summer | as I walk Toronto

Posts Tagged ‘summer’

Sunday sun and water

Posted: May 18, 2015 in waterfront
Tags: boats, cameras, crowds, Harbourfront, HTO beach, lazy, lying, park, people, photos, summer, sun, swans, Toronto, walk, waterfront

Sunday of the long May weekend,
along the waterfront,
sun, water, and people

animals and birdo birds in Roncey

Posted: March 18, 2015 in graffiti and street art, locations
Tags: alley, baboon, beach, birdo, birds, cabana, destination mammal cabana, dogs, faces, giraffe, hot day, lane, mammals, man, murals, ostrich, Queen St. West, rhino, rhinocerous, Roncesvalles, ske1, spudbomb, sticker, street art, summer, sunglasses, tiger, Toronto, turtle, uber5000, umbrella, urban art, woman, women, zebra

On Queen St. West, just before it meets Roncesvalles Ave., is the Corona Restaurant and Nightclub. Along the wall of this building are a number of pieces of street art. Only a small section is visible from the street.

If you follow the alley that runs behind Queen St., you will find more street art alongside the same building.

The back part is a mural entitled ‘Destination Mammal Cabana’ by Birdo, Spudbomb and SKE1. It was painted in 2012.

On the north wall of the same building…..

If you look closely at the above picture, on the right hand side metal pole supporting the landing, is a sticker. Below, that sticker up close.

Looking west along the alley towards Roncesvalles Ave.

but if you walk slightly west, away from Roncesvalles, you will encounter two more pieces by Birdo. The ‘Dreamer’ is on the same building as the Destination Mammal Cabana that is pictured above.

summer days

Posted: September 2, 2014 in general Toronto
Tags: balcony, city, CN Tower, condo construction, culture, festival, filipino, food, kids, kultura, love, music, Music Garden, padlocks, people, performance, photos, summer, Toronto, Wychwood barns

The day after Labour Day, the official end of summer get back to school day.

So here are a few photos of the lazy hazy days of this summer past…..

two sisters are hugging while having their picture taken in front of a large wire mesh heart. The word LOVE is spelled in large wire mesh letters. People have locked padlocks onto the wires.

summer love, in the Distillery District

Looking down at a man who is sitting on his balcony and reading a book. Across the street is an open hole where a new condo is being constructed

‘On a Toronto balcony’… or, ‘Looking out my window’

A boy dress in shorts and holding a plastic bucket is watching a group of men and women practise a performance that includes long bamboo poles.

Watching performers practise at Kultura, the Filipino Arts Festival, Wychwood Barns.

A path leads through a garden, there is a group of people sitting in the park. The CN Tower is in the distance.

Hanging out at the Music Garden, on the waterfront.

into the night at the CNE

Posted: August 21, 2014 in events, people
Tags: acrobats, aim, attractions, August, balls, Canadian National Exhibition, candy, CNE, crowds, Curious George, evening, Ex, gamble, games, Jeff, junk food, lights, midway, mirage, monkeys, noise, people, prizes, rides, ring toss, roulette, sand, sculpture, shows, stuffed animals, summer, Toronto, Whac-a-mole

another August, another trip to the Ex!

Evening shot as the sky is getting darker. Tiny Tom donut stand all lit up, with a line up of people waiting to buy donuts.

Tiny Tom Donuts, an iconic part of the CNE for as long as I can remember.

Two acrobatic women hanging from a large triple hook shaped bar suspended from the ceiling. Bathed in blue light.

One of this year’s shows is ‘Mirage’, an acrobatic show at the Ricoh Coliseum.

Two people on a rope in yellow and purple lights. Part of the audience can be seen in the photo.

another part of the ‘Mirage’ show

A boy wearing a fedora is standing beside one of the midway games. He is holding a coke bottle with the name Jeff on it. Behind him is a large picture of 3 stars.

A star on the midway. The coke bottle says Jeff.

Two young men are hammering away at Whac-a-mole while a woman who is running the game is talking to the people who are watching

playing Whac-a-Mole!

A number of people are competing to win a stuffed monkey. They are shooting water into a target.

shooting for monkeys, Curious George as the prize

A groups of young people are playing a midway game where you toss balls. What they are throwing them at is not in the photo!

Having fun tossing baseballs!

CNE midway game with the prize being a stuffed minion from the movie 'Despicable Me'. A woman is paying to play.

getting ready to play for minions

A young man is sitting by a giant roulette wheel, a midway game at the Ex

waiting for the wheel to stop

Lights on one of the midway rides, Starship.

