Swanning Around in Stratford

I mentioned in a post back in the fall that my mother had moved to a senior's apartment complex in Stratford, Ontario, which meant it was possible for me to visit her more often as there is a train that runs from London to Stratford .  It was her birthday this weekend so at the unreasonable hour of 7:30 am, I was on a train headed to the home of the Stratford Festival, and the annual Swan Parade.

Stratford's City Hall, built in 1898, and designated a National Heritage Site in 1976.   It was threatened with demolition in the 60's and again in the 70's but was saved by a local citizen's group. 

The swan has been the symbol of Stratford since 1918 when the city received a pair of them as a gift, (there is even a book called The Swans of Stratford, written by Robert Millar) and each year in the April, Stratford hosts a Swan Weekend, the highlight of which is the Swan Parade, where the city's swans make the journey from their winter headquarters down to the Avon River, accompanied by the Stratford Police Pipes and Drums Band.  Above is BJ the Swan, who was greeting people and giving out swan hugs (of course I got one, as the opportunity to hug a swan does not present itself often).  It was below 0 degrees and snowing, his "Keep Calm and Freeze On" sign was very appropriate.  The light snow fall turned into a blizzard about an hour after I took these photos.

Part of the weekend celebration included free horse and carriage rides

 

The downtown merchants hold a "Swan Quest" in which you could win a shopping spree by voting for your favourite decorated topiary swan.  Optical Design's creation, Elton Swan, complete with hat, cool specs and a keyboard, was my favourite.  The glamorous pearls and curls swan was also very well done.  Just look at those eyelashes!

The actual parade took place Sunday afternoon, and unfortunately, I wasn't able to see it, but here is a professionally shot video of the Swan Parade from last year, when it was obviously much warmer.  It's 6 minutes long, but if you have the time to watch, it shows off part of Stratford's charming downtown, and is a great capture of the parade.

The swans weren't the only critters out on the weekend.  Watson's Chelsea Bazaar had some wonderful metal goats and chickens in their window.  I also liked the jointed wood fox seated by the smaller goat.  Watson's has beautiful housewares and gifts, and they also have two store cats, which makes it one of my favourite places to browse.

Another one of my favourite places to visit is Martingale Vintage, owned by the lovely Kelly, whom I enjoy catching up with when I'm in town.   I picked up this heavy cotton jacket from her sale rack for $15.

I also took home this made-in-Bucharest fur hat, and will readily admit that my decision to purchase this was heavily influenced by the fact that it was cold with blowing snow, and I had not dressed appropriately for the weather.  I wore the hat all day, and it kept my head cozy without being too warm.  Kelly and I debated about what kind of fur it was, and rabbit was suggested, and also, because of the colours, we thought it could even be skunk (no smell though).

If those of you who live in other parts of Canada, or other countries are wondering if Spring has arrived in my neck of the woods yet, this photo of the view outside my front door, taken a few minutes ago, should answer your question.

Savouring A Sunny Saturday in Stratford

This past weekend was our Canadian Thanksgiving.  Thanksgiving is celebrated primarily in Canada and the United States, and traditionally is a day to give thanks for the blessing of the harvest.  Our  Thanksgiving is more low key than that of our neighbours to the south; in the United States, they have a huge parade, and the Friday after Thanksgiving, called Black Friday, is the official kick off to the Christmas Shopping Season.  For me it meant a long weekend and as we were blessed with beautiful weather, on Saturday I took the train to Stratford, Ontario to visit my mother, who had recently moved to a senior's apartment residence there.  I had been hit with pneumonia the week previous, and between drugs and rest, was feeling well enough to get out and enjoy what seemed like Indian Summer weather.

When you don't have a car or a license, you rarely get a chance to enjoy what we used to call "a Sunday drive in the country", and I had missed being able to look out the window of moving vehicle at the autumn colours and the flat farmland surrounding the city where I live.  The train leaves London at the ungodly hour of 7:30 am, so I was able to catch the morning mist still on the fields before the sun burnt it off.

