s the people you’re with and the experiences you have that matter.
In light of this, we’ve created our own non-demoniational holiday called Glorbis, which is named after our symbolic monument, The Golden Glory Orb… or Glorb. Instead of showing our love and appreciation through consumerism and material goods, we’ve decided to forgo the actual gift giving process and celebrate by embracing what’s most important… each other. Top that off with some single malt, bailey’s, good food (which is gold in colour), and a few days of hanging out together and enjoying life as it’s meant to be enjoyed.
Here are some of the traditions born today…
- A cheap gold ball is hung from the ceiling to symbolize wealth in love, not in money or materialism.
- All food and drink must be gold in colour (or in the range of yellow and brown)
- We don’t purchase gifts, but if we choose, we are encouraged to make gifts
- Twisted Sister “A Twisted Christmas” album must be played (yeah we know it’s about Christmas, but until we get our own Glorbis music, this will have to do)
- After dinner, each person stands under the Glorb and declares their appreciation for a loved one and why. Future years will involve facing the birthplace of Glorbis, Tempe, AZ.
We are not saying this is better than anyone else’s holiday, and certainly don’t expect anyone to feel wrong about gift giving or receiving. I for one, miss opening gifts on Christmas morning with family… I especially miss my family. Love you guys!
This is an experiment for us, and something we’ve always wanted to try but never have. We hope your holiday, whatever you celebrate, is merry and full of love!
Also, our kids will hate us for this.
Posted on December 25, 2009
-
Ten Things We Learned About the RV Lifestyle in One Month
Well good golly, we’ve just passed the one month mark of this little journey. Things are going strong. We’ve managed to drum up enough work to keep some gas in the tank, launched a (sort of) new website, and have managed to keep up with documenting the silly and the stupid for-all-ten-of-you charming people who read this blog.
As with any experience in life worth living, we’ve learned a few things in the last thirty days. Here are some personal favourites.
-
Don’t lie to authority figures.
We learned this early on and it almost cost us our trip. This might seem obvious. Hell, it is obvious. We’re stupid for trying. Paradoxically, that’s probably the reason border patrol let us in. Clearly we’re too dumb & scared to be any sort of real threat. So the moral is… if you are going to lie, only do it if you’re dumb and scared. -
Check your levels.
We’ve had multiple occasions where we’ve run out of propane and ended up forming a cocoon of blankets to stop our asses from freezing to death because our furnace won’t work. So don’t listen to those sensors. Get down on your knees and check the meter. Also, pay attention to those holding tanks. Respect the poo and it’s unwieldy force. Luckily you’ve all born witness to all the consequences so you won’t feel the need to test your own holding tank limits. -
Get lost.
To Rachel’s dismay, I am a bonafide champion of getting lost. Doesn’t matter where we are, what we’re driving, or even how many times I’ve been there, I will get lost. GPS seems to help a little, but not even TomTom can prevent a few good gallons of petroleum from burning as we circle aimlessly through foreign city streets. Saying that, getting lost is the best way to find out more about the area rather than trekking from point A to point B with no map checking in between. Rach likens it to playing Final Fantasy or Doom where you only see your immediate path; any unknowns are pitch black. Once you’ve traversed around the city, it all lights up, you have a complete and functional map. -
Tell that comfort zone to shut up.
If you’re like us, you’ve already forgone the conventional lifestyle. Don’t take it for granted. Push your limits. Say hi first and nod back when people nod at you. Try new grub. Walk down the freeway just to see what happens. Work it like you own it. Nothing will test you more than prodding yourself out of your tight little turtle shell to find a better home. -
In general, America is 100 times more friendly than Canada.*
All I’ve ever heard about the US, growing up in Canada, is that Americans are fat, ignorant, rude, Lucifer’s spawn, blah, blah, blah. The people of Canada (or any other country) who actually believe that horse pocky are either a) projecting or b) have never actually set foot in America. We have never experienced friendlier, more sincere, more welcoming people than we have in America. That goes for every city in every state we have hit so far (or that we have ever been to, period). No wonder we are losing our doctors and teachers and lawyers and engineers to this wonderful nation. -
Embrace failure. And fail harder.
