It’s that time of year again. The Canadian National Exhibition opened last Friday, and I finally made my way down there yesterday. Great crowd (esp. because of the Canada vs. Jamaica soccer/football game at BMO Field). Of course my first stop was the Food Building, since I was starving. Had a potato roti (no, I couldn’t afford the one with meat… lol), shared some fries & gravy with my friend and then we rolled out of there after we overate.

It’s a good thing the Olympic Exhibits are right outside the food building. After seeing some awesome trampoline work by some athletes, my friend and I tried wheelchair basketball which was a cool experience (check out my form ).

Then it was off to shop in the warehouse outlets housed in the Direct Energy Centre… got myself some nice deals at Stitches (can’t go wrong with $2.50 for a graphic T-shirt).

We missed a part of the Grand Illusion & Escape Artist show (featuring Kevin Ridgeway and Kristen Johnson), but we did manage to see her get submerged into a tank of water and escape from locked chains which was cool.

As the sun went down, we managed to sneak in a bit of the game by watching the giant screen just outside BMO Field (ended up in a tie game). Then it was time to call it a day.

I’ll probably be going again next week to get more Tiny Tom donuts.

Yesterday was Toronto’s popular Caribana parade, the highlight of the two-week celebration that brings a huge amount of tourism and Caribbean flavour to the city.

It was a gorgeous day on Saturday (after the morning rain let up at least), so I decided to make a last minute trip and head down to see the parade. I think I spent more time on transit than I actually did at the parade itself! Getting from any of the subways stations down to the Exhibition grounds was crazy. My friend and I were lucky enough to get a seat on the way down there and on the way back (makes a huge different walking to the previous stop). The bus was packed and there was a lot of traffic on the road heading down to to the parade.

Once along the Lakeshore, we were greated by wonderful sounds of steel pans, soca music and the smell of delicious Caribbean food. There were so many people, many of which were adorned in in a flag from their retrospective Caribbean nation, in costume (I guess they got all tired out from playing mas), or wearing as little as possible/dressed to impress. What sucked though that all the ‘real’ Caribbean food was on the lake-side of the parade, and there were fences sectioning off the parade from the other side that we were on: I couldn’t find a way to get the roti I was craving! Plus my friend had to head to work, so we walked around for a bit, took some photos, grabbed the most DELIOUS, sweet-tasting corn-on-the-cob ever (which was the most ‘Caribbean’ option available over hamburgers, fries, hot dogs and cotton candy) and headed home.

All in all, it was a fun day (especially the people-watching… if only we were fashion police). I was planning to go to Olympic Island today for the Island Festival, but I think I’m too late to buy tickets. Next year I’ll make better plans though, and make sure I get there early!

Alas, ever since I got a “real” job, I couldn’t find enough time to devote to the festival, especially since they now require all volunteers to work a minimum of four shifts. But I enjoyed it while it lasted.

Being a self-professes shop-a-holic, I obviously ran out of funds to purchase advance ticket packages. I didn’t realize that tickets were almost $20 a pop! Regardless, I am going to have to fork over some cash to buy tickets to the Midnight Madness screening of Wilson Yip’s Flash Point starring Donnie Yen (Hero, Iron Monkey).

There’s also several must-see films such as Across The Universe, Michael Clayton, Elizabeth: The Golden Age and Ang Lee’s Lust, Caution, but for me these screenings can wait several weeks until they’re publicly released in theatres for 60% of the TIFF ticket price.

Visit the 2007 Toronto International Film Festival website for a list of all films, schedules and box office info. If you don’t have the funds to watch any screenings, you could always head down to Yorkville or the Galas to catch a glimpse of your favourite celebrity.

The Danforth was PACKED. I should’ve worn my runners because I got my toes stepped on a couple times, and nearly slipped on a watermelon peel with my sandals. The food was absolutely delicious. I had a chicken gyro, some pork shiskabob, stuffed vine-leaves and some super-sweet loukoumades (honey balls) for dessert. I’m tempted to reach down there again today, but I have a family BBQ to attend.

I’m sorry that I didn’t take any photos to post, but my hands were kind of full with food.

You can watch Mexican Chef Sergio Remolina Sanchez cook up a spicy meal, purchase some bottled hot pepper sauce and spices at the “Red Hot Market” or watch a demo on Indian cooking. What I’m really looking forwad to though is the 4th Annual Hot and Spicy Iron Chef Competition finals! I love spicy food, so this is an event that I can’t miss. Be sure to check out the schedule of events.

I’m seriously going to have to bring some tupperware with me this weekend.

The seed for this festival was planted 14 years ago when local businesses were looking for a way to attract attention to the community – there were only a few tables of food and some local musicians. Now it’s the largest Greek festival outside of Greece, attracting over one million visitors from around the world.

That’s a lot of people. Everything Greek is sure to be here, and there’s plenty to do for the entire family. I have to make sure to hit the Danforth opening day of the festival and grab some lokoumades (sooooo yummy!) I may even attempt to climb the Mount Olympus Climbing Wall. If you haven’t been to Taste, make sure you reach this weekend. Don’t forget your toga (yes, they’re even having a Dress As An Ancient Greek Relay)!

The party is probably still going on, and it’s a great day weather-wise for it, but Caribana just isn’t like it’s used to be in my opinion. Even though the wonderful Carribean music, delicious food and multicultural crowds are still there, Caribana has been marred in recent years with negative stereotypes. Caribanshouldn’t be viewed as some type of Mardi Gras festival with men filming women degradingly, or a place to be wary of possible gunfire.

Caribana has to be more than just a parade. More history and culture needs to be reflected on, especially by the youth. More than likely, I’ll probably end up going next year. I may even reach Caribana Village tomorrow (the event that normally took place on Olympic Island) at Ontario Place.

Aside from the actual parade going on today, Harbourfront is also hosting their Island Soul Festival this weekend (until Monday) as part of their World Routes event. There’ll be a reggae & dancehall dance showcase, tons of ethic food, and several concerts including Jamaica’s dubbed #1 reggae singer, Barrington Levy, performing with his band on Sunday night. Visit the Harbourfront website for more info.

Hip Hop is a style, a sound, a state of mind. Following its steady path, we’ll go deep into its roots in popular culture on to how these roots have extended world wide, encompassing everything from electronic music, tablas, djembes, rock, soul, funk and R&B.

Highlights include the Montreal based collective Nomadic Massive, a special 25th anniversary screening of Charlie Ahearn’s film Wild Style (about Hip Hop music, style, art and culture stemming from South Bronx, New York), Cuban poetess and rapper Telmary, and Toronto’s first ever FreeStyle urban dance and DJ competition. Check out the schedule of great events at harbourfrontcentre.com.

So prepare yourself for some comedic talent, artists, theatre and variety troupes from around the world, descending in and around Toronto’s Yonge-Dundas Square. One of the highlights of the event for me is Canadian comedian Russell Peters performing a free show at the Square tonight at 7pm (let’s hope the rain holds off).

The festival ends this Saturday, so make sure you reach at least one performance! Check out the official website for a schedule of events.