Canada Anyone in Toronto? I'm visiting and am open to suggestions....

JonasYip

JonasYip

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Well, I know there are members in Toronto here, since I see there's a sticky about a Toronto meetup.

I'm coming to Toronto next weekend. I've never been there, and I admit I really don't know anything about the city and haven't had a chance to research.

I'll be tied up in a workshop all weekend, but then I'm staying an extra day and a half before flying home Tuesday evening... so I'm here for opinions on where to go, what to see in that time.

If it helps, I like: galleries and museums, areas with cool little shops (hip/funky/artsy/whatever you want to call it), interesting architecture... I guess it's more about getting a sense of the personality and flavor of the city as opposed to "seeing the sights" in a historical and landmark whirlwind.

Anyway, any suggestions are appreciated....

thanks,
Jonas

BTW, if anyone is interested in meeting up for "coffee and cameras" I'm up for that too. In the RFF vein I'll have my Epson RD1 and few lenses with me (probably 35 lux ASPH, 28 cron ASPH or VC21, VC 12)...
 
Hi Jonas! Sorry I can't meet up with you, but I can suggest an interesting walk in Toronto. I did this just today. Start at the Eaton's Centre, Yonge ST. and Queen ST. intersection. Walk west on Queen enjoying the shops, resturants, and bars until you get to Bathurst St. then go north on Bathurst to Dundas St. Walk east on Dundas from Bathurst until just before Dundas St. and go a block north into the funky Kensington Market area. Turn east at a T intersection in the center of Kensington and get to Spadina St. Walk south on Spadina back to Dundas. This puts you in China Town. Walk east on Dundas back to Yonge St. and the north end of the Eaton's Centre. This took me 3 hours today, stopping to shoot, have lunch, and shop. You could do this in 2 hours. (You could go north from Queen St. to Dundas St. a bit sooner, at Spadina St.) This route is crawling with interesting people on Saturdays and Sundays.

You'll be walking by the Art Gallery of Ontario is on Dundas St.
http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
 
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FrankS, thanks for the detailed and descriptive suggestion. That walk sounds just about right. And, looking at a map now, it appears to start right by my hotel conveniently enough.

sevres_babylone, sounds good! Probably after FrankS's walk I'll be ready to sit at a cafe for a while. I'll PM you with my contact info...

j
 
I'm not a Torontonian (although I do proudly own a 416 telephone number, since I'm there often enough 🙂 ) but the Queen St. W. walk is a very interesting one. This is one of my favourite parts of Toronto.

I really like the Danforth too (Bloor Street East, over the Bloor St. viaduct over the Don Valley Parkway, until it becomes Danforth Avenue). This goes through Greektown and a few other interesting neighbourhoods. A little far to walk, but you could take the subway down Bloor St. to get a head start.
 
I agree that the Danforth walk is also interesting, as is the Queen St. East area known as the Beaches which is trendy and yuppie-ish. Both of these walks I'd rate below my first suggestion. There is also the Distillery District, but it is a small area and the weekend crowds (and wedding party photo groups) make this area interesting.
 
Frank,

It seems like we made almost same walk in a same day.... wish I could see you...
Jonas,
you could spend some time in China Town and little Italy which is basically College Street. if you want to see some cool photography books , you can visit David Mirvish book store which is located on 596 Markham Street..

good luck and enjoy the journey...
 
Ali, too bad we missed each other! I was thinking about posting to RFF to see if anyone in Toronto was interested in going for a walk. Next time I will, and maybe you will be free.
 
Thanks everyone for the suggestions. I look forward to exploring the city on my free day. Although I just realized I'll actually have evenings free too... no kid to put to bed while I'm there!

BTW, how's the weather there this time of year? We're already in shorts and short-sleeves here, but I imagine that's not the case there....

j
 
If you're heading down Queen St West, ya might as well keep going until you hit the Stephen Bulger Gallery. Can't remember the address but google is your friend.

Kensington Market is high on my list. Distillery COULD be nice but it's hit and miss. Wonderful old buildings and cobblestone streets. Very touristy imho. Not bad coffee at Balzacs and great chocolate at Soma.

I'm hit and miss on Queen St. as I remember when it was more boho and funky. Now there's a Gap on one corner. Best hit Queen St. West around Markham and Palmerston and further west. Actually west of Spadina is my flavour. Sorry to go off on a tangent...

Oh yeah, The Royal Ontario Museum has a pretty decent exhibit on Darwin. Same one as the American Museum of History I believe.

Today is drizzly and mildish.
 
Thanks for the continuing suggestions!

Weather-wise, I'll just assume that it's cold. I'll be easy to spot since I'll be bundled up for the arctic while others are probably wearing just a sweater. After all, you guys say "temps may go up into the 60's" whereas we talk about "lows in the 60s"...

And I'll check the weather report, though that doesn't really help me with microclimates. At my place in San Francisco it would be nice, while ten blocks away in downtown there was bitingly cold wind between the buildings, and ten blocks past that it was enshrouded in fog. OK, that has nothing to do with Toronto... in any case, I'll just come prepared.

j
 
I also agree with the queen west walk here. this is one of those places with the soul of the city. There are some others that also paint Toronto's character, like gabbagetown, leslieville, but the queen west corridor is the one with the most interesting people at one place 🙂

I dont remember from your posts which hotel you are staying at, but there are several within walking distance from queen. If you're in one of those, even better!
 
think they still have scaffolding around the tower don't they ? doesn't affect the inside tour but not conducive for photos....
 
I havent seen it in 30 years but I remember it was always a work in progress. I want to go back to Toronto and visit Casa Loma again. oh and Center Island too.
 
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