Visitors from New York!

An influx of visitors from Hoboken is a new spring phenom in our little part of Toronto. First the Paladino family avec NZ nanny paid a fleeting overnight visit to our apartment while we were in Europe. Rowan and Jim brought the kids up to Niagara Falls and a quick whisk around the sights of Toronto. Sadly they’d left by the time we got home.

Three days after arriving back home, Mac and Jennifer drove up from NYC for a long weekend. Arriving on Friday afternoon Jennifer and I dived straight into Julie and Julia style kitchen antics with my new best friend Julia Childs Mastering the Art of French cooking.

Julia's Boeuf Bourguignon was the dish de jour along with tiny minted steamed potatoes, and buttered peas.
We braised tiny cipolini onions in red wine and broth then sauteed mushrooms following Julia’s instructions to the letter. We browned the meat (Jennifer did actually) then drowned everything in red wine and cooked for the required hours.

Meantime Mac (Mcgregor) arrived home from London (Ontario!) with Uncle Mark and Uncle Chris amidst the chaos of the Hartshorns arrival, my baking an orange syrup cake and prepping for the Boeuf Bourg.

After a couple of drinks the Uncles left to party the night away in Toronto and we headed up to Panorama  for a drink on the 51st floor balcony overlooking the city, harbour and islands as the sun went down.

Cherry Beach on a chilly April morning.

Keen to show off our new hometown to our Noo Jersey mates we power toured as many of our fav places as we could without being too frenetic. Pre-breakfast walk at Cherry Beach, Lobster buying at the Chines market and a real Canadian brunch at St Lawrence Market set us up for the day.

A trip up the 533m (1870ish ft) CN tower sorted the men from the acrphobiacs. Pip and I really did not want to walk on the glass floor but both did in varied degrees. (Well I toed it!) Snow showers swept through beneath the tower to envelope Toronto in misty spring clouds. Once down from the tower we split up, the girls heading for Yorkville to window shop, the boys for Yorkville to prop up Hemmingways bar.

We steamed 6 lobsters in wine for dinner, a la Julia Child. Jennifers old friend Susan and husband joined us for a fun evening.

Julie and Julia's lobsters steamed in wine!

Sunday we walked along the waterfront boardwalk, then met Susan for lunch at the Rosedale Diner on the back patio. The diner is a local icon, the foods great.  Pip and I had lunched earlier in the week alongside Laura Calder of French Cooking at Home fame.

Monday morning saw the weary Hartshorn’s headed for Niagara and a lunch date in Pennsylvania then home to Hoboken by nightfall. Pip sloped off to work and I collapsed on the sofa in the sun with little Mac and a cup of tea and put my feet up for the first time in three weeks. Good times had by all.