Diverted by the big city & the storm

We found out that yesterday's high in Ottawa was 34 degrees Celsius PLUS humidity on top of that. No wonder we were cookin'!!! Yep, we thought it was time to leave....already at 8:30 this morning it was 23 degrees.

We left with all intentions of going to a hostel in Barrie, finding a beach to relax on, and then carry on tomorrow to Hamilton. However, on the way, the sky darkened and we were in the middle of a huge thunderstorm. The rain came down in sheets so hard it was very difficult to see where we were going. When we hit Toronto at 2:45 pm, and saw the sign for the Ontario Science Centre, we thought that might be a better way to spend a stormy day. So, we changed our plans...

The science centre was awesome!!! Huge in comparison to the Telus World of Science in Edmonton. We could have spent all day there, but only had a couple hours until closing. We didn't even make it through all the exhibits! When they announced closing at 5:00, I realized my camera was missing. We quickly ran through the exhibits we were at, but couldn't find it. I asked at the info desk, and they had it!! I guess a cleaning lady found it and turned it in. I was relieved...I would feel pretty lost without my camera!

We then headed for our hostel in downtown Toronto. Of course, it was rush hour, and traffic was crazy...I (shirley) lost my patience a bit, but we did eventually find a parking spot (that alone was time consuming) & our hostel. We are staying in the hostel over flow 'cause the HI-hostel in Toronto was full. The overflow is generally university residency during the year, and hostels in the summer. Nice place -- we are on the 17th floor this time, but with an elevator. The rates here are very reasonable ($60 for the night) and it includes a full breakfast for all 4 of us in the morning (yay, we don't even have to cook).

We are close enough here to walk to the CN Tower, and will likely do that first thing tomorrow morning. That was Nathan's request since planning our trip, but he said he felt too tired to walk there tonight. I said I had enough city driving, and the only way we were seeing it was by walking.