Toronto Attitude/Ambience

Or, "Why I Hate The Hollow City, cont'd".

So, in my opinion, the key thing that makes a city great is the character of the people who inhabit it. I think this character is alternately informed by and telegraphed by the city's architecture.

I lived for almost 2 months in a hostel in the heart of Toronto's entertainment district, where I made friends with newcomers to the city from around the world (predominantly the UK, Australia and the U.S., but also Africans, Danish - the people, not the food - Lebanese, Egyptians, ...). Almost to a person, my new friends described Torontonians as "cold", "reserved", "snobby", "standoffish", or words to that devastating effect.

I think they were holding back. I've found that Torontonians who were born and raised in this city generally:

- have no interest in establishing friendships, or even casual acquantainces, beyond their family and established circle of friends

- have little interest in travel, and haven't travelled much beyond perhaps the occasional visit to the States

- have little understanding of life outside Toronto, much less outside Ontario, that is not informed by Canada's leftist media and overall socialist bent

Of course, my observations are general. I have met Torontonians who could hold a conversation on world affairs without parroting a line they heard on CBC News (gag) earlier that day.