IUC Travel: Toronto Making Huge Comeback; Best Way To Get There is By VIA Rail
Toronto's Kensington Market is a Bohemian Rhapsody
If you visit Toronto during autumn you might bump into the likes of Brad Pitt, George Clooney or Jennifer Aniston. They’re all regulars at the Toronto International Film Festival, which has evolved into one of the world’s finest fests to spot A-Listers. The rest of the year there is a lot of other things to do in Canada’s largest city that has made a name for itself on the international map.
Restaurants and nightlife is Toronto’s way of displaying its magical powers and creating its own reality. Everywhere you go in Canada’s largest city there is world class cuisine. My favorite area to dine, however, was not in trendy Yorkville. I preferred the St. Lawrence Market area and The Distillery District, where I dined at The Mill Street Brew Pub which serves up the best homemade brew I’ve had in a long time. The culinary highlight of my trip was a visit with my girlfriend to Jumbo Empanadas, the hole in the wall Chilean restaurant in Toronto’s bohemian Kensington Market. The homemade corn pie was to die for. Life in Toronto is more cheerful and less dismal than it was a decade ago. It has become the highest multi culture mecca in North America.
Perhaps the best part of my trip was travelling to Toronto by Via Rail. As a frequent flyer and person who usually spends six months a year on the road, Via Rail has given me an entire new outlook on how to travel safely, efficiently and most comfortably. Its staff is A-1, most refreshing compared to the usually unreceptive and unenthusiastic staff I have experienced that work for most of the airlines today. No delays combined with a staff that does everything to make your journey pleasant, I recommend Via Rail over any other means of transport in Canada. Your trip will be filled with comfort and joy – I guarantee it!
What’s your favorite city to visit in Canada? What about the rest of North America? let us know.
Well, you have to come see us in Montreal too! Great food, beutiful architecture etc. Toronto is also awesome!
ReplyThanks for the travelogue, Ian. Is this where you are hiding out? I have some friends there.
ReplyIan, do you have a source in Toronto? I like Quebec City, especially the old portion.
ReplyConcerning the post about some actress/singer being kidnapped and then after that ordeal being stalked by some one else: I vaguely remembered that news item. So I did a google search. Did not find what I was looking for (occurred earlier, after 1990 but before 2005, I think) but did find the following which is interesting in light of the “like Cordelia” SRRC rambling.
Cordelia Gonzalez – Well known Puerto Rican actress who has made some Hollywood films was kidnapped at gunpoint July 2005. Released after paying ransom. (Wikipedia)
ReplyI am from Toronto, and yes I’ve tried those “Jumbo Empanadas” you’re talking about… I love that place! food is delicious… in my opinion, the cheese empanadas are the best!
ReplyI saw a documentary yesterday about the Grateful Dead, Janis Joplin and others where a promoter hired a train and they travelled all over Canada, Toronto Montreal etc and played festivals in 1970. The scenes from the train were just as good as the concerts themselves.
On a side note, I was visiting Toronto in 1985 no passport required, and when I got to the airport to leave the customs officer was so rude and arrogant, Said “So, you’re an American, provi it. Recite the Pledge of Allegiance”, so I did, but I was pissed off at his attitude. LOL My fond memory of Toronto hahahah
ReplyTurning up the heat, are you, Ian? Caveat!
I’ve come to a dead end searching for further details on that actress/singer kidnapping and then subsequent stalking. “Me” suggested some Pitt and/or Jolie involvement and that entertainment types would certainly recall it. It sounds worth pursuing.
BTW, I’m not “me” or whoever posted that. It just tweaked some recollection.
Reply@Gitano:
ReplyI’d like more of that to come out also. Sounds like it could be quite interesting.
Where is the hot gossip?
ReplyDid you take any pictures? Please wait until I lose some more weight…
ReplyJust Jared just posted a pic of BP out with Madducks and Paxus at Dunkie Doh-NUTS. Interesting detail= Armpitt’s mom and I believe father were there as well. Seems like papers could have been served on the set of SILT after all.
ReplyHey Gitano & Bettiepoop- What are you guys talking about?
ReplyHope everyone has a great weekend. I cannot leave the house without assistance and my husband and children are fishing, so here I am again. Actually been here all morning catching up on previous posts from March etc. Newbie here.
ReplyI think this has more significance to it. This is a playground for the stars during the film festival. Does someone have insider info on something that occured here? Isn’t the writer of BP’s film with NP a writer for the NY Times? Just wondering?
