The Santa Claus Parade has been a Toronto tradition since 1905. Fantastic animated floats leave the corner of Christie and Bloor Street West in the company of two dozen marching bands and a couple of thousand costumed participants, cheered along by excited kids. (http://gocanada.about.com/od/canadiancities1/p/santaparadeTO.htm)
When I went to Toronto for student exchange program (SEP) last semester, I went to see this fantastic annual Santa Claus Parade! This parade was quite similar to the Chingay parade in Singapore. What I observed was:
1) People are really excited about this parade, and many crowd along the streets early to get a good view
2) All the little children were seated on the curb
3) Before the floats came in, logistic trucks will pull in and clowns will start to distribute free gift packages to all the little children who were seated in front
The whole parade gives a very joyful atmosphere and it was a heart warming experience besides the cold weather! I like the culture of bringing joy to the little children and the people in the crowd will let children to move to the front to get the best view.
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| Many many people! |
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| Giving Christmas packages |
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| Children checking out what is inside |
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| PANDA! |
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| Marching band playing Christmas carols |
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| and FINALLY..........Santa! (: |
During my stay in Toronto, the people there are very friendly too. In every shop, you will be greeted by "Hi, how's your day?" and the cashiers and staff will wait for you to reply. Toronto is very environmentally friendly as well. The dustbins in subways and university has many holes for different rubbish (paper products, plastic products, glass products and general waste). On top of that, there will be trucks moving around to each household every week to collect recyclables. All in all, it was a memorable exchange experience for me!
2 comments:
Hello Jo,
This is a really heartwarming post that you have shared with us. I think Christmas means a lot to many cultures, and of course perhaps young children, the chance to see Santa and receive goodies from the chimney! Haha!
Whenever a major float parade like this (or even the Chingay in Singapore) happens, there are a lot of background work that contributes to its eventual success. Christmas must have been a very celebrated occasion in Toronto, as compared to Singapore where our main attraction would be the lightings at Orchard Road.
Then again, as a Geographer, my attention is drawn to the later part of the post about the environmental bit. I believe many cities alike Singapore, has this notion of cleanliness (you may check out Absolut Vodka's advertisements where they pick out a main quality of each city and fashion their glass bottles to represent that city!)
i'm looking forward to my exchange next semester to UK! Can't wait!
Hey Jo!
I wish that I could be there to witness this event. It must have been a warm occasion amidst the coldness of winter. Still, being able to recognize these characters really brings back memories of our childhood, isn't it?
These nationwide or city-wide parades not only creates the celebratory ambience during festivals but also brings the interaction between family members, the people in the home country or the world closer together. Perhaps such parade culture isn't unique to only Canada like what you say. The difference would be the festival we are celebrating.
Nonetheless, I really hope to visit Canada one day! I have to witness the snow and Northern lights!
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