Toronto, Ontario, has become Canada's best-known city. Once
saddled with a
reputation stodginess, it has been reborn and revitalized and now
stands as one
of North America's leaders at the arts, entertainment, and business.
Toronto boats a vast multicultural mix, with large groups of
Italians,
Germans, Portuguese, Ukrainians, Asians, and West Indians, each
contributing to
the city's mosaic. The cosmopolitan blend offers visitors fine dining
from a
seemingly endless range of the cultures. Shoppers can browse through
funky
boutiques on Queen Street West, admire the best of designer fashions in
the
renovated district of Yorkville, or visit Eaton Centre, a four-level
$25-million retail complex. For peoplewatching and plenty of culinary
delights,
there's Kensington Market, which features fresh produce, fish, and
plenty of
friendly conversation. The city was designed and, since, renovated to
make the
most of its settings on the store of Lake Ontario. The best view is
from the CN
Tower, a 553-metre spire that is considered the world's tallest
free-standing
structure. Nearby is Harbourfront, a lakeside shopping, dinning and
entertainment area whose restored warehouse is a centre for flea
markets, art
studios, and crafts shops. Much of the appeal of Toronto lies in its
sense of
history, which dates back to 1749 when French fur traders from Quebec
established a ford on the site. The residents have worked to ensure the
survival and revitalization of such areas as St. Lawrence Market (the
place to
be on a Saturday when the farmers bring in their wares) and a booming
Chinatown, chock-full of restaurants and grocery stores.
Toronto is a cultural bastion, with the ultra-modern O'Keefe
Centre, which
is home to the Canadian Opera Company and the National Ballet of
Canada; the
Art Gallery of Ontario, with more than 15,000 works - from Old Masters
to
contemporary art - in its permanent collection; and the Royal Ontario
Museum
with its vast array of art and artefacts from cultures the world over.
business
and finance from another important element of the city, and Toronto's
skyline
is dominated by the high-rise towers of financial institutions. Among
the most
notable is the Royal Bank Tower, with its distinctive gold-embedded
window
panels.
CN Tower
At 553.33 meters the CN Tower is considered the world's
tallest
free-standing structure. Construction took 40 months, cost $57 million,
employed 1,573 workers, and was completed in June 1976. A slender
column
resembling a giant needle, it weight 132,080 metric tons - the
equivalent of
roughly 23,214 large elephants.
Visitors can step inside one of four glass-faced elevators and
be whisked to
the Skypod Observation level in under a minute. In all, there are three
observation decks, at 342,346, and 447 meters aboveground, the world's
highest
public observation gallery. Each of these offers panoramic views of
greater
Toronto, Toronto Islands, and, on a clear day, Niagara Falls and
Buffalo, New
york. Spectacular views are also to be had from Top Of Toronto, a
restaurant at
the 350-metre level that makes a full revolution once every 72 minutes,
and
Sparkles, a nightclub at the 346-metre level. Those who prefer to dine
on the
ground level can enjoy a snack in the family-style restaurant. The
tower is a
stroll away from the lakefront and a walking tour of Harbourfront parks
and
marinas.
As any famous structure might, the CN Tower has inspired
legions of would-be
record setters. It has the longest metal staircase in the world (2,570
steps) ,
which is made available to the public each year for a charity stair
climb.
Stuntman Dar Robinson has jumped from the top of the tower twice once
with a
parachute for the filming of the movie HIGHPOINT (1979) and once using
a wire
cable for the TV show "That's Incredible. " On the tower's tenth
anniversary, "Spider Man" Goodwin completed two free-style climbs
outside the glass elevator-shaft window.
SkyDome
SkyDome is the world's greatest entertainment center. It's a
home to the
Toronto Blue Jays and Toronto Argonauts as well as host to wide variety
of
other sporting spectaculars, concerts, family shows and consumers
shows.
Just how big is Toronto, s SkyDome? Well, you could put eight
Boeing 747s on
the playing field. Or all of Eaton Centre. Or a 32-home subdivision. Or
the
Roman Coliseum. Even with the retractable roof closed, a 31-stoerey
buildings
could fit inside the structure.
