Before we left town last week we asked one of our neighbours if she would water our window-box geraniums while we were away. She said sure, and asked where we were going. Toronto, we said. For vacation? The look on her face… made her thoughts on that city quite clear. To visit friends, we explained. Montrealers love to bad-mouth Toronto and vice-versa I’m sure. But even the most consummate Montrealer will admit that there’s fun to be had in Toronto. And good shopping. And good friends.
We said good-bye to our dog and our geraniums and went to stay for a week with our dear sweet friends. Fibre artists, food artists, garden artists and all around wonderful hosts, they surrounded us with food and wine, art and opera, made us laugh and spoiled us rotten.
We spent the better part of the week in their garden. When I say better I mean better. We did lots of walking shopping visiting strolling wining dining and wondering besides, but the better part of the week was spent in lush hush listening to the cool breeze leaves and fishpond waterfall. We sipped flutes of bubbly, tasted wine after wine and each night a different late night whiskey from turned jade cups. We learned how to crack open green lychees with our teeth. We flung our olive pits into the peonies at our hosts’ behest. We dined on many delights including: cooked-on-one-side salmon, wild leeks, grilled asparagus, baby bok-choy, black mushrooms, spicy Chinese aubergine, creamy soft tofu, white fish and turnip soup, peanuts cook in star anise, rice cooked in saffron and crayfish fried in a cast-iron skillet hot hot hot. The day after the crayfish we kept finding their antenna all over the kitchen.
Every now and then the neighbour dogs erupted in informative barks interrupting this bliss; backyard traffic police patrolling passing squirrels skunks cats and racoons. Missing our own dog we tried to bond with the fishpond goldfish but they ignored us and even the indoor fish tank fish were camera shy. How is it that their tank décor is so much more glamorous than anything in our apartment?
We came home inspired. We’re going to paint at least one wall bright pink. We’re going to walk to the market every week, rain or shine. And we’re going to save our pennies for our own art-filled house and goldfish-filled garden.
Our neighbour did indeed water our window-box geraniums and our spindly front-step rosemary plant. We don’t have the heart to tell our Montreal plants about our Toronto friends’ garden. As far as our houseplants know we went Toronto for the shopping, yeah, that’s right, shopping. If you happen to be walking down our street and you spot our window box feel free to wave – the geraniums love that – but please keep this secret garden story to yourself.
. . . . .