Things I Love and Hate About Toronto
This ongoing series looks at the fun, celebratory, silly, and beautiful things about this city, as well as some of its begrudgingly not-as-wonderful aspects.
For visitors, locals, tourists, the recently arrived: welcome to Toronto! This is a love letter to my hometown.
Things I Love About Toronto: When the older model streetcars pass each other by and they ring their bells to greet each other, ding ding!
Things I Love About Toronto: free public community pools for those hot, hot summer days, which also offer the best people-watching seats in the house.
Things I Hate About Toronto: Holiday TTC service schedule. Everyone wants to see the fireworks, everyone needs to get home, and ensuing bus scarcity makes for a frustrating mix.
Things I Love About Toronto: Skating in the free community parks in the city. Also: hot beverages enjoyed while watching the zamboni make the ice shine like a diamond.
Things I Love About Toronto: The cacophony and delightful smells and tastes of dim sum in Scarborough with family.
Things I Hate About Toronto: long snaking line ups for brunch on Sunday afternoons, both the wait for food, and the sidewalk congestion for pedestrians.
Things I Love About Toronto: Going to the Toronto Public Library to borrow stacks of ghost stories to read all throughout October to get in the spirit of Halloween.
Things I Love About Toronto: The produce vendors in Chinatown. Aspiration: to one day be as fierce and sassy as these ladies.
Things I Love About Toronto: Canadian National Exhibition (aka CNE or The Ex)! An end of summer classic where outrageous deep fried food combinations, the midway, and hot, hot heat combine into a heady mix of summer fare fun.
Things I Love About Toronto: everyone breaks out their floral-patterned best everywhere in the summer.
Things I Hate About Toronto: Humidity. Toronto's heat, smog, and humid air creates a miasma of soggy dampness throughout the city.
Things I Love About Toronto: Lazy idle sunny days in a shady spot in the park.
Things I Love About Toronto: Cute hipster dogwalkers in Trinity Bellwoods Park.