March Break Musings and Famous City Attractions

It's March Break week here in Toronto and I'm taking a couple of days off with the kids. Not planning tons of stuff - mostly it'll be about letting the kids usual hectic pace slow down a bit. For example it's almost ten a.m. right now and two of them are still sleeping. Oldest is working at a kids camp this week. Wow. Kind of weird when your baby girl is grown up enough to take care of other people's kids now.

We did go to the Art Gallery of Ontario yesterday and while the youngest was semi-bored the older two liked it and I thought the new Frank Gehry addition (especially his beautiful wooden spiral suspended staircase and arched gallery) was stunning. I can't believe I've lived here over twenty years and this was the first time I've gone to the AGO. I wonder if it's like that for most people who live in major cities with famous places? Since they're in your backyard do you have the mentality of "Oh, I'll get to it another day"?

Although I must say I've seen the CN Tower more times than I can count and gone up to it's Skyview deck enough times to be bored with it (still, you never get tired of standing on that weird window in the floor and staring down thousands of feet below you. Yicky). The Royal Ontario Museum - same thing. Ontario Science Centre - if I have to do another school field trip there I'll pay money NOT to go (not that there's anything wrong with it - I just can't do those hands on exhibits one more time, thank you). Toronto Zoo, well, only been once - it's one heck of a drive out there and during March most of the animals are inside anyway.

What I should do with the kids - especially since it's such a nice weather week - is not just think about the major attractions but wander around the parks and neighbourhoods that we don't get to go to that often. Chinatown, Little Italy, take in a show at the theatre district. I know some people put down Toronto as a cold, kind of snobby place but I really do love it here and I find most people friendly and helpful and the neighbourhoods full of character and charm (well, okay, some neighbourhoods I'd stay away from). But I do want my kids to know the city that is their birthplace and feel comfortable exploring it.

Now, if they would just wake up so I could take them somewhere...