Memories are funny. I had faint recollections of two trips I had taken to Toronto back sometime in 2007 and 2008. While perusing my old blog, I stumbled upon many mini-posts detailing these trips, and the images and smells came flooding back. Speaking of images, I managed to find some pictures I had taken during the first trip. However, I wasn’t as lucky with the second trip.
Circa June 2007
While living in Massachusetts, my lady and I decided on a whim to make the long ride to Toronto for a 3-day weekend. When we were about two miles into the journey, we realized that we had left our passports at home. Not ones to give up, we turned back, retrieved the passports, and resumed the trip. We arrived late, several hours later, to my cousin and her family who welcomed us with their typical warmth.
The Ferry and Toronto Island Park
South of Toronto, there is a chain of 15 islands, a popular tourist destination. As my cousin’s son was young, the obvious island to visit was the center island, the location of the Centerville Amusement Park.
While waiting for our Ferry ride, we sampled the Chicken dog sold by a street vendor at the behest of my cousin. It was delicious. The Ferry ride offered great views of the Toronto Skyline and the CN Tower.
The park has a carousel, a train, and quite a few rides like the swan boat ride to amuse children. Like most public attractions in Canada, it is well-maintained. The Carousel, in particular, dates back to 1907.
Centreville Amusement Park. (2022, September 5). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centreville_Amusement_Park
The ride on the ferry back gave us a spectacular view of Toronto’s skyline.
The CN Tower
The following day, we decided to pay the CN Tower a visit. At the time of our visit, it was the world’s tallest building. Today, it ranks as the tenth tallest building. While not as breathtaking as the Burj Khalifa, the CN Tower is still a great place to visit and stands on its own merits.
Wladyslaw, CC BY 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Our dinner that night was at the 360 Restaurant atop the CN Tower. The panoramic views of the city below were spectacular. The lamb we ordered was delicious too.
Larry Koester, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Common
The 360 Restaurant has a glass floor to allow guests to look down below, not for the faint-hearted. Actually, it’s not that scary if one considers that it is strong enough to hold 35 moose or 40 hippos. (After living in America, we avoid the metric system when we can.) At least, that was the assurance we got from the guide.
Flaviohmg, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Common
I took some of my own photos of the dizzying views from the glass floor with my small phone camera.
Winery near Niagra
No vacation to Toronto would be complete without visiting its greatest attraction, but we decided to make a pit stop at one of the 50 wineries near Niagara.
Here is my blog post from June 2007:
I learned that it is not always the color of the grape that determines the color of the wine. It is a question of separating the pulp in the grape from the skin. For white wine making, care must be taken that the pulp is separated from both the skin and the seeds. If seeds get crushed and mixed in the wine, the wine could be bitter. However, it is okay for crushed seeds to be included while making red wines as they do incorporate a slight bitter taste.
We also learned a lot of wine tasting tips. One was to use the first sip of wine as a mouthwash to mask the taste of anything eaten before the tasting. It is the second sip that counts.
We were told to look at our glass with a pure white background to ensure that our wines were not cloudy. If the wine is cloudy, use a coffee filter to filter the wine.
This winery is right next to Niagara. The tour and tour guide were excellent, well worth the $5 (Canadian). The wines were great. The tour was informative too.
Another tip was to hold our nose and then swallow the wine. Doing so raises our tasting ability to test subtle flavors in the wine. We also tried some iced wine. They are wines made from grapes that are frozen. Ice wines are sweeter than typical wines.
Niagra Falls, Ontario
What can one say about Niagara? As we all know, the Canadian view of Niagara is far more spectacular.
Saffron Blaze, CC BY-SA 3.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Here are my own photos and posts from the trip. (Bear in mind, this was a Samsung, as smartphones were just coming into the market.)
The Niagara: Majestically, she stands guard across two nations. Her fury is fierce but spellbinding.
This is the Fallsview Casino, overlooking Niagara. It is one of three casinos in the area.
Circa August 2008
My gracious cousin was kind enough to invite us over the following year. This time, we spent most of our time catching up, but we did visit one attraction in the area. Unfortunately, my pictures for the blog post are lost for this trip. (Only my words from the trip remain.) Thank you, Wikipedia Commons!
Crawford Indian Village, Oakville Ontario
This is a nice picnic spot in Oakville, Ontario, about 40 km away from Toronto. The village is a preserved 16th-century village fenced and guarded by a maze to keep away wild animals.
Beside the village is Crawford Lake, with a scenic wooden pathway around it. The scenery around it is breathtaking, and if you are lucky enough, as we were, you may glimpse a turtle or two in the water.
Alex Laney, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Whpq, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Mhsheikholeslami, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
References
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toronto_Islands
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centreville_Amusement_Park
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CN_Tower
https://www.cntower.ca/inspiring-by-day-stellar-by-night
https://www.destinationontario.com/en-ca/things-to-do/niagara-wine-region
Bay Area Bloke 