Edgar Chaps

For a variety of reasons, I had not left Montreal for some time until last week. I don’t mean a day or two in a nearby suburb or town, but really leave Montreal. With that sad thought in mind, I opted to head over to Toronto for a few days during a vacation. It’s not far from Montreal, but I hadn’t been since early 2020 (just prior to you know what) and hadn’t budgeted for anything extravagant. This recent visit reminded me that, without a doubt, it’s is one of my favourite places to be.

The City of Myth and Dreams

Ontario’s capital certainly doesn’t need anyone to be its cheerleader, least of all a Montrealer. It is the country’s largest city by population at 2.7 million, surpassing, lo and behold, Montreal by a cool 1 million people. The Greater Toronto Area – commonly referred to as the GTA – encompasses such boroughs as Scarborough and Etobicoke, and actual smaller cities likes Mississauga and Brampton.

With so many people, no wonder it’s also home to such a sprawling, impressive cityscape. There is often a thinly veiled rivalry between, well, everyone else in Canada and the Queen City. My gut tells me something, however. My unprovable argument is that, perhaps other than individuals who don’t care for metropolitan areas (and fair play to them), most people are jealous of Toronto’s awesomeness. 

The buildings are at their tallest, the food is at its most plentiful, the streets to stroll are seemingly endless, and the neighbourhoods diverse in architecture and demography. 

Founded in 1793 as York (hence the name of one of its most prominent streets), it’s come a long way since John Graves Simcoe’s initial vision for new city. Not long before that was the War of 1812, of which the Battle of York was a theatre. Toronto was governed by Americans at one point!

So Much to See

Today, Canada’s biggest urban jungle serves as headquarters for most of the country’s major financial institutions (RBC, TD, Scotiabank, etc), first class museums (Royal Ontario Museum, Art Gallery of Ontario), and houses sporting clubs in every major North American professional league, save the NFL (but the Buffalo Bills plays none too far).

I was there from an early Thursday afternoon through late Sunday afternoon, and I could have easily remained another day or two to do more. Incidentally, I happened to arrive on a day when the air quality had dipped considerably due to forest fires in Ontario’s northern regions. One could tell. There was something funny about the air. 

I made myself a lunch appointment at the St. Lawrence Market for an Italian sandwich so humungous it must be illegal in certain countries. We salute thee, Uno Mustachio.

Wanting to escape the dubious fallout, I spent the next couple of hours indoors at one of my favourite locations: the Hockey Hall of Fame. Yes, seeing game-worn jerseys that belonged to Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux is fantastic, but I strongly encourage anyone to spend a few minutes in the room dedicated to international hockey. To quote Roy Batty from the 1982 science-fiction movie classic Blade Runner: “I’ve seen things you people wouldn’t believe.”

There is something for everyone in Toronto. There is always something happening. On Saturday night I walked along Harbourfront. It was a warm, pleasant night (the air quality had improved, thankfully) and, by happenstance, I stumbled on something called Unity Fest. It’s a charity that raises funds to help underprivileged youth through hip-hop and dance. I thought I’d check out a round or two of dance-offs, but I think I stayed for an hour. It was incredible.

The Toronto Vibe

My main takeaway is that Toronto and Montreal are very similar, language notwithstanding. They both host world-class events, they both receive distinguished guests for various events, they’re both incredibly eclectic, they both have plenty of art venues, they both have a lot of sports, they both feature fun, easily accessible islands to walk around just outside the city centre, etc.

Toronto is just bigger. The Art Gallery of Ontario is bigger than Le Musée des beaux arts de Montréal, a museum I dore. St. Lawrence Market is bigger than Atwater Market (although maybe not Jean-Talon). Toronto has a Major League Baseball team, whereas Montreal had one, but not anymore. The streets are bustling because so much is happening at the same time. 

Furthermore, and this next point is maybe more difficult to pinpoint accurately with the naked eye, but I was under the impression I was walking a more ethnically diverse city. I thought so before looking up this Statistics Canada data: 55.7% of Toronto is made up of racialized people. 55.7%! Montreal is a considerable 38.8%. That’s a high figure, yet still a whopping 17% behind Toronto. 

As a visitor, I could just tell. And it was fun. I ate twice at the Taste of VietnamTM Festival at City Hall, for crying out loud. Ironically, the second time was for a Filipino dish.

Merely walking the streets is engaging. The neighbourhoods can be strangely diverse from an architectural point of view, and it might not always feel cohesive, visually speaking. Nonetheless, I’m someone who loves city activity. The hustle and bustle. From that perspective, Toronto is my kind of town.

Much Love, Much Respect

No place is perfect. Sadly, gun violence strikes Toronto often. There was even a tragedy at the Salsa in Toronto Festival the weekend prior to my arrival. It’s a humungous urban jungle, so it’s loud and noisy. Much like Montreal, they have a homeless problem that seems be a tall challenge.

But for my money, it’s a terrific city. Truly terrific. I’ve enjoyed it every time I’ve gone. I think this most recent visit was my fourth, possibly my fifth. It was long overdue, however. With so much to see and do, one should not stay away for as ridiculously long as I did. Six years away is a lifetime’s worth of activities.

Until next time, Toronto.