Tourist in my own city

Toronto sign

City Hall with Toronto sign

There are times when it can be a lot of fun to just be a tourist in your own city.  We had a little bit of an opportunity this week to spend a bit of time downtown and of course I had to walk around City Hall so that I could take a few pictures of what I saw.

Part of the reason I wanted to see City Hall was because they had just finished redoing the Toronto sign that sits in Nathan Phillips Square.  As it is Canada's 150th birthday they added the Maple Leaf beside the word Toronto so I wanted a couple of pictures of that.  It was pretty busy down around City Hall but with all the various conferences and tourists in the city it is not surprising.

Old City Hall

The weather actually cooperated which was nice as we have been getting a lot of rain in June so having a day where we could walk around outside without an umbrella was also nice.  I think that might have explained also why it was so busy as it was one of the nice days this week where you could be outside.

Old City Hall Clock

We didn't spend a lot of time walking around as we were heading back from a conference and also had some work that needed to be done.  I decided that besides having a picture of the new City Hall I also needed to ensure that I had a couple of pictures of Old City Hall as well.  Old City Hall is right across the road from City Hall so it meant that I didn't have to go anywhere else to get these additional pictures.

It is always fun when you can be a tourist in your own city even if it's only for an hour or so. I hope to be able to spend some more time as a tourist in my own city this summer.  I think just being able to do it at various times is wonderful.  We hadn't planned on going to City Hall to take pictures so the pictures that I was able to capture were actually taken using my smart phone.  Sure I might have been able to capture more detail with my camera but it was nice getting the pictures that I did.

Being a tourist in your own city can be a lot of fun and even those shorts trip can be worth it.  Next time you have a free hour look at what you can see in your own city and enjoy it.

Tourist in your own city

Toronto sign with City Hall

How many times have you taken a day to just be a tourist in your own city? It can be a lot of fun and something that I think everyone should do. I know that we try and be a tourist every now and again as it gives us a different view of our own city.

There is always a lot of things going on in and around Toronto that we decided that we were going to take a day to just go and see what was going on. Of course, this summer we have also been hosting the Pan Am and ParaPan Am games so another good reason to head downtown to see what was really going on.

Pan Am Cauldron

Being a tourist in your own city can be a lot of fun because it means you are going to look at things a little differently than you would normally look at them. Our adventure was to see the sign that was near city hall and then off to see the Pan Am cauldron. Both of these areas were extremely busy with visitors and also with people just walking through the area as it was a work day.

The walk around downtown Toronto can be so different if you just slow down a little bit and not deal with all the rush that is going on around you. I know, we took our time and enjoyed seeing the various parts of what was going on around the areas we were in. We also had the chance to see some athletes visiting the various areas.

The Pan Am cauldron is in an ideal location because it was lite just outside the Roger's Centre and it is also at the base of the CN Tower as well as just outside the Ridley's Aquarium. The location means that if you are visiting the cauldron there are also other things that you might want to do within a minute or two walk which is great.

Being a tourist in your own city let's you see what others see and it is also a nice break from the every day things we do.