I had been to the observation level so many times during my work hours, but I never got a chance to sit there and observe. This time, I had nowhere to go and nowhere to be.

BY KARAN SARAF

IMAGE COURTESY OF THE AUTHOR

Alright! This is it—I can’t just always sit inside the house worrying if I’ll get that new job or not, I thought to myself as I tapped my pockets to ensure I had my keys, Presto card, and cash. I quickly slipped on my sneakers and rushed out of my house hastily to catch the 10:30 a.m. eastbound subway. I just wanted a change of pace in life and to make the most out of a day off work. That is when I decided to go and be a tourist in the city that I had lived in for over a year, but never really got a chance to explore. I decided to do that by aiming to visit as many attractions as I could in one day. 

It was a semi-cloudy and breezy Saturday morning in May, and thankfully a day off for me. I paced towards the subway station—involuntarily still thinking about that job I wanted so badly, and the steamy weather had me covered in sweat immediately. Unbothered, I walked even faster, thinking that there would be so many attractions in the city to cover and not much time. 

(10:26 a.m., Lansdowne Station)

I started to descend the staircase of the subway station faster than people around me, skipping two steps at a time, as I heard the screeching sound of the train stopping. Thinking it was an eastbound train, I reached the platform only to realize that the train was making a stop on the westbound side of the station. I missed the 10:30 a.m. train, but the overhead display informed me that there was a subway coming every four minutes.

I stood on the platform skimming through the webpage of the destination I was headed to. A gust of wind from the dark subway tunnel assured me that the train was close. I scanned the empty red seats as the train moved past me to stop at the platform and stepped inside the moment the door opened.

(10:51 a.m., Dupont Station)

Around twenty minutes later, I exited the station through a dome-like structure to come to one of the most beautifully lush and green neighborhoods of Toronto along Dupont Street. A short walk later, I ended up where the Baldwin Steps are, and as I started to climb, I realized what the hype was all about. I turned around and saw a panoramic view of the city. Just like the sky, my head cleared up too. I stood there as a drop of sweat slowly trickled down the corner of my eye, and I wondered: why have I not come here before?

I knew that my day was going to be a good one when a question of this sort arose in my mind.

Moments after a short walk through Spadina Park, I saw a massive mansion to my left and I knew it was Casa Loma (Spanish), which literally translates to ‘hill house’ in English. Out of the 98 rooms in this iconic landmark, The Oak Room is said to be the most beautiful; I can confirm this. Its indomitable chandeliers, grand windows, wood-carved walls, and the sweet smell of aged wood made it seem like a fantasy. I stood exactly in the middle of the room to look around, only the sound of my breath being heard. Absorbing all the charm that I possibly could, I wondered what it must be like to live in a place like this. My train of thought was broken as soon as a bunch of loud tourists entered the room, and I knew it was my time to head to the terrace.

As I climbed up the spiral staircase and crossed a series of dark alleyways, I looked up to see daylight making its way through the entrance of the terrace to light up just a little portion of the corner of the upper tower of the castle. A gush of steamy summer air rushed through my hair as I entered the terrace, and it was the most beautiful view of the Toronto skyline I had ever seen. I knew I was in a rush to head to the next attraction, but the view in front of my eyes charmed me like a snake is charmed by a snake charmer’s music.

After spending two amazing hours at this majestic property, it was time for me to head out. I knew that the city had a lot more to offer. 

(1:02 p.m., Dundas Station)

This better be worth it, I thought to myself as I made my way out of the subway station through a huge crowd to come out to the bustling Yonge-Dundas square. I fanned myself with my own shirt, trying to beat the heat as I figured out where my next destination was. The sounds overlapping each other from multiple concerts happening at the same time, combined with large waves of people, really made me question my decision of coming to this location. But all the noise and swarms of people left my head the moment I saw that red glittery hoarding across the street that read Little Canada in bold letters. 

I already had an online pass for this spot, so I came to the starting point of the tour—Little Niagara. Suddenly, I was a giant. As the name suggests, the idea of Little Canada is to have miniature replicas of multiple attractions from across the country. Everything appeared so real; it felt like I was getting a birds-eye view of the country.

I could have spent hours looking at all the miniature models. 