Oh, I read that JH license plate is a tribute to his niece (or daughter)? The name comes from MB’s loss of a child that belonged to a boyfriend after JV, whom I do not believe did that to JA. More likely mom’s bf.
Other things I am wondering about. HG is so intriguing don’t you think? The gaffe about the birth mix-up and suddenly disappearing. The reference to “Cano” or NY Yankee Robinson. What was MO’s maiden name? Maybe reaching here. Could the pittbull be MB and he got fired when BP found out JA was doin’ chisel the nasty with the dog. This is all my opinion. My dream job was to be a detective. Got into sales instead.
Thanks everyone at IUC and to most of the posters for taking my mind off my problems. Free therapy.
@Kramer vs. Kramer:
Me said on April 23rd, 2009 at 10:54 am
Let’s say there was a woman who was an up and coming entertainer. Unfortunately, she had a stalker who got to her. Without going into detail, the end result was hostage taking and 6 days in a coma. The trauma was unbearable, she ended up blocking it out. Then a well known actor reaches out to her (since he’s heard about it…the industry was pretty familiar with it) to try and help her. They fall in love. She’s still not ready to go public, so they keep it quiet. In comes this actress, let’s say it was 10 years ago, before anyone knew that they had actually known each other back then. This actress decides to steal him away. So she embarks on a harassment, stalking, tormenting campaign. Pays people to try to destroy her. Stalks her. Threatens her pets. For nearly a decade. The more this actor tries to reach out to help this traumatized survivor, the more this actress unleashes an assault on her.
This actress tries to further traumatize an already traumatized woman. How sick is that?
Reply@justhelping:
ReplyWho is MO & MB?
I’m from Toronto and have friends there working in the film biz. Ian probably does have a few inside sources there. A lot of celebrities go to Toronto and Vancouver and party hearty discreetly. Celebrities are pretty much left alone in Toronto, so they can misbehave without it catching up to them. A lot of celebrities also go to Toronto and Vancouver to discreetly get cosmetic surgery done. Some of the best plastic surgeons are in Van and T.O.
And all the places Ian said he visited are fab!
Reply@VancouverHigh:
ReplyThanks VH – I love your city too. Commercial Drive, Wreck Beach and North Van are my favorites. Hope you have a great weekend. Maybe I’ll treck there by Via Rail – what a scenic route that must be.
Who is HG? What gaffe? I think Dickey Dett is MB.
Bettieboop I still don’t know what you are talking about. Did this happen in 2005 or10 years ago? I don’t get it.
ReplyMO= first lady
ReplyMB= her old bodyguard mickey
J@Kramer vs. Kramer:
Well for me nothing quite beats Quebec City:)
Thinking about that, why would papers be served now if these two are going to milk this for 8 more months. If they get filed it goes public, no point holding old papers and filing that late. Some states they have to be drawn up within 30 days and filed not hidden away for almost a year . They signed a 200 million dollar prenup , or so it was reported so most assets are already taken care of, no fighting over that.
There are several lovey covey articles popping up not just for them but BBT so it looks like possibly mom and dad may be there to help that image as well, “one big happy family”. Just more fraud.
ReplyI wish US had a Via Rail. The trains in Europe are good, too…don’t know about the staff…but never had much opportunity to talk with them. It’s been a while since I’ve been to Europe or Canada. I would love to go to British Columbia and Quebec. Some day. : )
Reply@Kramer vs. Kramer:
ReplyIm not sure when it happened, ME was vague on his positngs.
MB=Anglolina’s momma
ReplyMO=? but highly doubt its Lady O, by the way maiden nombre es Robinson
who is HG=hue grant
Was ME the one that called fang-a-lina heinous?
Reply@Kate:They didn’t sign a pre-nup. What they were negotiating at the time was a separation agreement/divorce. When a ‘celebrity’ couple splits, there is usually at least a 6 month window from the time they split to the time they announce it for a couple of reasons. It gives the couple time to sort out the details in private and away from the public eye, but mostly it gives one or both time to ‘recuperate’ from the break up in relative private.
Reply@Kramer vs. Kramer:
ReplyYes and a hose something or something hose.
@Z:
Via Rail is though is a whole lot better than what the US has and I have been on some sucky trains in parts of Europe but for the most part they do rock.
