Canadian Winterland Nights at Casa Loma

Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, at this time of year it's pretty hard to avoid. The Winterland Nights at Casa Loma seems to be a good blend of family friendly wintery things and holiday decor. Colourful fairy lights decorating the garden and artist designed Christmas trees inside including a 40ft tree by Fashion Icon Jeanne Beker in the Grand Hall. 

  

Casa Loma was built in 1911-1914 as the private residence for Sir Henry Mill Pellatt by architect E. J. Lennox. The 98 room home is 64,700 square feet and was the largest private residence in Canada. The home boasted an indoor pool, bowling alleys, secret passage ways, an oven large enough to cook an ox, an elevator, central vacuum and 40 telephones (at a time when there were only 200 telephones in the whole of the city of Toronto). Pellatt and his wife lived in Casa Loma for less than 10 years, before moving out and being financially ruined.

Since then, the building has gone through several transitions but always has been a city landmark. Eventually, the castle became a tourist attraction, showcasing its heritage rooms, enhancing its special events programs and even developing a highly rated restaurant, Blue Blood Steakhouse, which I totally want to find an excuse to go to, but only don't want to spend my entire pay cheque for a meal.

For this evening event (5-9om) there was a magician (who, I'm not afraid to admit, thrilled me), ice dancing, wood carving, cookie decorating, face painting, and a live orchestral performance. Not to mention a small assortment of food vendors outside. Through the tunnel leading to the stables (aka Santa!) the decorations were not lacking.

It's been years since I visited Casa Loma and I'm glad I went back. It's changed so much (as much as a heritage centre can change) and definitely for the better. I used to discourage visiting friends from visiting, but that's changed now. I felt like a kid surrounded by the holiday decor, running around the rooms discovering every nook and cranny and taking the secret passageways to other floors.

Christmas is still ever-present around each corner of the castle, but seriously where else in the city can you enjoy holiday decor, heritage rooms, and views of the big smoke like this?

view from one of the castle towers

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Things to do in Toronto When the Weather Turns Cold

When the cold weather first settles on the land I find myself craving more time inside, tucked up away under a cozy blanket with a hot beverage. I have to really make a conscious effort to force myself to leave the house. Winter is far too long to hibernate away especially this early in the season (winter hasn't even officially started!!) and particularly when there are so many great things to do out of doors at this time of year.

I've written a similar post a few years ago about the festive things to do at this time of year, but in this post I'm revisiting this idea with some Toronto-centric places in mind to help us Torontonians get out there more in the last few days of the holiday season.

Historic Distillery District Christmas Market

There are only a few good Christmas markets in the GTA (in my opinion) and fewer still which run longer than a single weekend. The Distillery District Christmas Market is one of them. And although it can't compare to a true Bavarian Christmas Market, I do very much like visiting this market at least once each season, it's magical at night and, well, there aren't too many options here in the City. (Last day of the market is December 23, 2017)

Checking out all the Trees and lights

My favourite thing to as the days grow shorter and shorter is to seek out holiday lights and Christmas trees and I wander the dark streets looking for the glittering colour of the twinkling lights. This means attending tree lighting evenings and going to the Gardener Museum's annual 12 Trees exhibit. (Exhibit ends January 7)

Stride by The Hudson's Bay Windows

As a child, each Christmas we would head down to downtown Toronto and the Eaton's Centre where I'd sit on the knee of the real Santa Claus (or so that's what I was told) and tell him what I truly wanted for Christmas. Then we would head outside to stare into the decorated windows of the Simpson's store (now Hudson's Bay). For as long as I can remember they've always decorated the street windows with whimsy and Christmas magic I looked forward to seeing them each year. Even now, I get a surge of excitement when I catch a glimpse of the crowds gathered around the glass and need to press through them to see for myself.

