Guelph to Alliston

Wednesday May 20, 2009

After breakfast at the Fairfield Inn and Suites in Guelph, my sister 'C' came to pick us up in her new car. I'm happy to report there were no surprises on our bill when we checked out. I would stay there again. We had to return the rental car to Avis before leaving town and there again, no surprises on the bill. In fact, we were charged less than the quoted price.

Now we head to Alliston where we will stay for three nights. Our impression is that people do a lot of driving in southern Ontario. And they drive fast. Unlike here, it seems to be accepted practice on Ontario highways to drive 10 kilometres over the speed limit.

As a Wizard of Oz fan, I couldn't help but notice this tin man outside a shop as we drove through the small down of Erin.

Now we drive through the Hockley Valley.

There is lots of lovely green farmland and wide open spaces. I had not expected it to be so green. Another thing I noticed in southern Ontario was that no matter how big yards are, and some are quite big, people generally mow their lawns.

After touring around and checking into the B&B (more about that coming up), we went out for dinner with my sister, nephew and his wife. I hadn't seen my youngest nephew in about 8 years and his wife in about 15. They were married in a castle in Scotland.

There is a store and a restaurant in a tiny place west of Alliston called Violet Hill.

The store, Granny Taught Us How, had some of the nicest handbags I've seen in a while. One in particular that caught my eye was handmade (in the UK perhaps) - herringbone cloth & beautiful hardware. It would have just about matched my winter coat, but at $375 it didn't come home with me.

We walked across the parking lot to the restaurant, Mrs. Mitchell's. This picture makes me think of To Kill a Mockingbird - warm summer evenings on the porch, a hole in a tree trunk with stuff hidden inside, etc.

The restaurant was casual but quiet, and the food was good and fresh-tasting. Every now and then a crusty older woman would shuffle out from a back room and beeline over to Glenn. The two of them had quite a banter going on. It was all good fun and a very enjoyable evening out.

After dinner there was still enough daylight left for my sister to take us by some wind turbines. I'd never seen them up close and I must say, they were quite fascinating and a bit creepy. The slow moving blades were mesmerizing.

The units make a noise and perhaps that's why people who live near them have reported feeling sick. Maybe it would be better to follow Denmark's lead and put them out in the water. I'm really glad we got to see them though.