Ian better be careful someone is going to start staking out these stations LOL
Reply@shiteatingrin:
ReplyWho are you talking about?
@bettieboop:Psychohosebeast.
ReplyHG is Holly Golly the Georgia peach. According to VancouverHigh, people know things. When was the last time they were all at the festival together, maybe last fall (autumn) or previous years at one of the places HisHighness mentions? A place for plastic surgery too? Wasn’t there mention of plastic surgery for JA?
ReplyI apologize for throwing out bits of data? Just trying to get all the pieces together. There is just too much to absorb. No wonder celebs burn out. What a life!
@Kate:The 6 month window is standard practice. But in this case I am speaking about BP and AJ. They’ve been having problems for years, but the actual split happened months ago.
Replyoh sorry. the gaffe with announcing the pregnancy early to E then retracting by stating HG has an imposter. supposedly an email was via sent that JA had babies. Then the Brangie camp said, no babies. someone has been trying to imposter HG for a year. this email was supposedly sent via blackberry. brangie camp says HG does not have a blackberry. photo shows up of pregnant HG with a pink covered blackberry.
sorry i posted this on the other thread. bear with me first time blogging.
Reply@shiteatingrin:
okay now I am not trying to be difficult but we have had so many insiders on here. You said you were a friend of Jen’s but you had not been in touch with her for some time. You did not amek any sense saying that AJ has IVF for all the bio kids. You have to see my point. Brad leaves Jen , they get Zahara in July, and you are saying that she immediately begins the regiment required for IVF and she bought the sperm because Brad has slow swimmers. I don’t understand that. WHY would she not just use his and have his implanted? and how would you know this? Now I can see you might know he has slow swimmers if Jen told you that, so I asked , “does that mean Jen did not ever have a misscarriage” which you ignored? All of her other friends have said she did, and btw Ia mnot getting that from the tabloids. Next, you said she bought more sperm, now, most people would have many eggs implanted all by the same sperm donor “at the same time” and then have those stored, so that they could have those implanted. But you are saying she went back and bought more again from the same sperm donor. That was the twins. Then, there is last October, you are saying she tried this again, only 4 months after she has just given birth, and a doctor was going to this?? I find that hard to believe.
Now on to the subject at hand, the 200 million dallar prenup, so when did they get married, if you know about this, you should know about that, and where it was, the date, and who was there. How do you know, because as Jen’s friend, I do not get this since you are not in touch with her anymore unless you were not being honest. Do you see the inconsistencies here?
I am not easily convinced by a new person when things do not match up, I trust IAN completely, and while I might question his sources at times, that is just my investigative nature. But this, does not shake down for me….so can you can you answer those questions, because Brad did not have a prenup with Jen, so to think he would ge married again without one is a bit hard to believe…
ReplyHaven’t been further east than Calgary and Edmonton. Love Vancouver, but Victoria and Vancouver Island are absolutely bestest.
Reply@Kate:
Replyright on and well said Kate.
@justhelping:
ReplyAlthough it’s obvious that you are talking about AJ (Jolie), you keep putting JA (Aniston)’s initials in the place of AJ’s. Not trying to be the spelling police, but it gets a bit distracting. Any chance of writing AJ for AJ, rather than JA please?
@Kramer Vs Kramer
ReplyI didn’t mean MO but possibly a reference to someone she loves. There was a lot of talk of politics in previous posts. Didn’t you change your name to k&k or was someone messing with your name? I am just trying to keep track. You seem like a major contributor here along with Kate Keane and others. I gotta tell you all. My eyes have been opened to a lot of injustices that come along with money, power, greed.
Although it’s not my home town, I would say that Vancouver is my favorite city in Canada, and I love Vancouver Island as well. I lived in Toronto for a couple of years in my early teens (too young to really appreciate it), but the winters there were BRUTAL. That humid cold is rather hard to deal with.
Reply@canuck.
Replyshit. i am making my own gaffes. so much for my attempt to blog. thanx for pointing that out. i will stop.
Is someone messing with the site? Comments are showing up in this thread, that i could swear were originally posted in another and have no relation to the topic.
Reply@Kate:You’re making many insinuations based on what your perception of the situation is. I’m just offering my personal experience and insight into the situation and, food for thought. Believe what you want. There are details I cannot offer, things I cannot go in to.
Reply@HisHighness:
ReplyI guess people think we are just fell off a truck. geez..my blood pressure is rising today. thanks.
