“The City of North Bay is a vibrant community in Northern Ontario,” says the city’s website. It could be a vibrant community in summer, but a cold autumn day makes the city’s street population consist almost entirely of homeless people. It’s also the first major city on the way to Read more…
The city of Montreal was named after Mount Royal. If you say it fast enough and corrupt it with a semi-French accent you’ll eventually hear the resemblance. It’s location in the centre of Montreal Island makes it the Central Park of Montreal. It’s a favourite leisure destination of locals in Read more…
I’m travelling Ontario based on the Reader’s Digest Canadian Book of the Road. I should also make it clear that I got the 1991 edition for free from a garage giveaway so some of the information isn’t current. I arrived in Pembroke looking for Ontario’s largest totem pole at its Read more…
One of the most significant cultural events of the year in Geneva is the Fête de l’Escalade to commemorate the repulsion of Savoyard troops from the Republic of Geneva. In 1602, the Duke of Savoy launched a surprise attack on Geneva and legend has it that a cook was the Read more…
I had a quick run through Renfrew. There, I said the pun. The downtown area of Renfrew is actually very pretty. The traffic is calm, people are kind, and local businesses stay local. There aren’t too many chain stores apart from fast food restaurants that populate the streets. The blocks Read more…
If you’re looking for great art, go to the Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto where they have Reuben’s Massacre of the Innocents and exhibition rooms full of works by the Group of Seven. If you’re looking for a crash course in art history, come to Ottawa’s National Gallery of Read more…
Gatineau sounds like gâteaux, which is the word for cake in French. My relationship with Gatineau is also very gastronomical. It is right across the river from Ottawa, in Québec, where alcohol is sold inside supermarket and discounts are abundant for quality European foodstuffs. Once a week, I would cross Read more…
Waterloo and Kitchener are the twin cities of Ontario. Even though they have grown to connect into one urban agglomeration, they are still separate cities. The logo of the city is actually the tower of the old town hall that now stands in Waterloo Park. The new City Hall, like Read more…
Kitchener and Waterloo form the twin cities of Ontario less than two hours away from Toronto. Kitchener used to be called Berlin because of the German immigrants that settled in the area. A Pioneers Tower was built to commemorate the Mennonite families that settle in 60,000 acres of land in Read more…
The Ken Seiling Museum in Kitchener includes entry to both the museum exhibitions and the Doon Heritage Village. Half of the museum is closed so there isn’t too much to see indoors. The only exhibit they had open when I visited was the Human Plus exhibition displaying how engineering helps Read more…