Up!

After our splendiferous visit at Casa Loma. We headed for the most famous landmark in all of Canada. The CN Tower. We had been warned by Aunt Daisy that traffic would be a nightmare, but at 4:45 on a Tuesday we found very little traffic. Aparently the city has been telling people to stop driving downtown in preparation for the G8 and G20 Summits. As a result driving and parking were a breeze. I'm thankful we are here this week and not next as the core will be closed to tourists and the tower will be closed as well. Everything about this place is overwhelming. Looking up from the ground is vertigo inducing.

We hadn't made reservations for dinner, but thought we'd take our chances anyway. Luckily, we had arrived early enough that we were able to get in right away. So up the elevator we went. There was a glass opening on the floor and Diane loved watching the ground get further away. The dining room of the 360 is beautiful, but even more stunning is the massive windows affording a view unequaled in all of North America. Luckily we were sat window side and we settled in to enjoy a spectacular dinner. I enjoyed a perfectly prepared peppercorn steak, the only thing missing was a glass of wine.

With taste buds and stomach satisfied we walked down two levels to the lookout. It is here that one can go outside and feel breeze in your hair and get a great perspective of how high up you really are. This is also the location of the famed glass floor. I had told myself that it would be a piece 'o cake, after all I'm not afraid of heights. I read that the floor can hold 400 elephants. I know in my head that it is completely safe. However, my brain and stomach went totally squirrely when I looked down for the first time. Diane jumped right on. She was actually jumping up and down on the floor. It took me a few minutes to get up me nerve, but I finally did it. I couldn't go all the way to the CN tower and not even try. My first walk across was quick and I didn't look down. Eventually I gained a bit more bravado and I managed to look down, all...the...way...down...

The final highlight to our tour of the top is known as the Sky Pod. This level of the CN tower it the highest observation deck in the entire world. And wow! what a view. We were able to barely see Rochester, New York across Lake Ontario. I just couldn't take it in enough. It's absolutely surreal. Finally we descended back to reality.

As the sun was setting, the city became alive. Mike drove through the city on our way back to Aunt Daisy's. He took us down Queen Street, up to Yonge Street. We passed an outdoor concert, and to my delight 'Heart' was performing. Mike drove around the block, so I could hear them a bit longer. Long live the 80's! This city is so vibrant. It's just a Tuesday night, and yet people are dressed to the nines and limosuines are about. Such an amazing place to be. I wouldn't want to live here, but I sure would like to have more time to visit.