Kingston, Ontario - May 2025

  Sunrise began with an incredible pink sky over the airfield at Halifax International Airport. The Porter Airlines Embraer 195 aircraft provided an incredibly smooth flight all the way to Toronto. It was less than half full Any fight goes better when, instead of a tiny bag of pretzels for breakfast, you can have a home-prepared breakfast tray. A little effort the night before pays off big time. As we were in final descent for Pearson Airport, we passed the iconic core of downtown Toronto, bathed in  early morning light. As we drove across Toronto, from the airport in Mississauga, to the east, we passed several large Hudson’s Bay department stores. It is surreal to imagine that, in a few short weeks, this icon of Canada will cease to exist across the country. From Highway 401, just before the the ramp to Colborne, one sees this massive apple belonging to The Big Apple apple company and, on a holiday Saturday like this, that massive apple was drawing in hordes of people, includ...

For a guy who is on the National Parole Board, the day held excitement when I woke up: a tour of Kingston Penitentiary.  Now, you may be thinking, "Why would you want to visit a prison on your vacation?"  And that's a good point. But getting to see Kingston Pen or any maximum security prison is a rare glimpse inside part of our society that one doesn't often (or ever) get to see, even for a Parole Board member. When it closed in 2013, Kingston Pen concluded a 177-year history as Canada's oldest federal prison. Its history is colourful and storied.  All that to say, the experience was very memorable. Beyond that, we took in a couple of other quick sights in Kingston before checking out of the Marriott at noon and heading west on the 401, with what felt like a million other travelers, all heading back to the centre of the universe (a.k.a. Toronto) at the end of a holiday weekend. There were two social stops enroute:  Trenton and Oshawa.  We returned the rental car...