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A Guide to Men’s Fashion in Toronto

Every time I throw on that velvety smoking jacket I found at Cabaret on my last visit to Toronto, I thank Wendy Woods. Owner of The Refinery, Wendy’s business as personal style coach has evolved from meeting you in person to helping you online. Fill out a detailed questionnaire about body type and style, pay the $197 fee, and she’ll help design a new wardrobe solely from online stores. Now she can help clients in Australia, America, Germany, the UK and across the globe. Still, no one knows the Toronto fashion scene better than Wendy, so I persuaded her to accompany me once again. Last time I wrote about the wonderful men’s vintage clothing scene in town. This time I asked her to simply show me the top men’s boutique stores in town.
 
First stop was Ossington Village off Queen Street West to have a look at Philip Sparks’ latest designs. Known for his tailored shirts, bow ties, ankle boots, dress shoes, and chinos, you can quickly see whether you like his work or not. The shop is the size of a shoebox. Then it was off to The Junction, those pre-prohibition era buildings near High Park, where we happily lingered at Gerhard Supply. On display are the wares of many of the country’s top designers like Vancouver-based Ken Diamond, known for his leather belts and wallets; and Toronto’s own Outclass Attire, designers of bomber and casual jackets. You’ll also find a few Yanks thrown in for good measure, like California’s Broken Homme, maker of a brown boot that easily won us over. At the last stop, GotStyle on Bathurst, not far from the Thompson Hotel, I would have happily left my credit card on file and went crazy. Then I remembered that I was a travel writer, not an investment banker. That said, I tried on a sweet light blue sports jacket from Touch of Sweden that I would have happily parted with the $550 price if it fit me. Oh well, there’s always next time. 
 
Thank you Michelle Revuelta and Tourism Toronto for designing another stellar week in town. Always a treat! 
 

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Connecticut in Autumn, The Mark Twain House in Hartford

Twain, aka Samuel Clemens would publish his greatest works, including The Prince and the Pauper, The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, and Adventures of Huckleberry Finn while living in a three-story red-brick home in Hartford from 1874 to 1891. Many scholars believe, however, that the bulk of his writing was done in a small cottage in Elmira, New York, since his wife, Livy, hated the smell of his cigars in the house. That didn’t stop Twain from having fun in his Hartford abode. If you watch the Ken Burns documentary on Twain before touring his home, you’ll learn that he would use the same props on the mantelpiece to tell a different story to his three young daughters every evening. Enter the house with a guide and you’ll see his billiard room on the third floor, where he would entertain guests long after his usual four-course dinner was finished. The interior was designed by none other than Louis Comfort Tiffany and many objects like Twain’s bedpost from Venice, where carved angels sit atop the headboard, are the writer’s original purchases.
 
Even if I was zipping through Hartford on my way to New York with no intention whatsoever of stopping at Twain’s House, three blocks away, I would get off I-84 at Exit 46 and make a beeline to Mo’s Midtown (25 Whitney Street, 860-236-7741). The Polish owners are known for their large, fluffy potato latkes and crispy hash browns, but I’ll order their buttermilk pancakes every time. Take a seat at the counter or one of the booths and dive into a short stack of blueberry pancakes. One bite of this heavenly creation, chockful of wild blueberries, and you’ll be stopping in Hartford far more often than you think.
 
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Five Favorite Family Adventures

In my 20s, I was fortunate to scuba dive the Great Barrier Reef, bike the entirety of the Big Island, whitewater raft down an unchartered river in British Columbia, and backpack in the Mojave Desert. Then we had our first child and suddenly all my outdoor gear was collecting dust in an apartment closet. Going stir crazy one day, I called my dad who gave me the wise advice to simply bring my son with me on my adventures. Next thing you know, I’m biking the hills of Vermont with Jake on the back of the bike, helmet covering his sleeping body. You don’t have to give up your life of adventure once you have children. Indeed, kids thrive on the excitement and unscripted spontaneity of each outdoor challenge. It also doesn’t hurt that many of the finer outdoor activities are located amidst some of the most exquisite scenery on the planet. Now I travel with Jake, 17, and Melanie, 15, as much as possible, and they’re the ones teaching me how to improve my sport. 

 
In case you missed my article in The Boston Globe travel section this past Sunday, here are some of my favorite family adventures in the Adirondacks, Canadian Rockies, Costa Rica, France, and Israel. 
 
