A shiny day

Saturday. a bright and shiny day. This is a city of devilish geometry, quiet alien to me. When I downloaded a city map before I came I quickly closed the file in fear. No cosy crescents or winding lanes here, just a logical grid. No roundabouts, but there are scary "all direction" crossroads where turn taking comes into its own. There is no clear priority or right of way, precedence is a matter of who stopped first.

Like Sydney, it is a city of towers of gleaming glass that dwarf the few remaining heritage buildings of the 1800s, but the streets seem wider and the street car rails are mesmerising. At home we have dinky little platforms from which to board, but here you must stride with confidence into the middle of the road.


.

The colour of black

10.30am on my first day in Toronto and we are in AGO, the Art Gallery of Ontario, tuning in to the troubled souls of the departed Abstract Expressionists.

Standing in front of Barnett Newman's "Abraham", I found myself back to the art room of my A' Level school studies, in debate on the concept of colour in black. Newman spent two weeks wrestling with reason, plucking up courage, before transferring his vision onto canvas. Then, the galleries refused to display it. Now, it is recognised as a masterpiece of great and soothing sublety (look carefully). It is a lesson for those who dare to think differently. Just do it.

Cabbagetown

I am staying at the home of my Beth, a penfriend quite literally inherited from my sister Barbara.

By an extraordinary set of circumstances, mystical or magical, Beth decided to contact my family on the day my mother died, nearly forty years after my sister had died. And that is why I am here in Canada, at her home in Cabbagetown, downtown Toronto.

Beth has planned for me the most wonderful fortnight of cultural activity, with time to read and to write, to meet her friends and family. These things I love to do, and Barbara walks with me.

Checking out the check-in

Manchester Airport 8.45am and I am first in the queue. My stay awake all night strategy paid off and now, at 11am I am through security and sitting in a big comfy armchair with free Wi-Fi, trying to stay awake so that I don't miss Boarding altogether. Fortunately, I banked some extra sleep on Tuesday night when I came home from our end of term meal and fell into bed at 8.30pm . Well, end of term for me - but a wedding and a farewell to celebrate and a good reason to wind down.
Back at the Sheffield Ranch the team will be under siege from thousands of enthusiastic children wanting their Children's University passports. So, leaving chaos in my wake, I can't wait to fly off overseas. Escape ! Freedom ! Sleep...

My bags are packed, I'm ready to go. Just as well there is no-one else coming with me or things might have got a little tense today, what with a few flurries finishing things off, tying up loose ends, tidying the house - anything rather than deciding what not to put in that case. Still, I found my ticket, booked a seat on a train to the airport - all I have to do is get on a train in, let me see... two hours. How exciting! Will I make it? Will I remember the difference between check in, boarding and take-off time and be in the right place at the right time - or will I be snoozing in a corner oblivious to the world. if you want to find out, watch this space, my friends. The adventures of Penelope begin....