It’s more entertaining when you do… at least I hope it is. I seem to be good at it. -
It’s easier to appreciate what you got when you don’t got much.
It’s really hard to believe that we have a 10x15’ cube filled to the brim with our crap back home. I have no idea what we did with all that or what we will do with it when we get back. There’s something magical about living with only the essentials (*cough* Rock Band *cough*). -
Space is more valuable than gold.
I love that Rachel and I can spend so much time together. We’ve had more fun and have had a chance to rediscover some of the finer points in life over the past month. Saying that, I don’t care how patient a person you are, if you don’t schedule alone time, meaning me-and-not-you time, you will drive each other to the crazy house, and it won’t be a smooth ride. It’s easy to feel stuck when you live, work, & drive in the same 300 square foot box day in and day out. So honour each others’ need for space. -
Disregard convention and get things done.
I’ve always found that my most productive times of day are first thing in the morning and late at night, into the early hours of morning. The afternoon and evening equal zombie time for me. Instead of fighting it like every other nine-to-fiver, I’m going with the flow, only doing creative work during prime-time. It feels great, I get tons more done, and the best part is that it leaves the afternoons and evenings for exploring all the glorious sights and sounds around us. -
The road is lonely.
Perhaps the biggest surprise we’ve encountered is how lonely it can be out here. We get to meet great people all the time. But many of the encounters we have are quick and then over. I love it when we can catch up with familiar faces even if for just a quick beer or a costume party. We’ve hit it off with some really amazing people that will hopefully become lifelong friends. It’s always bittersweet because we know we will soon be moving on to the next city and are never sure when our next friend encounter will happen.
So, at the one month road sign, I can safely say that this little experiment has been a success. The RV lifestyle is not only good, it is awesome, and it works. Not only for a couple of adventurous creatives, but for anyone wanting to dump the conventional lifestyle for a chance to do things all over again, just because you can.
Rachel and Travis give the RV lifestyle two thumbs up.
*Except when referring to those Canuck folks we know and love and who are exceedingly friendly. You know who you are.
Posted on November 25, 2009
-
Don’t lie to authority figures.
-
Assume the Position
We awoke to the fiery sun smashing through our bedroom windows like John McLean swinging from the fire hose. The warmth dried our spirits and recharged our optimism. To take advantage of this glorious day we attempted to get out of this desolate RV park and head towards some form of modern civilization.A couple hours later, there we were, hiking down the 101 en route to the nearest town, Crescent City, California (apparently bicycle rentals are a seasonal privilege). What we needed was a good pub and maybe some grub. All we found was a fat banana slug destroying a forgotten orange before yet another encounter with ‘the man’.
You see, in the state of California, it is illegal for pedestrians to walk on the side of the freeway. We found out the hard way after a State Trooper found us wandering in the median and pulled over to have a little chat.
Maybe it was my sinister moustache, or Rach’s uncontrollable tendency to look guilty every time any sort of law enforcement is near (it’s like spidey sense). The officer emerged from his cruiser and approached cautiously like a ravenous wolf circling his prey… just in case my Canon™ was really a canon. After some icy questioning, the trooper thawed his demeanour and suggested we take our scooter down the back roads to get to town instead of risking life and limb walking down the interstate. After a quick pat-down, he took my license, had me put my camera gear in the trunk and let us in the portable jail cell of a backseat to give us a ride back to the KOA.
The officer was friendly once he was sure that we were just a couple of
idioticinnocent canucks, and spoke of kids, the local flavour, and probably some other crap as he navigated down the freeway. All I could think about was the stories (and bodily fluids) stored in those seats… and why we were sitting on a garbage bag.I wonder what the other people at the camp thought when they saw us come out the backseat of a cruiser in front of the office.
Posted on November 14, 2009
Travis and Rachel are traveling America and Canada in the belly of a beast named Walter. He's a Winnebago and he's giving them the ride of a lifetime.
Walter is here…
Creations
The Stray Muse
Experimentationalism
Video
Rachel’s feed
Based on Field Notes Theme. Designed by Manasto Jones. Powered by Tumblr.