The $500-million buildings opened on June 3,1989, after 32
months of
construction. On that day, inclement weather forced the developers to
prove
that the multi-panelled roof could be closed in just 20 minutes. The
roof runs
on a series of steel track and bogies, weighs 11,000 tons - the
equivalent,
roughly, of 3,734 automobiles - and is made up of steel tresses covered
by
corrugated steel cladding.
The eight-acre stadium offers sports fans five levels of
seating and the
world's largest video replay screen. More than 50,000 people at a time
can
watch a football or a baseball game, and there, s also a 350-room hotel
built
into the north end of facilty, with 70 rooms offering a view of the
playing
field.
But the building is much more than a place to watch sporting
events under an
open roof. There are 23 fast-food stands, 48 beverage outlets, a
430-seat
restaurant for quick-service dining, a 300-foot-long bar overlooking
the field,
the largest McDonald's in North America, the Hard Rock Cafe, and a
120-seat
movie theatre where tours of the building begin. The CN Tower is a
stroll away
from the stadium.
Royal Ontario Museum
Toronto's Royal Ontario Museum, knows affectionately as the
ROM, is Canada's
Largest Public Museum, made even grander by a recent $55 million
renovation and
expansion project, covering the permanent galleries. Founded in 1912
and opened
two years later, the ROM today attracts more than one million visitors
a year.
Among its impressive holdings, which number more than six million
objects and
specimens, are a Roman gallery, housing the country's most extensive
collection
of antiquities; the famous Dinosaur gallery, with a mastodon,
stegosaurus, and
other prehistoric creatures "at home" in jungle settings; a
worldclass textile collection, with colourful wall-hangings, costumes,
and
richly patterned fabrics on display throughout the museum; and the
renowned
Chinese collection, with 800 pieces displayed in traditional room
settings and
special gallery areas. Of particular note are the giant stone camels
and
guardian figures of the Ming Tomb, the only Chinese tomb in the Western
world.
There are also galleries devoted to artefacts of Ontario and Canadiana.
Next door is the McLaughlin Planetarium where the Theatre of
the Stars uses
85 slide and video projectors to create planets, exploding stars, and
other
galactic phenomena. The Sigmund Samuel Building, a few blocks south of
the main
ROM building, focuses on Canada's rich cultural heritage with displays
of
antique toys, cocking utensils, oil paintings, pottery and sculpture.
The
George R. Gardiner Museum of Ceramic Art, directly across from the main
ROM
building, is the only museum specializing in ceramic in North America.
Niagara Falls Every year more than 12 million people flock to
Ontario to see
the breathtaking natural phenomenon knows as Niagara Falls. Many are
honeymooners, although no one is quite sure how that tradition got
started.
They come to see the combined cascading power of the 54-metre Canadian
Falls -
knows as Horseshoe Falls - and the American Falls, which soars to 56
metres.
Together, these thundering cataracts rush over the brink at the rate of
39.1
million Imperial gallons of water per minute.
Statistic don't do justice to the majesty, the danger, or the
romance of the
Falls. They have to be seen in person, and there are a variety of ways
to view
the spectacle once your get there: four Maid-of-Mist boats enter the
Horseshoe
Basin and pass directly in front of cataracts; the Niagara Spanish
Aerocar
spans mightily whirlpool where the river takes a 90-degree turn; the
Great
Gorge Adventure provides a close view of the waters from half a
continent
plunging through the gorge at the river's narrowest point; and three
Table Rock
Scenic Tunnels allow visitors to walk behind the Falls. To view the
sights from
above, opt for a 10-minute helicopter ride, rise to the top of the
Skylon Tower
observation deck via the external glass-fronted elevators, or visit the
viewing
platform at the Minolta Tower and Marine Aquarium.
If the real thing isn't enough, there's always IMAX Theatre's
Niagara:
Miracles, Myths and Magic, shown on a six storey screen in the village
of
Niagara Falls. While you're in town, you might consider stopping in at
any of a
number of places designed to entertain, including the Ripley's Believe
It Or
Not Museum, the Elvis Presley Museum, Louis Tussaud's Museum, or the
Daredevils
Exhibit.
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