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Summer: Free Leisure Options
Sotaque Brasileiro, Number 5, Summer 2004
Canada in the summer is an explosion of long-awaited joy. With the arrival of the sun and temperatures up to 40C, the country completely transforms itself. It's as if everyone suddenly becomes more available and cheerful with days being longer and with endless options for entertainment .
Bicicleta é uma atividade saudável e popular por todo o Canadá |
In all cities in Canada, you will find free leisure activities, especially outdoors. Parks are a great example. Apart from direct contact with nature, you have at your disposal excellent options such as hiking and biking, picnic areas with tables and grills, swimming pools and sports facilities for tennis, baseball, basketball, volleyball, as well as others. All these outdoor activities are available for public use and are totally free in the summer.
Festivals and street fairs are also a hallmark of the season throughout the country and are great entertainment options for the whole family. Across the country occur ethnic, art, book and record fairs, boat races, cycling and hiking outings, musical and children's events. Take a look at local newspapers and websites in your city to find information, dates and locations of major events nearby.
(www.toronto.com, www.city.vancouver.bc.ca, www.montreal.com, www.tourismcalgary.com, www.halifaxinfo.com)
If you are furnishing your home, pay attention to signs of garage/moving/lawn/yard sales. In the summer it is common for families to clean their homes, putting up items for sale in their gardens, working, useful second-hand objects. It's worth the experience. It's fun and really amazing things can be found in general for a bargain price. But be there early because good, inexpensive finds are short-lived. If you need furniture or larger household items, find moving sales. Many newspapers have a dedicated section listing garage/moving sales throughout the city.
Consider day trips to nearby cities where there is a huge variety of options, such as antique markets and, of course, the most popular choice for those who like heat and water: the beaches. Be on the coast, lake or river beaches -- this is a free program that is always successful.
The important thing is that summer is around -- shake out your shorts, find your havaiana in the closet and get lost in the lands of the north. Relax and discover your new country.
TORONTO
If you're in Toronto do not miss this summer's events: Caribana, Jazz Festival, Pride Day, Dragon Boat Race, Taste of Danforth, International Caravan and Canadian National Exhibition.
Do not forget the Lakeshore, a region that stretches from Mississauga to Scarborough, where it is extremely pleasant to walk, skate or bike, run or just sit and watch Lake Ontario from the boardwalk.
A great tourist attraction in Toronto is the Toronto Island, reached via an inexpensive ferry located behind the Westin Harbour Castle at the beginning of Bay Street. It offers a playground, beaches, places to hike, picnic and fantastic views of the city at dusk.
The city's main museums:
Royal Ontario Museum (free admission on Fridays from 16:30 to 21:30), Art Gallery of Ontario (free on Wednesdays), McMichael Canadian Art Collection.
Amusement parks: Marineland, Wonderland, Ontario Place
Other options: Toronto Zoo, Casa Loma, Black Creek Pioneer Village
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