|
Most newcomers to Toronto spend their time hopping form sight to sight on the efficient public transport system. Indeed, there’s no doubt that if you’ve only got a day or two to spare this is the way to get a trip on the city.
On the other hand, if you’ve the time to get below the surface, the best thing to do is stroll through Downtown Toronto, and the logical place to start is the CN Tower. Nearby Union Station, hub of the city’s public transport system, lies on the edge of the Business District, whose striking skyscrapers march up Yonge as far as Queen St, where they give way to the main shopping area, REVOLVING AROUND THE ENORMOUS Eaton Center. To the west of this commercial zone lie Chinatown and the Art Gallery of Ontario, while to the northwest; University Ave is the most obviously English-influenced area of town around Queen’s Park.
Toronto’s neighborhoods
One of Toronto’s most striking features is its division into distinct neighborhoods, many of them based on ethnic origin; others defined by sexual preference or income. Bilingual street signs identify some of these neighborhoods, but architecturally they are often indistinguishable from their surroundings.
Cabbage town
East of Jarvis and roughly bounded by Gerrard St East on its south side, Wellesley6 to the north and the Don River to the east. Renowned for its Victorian housing. Its name comes from the district’s nineteenth-century immigrants, whose tiny front gardens were filled with cabbages.
Chinatown
Concentrated along Dundas between Bay and Spadina. This is one of Toronto’s most distinctive neighborhoods, with busy restaurants and stores selling anything fro9m porcelain and jade to herbs and pickled seaweed.
|