Little Toronto was the next section in line, and it undoubtedly ended up being my favourite as it had the greatest number of miniature attractions, constructed flawlessly. It felt like I was seeing the real place from a giant’s perspective. This section had a miniature of almost every location in the city. For instance, The Bloor Street Viaduct, Distillery District, St. Lawrence Market, Union Station, Rogers Centre, and the iconic CN Tower were all included.

Out of all the miniature attractions, a very simple yet unique miniature of a construction site somewhere in the city made my jaw drop. It looked so real and precise that I uttered, “Wow,” loudly enough to grab the attention of the visitors around me. I was later told by a staff member that more miniature models were under construction and would be open soon for future visitors.

With a huge smile of contentment on my face, I stepped out of Little Canada for my next destination, knowing my day was going to get even better. The next place was the most popular in the city among people who love heights. With a rush of adrenaline, I boarded a southbound train from Dundas Subway Station.

(2:30 p.m., St. Andrew’s Station)

After another subway ride, this one being very short, I exited the station. It wasn’t my first time at this station—I went down to the same one to go to work most days. Except today, I wasn’t in my uniform.

A friend from school, whom I ran into randomly, soon joined me too, and we walked along the colourful patios of King Street West. Finally, we ended up in front of a huge white building that read Ripley’s Aquarium of Canada in a funky font. The building, which is a marvelous example of contemporary architecture, had a very welcoming vibe on the outside which instantly made me curious about the inside. 

As soon as we stepped inside, the child in me awakened. This was my first time at an aquarium. We got our passes and headed towards the first exhibit: The Inhabitants of The Great Lakes (Lake Ontario, Lake Huron, Lake Michigan, Lake Superior, and Lake Erie).

The aquarium had so much that I could see, do, and learn that it was almost impossible to remember everything. Everything was going just fine until we came across the jellyfish section of the aquarium. We were simply taken aback by it. At first, we thought it was an LED projection of the jellyfish on a screen, until a staff member clarified that they were real jellyfish with neon colours cast over them. Without exaggeration, that was one of the most breathtaking experiences I have ever had to date.

As we moved forward through the aquarium, we found ourselves in a tunnel through a huge water reservoir with so many aquatic animals. From mighty sharks and stingrays to clownfish, all kinds of species were swimming around. The most amazing moment was when a massive stingray swam slowly across the tunnel, just above us. 

Seeing all different forms of life in symbiosis reminded me of elementary school, where our teachers used to point out the importance of coexistence. This experience made me feel like I found the missing jigsaw piece for my life’s puzzle. When I was younger, I had only read about different life forms in school, but when I saw them in person, suddenly the lessons from my past started to make so much more sense. 

My heart filled with an overwhelming amount of joy; I now knew exactly the place where we could finish our journey of the day. 

(6:50 p.m., CN Tower)

After a stringent security check, we took an elevator up to the famous CN tower’s observation level where we could get a panoramic view of the entire city. It was there that we saw the setting sun. It reached the time of day where it had done enough shining; it started to slip away slowly beneath the horizon, continuously. We took a spot by the huge glass window on the observation level and just sat there in silence, watching the sun change its colour from bright yellow to crimson red.

I had been to the observation level so many times during my work hours, but I had never got a chance to sit there and observe. This time, I had nowhere to go and nowhere to be. A million thoughts about life, and the experiences that come with it, crossed my mind. I did not stop them as I watched the Blue Jays game from high up above. I loved watching the game, even though I had absolutely no knowledge of baseball. The players looked like little ants crawling around from up there, and the audience looked like a cluster of blue insects.

After a lot of exploring and retrospection, I knew, then, that even if I did not get the job I’ve always wanted, I can always expect new opportunities to come to me. Just how, like my day exploring Toronto, the next destination always seemed even better than the last.

Perspective is everything, isn’t it? 

Karan Saraf is a content coordinator, photographer, and creative writer based in Toronto, Ontario. Currently completing his Graduate Certificate in Creative Writing and Communications at Humber, Karan is working on a full-length non-fiction article for the Humber Literary Review and is a Web Content Coordinator for Humber ITS (Information Technology Services). 

Image courtesy of the author.

Edited for publication by Tiana Bozic, as part of the Creative Book Publishing program.

HLR Spotlight is a collaboration between the Faculty of Media & Creative Arts and the Faculty of Liberal Arts & Sciences and Innovative Learning at Humber College in Toronto, Ontario. This project is funded by Humber’s Office of Research & Innovation.