@shiteatingrin:
typical fake insider answer, you did state that you were a friend of Jen’s, you did state that you can not “answer this right now” those are typical bullshit fake insider answers. If you knew with all that you have “revealed” you would “reveal” it correctly.
Sorry not buying this. Let’s ask Jen, shall we?
ReplyDon’t a lot of celebs have homes on vancouver island it seems like a hotspot. BP has a lot of history here. Surely someone knows something. Didn’t Nelly Furtado live there amongst many others. Maybe “Promiscuos Girl” is about AJ.
ReplyI tried to change my name but it didn’t post.
Reply@Kramer vs. Kramer:
ReplyWhy, I loved that movie!
still crap, crap, crap, Ian real names, dates, times, u got none fu*ker!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyA REAL JOURNALIST would provide DETAILS !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
heheheheehhheheheehehhhehehehehehhehehehehehe
ReplyOh boohoohoo baby
ReplyYou cannot serve papers the way that has been suggested here. A party to a matter is not the one who serves any papers on an opposing party. There are court rules that govern these things. Such an act forces the party to be a witness to the service. So the whole notion that Brad was serving papers on Angelina or even bringing papers for her to sign makes no sense at all. It’s such a silly idea and anyone with familiarity with these things could recognize that. Papers have to be vetted and witnessed up to and including the actual signatures. There is also the matter of confidentiality which would be seriously compromised outside an attorney’s office – not to mention a movie set. There is no way this occurred on a working movie set. There is a reason legal matters are conducted in an office and among employees who owe a duty of confidentiality to the parties. The attorneys and staff handling celebrity clients are even more vigilant about confidentiality.
The only credible talk of a financial arrangement between Jolie and Pitt said it was at the time they discovered she was pregnant and they supposedly wanted to ensure parity for Maddox and Zahara and the new baby. This was sometime in November 2006. It was shortly after that when the only public notice regarding Pitt’s adoption of the kids was available since California court rules required publication of the proposed name changes as part of the adoption process. It seems from the info available regarding the Pitt Aniston divorce that they did not comingle their assets save the Beverly Hills property and the production company. It sems both took from the marriage what they individually earned and split their only co-owned house equally and the production company according to each party’s financial interest in it. We have no reason to believe Pitt and Jolie co-own any property. Property records show Pitt’s real estate trusts own their homes except for Jolie’s Cambodian property. Obviously we aren’t privy to any private financial agreements they might have.
ReplyOh Katie, Katie , Katie, spend more time with your hubby, n kids, u will get more satisfaction out of them silly woman!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ReplyLiz E. said on April 25th, 2009 at 4:32 pm
ReplyI f*n love u truth bearer
Hey Ian! Sounds like you found a good place to decompress! I spent a Christmas with my family once in Montreal, and it was great! I’d love to go there again. And I took a train trip once into parts of Alaska, so I know what you mean about train versus plain too – on the train, its so much easier to enjoy yourself, move about, and you aren’t breathing 50% recycled air either. If you’ve got the time, take the train.
Hope you didn’t miss the chance to get a picture of Sugar Ray Ramone Catone in a Mounty uniform! Lol!
ReplyWhile going through my American divorce, my divorce attorney asked me if i would wish to 1) mail the papers to my soon to be ex, 2) hand deliver them to him myself, or 3) hire a process server to do it for me. So it seems to be an option here. I still seriously doubt pitt/jolie made it legal in any country, i think with her history, it was more or less a weird-azzed “committment ceremony” might even have drawn blood to seal this deal like with Jenny, Johnny, BBT, and half the males in HW. I remember back when everyone was asking them if they would marry (the first time), Angie stated, and later BBT verified, that she promised BBT she would not marry Brad. Seems BBT had some reason to ask that of her, and she had her own reason to comply. Angie is currently out of control and that is so clear to most everyone. Her haggard facial features, her astonishing weight loss which is still ongoing, her bouts of tears and or screaming. Get your forks ready people, she’s done.
ReplyOh , and asswipe, if you can do any better, why bash others while witholding pertanent information or all you just full of chyt?
@Liz E.:It is only the petition that must be served on the other party. Once service has been effected, you can deliver any other documents for signature any way you want to – and those documents are not witnessed, just signed by the parties and the Judge. He could also have been delivering something he’d signed such as a quit claim deed to a property.
