| Life works in really strange and wonderful | | | | insight into noteworthy past events and are |
| ways. At the beginning of this week I talked | | | | titled "A Bruce Bell History Project". So |
| to my brother in Austria on the phone, and he | | | | there is no doubt that this is a real expert, |
| said he'd been reading this German travel | | | | even a local celebrity.Just outside the St. |
| magazine and there was a big write-up about a | | | | Lawrence Market used to be the terminus of |
| Toronto-based tour guide who provides | | | | the Underground Railroad, the pier where |
| culinary tours of the St. Lawrence Market, | | | | thousands of the former American slaves |
| one of my brother's favourite places that he | | | | arrived after having made their secret |
| discovered on his recent trip to Toronto.I | | | | passage from the American south to Rochester |
| asked my brother what this fellow's name was | | | | and on to freedom in Toronto. It's amazing |
| and he looked it up and said "Bruce Bell". I | | | | how much history there is, even in a |
| did an internet search and within a few | | | | comparably young city such as Toronto, and I |
| seconds I had located Bruce Bell Tours; and I | | | | thoroughly enjoyed listening to Bruce's |
| knew I had to meet this person. Bruce Bell, | | | | unique stories.From the St. Lawrence Market |
| the popular history columnist for the St. | | | | building we walked north through a courtyard |
| Lawrence Neighbourhood Community Bulletin, is | | | | to another former City Hall of Toronto by the |
| also an award winning playwright, actor, | | | | name of St. Lawrence Hall. It was the former |
| standup comedian and the honourary curator of | | | | city hall of the City of York, that was |
| the most photographed building in the city of | | | | officially renamed the city of Toronto (an |
| Toronto, the historic Gooderham Building | | | | Indian word for "meeting place") in 1856. St. |
| better known as the Flatiron. Bruce just | | | | Lawrence Hall is a beautiful classical |
| recently published a book on Toronto called | | | | building, and Bruce took us inside to show us |
| "Toronto - A Pictorial | | | | the ballroom, the most well-preserved |
| Celebration".Immediately after I hung up with | | | | original ballroom in Canada. The chandelier |
| my brother I was on the phone with Bruce, we | | | | is original, was originally lit with coal gas |
| briefly introduced ourselves and he said, | | | | and today is illuminated with natural |
| come down, join me on Thursday for my | | | | gas.This was the heart of Toronto's elite |
| culinary tour of the St. Lawrence Market. | | | | WASP (white / Anglo-Saxon / Protestant) |
| Sure enough, this morning, punctually at 10 | | | | society during the 1800s and Bruce shed more |
| am I arrived at the souvenir shop at the main | | | | light on the many behavioural norms of the |
| entrance of the market and I met Bruce and | | | | time. Women were not considered persons and |
| the other participant in our tour, a young | | | | could not walk on the street by themselves or |
| architecture student.As the official | | | | accompanied by any man other than their |
| historian of the St. Lawrence Market Bruce | | | | husband. Men had to defend their wives' |
| has special access to all sorts of areas of | | | | honour in duels and sometimes ended up having |
| the building that other people never get to | | | | to shoot their best friend as a result of a |
| see. Right away he took us up some stairs, | | | | harmless (by today's standards) |
| pulled out a special key and led us into the | | | | misunderstanding. The city and country were |
| former mayor's office, since the market | | | | run by English noblemen, and Catholic |
| building used to be the original city hall of | | | | immigrants from Ireland, arriving in masses |
| Toronto. The building has undergone several | | | | after the potato famine of 1849, were |
| transitions, and the two side wings were | | | | despised by the local ruling class.As a |
| removed to make way for a steel-girdered shed | | | | result, the Catholics were segregated, but |
| built in 1904 that was modeled after the | | | | they did receive a spot inside St. Lawrence |
| Victoria Train Station in London.From the | | | | Hall, a big room called St. Patrick's Hall, |
| former mayor's office we had a perfect view | | | | where they were allowed to congregate since |
| of the market and we also had a beautiful | | | | they were barred from entering the ballroom |
| vista of the downtown skyscrapers and the | | | | which was reserved for the WASP elite. Irish |
| famous Flatiron Building to the west, and St. | | | | Catholics had to enter St. Patrick's Hall |
| Lawrence Hall to the north. Bruce took us | | | | through a back staircase since they weren't |
| down the stairs in the market hall itself and | | | | allowed to mix with the English aristocracy. |
| shared various tidbits of history with us. | | | | The portion on the northeast side of St. |
| The shoreline of Lake Ontario used to be | | | | Lawrence Hall housing St. Patrick's Hall |
| right at Front Street, and after landfill was | | | | incidentally collapsed in 1967 and was |