Starship lights and motion on the midway

A display of candy apples for sale. Some are coated with smarties candies, some with multi coloured sprinkles and some with crushed nuts.

yum, candy apples… caramel, smarties, sprinkles and crushed nuts!

Sand sculpture of a woman sitting on the ground, looking wistfully through a round window. In the background are some woman standing behind a wood barricade who are looking at the sand sculpture

women watching, sand sculpture

Details of a sand sculpture (hands) with another sculpture behind (of a woman)

women from another angle

A father and his daughters are on a midway ride, spinning in red "seats" as they go around in circles.

spinning quickly on the midway – or at least a bit too quickly for the camera!

summer in the city

Posted: July 7, 2014 in general Toronto, people
Tags: aquarium, baseball, bikes, downtown, Dundas Square, enjoying, fish, food, food trucks, Kensington, kids, people, photography, photos, Ryerson, street, streets, summer, sunny, Sweet Alibi, T-shirts, Toronto, Uncle Smokes, walking, warm, waterfront

Summer in the city – although the summer feels like it’s only just begun!

A cyclist and his bike are sitting at the edge of Lake Ontario, behind the chain fence. It is evening and the sky is strating to turn pink

Early evening rest at the waterfront

Two food trucks are parked on the street. People are buying food, or sitting on the conrete bench (low wall) that runs parallel to the sidewalk

Ice cream, slushies, hot dogs, chips, poutine…. food trucks on Queen Street in front of City Hall.

Two people are standing behind a table that is covered with a red and white checkered table cloth. The menu is written on a chalk board in front of them. The last item on the menu is love, and it's cost is free.

Uncle Smoke gives away free love! Pulled pork with beans, corn bread and veg will cost you $10 though! Pedestrian Sunday, Kensington Market.

A man is sitting beside a stroller in the foreground. Behind him is a pool of water and then a large glass building. On the wall of the building are black and white images of some famous people including Andy Warhol, JFK, and Albert Einstein

Under the watchful eye of a few famous people – Ryerson Image Centre building.

Some people are walking towards the camera as the cross a street including a couple who are holding hands. He is wearing an orange Tshirt that says Cool story babe, Now Make me a Sandwich.

“Cool Story Babe, Now make me a sandwich.” Any replies ladies?

A girl is standing very close to one of the tanks at the aquarium, she has her hands open and on the glass.

hands on at the aquarium

Dundas Square with many people sitting on chairs, under red umbrellas, watching a band play on stage

‘Sweet Alibi’ plays at Dundas Square

A large group of people, inlcuding many kids, are walking towards Rogers Stadium for a Blue Jays baseball game. Most of them are wearing blue Blue Jays shirts.

game day, Jays fans

******

Pedestrian Sunday

Posted: May 26, 2014 in events, people
Tags: bikes, chalk, chalk chick, colours, eating, enjoy, eye, food, graffiti, Kensington, patio, pedestrians, people, photos, pictures, sidewalk, sights, stores, street art, summer, Sunday, sunny, Toronto, umbrellas, walking

The first Pedestrian Sunday of 2014, Kensington Market, 25th May.

What follows is a collection of sights from that afternoon.

A group of young people are walking down the street, away from the camera. Some are walking their bikes and some of the men are topless.

It was a warm day, the warmest day of the year so far. Time to shed the remains of winter and enjoy the sun and the city.

art and music…..

A young woman is sitting on the sidewalk. She is creating a picture of one of the characters from the TV show Futurama.

‘chalk chick’ – see more of her work at chalkchick.com

A man sitting on a stool on the sidewalk, playing a musical instrument

I am not sure what his name is or what kind of instrument he plays. If anyone knows, please give me a shout!

Two men on the sidewalk outside Sancis store. One man is standing and the other is sitting.

guitar players

food and drink…..

Three women are lined up waiting to be served at a street vendor who is selling food.

one of the many street vendors selling food and drink – BBQ chicken, burgers, fries, sandwiches and coconut sorbet included

The front of Wandas Pie in the Sky restaurant. People are sitting at tables and chairs set up outside the restaurant.

enjoying Wanda’s patio

A number of people are having lunch on a patio.

lunch on the patio!

A group of young people are sitting onthe curb eating food out of stryofoam containers

street food

people watching ……

Some people sitting on steps, three women standing in front of a large graffiti face that is wearing large star shaped sun glasses.

In front of big red starry sunglasses.

giant scrabble!

A couple with a small dog on a leash are standing by one of the barricades used to keep cars off the street

People with animals ….

A woman has a large fake red nose and large white frames sunglasses. She is carrying a green umbrella with a froggie face on it

keeping cool under the froggie

A woman is sitting at a table, under a patio umbrella. Behind her is a large graffiti piece of a young woman's face

two women, one larger than life

A woman is looking at her phone as she waits behind a table where she is selling denim shorts (on the sidewalk). In the background a man is buying something at another vendor's table.

