Day 9: Toronto to Ottawa

Stats:

Odometer start: 13682

Gas:

• Real Canadian Superstore, Brockville ON ($1.23/litre, 39.5 litres, 281.5 miles)

Meals:

• Breakfast: Jim’s Restaurant, Toronto. Sausage scarmbler with potatoes, coffee. $9.03.
• Lunch: 10 Acre Truck Stop, Belleville ON. Turkey bacon club, fries, iced tea. $14.65.
• Dinner: Mango’s Café, Ottawa. Falafel plate. About $9.00.

Sleep: WelcomINNS, Ottawa.

Notes:

Checked out of hotel about 9:15. Drove out via Queen Street East and Kingston Road. Stopped for breakfast in Leslieville. Took Kingston Road as far as Pickering, looking at the closest thing Toronto has to an American 1950s roadside strip. Got on the 401 for the rest of the trip but made detours through Oshawa, Belleville, and Kingston. On recommendation of my friend in Ottawa, I had lunch at the 10 Acre Truck Stop in Belleville, but there was a limited menu due to kitchen construction. Still good but horribly pricey.

Southern Ontario in general is pretty monotonous but Kingston was really nice–if a bit cold and damp. I walked around a bit downtown and hit a couple of bookstores. There was wind and rain most of the way to Ottawa. And really good radio. The wind was especially intense after I moved from the 401 to the 416. the radio got better too; I hit this 1980s alt-rock show that actually included stuff I didn’t recognize. On a  commercial station, yet. Once inside Ottawa, I found this station too, and was hooked.

My room in Ottawa is really nice: 7th floor with a couch and a desk and a really good shower. Its odd that they have Detroit stations rather than Buffalo on cable TV here. Ventured out for a quick drive and takeout dinner from a Lebanese place on St. Laurent Blvd. Called Robin, my Ottawa friend, and also called Mom and Dad

Photos (flickr link):