Stratford is a city of approximately 31,000 people located on the banks of the Avon River.  It was settled by Europeans who named it, and the river, after Stratford-upon-Avon in England.  It has since become famous for being home to the world-renowned Stratford Shakespeare Festival.  I used to take the bus from London to Stratford a couple of times each summer to see a play and visit the eclectic assortment of shops and restaurants there, but it had been at least 2 years since I'd been there.

The first think I do when I arrive in Stratford is get some breakfast, so I found a little place in the downtown core to enjoy some bacon, eggs, and the thinnest home fries I've ever seen.  It was like having potato chips with your eggs, which is not a bad thing.  The cat-print pants and adorable girly shoes in the photo above belong to a likewise adorable little girl with blonde curls who was having breakfast with her dad.  Even though I chose not to have any children of my own, I still enjoy watching well-behaved kids enjoying together time with their parents.

In the summer and fall, Stratford is a hub of activity as tourists come to enjoy the theatre and the scenic beauty of the town itself.  When I used to come and spend the day I would bring a book and sit by the bank of the river amidst the ducks, geese and swans who collected there.  I had no book this time, but I still took a short stroll to the river to watch the ducks.  The goose in the photo above seemed to be standing watch so the ducks behind him could snooze undisturbed.

I felt like I could have sat there for hours, lulled into a stupor by the warm sun and mesmerized by the reflections on the water, but I had a limited amount of time before I was to meet my mother.  One thing you must do when in Stratford is visit Rheo Thompson Candies,  known for its melt-in-your mouth Mint Smoothies.   The smell of mint chocolate wafts throughout the store and it is impossible to leave without a treat of some sort.  It has become somewhat of a tradition that if someone in our office goes to Stratford, there is a hope they will bring a box of smoothies back for the rest of us, and I did not disappoint them.

I had become aware of a vintage clothing store in Stratford called Martingale Vintage via Instagram, so I made a point of tracking it down while I was there.  The owner, Kelly, was off for the weekend, so we didn't get to meet on this visit, but her employee Lara was very sweet.  The pattern and colours of the maxi dress in the front window definitely drew the attention of people passing by.

The shop is small but had a good selection of interesting vintage clothing.  The dress on the right is a Hudson's Bay blanket dress, made by the same company who makes the iconic blankets.   It was very heavy and would be extremely warm to wear over a sweater and thick tights.  It ended up going home with Lara who had her eye on it for some time.

I have reached the age where I regard vintage bathing suits like the one above with a kinder eye, as I now understand the appeal of a skirt over the bottom of the suit, especially one with micro-pleats!

My two favourite things in the store - on the left, a "some-would-call-Kitschy-I-would-call-awesome" three-dimensional bird and flower wall decoration.  The flower petals appeared to be made out of plastic or shells, and I assume the bird's feathers were plastic as well.  Sometimes you can't explain why you're drawn to something, you just are; it's like relationships with people.    On the right, the other item that caught my eye - a lightweight coat with an all-over Union Jack print.  I'm certainly no monarchist, but the combination of the red, white and blue and the little capelet really was irresistible.  However, as I am getting ready for my annual pilgrimage to New York, I am trying not to spend money, so I left it in the shop.  I did score a brushed cotton romper off the $5 rack which will likely appear in a blog post at some point.

Later that day, my mother and two of our cousins went for lunch and afterwards stopped by Gallery Indigena, which specializes in Inuit sculptures and prints, Iroquois sculpture, paintings, and North West Coast masks.   They also carry an assortment of gift items such as clothing, jewellery, scarves, posters and moccasins.  While my mother and cousins were scoping out the jewellery,   I was more interested in the store dogs, Keystone and Bella, who are very calm, well-behaved.  They are Schnauzers, which shed very little and are therefore better for people with allergies, so I took full advantage of the opportunity to love them up without any unpleasant respiratory side effects.

After several more hours of visiting, I caught the train back home.  Now that my mother is living there, I will have an excuse to visit Stratford more often - I had forgotten how much I used to enjoy my day trips there.   I hope you enjoyed your Thanksgiving weekend.