Since Tim Horton’s is owned by the Yanks (Wendy’s) I’m afraid we must accept the Americanization of our donut industry. It’s a shame.
Of course, this may be part of our devious plan to infiltrate the States. 150 Tim Horton’s locations in the USA and counting…
Being a Buffalonian who spent more than his fair share of time in TO, all of these posts are quite frank and accurate. Toronto isn’t an urban utopia; it’s expensive, a bit hard on the eyes, crowded, and not without its shortcomings. However, it’s a quite liveable city. There’s better places to live in the US and Canada, but for a truly “world class” city, Toronto is hard to beat.
My experience has been that there is a mutual “grass is greener” mindset between Buffalonians and Torontonians. Torontonians envy Buffalo’s massive supermarkets (Wegmans and Tops!), huge houses, pretty historic neighborhoods, bucolic suburbs, and low cost of living. They watch Channel 7 news, though, and can’t help but think that some areas of the Buffalo are crime-filled slums that are nearly constantly ablaze. Buffalonians envy Toronto’s vibrant downtown, booming economy, diverse population, low crime rate, and cultural riches. However, there’s the billboard clutter, tiny houses on teeny tiny lots, world-class traffic jams on the 400-series highways, and high cost of living. Both think the other talks in a strange accent; the Torontonian’s quaint “eh?” versus the Buffalonian’s mildly irritating flat-a. Buffalonians think Buffalo radio sucks, and that Q-107 and CFNY are the pinnacles of broadcasting; Torontonians hate Can-con, and get cable just to watch cross-border television.
I think the most important thing to know about any city to which you are considering moving when unemployed is whether the economy is currently on the rise or falling.
Toronto, in many ways, is in decline. The public works (highways, roads, sewers, public services) are all in decline and not likely to recover soon. I have lived here for more than twenty years. In the preceding twenty years, there have been about two serious power outages (outages that lasted more than an hour or two). In the past year there have been around half a dozen.
House prices are very high - actually over-priced and expected to decline for a long time. But you should check that yourself. If you are looking to rent, it may not be a bad time. But IMO, it would be a disaster to buy a home in this market.
If I were you, I would pick the west coast - either Canada or the US. Either of the 3 US states or anywhere in B.C. I think the mainland would be better than an island in B.C. Vancouver is always good - except the job market is not great unless you have experience in a very high tech field.
Please note these are only my personal opinions and I’m guessing many people will disagree with me - some even perhaps strongly disagree.
P.S. Toronto is only pronounced “Tranna” by people who are making a joke or who are at the very bottom of the civilization chain.
Most people do not pronounce it in its fully exact name “To-ron-to” and will bastardize it slightly to “Taw-ron-o”. But that’s about as far as civilized people will bastardize its name.
If you consistently pronounce the name as “Tron-nah”, most people will look at you as if you are nuts or perhaps completely uneducated.
Just ask anyone from San Francisco how they would react to someone who consistently calls their city “Frisco”.
Well, Jonie, I suppose there is a chance bashere has not yet made up his mind in the seven years since he posed his question.
How would the Toronto and national papers report this?
Globe and Mail: Zombies Invade Toronto
Toronto Sun: Panic! Zombies In Streets! See today’s Sunshine Girl Zombie, page 57
Toronto Star: Zombies Advocates Urge Calm; “Merely Misunderstood” Says Social Worker
National Post: Zombie Plague All Liberals’ Fault
ahem
Globe and Mail: Zombies invade Toronto; markets dip
:smack:
You’re right!
Toronto is nice enough, but consider the cost of living and the quality of life. I can’t define quality of life for you, but for the amount that it costs in Toronto, this SE Michigander would never, ever consider it without a doubling of his salary. Can you say, “apartment living?” Or “duplexes” (they call them “townhouses” in the GTA)?
I lived in Mississauga (part of the GTA) for a year. That was with my company paying most expenses. I couldn’t imagine living there only my US salary (upper 10%) and actually enjoying myself.
I’ve lived in and grew up in Toronto and now live in southern California. The freeway highway systems are similar in speed, traffic and some tricky interchanges. I find I drive just as fast on the 401 as I do driving from LA to SD when there is no traffic. Although there may be a few more trucks on the 401. Toronto is a fantastic city but you can’t beat the weather here.
Closing zombie thread.