I just wanted to open with a quick apology, for not posting over the last two days. I arrived in Toronto late on Wednesday and have been staying with a friend I have not seen for some time. We have been out and about seeing some things, but part of this stop is about doing some catching up.
Reykjavik To Toronto
The flight from Reykjavik on Wednesday was not a bad flight. There was a little turbulence, but nothing like the previous I took from Reykjavik to New York. For much of the flight, there was a layer of clouds below so nothing too exciting outside. However, I did open the window at just the right time though as we passed over the coastline of Canada. You could see there the sheet ice on the coast was breaking up, it was quite spectacular.
Returning To Toronto
The flight arrived in Toronto late on Wednesday, and I my friend met me at the airport. The friend is someone I met on my cruise last year from Vancouver to Sydney. It was a great chance to catch up and just enjoy the evening, rather than trying to race out and see anything too much.
Although I could not point out anything specifically, I am sure Toronto has gone through some changes since I was last here. There are so many new building and more being built at present. However, there are still plenty of buildings with some historical background around the city as well.
Such as the building below, the abandoned Canada Malting Silos. They were built in 1928 to store Malt. However, in 1980 they were abandoned and left unused. While some of the buildings have been demolished the Silos will remain and be incorporated into a future project.
Toronto Parks
Toronto has a lot of parks spread throughout the city. But some of the nicest ones that I saw are along the waterfront. One of these parks is the Toronto Music Garden. It is possible to take an audio guided tour or guided walk. But today we just walked through and enjoyed the park.
You can see it in the above photo, and it ‘s hard not to capture it in any photo that includes the skyline. I am, of course, talking about CN Tower the tallest structure in Toronto standing at some 553 metres (1,815 ft) high. It does rise fairly prominently in many photos of the city. However, I did manage to get a picture of Toronto’s inner city beach on the waterfront without it in the picture.
Galleries And Artwork
Thursday was a pretty full day, so we got Friday started with a stop for coffee and caught a streetcar for a ride. We ended up near the Art Gallery of Ontario; this building has a large curving glass front. But the inside is the total opposite with a nice timber finish.
Not too far away we came across another rather interesting building, the Ontario College of Art and Design (OCAD). The building does stand out when you see it with supports that look like pencils. The primary part of the building is the three-story classroom block that looks covered black and while tiles half a dozen stories off the ground.
Street Art
Another short walk is an area known as Graffiti Alley. As you might imagine this area get’s some mixed responses from locals. However, from my point of view, it seems to be mostly done in good taste and enhances what could be a pretty drab alleyway. There is a stretch of one or two blocks long that includes some superb pieces of artwork. But at the same time, there are some tacky pieces in there as well.
In the evening we headed out for a little dusk/night photo session. Many images did not turn out; there were some that I thought were ok. Below is one of the pictures of the Toronto skyline in the twilight hour.
I have been quite enjoying my time in Toronto. I am very glad that I have been able to make some time to return to the city. But I think it is somewhere I will consider returning to again in the future. It has been great seeing the city with a friend who is a local, instead of listening to the scripted commentary of a tour guide for once.