ReplyAll motions or proposed orders that are filed with the court in connection with a case must be formally served on all opposing parties. That is uniform process of service throughout the United States. You must attach a Certificate of Service to all pleadings attesting to the service including the names, dates and manner in which service was accomplished. The article here said that Pitt was serving papers himself rather than using a formal process server (using Canadian terms it seems). That suggested that these were papers/filings that a process server would normally serve. If that were so then one cannot serve outside the court rules. If all he allegedly had were documents to sign, i.e., ageements. etc., then you would still need required witnesses as well as the confidentiality that a working film set does not normally allow. I stand by my argument that the article’s pronouncement that Pitt was playing process server and/or bringing the type of documents as was suggested to sign is hardly believable. It strains credulity that people with these resources and counsel would behave so amateurish and careless with any matter of importance.
Replymaybe they already split and he needed papers to take the boys to niagara falls
Reply@Liz E.:Not in family law in my state. In one county even took file by mail, if it’s all agreed. How would the writer know he was serving papers, he could have been delivering papers to her – big difference. Or as justhelping has pointed out getting her signature on the document to take the children to Canada. I’ve had to do that when when taking my nieces across the border.
ReplyDifferent Guest said on April 26th, 2009 at 11:32 pm
@Liz E.: Not in family law in my state. In one county even took file by mail, if it’s all agreed. How would the writer know he was serving papers, he could have been delivering papers to her – big difference. Or as justhelping has pointed out getting her signature on the document to take the children to Canada. I’ve had to do that when when taking my nieces across the border.
==========
My point was simply that the article said Brad was serving papers normally served by a process server as if Brad was serving divorce papers on her. That was the clear implication. If that were true then Brad could not be the one serving the papers. That’s all. Also if as stated here there is a battle over custody, etc. then I doubt one of the parties would be so willing to make it this informal. People win cases – civil and criminal on technicalities. I’m sure Ian could explain that to his readers. Yes, parties can agree to accept service by mail or other methos allowed by court rules but we have been told this is not an amicable parting, not amicable about any issue so why would they be so amicable about this. It’s just too contradictory.
Reply@Kate:
Many friendly posters commenting as “clueless” posters. Beware. Don’t be set up to answer questions with answers easily found on google (or any other search engine).
Am I being paranoid? Noticed many changes on “friendly” posters. Ian, SR, Ms9C, et al what do you think?
Reply@Angie’s Fax Machine:
and there are always the ones who pretend to be friendly, but they give themselves away quickly ,don’t they? 
ReplyI am perplexed by that as well, not sure what is going on, some just don’t have the stamina we have I think.
@Liz E.:
ReplyI actually agree on this, IAN has heard they are in the middle of the paper work, but I don’t think for one second he was getting any legal papers were signed on the set, nor getting permission to take the kids to Canada. You do not need to do that unless you are divorced and as far the world knows they are still intact. Maybe it was just some other type of paper, regarding something they own together, the J-P Foundation, could be anything. Plus it made Just Jared happy. lol so it worked.
@ AFM – yes I think there are a few highly questionable ones, you can always spot them when they start flipping from one side to another and contradicting themselves but I’m not going to point them out for fear of inciting them or being accused of thinking everyone else is too stupid to see it! And you’re absolutely right about info that could be easily found on google. A very questionable poster called Zippety Doo Dah gave me a tutorial on how to be a journalist a few threads back. Her first point was the very first thing I learnt in a journalism course when I was 18! I was obviously grateful to her for reminding me of it though. Next proceeded a list of about 20 questions which all dilligant journalists should ask themselves when judgung the validity of a source, you know the type of thing you get taught in history class when you’re about 13. I was like wow thanks so much for that info, did you get that from the online guide about how to be a journalist from Mr and Mrs Top Journo Esquire??? It was hysterical. I was like that list of questions is pure gold, I’m getting on the phone to my reported friend now to make sure the next time he’s in Sierra Leone reporting on the trade in blood diamonds or whatever he will be sure to ask that list of questions at every available opportunity. I can just imagine him talking to a bunch of machine gun toting bandits asking them “How reliabe is the information you are giving me? Is it backed up by other sources you are reading online? etc etc” – hilarious! I’ll give Ange something, her and her team of clueless dimwits have given me some of the best laughs I’ve had in ages!
ReplyGood! Thank you! I always wanted to write in my site something like that. Can I take part of your post to my blog?
Reply