Skating at Nathan Phillip Square

The last time I went skating was a few years ago at Somerset House, but for as long as I've lived in the Toronto area I've never been skating at Nathan Phillips Square, until this year, that is. And it was fun! Any reason to get out there, right? (Public skating runs until March 19)

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Top 10 Places to Chill in Toronto

Toronto is a great city with so much to do and see. It has a hopping cultural scene from music venues to theatres, interesting culinary options with pop-up cafes and food markets, and major tourist attractions that draw people from all over the world. 

And being the active hometown tourist that I am, I'm always on the look out for new things to try, to not be bored, and meet new people. But this means sometimes I need to take a bit of a breather, get back to nature, and just plain chill in the city. Here I've compiled a list of my top 10 places to chill in Toronto.

1. Rooftop Bar 

I adore a rooftop bar. A place to get a panorama view of the city. A moment to get high above the hustle and bustle of people going about their daily lives. And if it's a perfectly timed, a opportunity to enjoy a cheeky drink while watching a sunset.  I'm up for any rooftop destination (check BlogTO for a list of 50 best rooftop patios of Toronto) 

2. Scarborough Bluffs 

The Bluffs are made up of 11 parks along 15 km of shoreline on Lake Ontario. With options for sports and recreation facilities, trails, beaches, and gardens, it would be hard to not be able to find your ideal place to chill.

3. High Park
Located entirely within the city limits, High Park is a mix of natural state, cultivated gardens, and sporting facilities. There are playgrounds, dog parks, trails, an historic house, education facilities and even a zoo! No matter the season, from skating in the winter, Sakura blossoms in the spring, open-air plays in the summer, and leaf peeping in the fall, I'm continually drawn here. There's never a dull moment to be had at this urban park.

4. Aga Khan Gardens
I recently visited the Aga Khan Museum and was most struck with the architecture of the building. There's a beautiful use of light, clean lines, and harmony to the Ismaili Centre Toronto across the way. The formal landscaped gardens between the buildings, mirror the airiness and clean lines of the museum with orderly rows of trees and 5 symmetric, granite-lined pools. The gardens provide a peaceful place for tranquil reflection which works well with the museum's dynamic outdoor programming.

5. Toronto Islands

I'm looking forward to the ferries running again (opening forecasted for July 31st)  to do my yearly sojourn to one of my favourite places on earth. Wandering by cottage houses on small lane ways, sticking my toes in sandy beaches, and boat and bike rentals are some of the best ways to get out of the city without having to go all that far. 

6. Lakeshore
Lake Ontario is good sized lake, one might even call it...great! Ehhh? Ehhh? I'm here all week folks!
It's one of the longest urban shorelines in the world. Pick a spot anywhere along the Toronto shoreline and you are likely to find a beach, paved walkways, marinas, stores or restaurants. When I was a kid, we used to drive down to Toronto with our bikes in tow and we would ride along the paths for miles. Spending time by water can be restorative, listening to the waves crash against the breakwater or the tide coming in/out, it's good for the soul.

7. Woodbine Beach
Woodbine Beach is part of the Toronto neighbourhood 'The Beaches'. Who doesn't love an urban beach? At work one moment, toes in the sand the next. I've actually only visited Woodbine Beach in the winter months when it hosts the annual Winter Stations exhibition, I imagine it to be much busier in the summer.

8. Leslie Street Spit
Also known as the Tommy Thompson Park or the Outer Harbour East Headland. Catchy, isn't it? This is the nature lovers place to go or anyone wanting to get away from the noise and smog of the city. It's home to over 400 species of plants and wildlife. Crazy to think this amazing biodiversity is on a man-made peninsula, historically the urban dumping ground of sand, bricks, and concrete of torn down buildings, infrastructure and unused infill dirt. 

9. Distillery District

This is one of my favourite neighbourhoods in Toronto and also happens to be in the historic district of the city. The area is often host to big events and festivals within the cobbled alleys of the Victorian industrial architecture (read about Heat Fest, the Christmas Market, and Light Fest), and when it's not it's still a great place to find yourself in. With several restaurants, cafes, galleries, a theatre and more everyone can find their kind of chill here and soak up the history.