| added, the Esplanade became the waterfront, | | | | completely rebuilt.After St. Lawrence Hall we |
| and today several hundred meters of | | | | walked through a beautiful Victorian Garden |
| additional landfill have expanded the city's | | | | outside of St. James Cathedral, Toronto's |
| territory to a new waterfront.Under Bruce's | | | | largest house of worship, and the 5th church |
| guidance we started our tour of the shops | | | | in the present location. Bruce took us inside |
| which include bakeries, butcher shops, fish | | | | and shared more historical information with |
| mongers, fruit stands, delis, dessert places | | | | us, about the original British settlers of |
| and specialty vendors of all kinds. The first | | | | Toronto and ruling elite of the times, which |
| place he took us to was a bakery that also | | | | included the famous Bishop Strachan, the |
| serves lunches, and we got a delicious taste | | | | creator of St. James Cathedral. Bruce showed |
| treat of smoked salmon and backbacon, each on | | | | us the various stained glass windows that |
| a small piece of bread. I am not usually a | | | | adorn the church, all of which were crafted |
| big fish eater, but this savoury morcel was | | | | at different times. Especially stunning are |
| delicious. At another store we got to sample | | | | the Tiffany stained glass windows on the east |
| "Indian candy" - smoked salmon cured in maple | | | | side which have a particularly intense |
| syrop. What a treat!We walked by some of the | | | | coloration.St. James Cathedral marked the end |
| butcher shops, many of which have been in the | | | | of our culinary and historic tour of the St. |
| same family for generations. I admired the | | | | Lawrence Market area. We had received a great |
| creatively presented cuts of pork loin | | | | introduction to Toronto's history and enjoyed |
| stuffed with spinach, cheese and bacon, a | | | | the diverse culinary delicacies of Toronto's |
| perfect solution for a non-chef like me - | | | | greatest market. Bruce's entertaining and |
| just stick it in the oven and pull out a | | | | informative lessons on a time in Toronto's |
| delicious gourmet meal.After a brief tour | | | | history when women and men were segregated, |
| outside the building where Bruce explained | | | | when society was strictly regimented by |
| the building's history and early Toronto | | | | expectations of etiquette and social status, |
| society to us, we went into the lower level, | | | | and when Irish and English weren't allowed to |
| where all the dessert shops, fruit stalls and | | | | mix made me realize how incredibly far |
| specialty vendors are located. We got several | | | | Toronto has come in the last 150 years.Bruce |
| more samples: a huge variety of delicious | | | | Bell offers other interesting tours about |
| honeys from New Zealand, a sampling of | | | | Toronto's Distillery District, its Art Deco |
| speciality jellies and jams, tender white | | | | skyscrapers and a tour called "Comfort and |
| chocolate truffles that just melt in your | | | | Steam" that takes you through the Fairmount |
| mouth, and for dessert - after all these | | | | Royal York Hotel, Union Station, the Skydome |
| sweat treats - Nutella-filled crepes. All the | | | | and the Air Canada Centre, among other |
| samples we received were utterly | | | | places. Considering everything that I learned |
| delicious.Bruce took us into the bowels of | | | | in the St. Lawrence Market tour, I hope to |
| the building, today mostly used for storage | | | | have a chance to catch another one of Bruce's |
| and refrigeration, but in previous times | | | | tours and broaden my local knowledge of this |
| these areas were the men's and women's jails. | | | | city in the near future.Susanne Pacher is the |
| Bruce explained that in the 1850s women had | | | | publisher of a website called Travel and |
| no rights and many men simply stuck their | | | | Transitions ( Travel and Transitions deals |
| wives in prison, especially after child-birth | | | | with unconventional travel and is chock full |
| or during menopause, when they got a little | | | | of advice, tips, real life travel |
| cranky. The iron hooks that prisoners were | | | | experiences, interviews with travellers and |
| chained to are still visible on the walls.The | | | | travel experts, insights and reflections, |
| basement is also decorated with a number of | | | | cross-cultural issues, contests and many |
| murals that explain Toronto's history. As the | | | | other features. You will also find stories |
| official historian of the St. Lawrence Market | | | | about life and the transitions that we face |
| and a well-known columnist of the St. | | | | as we go through our own personal life-long |
| Lawrence Community Bulletin, Bruce is | | | | journeys.Submit your own travel stories in |
| actually depicted on the mural. About 15 | | | | our first travel story contest ( and have a |
| historic plaques throughout a variety of | | | | chance to win an amazing adventure cruise on |
| buildings in the downtown area provide | | | | the Amazon River. |