Trip report: Toronto day 1

[Paul B.]

I flew into YYZ from EWR yesterday. I am out here to set up some accounts and to get some coaching from theBruiser500/fatgirl_lover (important). This trip so far has been full of a lot of "firsts" but is otherwise uninteresting.

For the airline tickets, I used STA Travel to book mine as well as Danny's. I was really surprised how cheap they were ($250-350) compared to regular airlines like United ($650-800). I had to go into their office to pick up these international youth travel cards -- they usually mail them out but I booked my tickets only 1 week in advance and needed them pronto.

So the day of the flight, I decide to take the train from Penn Station to Newark Airport. It is my first time taking NJ Transit and I make a pretty newb mistake of waiting on the wrong line for 10 minutes. I eventually get on the right train and then take the "Airtrain" to get to my specific Terminal. It is sort of like a monorail and it's pretty fun.

Finally I get to the airport and look for my airline, Air Canada. So I walk all the way to the end of where it's supposed to be and I can't find it. There is a dead end and the last airline is Jetblue. I walk back and I see a couple of Air Canada self-check-in kiosks. I guess they don't have a live check-in counter to save money? Anyway, it's my first time self-checking in and it's surprisingly easy. I also get to choose a seat next to an empty one and closer to the front.

The plane is surprisingly nice and comfortable. After we start flying, one of the pilots announces, "The weather in Toronto is fairly nice.. it's about 10 degrees Celsius." I'm like OMFG Fahrenheit please. Also, I'm not sure why but everything is in English and repeated in French. Like all the safety directions... even the magazines were in both languages. I have driven to Montreal before where everyone speaks French but I was under the impression that Toronto was mostly English speaking. Maybe one of you could explain that to me. Oh yea, Air Canada touchscreens are terrible. They are laggy and there are only like 3 TV channels that you can watch. I end up listening to XM radio for 1.5 hours.

Anyway, after arriving in the airport, apparently you have to go through Customs and tell them why you're in Canada. I vaguely remember doing this for my high school spring break trip to the Bahamas but that was like 6 years ago. Needless to say, I am a bit unprepared for this. I did not want to mention poker so I just say I am meeting up with a friend from Boston. I guess they didn't believe me (I was told later that it did not make sense to meet up with an American when I could do this in America) so they send me to a special area where I have to give a better explanation.

So this fairly attractive Indian Customs girl asks me why I'm there and I "confess" that I am there to play online poker and get some coaching. I explain how the USA passed legislation last year and the conversation turns into this:

Customs girl (CG): What's the law called?
Me: UIEGA.
CG: (types in UIEGA into Google). Well, since they are online poker sites, can't they be accessed from anywhere in the world?
Me: Yes, but Americans are restricted from playing there. There is one site called PartyPoker that is not open to Americans but Canadian residents can play there.
CG: (types in PartyPoker into Google) Hm.. PartyPoker is a blocked site.
Me: Well, there is a poker forum site called twoplustwo where you can find a post where my coach said he was looking for students.
CG: Alright, what's his name?
Me: Danny Ashman. But that's not his alias online.
CG: What is it?
Me: Fat girl lover.
CG: (smiles)

So eventually I am let through. I then take an express bus downtown to my hostel.... I will finish this trip report later because bruiser is getting here soon.