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Greektown in Toronto

sstackho

By sstackho
in World Soccer

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RS Grand Master

RS

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quote:Originally posted by Polish_LYNX_Fan

i'm pretty sure if you go there they will point you in the rite direction just follow teh crowd :) and dude you really made a mess in your grammer ;) hehehe

Now that's funny.

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Massive Attack Newbie

Massive Attack

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sstackho, if its not too late, I can suggest a really good restaurant on the Danforth. Its called Ampeli. It's on the north side. It's my favourite place to eat on the Danforth. Best Greek Salad and souvlaki I ever had. The only problem is that they don't have a TV. Right across the street from it there is a bar with big screen TVs (it one of those generic pubs, Fox and Fiddle or Firkin, I'm not sure).

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sstackho Experienced

sstackho

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Thanks for all the advice, and of course the off-topicness that makes this board great. "Like being punched in the face by a stranger" - classic!!

I'm not too concerned about an overabundance of Greek flags on Canada Day. I think the immigrant communities here are very fond of the country in which they live, but take pride in where they come from as well. They won't forget it's Canada Day. In Little Portugal yesterday, there were a number of cars with both Portuguese and Canadian flags. And I'll be wearing my Canada jersey today. :)

re: Czech restaurants - I wasn't sure if they existed here. When watching the end of the Czech-Dutch game in Brooklyn, I was surprised to find the bar dominated by Czech fans. Then the next day in Manhattan, I got to talking with a Slovakian guy who mentioned that there are even Slovakian restaurants in NYC!

re: Greek food. Thanks for the advice, Massive. I'll probably combine eating and watching, so I probably won't make it to Ampeli (unless all the cooks are watching the game and refusing to prepare food). My fave restaurant in the area is Mezes.

Today, we'll just get off at the Chester subway station and wander around until we find something good!

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sstackho Experienced

sstackho

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quote:Originally posted by sstackho

I'm not too concerned about an overabundance of Greek flags on Canada Day. I think the immigrant communities here are very fond of the country in which they live, but take pride in where they come from as well. They won't forget it's Canada Day. In Little Portugal yesterday, there were a number of cars with both Portuguese and Canadian flags. And I'll be wearing my Canada jersey today. :)

Here's a feel-good article from the Globe on the subject:

It's great to be Greek on Canada's birthday

PETER CHENEY

With a report from Mary Nersessian

792 words

2 July 2004

The Globe and Mail

A1

English

All material copyright Bell Globemedia Publishing Inc. or its licensors. All rights reserved.

If you wanted to see the new face of Canada Day, Danforth Avenue was a good place to start. There, wearing a Greek flag like Superman's cape, Bill Lolas celebrated his bifurcated national loyalty by spending Canada's birthday watching the Greek soccer team defeat the Czechs.

The game turned Danforth Avenue into a madhouse, filled with cheering fans and honking cars festooned with Greek and Canadian flags. Mr. Lolas, who is of Greek descent but grew up in Canada, summed up his feelings: “Today, I'm more Greek than Canadian,” he said. “Except if they lost – then I'd be more Canadian than Greek.”

For Mr. Lolas, the confluence of Canada Day and Greece's appearance at the Euro 2004 soccer tournament created a perfect day: “Officially, it's Canada Day,” Mr. Lolas, a 23-year-old student, said. “Unofficially, it's Greek Day, too.”

His feelings were echoed by Jack Grigoriadis, a 43-year-old stock trader from Barrie, who came to Toronto to pick up his uncle for a Canada-Day weekend fishing trip.

“I'm Canadian, and I'm Greek too,” he said. “It's a good thing. Most of my friends are from somewhere else, but we're all Canadian. This is the greatest country in the world. It's a peaceful country, and we all get along. How can you not love that?”

Canada's birthday, once known as Dominion Day, has changed along with the country itself, which has become one of the most ethnically diverse in the Western world. Nowhere was that more apparent than in Toronto.

Although the Danforth is the heart of Toronto's Greek community, people of all walks were drawn to the scene as the Greek team won in overtime against the Czechs. Gurnam Sandhu, who went to the Danforth with Greek friends, described his cultural loyalties as follows: “My parents are from India. I'm Canadian. But today I'm Greek.”

Yesterday's celebrations were imbued with the cultural acceptance that has become a central quality of life in the new Canada. Muluye Mesafint, who came to Canada from Ethiopia in 1997, went to the Danforth with her husband and 2½-year-old daughter to take in the scene.

“We're here to celebrate this victory and to share in their happiness,” Ms. Mesafint said. She and her husband said it was important for their young daughter to be part of the Greek-themed festivities. “In the future she will grow up with them — we want her to see this, and to get used to it.”

Chow Seck Chieu, originally from Singapore, went to the Danforth because it was the first time that Greece has qualified for the Euro finals.

“I came to join the celebration,” he said.

Daniel Wolenarian, originally from Ethiopia, said he had spent two years living in Greece before arriving in Canada. “They are my people,” he said, when asked why he went to the Danforth celebration.

The Greek win set the stage for what promises to be a cultural extravaganza in Toronto on Sunday, when Greece plays Portugal for the Euro championship. Toronto's large Portuguese community has displayed the same kind of fervour as the Greeks when it comes to their national team.

Mayor David Miller was enthusiastic yesterday as he contemplated the final match: “It's great,” he said. “It's Toronto. It's fantastic. What more could you want for the city of Toronto than to have Greece playing Portugal. You couldn't have planned this better.”

Jim Theodoropoulos, part of a group of friends who paid $80 for an old Chevy Corsica on which they painted the Greek flag, said he considered himself both Greek and Canadian: “There's nothing better than celebrating two heritages on Canada Day,” he said as a group of revellers climbed onto the car after the Greek win, crushing its roof.

Not everyone paid attention to soccer yesterday. At Ashbridges Bay Park, a group of young friends whose families relocated from Hong Kong to Canada in the 1980s got together for what has become a Canada Day tradition.

“We love being Canadian,” said Alison Ma, who came with 14 of her friends to spend the day barbecuing, playing beach volleyball and watching fireworks. “It's a lot of fun.”

Ms. Ma and her friends met in high school at York Mills Collegiate, and have remained close, even though they are now in university. For all of them, being part of Canada and its multicultural reality is a central part of their identity.

“We're Canadians,” Ms. Ma said. “That's who we are.”

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DJT Newbie

DJT

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quote:Originally posted by sstackho

Here's a feel-good article from the Globe on the subject:

Feel-good? Maybe some of it, but this quote makes me feel sick:

quote:“Today, I'm more Greek than Canadian,” he said. “Except if they lost – then I'd be more Canadian than Greek.”
I can't even begin to explain what's wrong with that.

And this one puzzles me:

quote:Jim Theodoropoulos, part of a group of friends who paid $80 for an old Chevy Corsica on which they painted the Greek flag, said he considered himself both Greek and Canadian: “There's nothing better than celebrating two heritages on Canada Day,” he said as a group of revellers climbed onto the car after the Greek win, crushing its roof.
Just how did these people celebrate Canada?
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