My City

I feel like I'm writing after ages. The past week has passed in a blur of fever and flu and rib-cracking coughing fits. No, no, I didn't have swine flu, thank God. It was just the regular viral fever thingy. It's left me feeling like I'm back from the dead though - not much energy to spare at all. :( I spend a lot of time trying to sleep off the mysterious fatigue.
I didn't have any idea what to write about today, then I remembered that a friend of mine is moving to Toronto for his postgrad studies, and that brought on a mighty wave of nostalgic and induced me to write about all the wonderful memories I have of that place - my most favorite in the world.
The first thing I'd noticed when I landed in Toronto exactly 4 years ago (15th August 2005) was how the air smelt different - cleaner. Then, I noticed how EVERYTHING was different - neat, spotless, organised, progressing like clock-work. I loved the wide streets with the special pedestrian lights and the greenery all around. I liked the skyscrapers that lined the downtown area, with all their gleaming glass and busy occupants walking in and out and up and down the street. I loved the quiet buzz of the huge city. It felt like home, even though I only stayed there six months. I honestly think I was born to live in a big city like Toronto or New York. There's just something totally irresistable about their swift pace of life.
I loved the crisp sunlit mornings, even when the temperature dipped way below zero, and the walks I used to take around the University of Toronto downtown campus. I loved the black squirrels scurrying around in the grass and up the trees, their fur in sharp contrast to the brilliant white of the fallen snow. I loved the feel of the gently-falling snow on my skin, and the way it would blanket everything in fluffy white. I even loved the rain and the gloom that would prevail for days on end sometimes!
I loved the people and how there were so few of them yet so many different backgrounds, different stories, different languages, all blending to form one splendid cultural mosaic.
I loved the CN Tower with its breathtaking aerial view and its famous glass floor. I loved the Niagara falls and the little town of Niagara-on-the-Lake which looked like something out of a storybook. I loved the vineyards and the rolling countryside and the sheer beauty of the surroundings.
Most of all, I loved the travelling. The buses, the subway, the streetcars, I loved them all! I've never enjoyed using public transport so much. I would hop on and people-watch or read or just sit back and gaze out the window at the passing cityscape and feel an amazing sense of peace. Toronto is a peaceful place, just like I'm a peaceful person. It's the only place that makes me feel free and independent and in-charge and, most importantly, safe. Like I said, it felt like home. And I will surely return some day. I've left a bit of myself with that city. My city.