I am a complete romantic…read more I just want to find my person to grow old with, take trips, and live happy. That's the goal to life right? Having options is great but blessed is the person to find the one that loves you unconditionally, gets along with you, no drama and makes you laugh. Ossington is a place in Canada that brings a fairytale to life. And where strolling down Ossington Ave brings a scenic and serene experience. Canada is absolutely beautiful. The food choices are amazing and this area is super charming. While in Canada visiting a very special friend, we walked to this beautiful neighborhood. This season of my life, working less is the goal, no work weekends start on Thursday, buying a vacation home is the next move, and enjoying life is the only way to live. Yes to Ossington....while in Canada visiting is a Must! Canada is and will be a yearly (if not more) vacation spot for me! Life will teach you. Happiness is a state of mind. Forgive those who hurt you, continue to love BIG and trust that God is working everything out! 2026 you've been good to me! Grateful!

My first time in Toronto was pretty memorable! The city felt lively and diverse, with so much going…read moreon everywhere you look. I loved walking around downtown, which has me a mix of modern skyscrapers and historic buildings. The food scene was amazing! with lots of great spots to try from all over the world. It's basically their version of NYC. I also enjoyed visiting the CN Tower and getting an incredible view of the city!

I come here for a family member...and that really is the only reason,…read more It is a great foody town but... Weather sucks Dog poop everywhere Tired and worn down. Everything is expensive and that is with the US to CAD exchange rate too

The Short Version: Markham is a suburb of Toronto, but it's…read moreno sleepy suburb, it has lots of great restaurants and fun places to shop. The Long Version: I'm thrilled that Markham has its own Yelp listing. Markham is about 30 km northeast of Toronto, and it has seen significant growth in the last few decades. When I was living in Toronto, I rarely ever went to Markham (except to go to Pacific Mall, more on that later) but after I left Toronto I discovered Markham more. This is mostly because when my parents and I would return to visit Toronto, we would stay in Markham as accommodations were more affordable there, and traffic was less congested than in Toronto. Also, my dad loves Chinese Food, and since there is a large Chinese population in Markham, he's in foodie paradise there. Haha. I soon discovered that Markham had plenty of restaurants and shops that I like. My first time to Markham was to visit Pacific Mall. When it opened in 1996 it was the cat's meow. I remember my parents taking my brother and I there and I was fascinated by all the Asian shops. I was interested in the hair accessories and my brother was interested in the videogames and figurines. And we were both interested in the food court, lol. These days Pacific Mall is no longer novel and it has lost its former glory. Now there are many shops that sell the same thing and they are items that you can get elsewhere. The food court is still cool though. Once upon a time they even had a Beard Papa's franchise at Pacific Mall, but alas it closed. Although these days, my favourite food court in Markham is at First Markham Place. It's fairly large with lots of vendors and prices are very reasonable. Most vendors are small independent businesses with only one location. I also like the Oomomo at First Markham Place. I also love J-Town, which is in Markham. You'll find all things Japanese here. Sasaki Fine Pastry has amazing daifuku! Kuo Hua Trading Co Ltd is also another favourite place of mine in Markham. They sell imported items from Taiwan. CF Markville is a great mainstream mall in Markham. And it has my favourites stores, Marshalls and Winners! Markham also has several restaurants that specialize in huge wonton soups, which I love, such as Big Trio Wonton Noodles and Wonton Hut. The wontons are the size of golf balls, lol. Markham also has lots of bubble tea shops and I love my boba. Haha. I'm a fan of Markham, although I feel like you need a car to get around. It's not all that walkable, everything is fairly spaced out, but this is expected since it's a suburb. Review #26 (2026)

A high school friend recently returned to the greater Toronto area (GTA). We met for dim sum in…read moreMarkham and she brought her childhood friend. We had this conversation just before we got the bill: Friend: What is Markham known for? Me: Horrible drivers in BMWs. I curse more at drivers here and their poor driving than any other place. We all laughed. It is also true. There are plenty of incompetent drivers in this city that I call home. Markham is north of Toronto. It's considered a suburb and is a part of the GTA. I've actually had two stints in Markham. My parents and I moved from the Beaches to Markham after I had graduated from high school. Back then, Markham was a town. I moved away for nine years. I returned to Markham and it has been my home ever since. I saw the population boom. Markham has been deemed a city since 2012. I have seen a lot of change in Markham over the years. Retail and urban areas used to be between Steeles Avenue East and Major Mackenzie Drive back in the day. Farmland dominated Markham above Major Mackenzie. Urban sprawl happened when housing became ridiculously expensive in Toronto. More folks wanted to live in Markham because housing used to be cheaper and affordable. More development happened here, which has caused a lot of farmland transformed into neighbourhoods and shopping centres. Case in point: downtown Markham. It used to be nothing but vacant, vast plots of land. It's now home to condominiums, retail stores and services, and a lot more. The city does have many high tech companies and is considered Canada's high tech capital. IBM, AMD, and General Motors are some of the bigger technology players. It's cool that York University is creating a Markham campus in the downtown core. I wish that it were there when I was an undergraduate student! I like living in Markham. There are a ton of good restaurants. It has everything that I need. There are pockets of this city that still feel like a town. Every time I visit my local post office to pick up a package or parcel, everyone there knows me. When I visit my go-to pharmacy, the pharmacist knows me. It's cool and nice. I will highlight the Markham Theatre. It's a lovely place to take in a concert or musical. It's affordable in a classy venue. I have seen Jann Arden there. It was also a nice venue for a Yelp event a few years back. Mary from Markham. I love the alliteration. It's also a cool city in which to live. (137)

Cheering on our ALDS champs in Game 2 World Series! Good…read morecrowd & Mayor Chow is here! Let's Go Blue Jays!

