.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario

Toronto’s Hockey Hall of Fame

03a One Clue Mystery – Copy

It’s hard for non-Canadians to understand just how popular ice hockey is in Canada.  It’s bigger than football (soccer) in Europe.  Bigger than cricket in India.  Bigger even than NFL or college football in the USA.  Canadians consider hockey to be THEIR game, and that is reflected in Canadian culture.  If two Canadians meet somewhere, chances are they’ll probably talk about hockey.
Most young boys (and probably girls today) learn to skate, hold a hockey stick, and handle a puck while you skate.  When I was in grade school, my friends and I would often play hockey on a small patch of ice my dad made for us every winter.  We were clearly amateurs, but it was a lot of fun …

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.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario

“Pic of the Week”, May 15, 2020: Reflections of Toronto

01 Reflections of Toronto

While I admire buildings made of stone and brick more than those made of cement and glass, there are features to be enjoyed in modern architecture.  Toronto is filled with dozens of gleaming skyscrapers, many of which reflect the city.
(Click on thumbnails to enlarge, right arrow to advance slideshow)


 

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“Pic of the Week”, January 27, 2017: A Visit to Toronto’s Victoria University

13 Victoria University

Strolling about the neighborhood of the Ontario Legislative Building, Toronto, I came across a pretty college campus.  This is Victoria University (known as Victoria College), a beautiful and historic school.

Not a large campus, it’s a pleasant place to explore on foot — to enjoy the architecture and some of its interesting art.

It wasn’t until later than I learned a little more about the place.  Victoria University was founded in 1836 by royal charter from King William IV.   Victoria became part of the University of Toronto in 1890.  It consists of Victoria College, an arts and science college, and Emmanuel College, a theological school associated with the United Church of Canada.

Victoria is one of the …

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.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario

Old City Hall, Toronto, Canada

02 Old Toronto City Hall

In a city with hundreds of gleaming new skyscrapers, I found it refreshing to see and visit a view a few of Toronto’s older buildings, including this one in particular.  It was designed by noted Toronto architect, Edward James Lennox (who also designed Casa Loma).  The project took almost 10 years to complete, opening in 1899,  and came in at the then hefty sum of $2.5 million.  It’s a huge square quad building with a central courtyard.  Two types of colored stone were used in the construction: 1) grey from the Credit River Valley in Ontario, and 2) brown from New Brunswick.  To give you an idea of the scale of the project, it took the equivalent of …

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.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario

Signs of Toronto

02 Signs of Toronto, Queen Street.  CP 24 News

Toronto is one of Canada’s great cities.  Often called the “New York of the North” (I presume as a complement), it’s a fun place to visit.  There’s lots to see and do in Toronto, from the amazing CN Tower which soars 1815 ft (553 m) into the clouds, to enjoying great architecture,  to endulging in a large assortmant of great restaurants and markets.  We’ll be discussing Toronto in more depth in the coming months.

Today I’d like to introduce you to Toronto through a series of photos taken while walking around the city’s many neighborhoods, and showing you some of the its signage and ads.  I’m always fascinating by the glimpses these images can provide into a city’s character.  This post …

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.All Trips / Eastern Canada / North America / Ontario

St. Lawrence Market, Toronto

022 St. Lawrence Market.  Toronto 7-2014

I’ve a fondness for visiting Farmers’ Markets in my travels.  One of the finest markets I’ve ever been to is the St. Lawrence Market in Toronto.  This market was recognized by National Geographic as the “world’s best food market” in 2012.  It’s one of two main markets in Toronto, the other being the Kensington Market.

The quality of the food in the market is superb.  Extremely fresh produce, meat, seafood and a wonderful assortment of cheeses and baked goods.  Much of the food is locally grown, often in farms north of Toronto but also the Niagara peninsula, and it’s supplemented with seafood from the maritime provinces and St. Lawrence seaway.  Many of the cheeses are made in Quebec but there are …

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