“I look out the window and I see the lights and the skyline and the people on the street rushing around looking for action, love, and the world’s greatest chocolate chip cookie, and my heart does a little dance.” – Nora Ephron
Our host this week, Sofia of Photographias, challenges us to feature pictures showing different urban environments. She says, “There are no two identical cities, they’re a product of many different aspects from history to location, to culture and to the people….There’s something mesmerizing about city views. Obviously, some cities offer better views either for geographical reasons or due to the type of buildings.”
Every city’s skyline is unique, which is what makes experiencing them in person so incredible. You wouldn’t mistake New York City’s skyline for Montreal’s or Toronto’s because they each have distinct features and iconic buildings that set them apart.
I have never lived in a big city but have often thought how much fun it would be. As a matter of fact, some years ago my husband and I came very close to owning an apartment on the upper east side of The City.
“There is something in the New York air that makes sleep useless.” – Simone de Beauvoir
I enjoy being in a big city and being exposed to the city life; it’s energy, night lights, seeing people out and about shopping, going to work, restaurants and social events. Generally, you do not drive your own car to get around, you call for an Uba, take a taxi, the subway or just walk.
Over the years we have probably spent most of our time exploring New York. These pictures were taken a few years ago in Times Square or the Broadway Theater District. Notice the giant red staircase at the bottom of the first and third picture, locals and tourists gather on the staircase above the TKTS booth each day, waiting an hour or more to buy discount tickets for an evening performance.
“I want to paint Montreal as a rather fantastic city, which it was, because nobody knows today what it was like. And I’m one of the last survivors, or rapidly becoming one.” Christopher Plummer
Montreal, in Quebec Canada, is another favorite city we have visited often. Like New York City, its architecture is a mixture of old and new, it also has an amazing underground “city”, plus many diverse neighborhoods with people and traffic, a constant hustle bustle of activity.
This is a picture of Montreal’s skyline from the Champlain Bridge when approaching the City.
The biodome, the large white oval shaped building, features five ecosystems of the Americas under one roof, like a huge indoor zoo, located at Olympia Park.
On the bottom left is one of many small park in the downtown area. And, beside it is a view of the back of the spectacular Mary, Queen of the World Cathedral Basilica, which was inspired by Saint Peter’s Basilica in Rome. This image and the one below was taken from our room in the Marriott Chateau Champlain Hotel on Rue De La Gauchetière O.
This is a better shot of the small public park shown above. Many areas in Montreal are covered with beautiful trees and elegant landscaping, especially in the older parts of the City.
“The fact that over 50 per cent of the residents of Toronto are not from Canada, that is always a good thing, creatively, and for food especially. That is easily a city’s biggest strength, and it is Toronto’s unique strength.” – Anthony Bourdain
The next few pictures show Toronto’s skyline from atop the CN Tower.
The building n the lower left hand corner (beige color with green roof) is the Fairmont Royal York which has a long rich history. A historic luxury hotel, built in 1927, where such notable guests include presidents, heads of state and government in addition to celebrities such as Andrew Lloyd Webber, Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, to name a few.
A view of Lake Ontario.
Hope you enjoyed seeing a few of my favorite cities, I feel like I should have also included Boston, Washington DC, San Francisco, and London. And, be sure to see Sofia’s post by clicking here where she shows the many cities she enjoys visiting!
“Every city’s skyline is unique, which is what makes experiencing them in person so incredible. You wouldn’t mistake New York City’s skyline for Montreal’s or Toronto’s because they each have distinct features and iconic buildings that set them apart.” – unknown
“Today, give a stranger one of your smiles. It might be the only sunshine they see all day.” – Catherine Pulsifer