10. Trinity Bellwoods Park
Located in the Trinity Bellwoods neighbourhood, it was originally set aside as a military reserve for the nearby Fort York. It's now 36 acres of parkland that is surrounded by some great restaurants, personally I'm a fan of the sliders restaurant, Broncos. Who can possibly say no to tiny hamburgers? Every Tuesday in the warmer months there is a farmer's market in the north west end of the park and you can't beat some of the views of the CN Tower from this spot. I've spend a few quiet moments here just enjoying the scenery.

What did I miss? What would you add to this list? 

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Favourite Place of Home #TravelLinkup

I've mentioned it before, the Toronto Islands are one of my most favourite places on earth and luckily for me, it's located conveniently in the place I currently call home. Every summer I purchase a ferry ticket at the Toronto Harbour to cross Lake Ontario and disembark on the shores of Ward's Island, Center Island or Hanlan's Point. I bring friends and family over there to experience the loveliness that is life on the island and am sure to have a meal at the Rectory Cafe. When I visit Toronto Islands, I forget that I'm so close to the city and to my work/life stresses. As soon as I board that ferry, I'm on a mini holiday without a care in the world.

2017 though, has been a tough year for the Toronto Islands. 

First, the family run Toronto Island Bike Rental lost it's bid to provide the rental service to people on the island, after 32 years in business. Thankfully, it doesn't mean an end to rentals on the island, as a new company was set to take over May 1st. 

The heavy rains and high waters that have been affecting many parts of Canada have not spared the islands. The rising waters have covered much of the land and is still rising. Residents on Ward's Island are continually sandbagging in an attempt to keep dry. However, the baseball diamond has been turned over to nature as it sits under a foot of water and carp from the lake have swum inland and started spawning.  

The bike/walking trail on the south side of Toronto Island just west of the Pier. East of the pier was fine due to the elevated break wall. 🙁 #torontoislandflood #torontoislands #torontoisland

A post shared by CVD™ | Chris Van Dyke (@cveedee) on May 31, 2017 at 9:48pm PDT

The ferry boats have been closed to non-residents with a projected opening season only staring July 31st (but this has been pushed back several times already). As you can imagine, this has hurt the island businesses that count on tourists who come in for the day across the lake. The first casualty was announced with the island's Rectory Cafe planning its permanent closure in October. There were several factors that led to this decision one of the owner's said, but the flood has definitely not helped the situation.

It breaks my heart that I probably won't be able to spend a warm summer day there this year, but I know despite the difficulties they are experiencing right now, it will continue to be a Toronto oasis for myself and others, as it has been for centuries.

At the beginning of each month, I like to take part in the monthly travel link up hosted on the incredible blogs by Angie, Emma, Polly and this month's special co-host, Kiwi Footprints. You can join in too by leaving a comment below, checking out other posts on the link up, or adding your own post to the widget now until June 7th.

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A Night with Jazzy Fish

Okay, truth bomb here. I didn't think I'd like the aquarium. I've not visited one before, but know I can't stand the fish tanks at pet stores. They make my eyes hurt and my head dizzy. I suppose I was assuming that the Ripley's Aquarium of Canada would be just a big old pet store with just fish.  

I was wrong. Boy, was I wrong. 

Each second Friday of the  month Ripley's hosts a jazz night, where a live jazz band plays in the main lower concourse and you can either sit and watch or wander through the exhibition space while listening to the music which has been piped through the whole building.

Cash bars are set up at a couple locations near the beginning sections. There's a general party atmosphere amongst the fish and there appeared to be a lot of dates going on around us (ie. super, awkward first dates. Aw bless.)

I was fascinated by all the weird and exotic looking creatures. The museum is well designed with its audience flow and showcasing different oceanic life.

Checking out their website, there are lots of different special nights hosted along the glass corridors filled with so much different aquatic life.

Can't make it out there yourself? Please enjoy my photo essay in lieu

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