St Lawrence Market, Egyptian Falafel Bowl, and a Fender Bender in Toronto

I was going to park my car at the subway parking lot again and ride the subway into town, but today is a work day, and the commuters had alreay taken all the spaces in the parking lot before I got there. So I ended up drivng my car downtown and relying on street parking instead.

Traffic wasn't bad. My first destination was the St Lawrence Market, down by the waterfront. My friend Tay recommended that I visit the market, and so did the stage hands I met on the streetcar yesterday.

The market has been around since the 1800s, although the buildings have been updated and replaced over time. Inside are all kinds of meats, bakery goods, and seafood.

They even had the flat Jerusalem bagels I saw in Israel, but the bagel line was too long. I only fed the parking meter with an hour's worth of money, and I parked a good 10 minute walk from the market.

I felt like I had to get something, so I got a custard tart and a piece of walnut baklava. Both ended up being okay, but nothing special. I had much better baklava on my Jerusalem/Jordan/Turkey trip a couple of years ago. Maybe I'm spoiled, but it's hard to beat the fresh baklava I had in the middle east.

I had planned to go back to the Egyptian "Eat Nabati" restaurant in the Kensington Market for lunch today if nothing caught my eye at the St Lawreance Market. So I took the custard tart and baklava "to-go" for dessert after lunch, and drove to Kensington Market.

The owner of the Egyptian restaurant recognized me and told me he was glad to see me back again. I ordered the falafel bowl this time. Not only was it colorful, but it was full of flavor! The flavors came out more in the bowl than they did the other day when I got the pita version. 

All the food served in this restaurant is vegan, and the workers are all very friendly. The falafel bowl has falafel, hummus, lettuce, tomato, onion, pickled veggies, and beet tahini. 

After lunch, I was headed to the library again to update my blog and plan the next leg of my trip. My two options are to drive through southern Ontario and enter the United States at Detroit, or take the more northern route through Sudbury (the location of a nickel mine and the world's largest nickel) and enter the United States in northern Michigan, at Sault Ste. Marie, near the Soo Locks. 

I was stopped for a red light at the corner of Kipling Ave and Albion Rd, only one half block from the Albion branch library, when I got rear ended at the stoplight. The guy behind me told me he was taking a sip of coffee when he hit me.

I was stopped at the same light as the cars in the above photo. It didn't look like his car was damaged, but the bolts from his front license plate frame created two crescent shaped holes in my rear bumper. Thankfully the damage is only cosmetic and the cars are both still drivable. The two crescent shaped cuts in the lower bumper are visible in the photo below. They are minor.

Here is a closeup view of the damage.

We pulled into the gas station across the street and exchanged insurance information. He admitted the accident was his fault and apologized. He said he would call his insurance company tonight. It looks like I will be staying another night in Toronto tonight! I don't want to leave before I understand what I need to do to get the car issue straightened out.

I called my brother Walt for advice, since he used to work for an insurance company and is familiar with how they operate. He is my go-to source for advice when it comes to insurance issues. He's a good brother to have!

My neck is also a little stiff, but hopefully that is minor and will go away. I'll monitor it and see how it feels in the morning.

I will call the other driver in the morning to learn what his insurance company tells him, and then decide my next steps. If all goes well, I'll be on the by road tomorrow afternoon... heading in the direction of either Detroit or Sudbury.