Union Station: A National Heritage Site of Canada

This is Union Station. It is a picture from Wikipedia, very nice. I have all the ones during construction of Union Station and all along Front Street including the Fairview Royal York hotel and there along at the bottom.

Union Station from when it started (1858), it was the Great Toronto Fire of 1904 and this cleared the area of a third Union Station to be built here. It took until 1927 for the new station to be built. Prince Edward, the Prince of Wales, opened Union Station on August 6, 1927.

It was 1975 that Union Station was designated a National Historic Site of Canada. It was constructed by the Montreal architecture firm of Ross and MacDonald as well as the CPR's architect Hugh Johnes and Toronto architect John M. Lyle.

Bikes - Outside the Union Station. For Rent...

Going In...

The Pigeons are there at Union Station... Tons of them... all male and female trying to get laid. The male birds, all puffed up, trying to get the females to look at them, at least for spring.

And the bicycles, all lined up at the bike station, are to be picked up by people rented them. This is a sight most people don't see.

In 2004, the station saw 2.34 million Via Rail boarders, GO Transit and TTC (subway, streetcars and buses) servicing 200,000 passengers a day. It is the busiest transportation facility in Canada.

Trains coming in to the Station

Allen Lambert Galleria

I loved it here! I come to eat in the Marche Restaurant. I read, and then look at the architecture surrounding me. I have a camera with me (... don't you know it ...) and I take all kinds of pictures.

The historic Bank of Montreal building, was build into the Allen Lambert Galleria and is the oldest intact streetscape. It is sitting at the corner of Yonge and Front Street and was built in 1885. "Conceived by the Spanish designer Santiago Calatrava, the Allen Lambert Galleria is a soaring, six-storey avenue of light and glass that flows between Bay and Yonge Streets."

The Midland Commercial Bank is a facade inside the steel arches of the Galleria with porch, steps up, the railing about the yard and beautiful lamps (2 of them) over the pillars 'outside'.

Cherry Blossoms at High Park 2011

It was Mother's Day and I was late... I couldn't decide what to wear. Rory and Hayley had made it and two playful dogs. Erin and Dan were making a brunch with eggs benedict, tomatos, many kinds of sausages and also, I don't know what they are but their gluten free, just delicious.

Erin and Rory are my kids. They were talking about going to High Park. Everyone knows (I didn't know this) that going to the park around May is alright for Cherry Blossoms in the park. So, off we go on the streetcar, with the two dogs following us. And into the park we went. We walked down the hill and up the other side to the Grenadier Restaurant and further down where the Cherry Trees are blooming.

After the end of the Second World War, Japan, as a gift, brought Cherry Trees to put in High Park. The trees have grown so large since the they were put in and every year we can find 5 days of Cherry blossoms by about two dozens trees.

Down the path on which Cherry Blossoms are found

Lots of people ... and the sky

Dan and Erin marvel

Even more people....

Little boys carry the Cherry Blossoms with them

Paddle Down the Don

At the Don River, I went to the Queens Ave bridge. It is not quite raining yet and I had an umbrella in my backpack. I went down on the path beside the river and I passed people along the way, waving and yelling at the people in the canoes urging them on. 

It's raining by the time I got to the to the mouth at the Keating Channel and I joined the people who are docked. The Beer Tent was a safe place to be. I ordered Black Creek Brown. (Erin, be proud of me) ...and it was delicious with the rain and every one milling about. I got into a conversation with somebody around me. He was carrying a paddle with him from long ago. 

It was about 45 minutes later that the sun came out and I was off to ride the streetcar home. Look for the pictures at my Flickr page. 

Jen 

   

Drinking Coffee and waiting for the canoes to come down the river

The mouth of Keating Channel

Paddling down the Don River

Awesome Things That Happen in Toronto

Well, I'm ready to write!

It's been nearly four and a half years since I wrote ANYTHING and I'm not sure I can to it now but I have to try... and take pictures.

Anything and everything to do with Toronto. I've been out to the St Lawrence Market, cruising along Chinatown, Harbourfront, and I've been to Little Italy. I go to the Royal Ontario Museum to check stuff out and go to lectures. Toronto Zoo is my favorite.

So here I go.