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Circle Line Offering Fall Cruises to Bear Mountain State Park

Best known for their cruise around Manhattan, Circle Line will be offering a Hudson River cruise this fall to Bear Mountain State Park. Bear Mountain was a favorite hiking spot for my dad when he was growing up in Brooklyn. They have over 50 hiking trails and nature walks, perfect for escaping the city during fall foliage. This time of year, Bear Mountain is also home to Oktoberfest, the German festival featuring live music, dancing, craft vendors, and all the German food and beer you crave. Starting September 13 and continuing on Saturdays and Sundays through October, the cruise boards at Pier 83 (West 42nd Street and 12th Avenue) at 8:30 am. You arrive at Bear Mountain at 11:30 am for 3 hours of fun before heading back to the city, returning at 5:30 pm. Cost is $60 for adults, $51 for seniors, and $36 for children, including price of admission to Oktoberfest. A picnic lunch is also available for an additional cost of $14.50 per person. The lunch must be pre-ordered the Wednesday before the date of the cruise.

 
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Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast

When I was researching my first book, “Outside Magazine’s Adventure Guide to New England,” in 1995, I assembled quite a collection of books on the region. Two books in particular, “Maine: An Explorer’s Guide” by Christina Tree and “Classic Backcountry Skiing” by David Goodman stood out among the rest. Both authors went far beyond the norm to delve into their subject, introducing me to areas of New England I would have never found. Now Goodman has revised his book and come out with a new edition titled “Best Backcountry Skiing in the Northeast: 50 Classic Ski Tours in New England and New York,” published by AMC Books. Included in the book are a detailed account of the  CCC Trails on the backside of Mount Mansfield, including Bruce, Teardrop, and Skytop, hand-cut serpentine trails that Goodman considers the “gold standard of backcountry skiing.” Goodman finally gets to cross Lake Champlain and taste the terrain of the Adirondacks, like the 35-mile wonder, the Jackrabbit Trail, that connects Saranac Lake with Lake Placid. He also delves into the carriage path trails at Acadia National Park in winter, one of my favorite spots to backcountry ski, and the emerging AMC sporting camps network in the 100-Mile Wilderness section of Maine’s North Woods. The book is a must for any skier who likes to carve their turns away from the crowds, where the only spectators lining your trails are tall pines and birches.
 

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After 5: Medellin

Home to vivid street art and a bounty of sculptures and paintings by Botero, Colombia’s only public transit system (including cable cars), and a burgeoning dining scene, Medellin has transformed from Pablo Escobar’s former hangout to one of the safest and most vibrant destinations in South America. It doesn’t hurt that this city of 4 million people sits in a valley surrounded by mountains at an altitude close to a mile high, offering sublime temperatures in the 70s and 80s degree Fahrenheit year-round. This lends itself well to outdoor cafes and bars, the ideal place to start your night out on the town. To see the rest of my story on Medellin in the latest issue of Global Traveler, please click here. 
 
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Why You Still Need a Travel Agent

Last night, one of our clients, a family of six was flying back from St. Lucia, connecting in Miami on American Airlines. The second leg of their flight, from Miami home to Boston, was cancelled. They were given a hotel room and told by American Airlines to enjoy the next day in Miami. The earliest flight they could put the family on was the same exact flight the next night, the 9 pm flight. Our client didn’t want to spend an entire day in Miami, having just been on a week vacation. Her kids wanted to get home. So she did what any person would do in that situation, she pleaded with the American Airlines customer service rep at the Miami airport to please get her family on an earlier flight. Sorry. No can do. Then she texted us about 1 am to fill us in on the situation and ask if we could help. This morning, my wife, Lisa, a travel agent, persuaded her contact at American Airlines to put the family of six on a Jet Blue flight that will return home this afternoon. No extra payment, no change fees, nothing. 
 
The glut of travel information on the web helps breed a false sense of comfort and independence. Hey, I don’t need anyone to book my flights or my hotel room. I can go straight to Orbitz and TripAdvisor. But what happens when your flight is cancelled, your luggage doesn’t arrive for days, that oceanfront room that was promised to you overlooks a tennis court, or you break an ankle while biking and you need someone to help change the flights without paying exorbitant change fees? In other words, who’s got your back? All of these situations are actual events that happened to our clientele in 2012. Good luck dealing with customer service at Orbitz or Hotels.com if anything goes wrong. You’ll have that extra day in Miami, whether you like it or not. 
 
In 2013, make the shrewd move to join ActiveTravels.com and you’ll always have someone you can call if something goes wrong. Having been in the travel industry for 22 years, Lisa and I have developed the necessary contacts to ensure that you’ll get as close to that dream vacation as possible. It’s an added layer of insurance, which only enhances our true forte, pinpointing destinations around the globe that suit your passions. $60 per household per year seems like a small price to pay to have someone watch your back when traveling. 
 
Wishing You All a Happy, Healthy, Prosperous, and Stress-Free 2013! 
 

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