This is the second in a 3 part series about our family road trip north to visit with family and experience a little bit of our northern neighbor, Canada. The last post explored Niagara Falls and the future post will cover Montreal and Quebec City.
Toronto
From the moment we set eyes on Toronto, we loved it. My Facebook post from the day read, “So clean! So diverse! So cool!” And indeed, Toronto is all of those things–a major city that you feel at home in with endless opportunities for engagement and exploration.
Since I love food, St. Lawrence Market was a must for me. The Market has been serving Toronto since 1803 and was highlighted as a top food market in the world by National Geographic. And since Anthony Bourdain paid it a visit you know it’s legit (RIP, dear chef). We tried the pea meal bacon sandwich, a local speciality from Carousel Bakery. Our family’s vegan found a raw, plant-based option for lunch. The Market has all kinds of food options and is also a great spot to people watch.
We love museums and the Royal Ontario Museum is phenomenal. It is one of the largest museums in North America and the largest in Canada. Enjoy exploring its collections of art, world culture, and natural history. If you have children with you, the ROM encourages its young visitors to explore and learn about the world with appealing exhibits that invite discovery and pique curiosity.
The current exhibitions focused on futuristic designer Iris Van Herpen’s “Transforming Fashion” and architect Phillip Beasley’s interactive installations “Transforming Space”. (My niece and I were so inspired by this special exhibition, we both vowed to renew our art practices, and almost a year later, I graduated with my A.A. in Art. Thanks, HV!) One visit to the ROM simply isn’t enough, and when we return to Toronto, we will be sure to return.
Walking from the ROM to dinner, we stopped at the University of Toronto’s Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, just in time before it closed. Libraries may not be a popular tourist destination but can be a fascinating stop and provide insight into the place you are visiting. We drank in the funky, retro space and peered at some exhibit materials before continuing on.
After a family dinner, I headed back to the hotel room and my husband and two daughters enjoyed a Toronto Blue Jays game. I got some needed sleep and they had a fabulous time at the game–what a wonderful end to our day in Toronto!
Thank you, Ontario, for the memories–we had a wonderful time and will definitely return when we have more time to explore your endless offerings.
Thank you for reading Part Two of my 3 part series on our Canadian adventure.
Have you been to Toronto before? What would you like to do on a future visit? Please share in a comment.
- Want to read more about fun places to learn about and visit? Check out my posts on Niagara Falls, Funky Florida, and An Evening in Savannah
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(PS: In the interest of giving due credit, I couldn’t caption the featured image–it’s from The Asian Connections Newspaper.)