Battle of the Fairs

Well, it’s not quite a battle – just me checking out Toronto’s Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) for the first time after years (way into the double digits) of attending the annual Pacific National Exhibition (PNE) in Vancouver.

Living just blocks from the PNE grounds in east Vancouver for most of my life, as soon as the PNE banners go up on Hastings St. each August, you know that the end of summer is just around the corner.

It looks as if the same can be said for the CNE (The Ex). On a mid-August summer evening, I definitely felt a bit of an autumn chill in the air. But I’m told this year isn’t a typical Toronto summer as we haven’t seen the usual above 30-degree temperatures and high humidex values.

So, what do I think of the CNE? 

Well, just like the PNE, it’s in an urban setting, there are farm animals, craft displays, midway rides, a casino and merchants hawking their latest gadgets. And both fairs have the Superdogs show.


Then there’s the food. Over the last week, I would say the CNE PR folks did their job getting the media to talk about the “new and wacky” food such as chocolate fried chicken, thanksgiving waffles and s’more bao. 

I stuck to the basic fair midway fare:  a roasted corn on the cob and a tasty sausage on a bun with fried onions and green peppers from Corrado’s Authentic Italian Cuisine. I figured it was a reliable choice as it was voted the CNE’s best food concession in 2013.


There are more buildings to house the exhibits at the CNE compared to more green space at the PNE. And like everywhere in Toronto, one can pick up a Tim Hortons coffee to go at The Ex.

Overall, I would say the CNE satisfied my annual summer fair fix – this year in Toronto.

A couple of facts: the CNE was founded in 1879 and is currently one of the 10 largest fairs in North America.  Last year, the CNE attracted 1.36 million visitors over 18 days. The first PNE took place in 1910 and has become the largest annual ticketed event in B.C. drawing 900,000 visitors over 17 days.

The Princes' Gates were opened in 1927 by H.R.H. Edward, Prince of Wales
and his brother, Prince George.

One of the many historic buildings on the CNE grounds.

 

A Vice-Regal Trip to Ottawa

The title of this post may be misleading. I wasn’t in Ottawa to receive a Vice-Regal appointment. I didn’t see the Prime Minister and didn’t have an audience with the Governor General. I just like the term Vice-Regal. 

I must say that the national capital is a regal city with all of its institutions, monuments, memorials, churches, museums and, of course, the seat of our national government.

Visiting the centre and east blocks of the Parliament Buildings provides an easy way to learn about Canada’s history and the role of government. What a great job for the summer students who provided excellent, fact-filled tours.

On the museum front, the Canadian War Museum tells the story of Canada’s involvement in conflicts in a logical and chronological order.  And with the 100^th anniversary of the start of First World War this summer, I rediscovered much of what I have forgotten from my high school history classes. I was also honoured to learn more about the Second World War to supplement all the stories my father told my family about his time in that war.
 

Across the Ottawa River, in Gatineau is the Canadian Museum of History.  A highlight for me was a special exhibit that exposed me to an incident that I knew nothing about – the sinking of the Empress of Ireland.  Dubbed, Canada’s Titanic, two ships collided on May 29, 1914 in the St. Lawrence River. The Empress of Ireland, with 1,477 people on board, sank in less than 15 minutes. An estimated 1,032 passengers and crew perished.

On the lighter side, a temporary exhibit at the museum called Snow, revels how snow has shaped the Canadian identity. I certainly got my identity shaped with the worst winter in 20 years in Toronto!

Other stops included tours of the Supreme Court of Canada and Rideau Hall, home to the Governor General and a cruise along the Ottawa River with a perfectly-bilingual tour guide. And yes, I did manage to find time to visit Casino du Lac-Leamy.

Changing of the Guard ceremony on Parliament Hill

Rideau Falls

My radio news career never took me to Ottawa, so humour me when I sign off this post with “this is Sam Corea on Parliament Hill.”