Thursday night drinks @ Voglie

We missed you, Lynne.

Pride 2008: Toronto Again Outed as Major Travel Destination

Chesapeake Bay Retriever, Emma, supporting Pride in NYC, 2007

Toronto - Pride Week (Toronto) celebrates diverse sexual and gender identities, histories, cultures, family, friends, and lives.

Festivities are celebrated all over the world, including cities like New York, Vancouver, Sydney, San Francisco, Montreal, Amsterdam, Paris, Stockholm, London, Scotland, Madrid, and Budapest, just to name a few.

Here in Toronto it is one of the biggest summer events in Canada which generates tourism and pumps revenue into Toronto’s economy. It has an estimated attendance of over one million people. It is one of the major, if not “the” major summer events in this city. Friday June 20th will mark the beginning of the Pride festivities and it will end on Sunday June 29th with the big parade which will travel down Yonge Street, one of Toronto’s most famous streets. Pridetoronto.com has all the information you will need to know about this 10 day event.  You can also download the “Pride Guide” which will give you a day by day breakdown of each day’s festivities and events.

It is important to celebrate Pride to unite and support one (of many communities) that has historically been marginalized and denied the basic human rights that seem to be automatically awarded to other groups without second thought.  Today Phyllis Lyon and Del Martin, a lesbian couple from San Francisco, can legally exchange wedding vows and legally be awarded the same rights as heterosexual couples.  These rights include hospital rights, insurance rights, benefits, equality, recognition, and the privileges that a heterosexual couple would have, even if it is coming 55 years later.  “Lyon and Martin have been a coupe for 55 years and fell in love at a time when lesbians risked being arrested, fired from their jobs and sent to electroshock treatment.” (Associated Press June 16, 2008)  It is largely due to worldwide Pride events and celebrations that this issue and injustice has been brought to light, and finally some equality granted.

The most specific Pride event aims to bring the political to the forefront is the Dyke March which will be happening on Saturday June 28^th at 2pm.  The Dyke march historically has been a women’s/womyn’s led protest march which is more political than the Sunday parade.  It tries to raise awareness for specific groups within the lesbian, bisexual, womyn, and trans community regardless of sexual orientation.

The Sunday Parade is also a lot of fun!  Part corporate, part political, and part community, marching is a ton of fun!  It is even better than sitting at the sidelines watching.  Join a group, dress up in costume, makeup, or uniforms, and dance or walk down the parade route!  There is no better way to see, and be a part of the festivities, than to march in the parade.  Great way to socialize and make new friends and have fun!

There is a three day street festival with over eight stages of live entertainment, an extensive street fair including community booths, vendors, food stalls, and a special Family Pride program taking place at the Church Street Junior Public School (Church and Alexander).  Spice Girl Mel C, Jully Black, Leisha Hailey’s band “Uh Huh Her”, and Thelma Houston (“Don’t leave me this way”) are some of the artists that will be featured on the Pride stages (all performances are free).  There are events for youth such as the Fruit Loopz stage, and family events as well.  Details are in the Pride guide which you can download on the site or which will be available this week on the streets of Toronto.  There are bar events, club events, films, theatre performances, and comedy performances.  Funny gal Sandra Bernhard will be performing at Massey Hall on Sunday June 22, 2008 at 8pm.  For a complete breakdown go to www.pridetoronto.com and you can download a full Pride guide.  Have fun, and, Happy Pride!

 

Dinner @ Pizza Pide w/Turkish Crew

The Turkish crew is a ton of fun.
No digicam on me, but had my computer...
We made this video and took silly Photobooth pix at Pizza Pide. Oğuzhan explains our meal...

Pizza Pide Turkish Cuisine
949 Gerard st. E. Toronto - ON
Pape & Gerard
(416) 462-9666
ALL WEEK DAYS AND WEEKENDS
11. 00 am to 10. 00 pm

Part Mardi Gras, part Art Parade, part Carnival - the Mermaid Parade at Coney Island is not to be missed!

NEW YORK - One of my most memorable and favourite events to hit when I was living in New York was the Mermaid Parade. It is one of the greatest summer events in Brooklyn. Regrettably of my four years living in New York, it was only in my last year that I attended it.

The Mermaid Parade, which originated in New York in 1983 is an event that is distinctly a product of New York and is only celebrated in New York. 

The parade usually begins at 2pm down on Surf Avenue and attracts a couple thousand participants who march, or walk, or dance in the parade either on floats, in marching bands or in groups.  The entire Surf Avenue rapidly becomes packed with hundreds of thousands of spectators all waiting for the fun to start.

The event itself is part Mardi Gras, part Carnival, part Halloween, and part art parade.  The parade exists to celebrate and welcome the beginning of the summer season and to mark the official opening of the Atlantic Ocean.  The parade takes place down in Coney Island, which is located at the most southern point of Brooklyn where land meets ocean.  It is customary for people to go to the boardwalk and throw fruit into the water to appease the Sea God, Poseidon.

Many parade spectators also dress up in extraordinary marine costumes ranging from mermaids, mermen, sea captains, sea creatures, sea monsters, etc.  The weather is so hot this time of year that most of the costumes appear in the form of  colourful and elaborate make-up and body paint.  Accessories are also thoughtful, colourful, and creative: netted costumes, masks, shiny glittery body suits, jewelry and beads; bright and bold body paint meticulously painted on faces, arms, chests and entire bodies.  Costumes are anything and everything that represent Sea Life, both living and dead.  Costumes, colour, and creativity are so outstanding and brilliant that this event is one of most popular events for photographers to shoot.

After the parade there is so much to still see and do!  The day is far from over.  Coney Island is really an exciting place to be.  It is full of life and full of people with great energy!  

On a gorgeous summer day the entire area is packed.  You can go to the beach and swim in the Atlantic Ocean.  You can check out the boardwalk, the shops, the bars, or get something to eat on a patio.  There is also the Coney Island amusement park, “Astroland”, which is right beside the boardwalk.  Check out the Cyclone roller coaster, or the Wonder Wheel (as I did last year - fun times!).  There are haunted houses, fun houses, games where you can win prizes, bumper cars, shops, carnival food to eat, and “Nathan’s Famous” original hot dog stand which opened on Coney Island in 1916 which has become a landmark.

 Between the years of about 1880 and WWII, Coney Island was the largest amusement areas in the US, attracting several million visitors per year.  Today it remains as the home of the Mermaid Parade, and in my opinion one of the most fun(!!) places to hang out where you can lay on the beach, go swimming, eat outdoors on a patio, and take in some amusement rides…all under the sun next to the water!  This is my heaven and my idea of a great day! 

And all for one subway ride away from Manhattan!

Getting there:

D, F, N, Q trains to Stillwell station.

taken from joe holmes on Flickr

Dead or Alive?

taken from LarimdaME on Flickr 

Good as gold. PERFECT body.

Photo taken from www.bluejake.com 

Gothic mermaid with eye outbreak. Or is it her eyeball collection?

taken from perezishmael on Flickr

7am, Saturday morning, Central Park

Saturday mornings are a big day in Central Park for dogs.

From 7am-9am there are dogs everywhere roaming around off-leash running around and playing with each other.
Emma and her friends meet every Saturday morning for a play session.

Music in video is "Side Long Harem" by Roby J.C. Sound


7am Saturday morning, Central Park from Chantal Sunita on Vimeo.