Toronto Ontario …Big City, Mulicultural, Financial Center, large population

26 Jun

June 24, 2023

Toronto was a city on my bucket list…but, not so much on Ken’s list of places to visit.  But, since we were going to be in Canada, we might as well add Toronto to our itinerary.

Toronto is known for being one of the most multicultural cities in the world. It is the capital of the province of southeastern Canada. Dut to Its location on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario and its access to the St. Lawrence Seaway, Toronto is an important international trading centre.

Rain was in the forecast for our Saturday trip into Toronto, so, we decided that a self-guided driving tour would be the our best option.  Also, we had read that parking in downtown Toronto was mostly garage parking with a hefty cost.  

The freeway into Toronto was very congested even though most of the highway was at least 8 lanes wide (each direction).  There was were also HOV and Express Lanes.  What in the world is an Express Lane?  The Express lanes didn’t seem to be any different or moving any quicker. Road construction and exit closures made things even more congested and complicated.

As we got closer to Toronto, we began to see large high-rise buildings…lot of them.  To our surprise they were mostly apartments.  I have never seen so many apartment buildings.  Soon, we began to see the Toronto skyline and it was magnificent, even though the sky was cloudy and hazy.  

Once we arrived in the downtown area of Toronto, there were so many large, beautiful, buildings everywhere I looked.  This town must have been an Architects Dream! I have seen several large cites, but, this one tops them all!

Ken did a great job maneuvering through the traffic, one way streets, and dodging the electric trains. As he drove through the city, I was not only amazed by the buildings, but, the amount of people out strolling the streets. I guess they were apartment dwellers out doing what apartment dwellers do on a Saturday…before the rain.

The CN tower is at the top of all of the “things to do” lists. CN Tower, also called Canadian National Tower, is a broadcast and telecommunications tower. Standing at a height of 1,815 feet (553 metres), it was the world’s tallest freestanding structure until 2007,

As we drove into town, we couldnt even see the top of the CN Tower, so we new it would be useless for us to ride up to the top. However, by the end of the day, I did get a picture of the entire tower. 

I am not sure what I thought Toronto would look like, but, I was pleasanty surprised.  I can’t even describe what it was like.  My photos definitely don’t do it justice.  

Before returning to our RV, we stopped at Montana’s grill for a quick Lunch/Dinner.

Tomorrow- Another Bucket List Place – 1000 Islands!