‘This Way’ to browsing, buying and selling.

A pile of large wood blocks are in the middle of the street and a family is building small towers with them - a small girl and boy and their parents.

playing with blocks

Two women, each with an umbrella open above their heads are standing in the street.

Some people bared their skin to bask in the sun while others wanted more protection

under the blade

….. and the sights of Kensington

Detail of messages attached to a telephone pole. They are written on strips of yellow and blue heavy paper. In the background is a painting of a large eye, part of the sign above the door of Orbital Arts on Augusta Ave.

A watchful eye from Orbital Arts looks over Augusta Ave.

At an intersection, lots of people are walking on the street. Across the intersection is a three story burgundy colored brick building with a shop, and awning, on the ground floor. There are murals of faces on the upper level of the outside wall along with the words 'Welcome to Kensington, Romeos'

crowded streets mid-afternoon outside Romeo’s

a man stands in the doorway of a shop that has towels in the window and a lot of things for sale on a table outside the shop

Captain America and the Hulk lurk outside a store.

street scene of the intersection of Kensington and Dundas West. There are people walking on the sidewalk past a boarded up shop.

the corner of Kensington and Dundas West

A man is sitting on a fence reading a book. There are books on the ground in front of him that are for sale. There are also some shirts on hangers that are for sale.

a quiet corner to read on

little people stuck to the wall, sticker street art on Kensington

Nathan Phillips Square on a sunny long week-end

Posted: August 7, 2013 in events, locations
Tags: archer, August, dancing, irie, irie festival, live music, music, Nathan Phillips, people, performance, reggae, Samba Squad, summer, sunshine, Toronto, tourists

This year the long August week-end (Aug 3, 4 and 5) was warm and sunny. Like most summer week-ends in Toronto, there was lots going on. On both Sunday and Monday afternoon I dropped by the IRIE festival at Nathan Phillips Square.

people watching a performance at Nathan Phillips Square on a sunny afternoon

There was a small but appreciative crowd at Nathan Phillips Square on Sunday afternoon for the IRIE festival.

Samba Squad, a group of musicians, performs on stage.

Samba Squad performing on Sunday afternoon.

4 men dancing on a stage. they are wearing green pants and white sleeveless T-shirts.

They were called the TD dancers and they were one of the opening acts on Monday afternoon.

A man and a woman dancing. The woman has long hair that is bouncing around as she moves.

Their performance was twelve minutes of non-stop, high energy movement.

Seeking shade and a place to rest.

Two Asian male photographers and their cameras with very long lenses taking pictures of a performance on the stage at Nathan Phillips Square.

There were not a lot of cameras clicking away during the performances that I saw. One exception were the four men with their long lenses that stopped by for a few minutes, took some photos, and left. I thought of African safaris as I watched them.

A girls wearing a light blue jacket is standing beside the pool at Nathan Phillips Square while her mother takes her picture. The mother is wearing light blue pants and is holding a light blue umbrella.

Photo op in light blue.

Nathan Phillips Square from the south, showing one of the arches over the fountain. Some vendors are there as well as some tourists and other people enjoying the sunny afternoon.

There were also a few vendors selling food & drink, clothing, and jewelry. Mostly it was a pleasant way to spend some time on a sunny summer afternoon.

First Toronto Japanese Summer Festival

Posted: July 28, 2013 in events
Tags: crowds, drawing, Dundas Square, festival, geisha, Japanese, kids, kimono, parasol, people, Pokemon, red parasol, summer, sunglasses, T-shirts, Toronto

Dundas Square, Sunday July 28

I happened upon this festival this afternoon. It was crowded but everyone seemed to be having a good time.

Many people were out at Dundas Square this afternoon enjoying the perfect summer afternoon.

There were displays and activities. You could make buttons, practice calligraphy or try your hand origami.

two girls dressed in kimonos trying to grab a small inflated balloon that is floating in water.

Catch a bobbing balloon with a tiny hook!

Display of T-shirts for sale. They have Japanese writing on them. One is the character for energy and the other is the character for "be yourself'

T-shirts were some of the things that were available for sale.

A man wearing a Pokemon mask on the side of his head. Also in the photo is a small boy wearing a fedora but falling asleep on his father's shoulder

There were also masks for sale.

A woman wearing a kimono made of fabric that is covered with red maple leaves.

Many woman wearing kimonos in all colours and variety of fabrics. Some men were wearing the male equivalent (sorry, I have forgotten the name). There was a kimono fashion show as well.

as I walk Toronto

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