Torontovibe
Senior Member
Looks like some large sculptures are going to frame the main entrance
Toronto Bisha Hotel and Residences | 146.91m | 44s | Lifetime | Wallman Architects
- Thread starter cabeman
- Start date
Bogtrotter
Senior Member
Nicely done at street level although I'm not sure the facade will ultimately go well with the apparent grandiosity of those sculptures.
vatche
Senior Member
Nice entrance and nice patio set up.
Here are some shots from Bisha's soft opening today which did not make the front page story (where you'll find lots more to look at):
General Manager Jacques LaPierre hosting:
Mayor Tory speaking:
Charles Khabouth takes the mic:
Brian Brown pulls the drapes off of one of Jun Kaneko's 'dango' heads.
Ribbon Cutting:
Ceremony over, the new entrance:
The lobby lounge bar:
Way up top in 'Kost', pronounced 'coast'.
Outside:
Back down at ground level, the café:
And another look at Kaneko's 'dango' heads:
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General Manager Jacques LaPierre hosting:
Mayor Tory speaking:
Charles Khabouth takes the mic:
Brian Brown pulls the drapes off of one of Jun Kaneko's 'dango' heads.
Ribbon Cutting:
Ceremony over, the new entrance:
The lobby lounge bar:
Way up top in 'Kost', pronounced 'coast'.
Outside:
Back down at ground level, the café:
And another look at Kaneko's 'dango' heads:
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Attachments
vatche
Senior Member
What's up with with that huge glass wall around the pool?
condovo
Senior Member
Why is John Tory at the ribbon cutting for a private business venture?
vatche
Senior Member
Y not make it an infinity pool.
During the winter when it becomes a skating rink, skaters would go right over the side, trying to get the last drops of their gluehwein.
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The Mayor, City Councillors, MPs and MPPs regularly show up at sod turnings, ground breakings, and ribbon cuttings, whenever the project is deemed of appropriate significance, public or private. One of the government's jobs is to shepherd the economy, so showing up to wish an above-board enterprise well is considered a part of the government's ambassadorial activities.
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vatche
Senior Member
MetroMan
Senior Member
I really didn't want to be the one to tell Charles — I thought that one of the many people involved on the project would have done their due diligence and figured it out — but Bisha is the derogatory word for homosexual in several languages. Slightly different spelling (sh instead of ch) but phonetically identical. It literally means f%$*t. Tell a Brazilian that you’re staying at Bisha and they’ll spit their cornflakes out of their nose.
For a hotel in such a multicultural city and one that has international aspirations, I really can’t believe they went ahead with that branding.
Here’s what Google images comes up with: https://www.google.ca/search?q=bich...afWAhVL54MKHQreCiwQ_AUICigB&biw=1903&bih=1330
I debated whether to bring it up here because I didn’t want to offend anybody and honestly thought that after years of building this thing, they’d have figured it out and changed the name. Nope. They actually cut the ribbon and there’s a building in Toronto’s skyline with that word.
For a hotel in such a multicultural city and one that has international aspirations, I really can’t believe they went ahead with that branding.
Here’s what Google images comes up with: https://www.google.ca/search?q=bich...afWAhVL54MKHQreCiwQ_AUICigB&biw=1903&bih=1330
I debated whether to bring it up here because I didn’t want to offend anybody and honestly thought that after years of building this thing, they’d have figured it out and changed the name. Nope. They actually cut the ribbon and there’s a building in Toronto’s skyline with that word.
AlbertC
Superstar
Gotta be some pretty sweet views up there at Kost.
So what, who cares?
"Charles" is an anglicization of his real first name, Bechara. Bisha was his nickname when growing up in Lebanon. Here's where Toronto's (and the world's) multiculturalism kicks in: Anyone who can't handle the fact the name means one thing in one language and something in another language is an immature asshole, and they can stay somewhere else.
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Jasonzed
Senior Member
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bisha'a
All Truth Tellers should be offended if they stay at the Bisha Hotel because Bisha is a ritual practiced by the Bedouin tribes as a form of lie detection where no witnesses were present.
"The basic ritual consists of the accused being asked to lick a hot metal object (spoon, ladle, rod, etc.) thrice. He is provided with water for rinsing after the ceremony. He is then inspected by the official who presides over the ceremony - the Mubesha (or Mubasha) and by the designated witnesses of the ritual. If the person undergoing the ritual is found to have a scarred or burnt tongue, it is concluded that he was lying. The Howeitat Bedouin call this ritual "the true light of God". "
Bisha is also a town in Saudi Arabia.
All Truth Tellers should be offended if they stay at the Bisha Hotel because Bisha is a ritual practiced by the Bedouin tribes as a form of lie detection where no witnesses were present.
"The basic ritual consists of the accused being asked to lick a hot metal object (spoon, ladle, rod, etc.) thrice. He is provided with water for rinsing after the ceremony. He is then inspected by the official who presides over the ceremony - the Mubesha (or Mubasha) and by the designated witnesses of the ritual. If the person undergoing the ritual is found to have a scarred or burnt tongue, it is concluded that he was lying. The Howeitat Bedouin call this ritual "the true light of God". "
Bisha is also a town in Saudi Arabia.