Top and bottom five things about living in Toronto

[chickenfeet]

from rhythmaning

Top things about living in Toronto

1. It's an all round good place to live. Not too big, not too small, plenty to do, not too expensive etc.

2. Great rugby scene. Maybe not the best rugby in the world but great people.

3. Varied and eclectic arts scene. We don't have the Met or the National Theatre but we have a fringe festival, clowns, Opera Atelier and all manner of good stuff.

4. Cheap, good quality ethnic restaurants. It's easy to find a really good lunch for $5.

5. Diversity and tolerance. Some people whinge about racism in Toronto but they haven't lived in London or Paris or Chicago or just about anywhere else actually. This is a city where 35% of the people are 'visible minorities' and 99% of the population are pretty happy about it.

ETA after reading oursin's post about London. The whole rus in urbis thing. The parks. The way the ravines function as wildlife corridors. The peregrines nesting on the office towers. Watching a red tailed hawk make a kill on a city street.

Bottom things about living in Toronto

1. Long, dull, grey winters.

2. "Canadian cringe"..

3. Too far to the ocean.

4. Too many of my friends live either on other continents or the far side of this one.

5. Impossible to find good black pudding.

Comments

[piratehead.livejournal.com]

What is the Canadian cringe? I think I may have a good idea, but...

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

See http://www.livejournal.com/users/chickenfeet2003/482772.html

[itchyfidget.livejournal.com]

Could you elaborate on "Canadian cringe" for me? :) I'd like to know what I'm getting into ;)

[itchyfidget.livejournal.com]

Ah, scrap that - I hadn't refreshed my friends-page recently enough to see the comments :)

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

Thank you.

Someone once told me that in winter, everything in downtown Toronto takes place underground - to avoid the snow.

Please tell me this is true...

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

No it's not. Toronto has the PATH system which links up the basement levels of a fairly extensive network of malls and office complexes so it is possible to move through a lot of the downtown core without going outside but it would be a gross exaggeration to say that "everything in downtown Toronto takes place underground - to avoid the snow", not least because we rarely get really heavy snow.

[rhythmaning.livejournal.com]

Oh well, another urban myth scotched. Funny, I always pictured most places in Canada getting a lot of snow. (Just like everyone in Scotland plays the bagpipes and Ireland is full of leprachauns and most people in the USA don't have passports. What, that last one is true?)