Easy Walk in Picturesque Toronto For You or the Whole Family

Since you do not have to pay any entrance fees, the cost of the visit will consist of your transportation costs and your refreshments. That's it!

Public transportation in Toronto (TTC) costs $3 per trip - you can get a transfer on the first form of transport you board (at the subway, the transfer machine is located somewhere after the ticket counter) and the transfer is shown on each subsequent bus, streetcar or subway you board for your one-way trip. Seniors and students pay less - I bought 5 tickets at a time for about $9.

I am going to show the path I followed to get to and around Cabbagetown. You don't have to do it exactly as I did and Toronto is the easiest place to get around using public transportation. You can increase the scale on the map below to see the layout of the neighborhood or reduce the scale to see where it lies with respect to other parts of Metropolitan Toronto.

I took the Bloor subway and got off at Castle Frank Station. Once out of the station, I turned right and crossed the bridge. From the bridge I could see the subway tunnel suspended over the valley yet lower than street level. Here is the photo I took so you know you are going in the right direction.

At the traffic light, cross the intersection and then cross again so you are walking alongside the park to your left.

You will see one of the oldest cemeteries in Toronto and it is still active. It began operations in 1844, at a time when most of Toronto's population lived south of Queen Street. Later, in 1861, a funeral chapel, constructed in Gothic Revival style, was opened. In 1990, this chapel was recognized by the government as a National Historic Heritage Site.

You cannot enter the chapel unless you are participating in a funeral service, but it is worth walking around the grounds to see the chapel architecture and the graves and monuments recognizing some of Toronto's distinguished citizens of Anglican faith. I found it particularly moving to find monuments in honor of those who had donated their bodies to medical research, one monument for each of three institutes: University of Toronto, McMaster University and the Canadian Memorial Chiropractic College. Below left is a photograph of the chapel, and below right a photograph of one of the U of T monument.

When I was growing up, and even when I was in university, Parliament Street was not somewhere you would want to go. It was reputedly the skid row of Toronto - drugs, alcohol, prostitution and crime. A scary place, indeed!

Now it is pleasant, so close to the bustling major shopping street, Yonge, but without the noise and crowds. There are ethnic shops - but, then, there are ethnic shops throughout Toronto today, so that is not really anything too special.

In the photo on the left, you can see the first pussy willows I have seen here yet. Pussy willows are the furry buds that emerge in spring on willow trees. Seeing these gave me warm memories of finding them on the trees in my childhood.

In 1888, the Winchester Hotel was completed and provided lodgings and restaurant and bar services to the community. Today you can enjoy the ambiance, strangely enough, by sipping a coffee and having wicked donuts in the Tim Hortons that now occupies what was once the hotel's bar.

Come wander around with me as I explored a few of the streets in this lovely quiet neighborhood.

As you walk along the street, you will come very soon upon the Necropolis. Fancy sounding exotic word - all it means is cemetery. This sign says it all: 

Had your fill of quaint Victorian houses and cemeteries?  Maybe you're up for a free visit to the historic Riverdale Farm. The City of Toronto bought the land from its original owners in 1856 and it took almost 40 years before a use was found for it. In 1894 a zoo was opened to the public here but by 1974 the zoo was moved to its present location outside the city.

Since 1978, the property functions as a farm and children can see farm animals and how a farm operates. Some farm produce is sold and soon the chickens should be laying eggs, which will also be sold. The buildings on the farm date back to the 19th century.

You leave Riverdale Farm and walk through the park in a south direction. You will again be greeted by the lovely homes that have been preserved by historically minded citizens who did not let the government take them all down.

Across the road from Gerrard Street, you will see the tenements put up for public housing. While there is a lot of green space around these buildings, they are unattractive and quickly went to seed. There are now meetings with residents' organizations to try to figure out how to raise the standard of living in this area.