Toronto — RachiePie

Alex and I celebrated our 10-year anniversary last week! I still can’t believe it’s been ten years - time please slow down! In honor of our 10-year anniversary we decided to celebrate doing what we love - exploring a new city. We decided to visit Toronto as it has been on our list to visit for awhile and only an hour-and-a-half flight from New York. The plane into Toronto actually lands on an island directly across from the city center. There is a short ferry ride (a whole 2 minutes!) to get across to the main city center and then we were able to walk to the hotel directly from there. I think it may have been the easiest flight to hotel experience we’ve ever encountered in our travels! It was also a fun way to see the skyline right from the get go!

After checking into our hotel and dropping off our luggage, we set about exploring Toronto. The city itself is really modern with tons of new residential developments which all seem to have sprung up in the last 10 years and even more continuing to be developed as there was construction everywhere. We made a quick stop at St. Lawerence Market for a delicious crispy skin side bacon sandwich which a local recommended. Canadians really are some of the nicest people around! As Alex and I were checking out the booths at the market, a gentleman came up and asked if we needed help. We both said we were just browsing but would take any recommendations and he proceeded to give us a rundown of the best stalls and what to get from each! So helpful and nice!!

We also checked out the Distillery District. Not far from downtown, this historic area was once home to the largest distillery in the world and has since been converted into a neighborhood filled with art galleries, boutique shops, cafes and restaurants.

One of the funkiest parts of the city is known as Graffiti Alley. It spans over half a mile long and showcases a wide range of street art. It was fun to see the explosion of colors and artwork which covered just about every surface possible!

While in Toronto, we visited the Hockey Hall of Fame. Hockey is the most popular sport in the country, so although neither Alex nor I follow or know much about this sport, we figured we ought to embrace what Canada has to offer! The museum was established in 1943 and houses the Stanley Cup as well as tons of hockey memorabilia including helmets, jerseys, and medals. This was probably my least favorite stop we made in Toronto, but I imagine if you were a hockey fan, it would be right up your alley!

One of the highlights for both Alex and I was a visit to Casa Loma. You don’t really think of castles when you think of Toronto, but Casa Loma is a 98-room château built by Canadian businessman Sir Henry Mill Pellatt in 1914, who went bankrupt shortly after completing his beloved home. The castle is now a museum and was even used as a filming location for the Professor Xavier’s School for Gifted Youngsters in X-Men!

Alex and I had a blast in Toronto and loved being able to explore this city. We ate some good food, took in some beautiful views, and walked over 30 miles while we were in Toronto!! We were tired by the time the weekend came to an end, but have always found walking is one the best way to see and really get to know a place. It was a wonderful way to celebrate 10 years of marriage. Happy Anniversary my love! Cheers to the next 10 years!