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[laurel_knx]

It feels like everyone I know is heading to San Diego this week for a big conference (ab_grp and other forumites even!) I'm skipping that one and heading to another conference this summer in Toronto. Can the fora suggest fun things to look forward to in Toronto so I don't dwell on not getting to go to SD this week? Things I like:

1. super-easy-beginner biking trails
2. fancy old houses
3. fancy or hip restaurants
4. dive-y pubs

I'm also thinking about sticking around (since it is my first time north of the border) and seeing Quebec City and/or Montreal. Any suggestions there? Will the Quebecois be mean because my French stinks?

[grasshopper]

Toronto is urban, so I doubt you'll find much hiking there. But as for hip-urban-restaurant-pub life, you won't be able to step out the door without hitting it smack in the face.

I'm also thinking about sticking around (since it is my first time north of the border) and seeing Quebec City and/or Montreal. Any suggestions there? Will the Quebecois be mean because my French stinks?

In Quebec City, probably. But meh, it won't matter. The city is so gorgeous, you won't care about the occasional language snubs. In fact, the snubs can be kind of charming.

Nobody will snub you for broken French in Montreal. In fact, they'll probably treat you better for trying.

[history_grrrl]

What area of Toronto will you be in? The Annex, near the University of Toronto, has gorgeous old houses (they cost millions of dollars, but you're just looking, right?).

If you like Jewish food, don't miss the Free Times Cafe; best blintzes and potato latkes ever! (And it's hip. I swear.)

[socsci]

I know nothing about biking, but Toronto, Montreal, and even Ottawa have plenty of hip-ness going on. If you're going in the summer, you would miss Ottawa's Tulip Festival, but it will still be beautiful. Hip spots would include the Byward Market and the Glebe.

Montreal has one of the world's largest bilingual populations, so another possibility is that people will answer your French in English. Montreal's street performance scene (that spawned Cirque du Soleil, still based there) will be in its full glory, and the "Just for Laughs" comedy festival in July is supposedly the world's largest. There has also been a long-running fireworks festival in July, but the website has nothing posted about a schedule for this year.

Quebec (City) is a gorgeous walled city on the St. Lawrence River, over 400 years old. The only time I got to go there we were hit by a nor'easter and the snow and wind kept us in the hotel too much, but there is great French and Quebecois food. If you can get a good deal, try to stay at the Chateau Frontenac Hotel, a towering presence you'll see in many pictures of the city.

I haven't spent a lot of time in Toronto, but it's great for foodies.

I'd recommend you spend as much time as you can in Canada.

[systeme_d_]

You can't miss in Toronto.    There are so many excellent restaurants and pubs that it is impossible to list them.   If you're looking for something in particular, do post another question.

I would strongly encourage you to visit Quebec City.  I've only been there a few times, but I love that place.  If you do go, you will probably want to visit the Old City, and just walk around.  I would also recommend driving out to Montmorency Falls (10 minute drive from QC), and having dinner at the Manoir Montmorency.  Sunday brunch is the more common recommendation for the Manoir Montmorency, but in my opinion, the evening table d'hote is absolutely excellent.

[qrypt]

Another vote for QC -- there's nothing else like it in North America.  It's really far from Toronto, though.

[crowie]

I don't think anyone will be offended by your French in Quebec City. They are used to tourists.  Similarly in Montreal especially if you are downtown or in other areas of the city that attract visitors.  Indeed, as socsci alluded to, and especially in the downtown area and in stores and restaurants, most service workers are totally bilingual and will switch to English at even a moment's hesitation in French on your part.   For that reason I actually found it a frustrating place to practice my French.  Quebec City is pretty but a bit "chocolate box" for my liking, at least from what I saw of it.  Montreal is a lot more cosmopolitan and interesting and has a very hip restaurant and performing arts scene.  Unfortunately it's been so long since I was there that I can't name any restaurants or venues specifically.

[systeme_d_]

For Montreal, Au Pied du Cochon comes immediately to mind.  A very cool nouveau take on traditional French-Canadian cuisine.

It may not be everyone's taste, but it sure is mine.

[the_honey_badger]

what is the "you don't know her" about in the title?

[grasshopper]

What's the name of that really great vegan restaurant in Mile End? It used to be on St. Laurent, I think, and then moved a few years ago?

They have the best brunches.

[relationalista]

Toronto is quite flat, in the downtown area anyway, so it's great for biking. Lots of people get around this way, and there are some lovely trails along the lake (Martin Goodman Trail, especially). It's easy to rent a bike if you're not bringing one, and it's by far the best way to get around town.

Are you interested in old houses that you can go into, or just to see from the outside? Not sure when you'll be in Toronto, but if it's late May, check out Doors Open Toronto (http://www.toronto.ca/doorsopen/). Check out Casa Loma, which is a castle folly built by a guy with lordly pretensions and not enough money to finish the job. It's a museum now, and is well worth a visit -- and the gardens are beautiful there in summer. There are also weekly walking tours of various parts of the city, many of them free. Check out http://www.nowtoronto.com/ for listings, events, etc. It's a free weekly magazine that's available every Thursday and also has its listings online.

There is a ridiculous number of places to eat in Toronto. Any preferences for food type? A few hip/fancy recommendations off the top of my head: Torito, Hiro, Terroni, Swan Restaurant, Oddfellows, Mildred's Temple Kitchen, Bite Me, Lucien. Take a look at http://www.torontolife.com/restaurants/
A few (of the hundreds of) divey-y pubs: Old York Tavern, Cadillac Lounge, Madison Avenue Pub, Sin and Redemption.

This list is a bit biased toward the west end of downtown, where I live, but there are places all over the city. PM if you want more information.

FYI, Montreal is marvelous, and is 5-6 hour drive east of Toronto. Quebec City is (much smaller, also marvelous, and) about 2.5-3 hours' drive from Montreal. The distances are big, so think about how much time you want to spend in transit out of the total amount of time you'll be in Canada/Toronto. And the Quebecois (at least in cities) are used to people who don't speak French well or at all, so you'll be able to manage, although not without some gaffes, I'm sure. This is part of the fun.

[dellaroux]

And besides, for the really purist Francophone, mispronounced French IS Quebecois....

[laurel_knx]

Thanks for all the good advice!  I don't feel sorry for myself anymore. Canada is going to be fun!

As far as specifics requested-- I'll be there in mid-summer, near the big convention center in downtown Toronto, and I like big houses I can tour (so Casa Loma sounds great). I did know that it was a long drive to QC, but I like road trips. I'm assuming the countryside between the big cities will be worth seeing.

what is the "you don't know her" about in the title?

My sorry attempt at humor... it's from some 80's movie where the nerd is lying about having a girlfriend: "She's in Canada. You don't know her."

[llanfair]

Thanks for all the good advice!  I don't feel sorry for myself anymore. Canada is going to be fun!

Of course it is! You'll love it.  (Of course, you won't see the very best part, which is the East Coast.)

what is the "you don't know her" about in the title?

My sorry attempt at humor... it's from some 80's movie where the nerd is lying about having a girlfriend: "She's in Canada. You don't know her."

That's a variant of a standard joke among Canadians: a Canadian is somewhere, anywhere, in the US and is asked by a friendly American if they know "my cousin from Saskatoon" when they come from Halifax.  (Playing on Canada's truly vast size.)

[socsci]

A lot of Americans have a similar joke about New Yorkers.  They have no clue how big the US is. In college, they were always asking if Minnesota was close to Mississippi, and things like that. The famous New Yorker cover cartoon in which distances of hundreds of mile are portrayed as equivalent to a block in Manhattan captures the mindset perfectly.