An “unbusy”, weekend afternoon not many weeks ago, I finally strapped on my skates again and went for a long trip up Yonge Street. I was craving ramen and quickly settled that my target should be Ajisen Ramen (originally it was Kenzo Ramen, but the extra 4km was a bit daunting).
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As you can see, I detoured onto Mount Pleasant for a stretch. It really is a much more pleasant skate, walk, drive – anything but shopping – than Yonge Street. It’s also quite hilly, which is exhilarating on the way down, cuss-worthy on the way up. 
Met a rich, mixed Siamese-Abyssinian cat while crossing through a wealthy neighborhood. It was leashed and wandering around in front of the house, but it didn’t seem particularly afraid of me (well, a little bit of the skates). I hung around playing with the cat and taking pictures so long, that the owner eventually came out to ask what the heck I was doing! We “talked cat” for awhile, after it became apparent I was just another cat fan. 
I learned that “walking your cat” is not that uncommon (hence the leash), and they quite enjoy it!
BTW for other skaters/cyclists, after the shops at Lawrence ends, the strip of Yonge leading up to York Mills has a great incline: maybe 10-15 degree slope for about 500m? It was awesome, although I tried to put out of my mind what would happen if I wiped out. I even flirted with the idea of taking pictures with my new camera along the way, but that’s a level of recklessness I have yet to reach! 
And, yes, the other side of that incline was every bit as unpleasant as one might imagine.
Ajisen Ramen is an adequate place to get a ramen fix, IMO. I think its main assets are large variety of ramens and convenient access by subway. While eating, though, I was surprised to hear Christian worship music playing, and noticed a large “Praise the Lord” sign above the doorway. Fine by me, of course, but I was surprised a business would proclaim its religion so clearly.
After exploring Mel Lastman Square for some night pictures and just relaxed skating, it was time to head home. I had neglected to pack any shoes to switch into, but discovered that you can easily sneak into the subway on skates if you go to the unmanned, automated-entry-only subway entrances (I think they all have one). I don’t know if I was seen on the security camera, but at least no one came to haul me away! There was no way I was ready to skate another 8km back! 
