Are We Expecting Too Much from the Taste of Manila in Toronto?

Taste of Manila in Toronto is a test for the taste of the Filipinos!

The "Little Manila" in the Toronto streets of Bathurst and Wilson is a witness in approximately twenty five thousand in attendance, and maybe more. It is a big surprise ~ to the organizers and the people who are instrumental to its success.

Taste of Manila is the first street festival organized by the Philippine Cultural Community Centre headed by Rolando Mangante, in association with the Philippine Consulate Office of Toronto. It is a two-day festivities attended by the Filipino-Canadian community and their non-Filipino families and friends. A very festive weekend celebration on August 23 and 24. 

Filipino-Canadian crowd at the 1st Taste of Manila - First Day August 23, 2014 - 25,000 people

Bathurst and Wilson streets were partly closed, contrary to what was originally reported, to accommodate the influx of Pinoys coming from the neighbourhood and the neighbouring cities. 

And yes, for those who still don't know, the area of Wilson and Bathurst is home to many Filipino-Canadians and so with the many Filipino businesses mushrooming the two streets.

Travellers stranded in Toronto due to Ice Storm

Toronto weather creates havoc in Toronto as ice storm leaves 400,000 in the dark across Ontario

The purpose of this post is to advise friends and relatives of travellers who are in Canada for a visit and scheduled to leave the country during the holiday season. Ice storm that hits Toronto and other cities on Saturday stranded most travellers.  Here is part of the news that was published early Monday morning. Read on....latest news at the end of the article.

A “rare and vigorous” winter storm that coated Eastern Canada in a thick layer of ice over the weekend saw major power outages in Toronto, paralyzing much of the city’s transit system and stranding holiday travellers.

The steady dose of freezing rain Saturday night turned roads and sidewalks into skating rinks Sunday, cut power to hundreds of thousands of people, and played havoc with holiday plans at one of the busiest travel times of the year.

Stranded Travellers at Pearson International Airport in Toronto
Photo Credit : James Martin/National Post

At the peak of the storm’s impact Sunday, hundreds of thousands of households were without power — approximately 300,000 in Toronto alone. By late Sunday night, Toronto Hydro was still working to restore power to 254,000 customers. Southern Ontario, Quebec and the Maritimes saw as much as 30 mm of ice blanket roads and trees, sending broken branches into power lines.

“It truly is a catastrophic ice storm that we have had here, probably one of the worst we’ve ever had,” Toronto Hydro CEO Anthony Haines said Sunday. The worst hit parts of Toronto are the neighbourhoods near the 401, stretching the city from Etobicoke to Scarbourough.