Walk on the Sunnyside

There is one beautiful thing about Toronto - it's right on the lake. And I know, it's not sea, but it's good enough. It works.

Beach

On a lazy, spring Sunday morning, what better can it be than a walk in the sun, right next to the lake Ontario?

You can hear seagulls squawking (or whatever is called what they do), sound of runner's tennis shoes against the path, dogs barking, roller blades and wind thru the trees.

You can sit back and relax watching tenacious men doing their exercises (I have female friends who actually enjoy that activity) or simply ignore all the life around and bask in the sun and fresh lake air.

Sunnyside is a lakefront district in Toronto that consists of beaches and parks. There is a boardwalk that goes from the Humber bridge - which I love - all the way to the east side of the city. 

Humber bridge

Right next to it there's a Martin Goodman recreational pathway for runners, skaters and bicyclists. Even on a sunny, but cool day like today, you'll see joggers in shorts and families sitting on the beach, waiting for the summer to heat the place up.

Boardwalk

West of the Sunnyside Pavilion and the main beach, there's Sir Casimir Gzowski Park (named after the railways guy), and on the east side is the Budapest Park (named after a Hungarian Revolution in 1956).

Aside the main beach, there are also a few smaller ones along the waterfront.

Despite being considered for years to be too polluted, they are open for swimming (and they're supposed to be safe now) so you can actually knock yourself out and enjoy the lake as well as the sandy sunbathing platform. I haven't tried out that yet though.

Gzowski Monument

The importance of this place is huge. Living in a city like Toronto, or any big city for that matter, requires places where you can turn your back to traffic, noise and everyday rush. Toronto has many of those places and Sunnyside is just one of them.

It reminds me at Lungo Mare path in Opatija, small place on Croatian coastline, where we had numerous walks and runs for pleasure and relaxation. The only thing that's missing here is inevitable and magic scent of  salt and lavender, and the sight of the fisherman's boat early in the morning...