I've just gotten home from 4 days in Ontario. I taught 6 classes over 2 festivals. It rained most of every day. I'm not a person who has a good sense of direction inside buildings or outside on cloudy or rainy days. I need to see the sun, and figure it out from there.
I arrived in Toronto at 2, and was amazed by the amount of construction going on, and the traffic was heavy. I pulled up in front of the hotel, and started to unload. I went inside, and the desk clerk told me there was no parking at the hotel, but there was some 4 blocks away. I drove to the suggested parking lot, and noted that it said, among other things, that it was parking for the Metro Toronto Convention Center. "Great" I thought, because the MTCC is where I was supposed to teach later in the day. I walked to the elevator from my car, and ended up deposited in a lobby I didn't recognize. I stopped at the information desk, asked directions to my hotel (I was all turned around from driving around in the parking deck.) I was given bad directions, and walked 6 blocks in the wrong direction, still in the rain.
When I finally checked into the hotel, I decided I should go to the MTCC to get my classroom set up. The MTCC is the largest non-sports arena building I've ever been in. It's over 5 city blocks! I entered at the far end from my class. 5 blocks and 8 floors later, I found my classroom. I signed in, got my official materials, and then it was time to set up my room. I asked the Workshop Coordinator where the parking deck was. "Which one?"
Um, -? "I parked in a deck that said it was parking for the MTCC. I assumed it was connected to the building. Where is that one?"
"Well, there are several for the MTCC. What street was it on?"
I had no idea. Because of the rain and the lost, all I could remember was wet pavement and the inside of my umbrella.
In the North building (I was in the South) I remembered there was a concierge. I thought maybe he would have a map. I walked 5 blocks indoors back to the concierge. After 5 minutes and 2 maps, we figured out that I was parked 3 blocks away. Back out into the rain.
I got back to the car, drove to the garage, and parked. I taught my class, walked back to the hotel in the rain, and started again the next morning.
During the lunch hour, I needed to get back to my car. I asked how to get to the parking deck. I went down and looked for my car. I walked the whole deck twice. No car. As it turns out, there are two parking decks under the building, and I was parked in the other one. The security guard tells me that I can't get to the other garage from inside this garage. I walked outside 3 more blocks in the rain.
I got to the other garage and found my car. It turns out I was parked directly under my classroom, and that I had gone the extremely long way to class yesterday. Oh well. I guess I got my cardio in!
When most people picture Toronto Ontario, one of the first things they think of is the unique skyline, punctuated with the CN tower. The photo at right is the tower reflected in the building around the corner from my hotel. My DH took the photo in a rare moment of sun peeking through the clouds. The watery effect created by the glass suits the weather in general pretty well.
