Introduction
Streetcar on College Street
Toronto is the largest and most important city in Canada and
possibly the most cosmopolitan city in North America. It is a
unique mosaic of different cultures: Italian, Chinese, Greek,
Caribbean, Portuguese, Indian, Polish, Ukrainian, and many others.
At least 100 languages are spoken by residents, half of whom are
immigrants.
Sylvana was born in Toronto and has lived her whole life here.
For many years, she worked downtown, within walking distance of
many sites pictured here. She has little respect for the downtown
after dealing with the rush-hour crowds - often having to wait on
the subway platform letting three or four trains pass before
finding one with room.
Hans moved to Toronto in 1981 after quitting school. Since he
works in the suburbs, his impressions of the city are shaped by
less hectic times of the week.
On these web pages, you can find our impressions of the
city.
For those who wish to visit the city, some things should be
noted. Toronto, like most of southern Ontario, is unlike much of
the rest of Canada. Southern Ontario more closely resembles the
American states of New York and Ohio. If you want to find the "Real
Canada", you need to drive further north. Two hours will get you to
Muskoka, but that's home to thousands of cottagers from Toronto, so
that's not it yet. But only three hours north of Toronto, you get
into an area where you have to start worrying about where to find
the next gas station. There, you start seeing landscape which is
more typical of the bulk of Canada.
One more thing: There's a joke in Canada that the only thing all
Canadians have in common is their dislike of Toronto. Perhaps you
could say that most Canadians have a "love/hate" relationship with
Toronto. A more precise description, though, would leave out the
word "love". Since more than half of Canada's population lives
between Quebec City and Windsor, political and economic clout is
concentrated in that area. Western Canadians are especially pissed
off by this reality, and their resentment towards central Canada is
one aspect of "western alienation".
Map of Toronto. Selected neighborhood:
In the above map, the different colored spots indicate neighborhoods
covered here.
Click on the spot to see some pictures of the neighborhood.
Or select a neighborhood from the menu at the left.
You can use the legend at the bottom of each neighborhood page to go from
one neighborhood to its immediate neighbors.
This way, you can do a virtual "walking tour" of the city.
These neighborhoods are included for the simple reason that I had my camera
with me as I walked through them.
If your favorite neighborhood is missing, it's just because I haven't gotten
there yet.
If you'd like to see some photos of your favorite neighborhood, send me an
e-mail explaining why yours should be included.
Currently, the following are some of the areas on my "to-do" list:
Bloor Street West, Davenport, and St. Clair Gardens.
Neighborhoods - Full Index
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