Since I grew up in Michigan, living in Toronto isn’t too far removed as far as the climate is concerned.
Both places get a lot of snow and ice in the winter, but Michigan is particularly humid in the summer because it’s surrounded by water.
Toronto is right on the banks of Lake Ontario so it gets its fair share of moisture as well. Since my hometown in Michigan was rural, moving to Toronto in its massive metropolitan glory took some time for acclimation. I wandered the streets of Koreatown one summer afternoon and was so enamored with the rich culture that dates back generations. Queen’s Park is another favorite location of mine if I just want to park my car and go for a walk. My girlfriend and I had to begrudgingly stay home most of 2020 because of local restrictions on indoor spaces during the pandemic. I completely understand the response, but it was sad to see the pandemic destroy a lot of great businesses. Aside from the various cannabis dispensaries that shut down amid all of the dense competition, we also lost eateries like Gretzky’s Restaurant. We loved visiting Second City for comedy shows after eating at Gretzky’s Restaurant next door. As the name implies, the restaurant was a joint partnership between the acclaimed hockey superstar Wayne Gretzky and his business partner. We walked down there after leaving a cannabis dispensary last week and saw that it was closed for good. I heard that a condominium complex is being built in its place. Some of my favorite restaurants and weed stores bit the dust during the chaos of COVID-19.