Building Bonanza

I can't believe it's been a year since I went last, but this weekend was Doors Open once more. And this time, I brought my camera. Wooooo! I started off a little late in the day, so I only had the chance to see 4 buildings, but I'm happy with what I saw.

1. Canada's National Ballet School


The line up for this particular building was long and slow moving; I realized once I got in line that there was very little chance that I would get to see Elgin Theatre like I had planned.


There were so many insanely adorable little ballerina's coming in and out of the school; we were told later that there were two recitals going on that day. Out of respect, we were asked not to take pictures of any dancers or occupied studios, which I understand but omg. There were dancers in full costumes looking lovely and picturesque, it's a shame we couldn't take pictures of them. In particular, I remember five young teen girls dressed in sequined cream tutus with white flowers in their hair, they were beautiful. There were some boys there too, but nowhere near the amount of girls.




I was lucky enough to be part of the first guided tour that included Bruce Kuwabara, the architect who designed the school. He was so well-spoken and knowledgeable and talented, it was most impressive. He told us about how when they were making plans for the building, the government decided not to fund the project, so Karen Kain wrote an open letter of disapproval that was printed in the newspapers... and then Sheila Copps came through and pushed for the funding hahaha.






2. Old City Hall


For some reason, they banned photography inside this building this year. I still managed to sneak one photo before a volunteer saw me and told me to put my camera away. ;)




3. City Hall Podium Green Roof + City Hall








To be honest, their green roof was not as green as I was hoping it to be. :P On the plus side, there was a fantastic view of Old City Hall from up there.




Inside actual City Hall it wasn't all that exciting. There was actually less stuff in there than last year, when they'd had this huge flower display thing. But there was still that crazy mural made of nails!


They also had a scale model of Toronto's downtown. The reddish buildings represented heritage sites. I love how the Steamwhistle beer factory is one of them, LOL.


4. Commerce Court North

This building was a sort of last minute visit and wow was I impressed. The photos don't actually do the place justice; you need to be there in person to feel just how large and cavernous the space is. And the ceiling... AMAZING!






Good times! Hopefully next year I'll finally make it to Elgin Theatre in time for a tour.