In this post I arrive in Toronto, my final stop on my epic Canadian adventure. I start with braving Canada’s largest city on foot with a Toonie Tour.
I left my heart in Newfoundland and flew into Toronto on a Tuesday night at 9.30pm. I stepped off the small Air Canada aircraft at Toronto Pearson International Airport, and very quickly realised I was in the big smoke now.
I collected my suitcase and headed to catch the train into the city. I had looked up the directions from the terminal to the train prior to my arrival- take the free Terminal Link Train between Terminals 1 and 3 and follow the “Train to City” signs. Maybe it was tiredness, but I could not find my way to the train. I kept running into dead ends in the terminal, or signs with directions back to Terminal 1. I felt like I was going in circles. In the process, a loose strand of toilet paper got caught up in the wheel of my suitcase. This would be the beginning of the end of this piece of luggage, which had survived almost seven weeks trekking across Canada with me.
I did eventually make it to Terminal 3. I wandered up and down the corridor looking for the signs leading to the train station. Unlicensed taxi drivers were soliciting rides inside the terminal near the exit doors. I knew about these drivers, and abruptly declined their offers as I searched for the entrance to the train station.
I had planned to catch a train shortly after my flight landed at 9.30, but the baggage carousel briefly malfunctioned. There was another train not far behind. I caught the UP Express to Union Station, and again found myself wandering aimlessly inside and outside the building, searching for the bus stop to catch my connection. Feeling increasingly tired and flustered, I asked a station staff member where to catch the bus. She kindly informed me that it was in fact the subway I needed to catch- I had been confused by the icon picture beside the station name on Google Maps. It was different to the picture of the train beside the UP Express directions.
I ventured below underground and located the subway platform. I caught an elevator and accidentally pressed the emergency assistance button. A human voice called out, asking if I was okay. In my escalating frustration, feeling lost and so small in this big city, it was comforting to hear another real person and their genuine, sincere concern.
I boarded the Line 1 service, Yonge-University to Finch Station, and disembarked at Dundas Station. I was staying at the Toronto Metropolitan Univerisity student accommodation, a ten-minute walk from Dundas station. The sidewalks were uneven, and the wheels of my suitcase were constantly catching on the grooves in the ground. As I walked, I stayed alert for any sketchy characters in my midst.
I had landed in Toronto during a heatwave. The air was thick with humidity, and there wasn’t a breath of breeze. I found the student accommodation building, but the main entrance door was locked. Looking through the glass I spotted other guests arriving at the reception. I spent the next ten minutes or so dragging my suitcase back and forth over the rough sidewalks, sweltering in my denim jeans as I looked for a path to the other entrance. I called reception, who instructed me to return to the original door and ring the buzzer. I remembered reading these instructions in my booking information. It was almost midnight, and clearly I was becoming delirious with tiredness.
I finally checked into my room around midnight, and fell asleep around 2am. The next morning, I had a cheap breakfast at the student-run Oakham Cafe on the opposite side of the street to the campus. I returned to my room and did some planning for my stay in the city. I was nervous to venture out- Toronto is Canada’s largest city, and the biggest city I had ever been to. The place was an assault on the senses- the streets were choked with congestion, the drivers constantly blasting their horns at each other like it made a difference to the flow of traffic. Sirens blared as another emergency vehicle hopelessly tried to cut through. Streetcars click-clacked along, clanging their bells as they snaked around the city centre. Delivery drivers flew past on bikes and scooters as they wove their way through. The blocks of highrise buildings stretched as far as the eye could see, flashing advertising on giant digital screens.
At 1.30pm, I made the fifteen-minute walk from Pitman Hall to Berczy Park, tucked behind Toronto’s Flatiron building (yes, New York isn’t the only city with a flatiron building). This was the meeting place for the Toonie Tour. Our guide, Marie, drew our attention to the first point of interest – the Berczy Park Dog Fountain, which honours the four-legged visitors who frequent this neighbourhood spot.
The fountain’s three tiers include sculptures of beloved pooches, including a Great Dane puppy, a Bernese Mountain Dog, a giant Schnauzer, and a West Highland Terrier, gleefully spitting spurts of water.
But dogs aren’t the only creatures you’ll find here—there is a cat, too!
The dogs all have their eyes glued to the giant bone that crowns the fountain. Meanwhile, the cat stares off into the distance, its gaze fixed on the two bird sculptures perched on a lamp post.
We ventured below the city to PATH, a mostly underground pedestrian walkway network that spans more than 30 kilometres of restaurants, shopping, services and entertainment.
At the One King West Hotel & Residence, we descended a grand marble staircase to view Canada’s largest vault, sealed by with a 30-ton door, the heaviest of any bank vault in the country.
We marvelled at Old City Hall, a Romanesque-style civic building, formerly the home of the Toronto City Council and also a provincial courthouse. It remains one of the city’s most prominent structures. At the front steps stands the Old City Hall Cenotaph, built after World War I to commemorate Torontonians who lost their lives in services for Canada, also commemorating those who died in World War II and the Korean War.
Our eyes were drawn to the pavement along Canada’s Walk of Fame, a series of maple leaf shaped stars embedded in 13 designated blocks’ worth of sidewalks in Toronto in front of Roy Thomson Hall, The Princess of Wales Theatre, and The Royal Alexandra Theatre on King Street as well as Simcoe Street. The walk features 204 Canadian activists, scientists, philanthropists, athletes, coaches, actors, directors, writers, producers, musicians, comedians, cartoonists, models and others.
Of course, we had to stop by the Toronto sign for a photo.
Our final stop was in front of Union Station. It was nice to see it during the day, while not in a tired fluster trying to get to my accommodation. Union Station is the country’s busiest transportation hub, receiving over 300,000 daily visitors. It’s also a shopping, dining, and cultural destination boasting 30 retailers. Opened to the public in August 1927, Union Station was designated as a national historic site in 1975 and is considered one of the finest examples in Canada of the classical Beaux-Arts architecture style representing an era of expanding national rail networks and vigorous urban growth for the country. CN Tower stood tall nearby.
Throughout the tour, Marie quizzed us on interesting facts about Toronto. At the end, she tested our recall, with a prize awaiting the person with the most correct answers. To my delight, I won the prize!
At the end of the tour, I walked back to the university to settle in for the night. I had survived my first day out and about in the big city of Toronto, and tomorrow I had my first day trip planned, for Toronto Islands.
Kate Kelsen 