I'm surprised that I never wrote a review about the Toronto sign at Nathan Phillips Square. Well,…read morethe time is now! I will admit that I am late to such trends. The first such sign that I discovered and took my first photo of was the Ottawa sign several years ago while I was at ByWard Market. As a tourist, I love such touristy attractions. They are fun and memorable. My first time seeing this Toronto sign in person was during the pandemic. It was nice to be outdoors, not wearing a mask, taking photos of the sign with Toronto reflected on the water on a warm, summery day. This sign changes colour depending on whatever event is happening. If it's Canada Day, you'll see the letters in red and white. When the Toronto Maple Leafs were making a playoff run, the letters were blue and white. I remember heading to my car after a Jann Arden concert at Massey Hall. It was a special evening for me. The letters were in white. The maple leaf next to it was red. It was a beautiful evening out. It's simply a cheerful sign at any time. It's a nice addition to the downtown core. Whenever I'm in the area, I try my best to visit and enjoy it. It's great, whether you are a local or a tourist. (95)

This walk of fame area in the entertainment district of Toronto Ontario Canada displays maple leaf…read moreshaped sidewalk stars embedded into the pavement to honor famous Canadian's including celebrities, movie stars, actors, arts, sports, science, business and charity. Founded in 1998, it spans 13 blocks mainly around Roy Thomson Hall, Princess Wales Theatre and the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

I recently attended a musical at the Princess of Wales Theatre. After it was over, I walked out of…read morethe theatre and looked down. I normally don't look down at the sidewalk, but I did for some reason. I noticed inductee names and stars. I was walking on Canada's Walk of Fame. So cool! Since 1998, a number of Canadians who have excelled in various fields are inducted in Canada's Walk of Fame. The fields are diverse, from science and philanthropy, to athletics and music. Inductee stars are present along King Street West, between John Street and Simcoe Street. They are also on Simcoe Street, between King Street West and Wellington Street, in downtown Toronto. I was at King and John, so I'm at the beginning or end of the walk of fame, depending on the direction that you're going. I like that if you're looking for a specific inductee, you can do a search on Canada's Walk of Fame site. It'll save you a bit of time if you just want to see specific inductee stars without walking the whole thing. The link is here: https://www.canadaswalkoffame.com/the-walk-of-fame/find-a-star I enjoyed taking a bit of time looking at the inductees before I headed home. I took a few photos of these notable folks: - Monty Hall, host of Let's Make a Deal (Winnipegger) - Wayne Gretzky, the Great One of hockey - Guy Lombardo (I grew up listening to his Christmas album with His Royal Canadians) - Timothy Findley (author best known for The Wars) I would love to return to check out all the stars. I like being a tourist in my hometown and learning from self-discovery activities, especially when they are free. (328)

The Don Valley park system, trails, and surrounding pockets of nature might be one of my top 5…read moreplaces in Toronto. Within a few minutes of downtown, in the middle of Canada's largest city you can literally find yourself deep inside of a real forest setting. The trail system is very well maintained and used for a variety of purposes from dog walking, hiking, mountain biking, etc. It's been estimated that there are nearly 100km of trail system within the Don Valley if you include all of the trails that connect in the surrounding area. To start exploring most people will begin at The Brickworks, the Pottery Road trailhead, or the large parking lot at Taylor Creek. You can explore the Don year round. Fall is probably the best time, but you do need to be careful if it's the rainy season as the clay based trails get very muddy and very sticky. Enjoy real nature in your urban backyard.

Small and intimate that's how I would describe Markham Home Show…read more $4 admission fee with partial of the proceeds towards charity (Habitat to Humanity GTA) which is quite reasonable. Of course it is nothing compares to Toronto Home Show which charges a $20 entry fee. Here you will find mostly local business that serves the area. Great if you are a homeowner and looking for home improvement services and products from local business. Vendors are all really helpful and ready to answer questions. Tons of free parking. Not a bad way to spend a few hour with your family as Children admission is free. They do have a child playing area with a bouncing castle.

This is one of the reasons I love Toronto: you can be walking or driving by any neighborhood and…read moreBAM! You run into a wonderfully creative piece of artwork. Thanks to Allison Y. for bringing attention to this awesome little corner where dinosaurs still roam the Earth. T-rex, Triceratops, Stegosaurus, and a Diplodocus or is it a Brontosaurus? I have a fascination with them all. You can see a few of the heads moving in the wind with an accompanying creaking sound making the experience a little more interesting. These masterfully crafted creatures are made of steel that were laser cut by the geniuses at AC Waterjet. Their motto is "You name it, we'll cut it"; but not only can they cut things, they do it with flair. There is one dino and two gigantic dragonflies at the front of the AC Waterjet building next to the parkette. Even if they're closed for the day, you can still visit and check out the sculptures. They're near the corner of Lawrence and Crockford across from Diana's. Great stop if you're in the area. Just be careful not to get cut on the sharp edges!

Dinosaurs run wild in Scarborough! Just kidding. These are dinosaurs sculptures made of steel. I…read moredidn't count, but there are many of them. There are different breeds, different sizes and different motions. Some appear peaceful, while some appear they are hunting. The sculptures are all rusted and in brown colour. There is a sign saying beware of sharp edges, and don't try to climb on them. I was just about to climb on one to take a picture. :-) Given this spectacular piece of public art is located next to the mall of the uber popular Diana's, it is a mystery why no one has reviewed it before. Maybe because the strip of land parcel is tiny. The side street has nothing to speak of. The art pieces themselves are spectacular however, and made to last. Do drop by next time you are at Diana's and take a look.