Life Is Better On Vacation

Tuesday 10 October 2017

Feline Frenzy At Toronto Zoo

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 2000 Meadowvale Road
Date: Sept 2017
Website: www.torontozoo.com

The Toronto Zoo has seen another baby boom. This time it is of the furry, feline variety. There are 9 little cubs from 3 different species. After a few months of being off display, the cubs now have daily viewing times.

The first to arrive were a handful of African cheetah cubs born at the end of April, 2017. These 5 cubs consist of 3 boys and 2 girls. Through the years there have been 53 cheetahs born at the Toronto Zoo.

The cubs are always under mother's watchful eye. Whether they are lazing around together under a tree (top photo of blog) or heading out during feeding time, she is on the alert.

During feeding time the cubs cautiously headed towards the front of their enclosure.

A few moments later they became more comfortable and lounged around on the rocks.

A goose flew overhead and almost made the fatal mistake of landing into the enclosure. Usually the Canada Geese at the zoo walk around like they own the place, but they wouldn't last very long against the fastest land animal on earth. Especially if outnumbered six to one.

The next babies to arrive at the zoo were two clouded leopard sisters born in May, 2017. Their mother was a first time mother and was not caring for the cubs properly so zoo staff had to take over.

The clouded leopards are only on display for a brief playtime each day. As soon as they get outside they are ready to jump or climb on anything they can.

Their parents are inside the Malayan Woods Pavilion while the zoo keepers have the task of raising and feeding the babies. The babies are in the lion-tailed macaque exhibit and the macaques have been temporarily displaced. We noticed the macaques on a pole while riding the zoomobile through Eurasia.

Another pair of babies is also located in Eurasia. A few days after the clouded leopards were born, a trio of snow leopards were also born. Sadly, one of the cubs did not survive.

The remaining brother and sister are on display with their mother.

They are still a little shy and the brother likes to climb as high as he can and then hide behind the rocks. In the wild, snow leopards are found at high altitudes on mountain ranges such as the Himalayas. That shyness will soon disappear as they continue to grow. Like all wild animals, it won't be long until they are just as big and strong as their parents. Visit them soon if you can.

Click here to take a virtual tour and see our collection of Toronto Zoo animal photos.

Map of Our World

Toronto Zoo (Cheetahs) , Toronto Zoo (Malayan Woods Pavilion) , Toronto Zoo (Eurasia)

Post # 194

Saturday 30 September 2017

Invictus Games Toronto

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 1 Dundas Street East
Date: Oct 2016
Website: www.invictusgames2017.com

The Invictus Games are designed for war veterans to participate in sport and help them overcome their PTSD or deal with their physical injuries. Prince Harry helped start the event and the first games were held in London, England. This year they are being held in Toronto, Canada until September 30th. The annual Nuit Blanche festival is also being held in Toronto on September 30th.

It seemed fitting that we received a sneak peak of the games during the 2016 Nuit Blanche festival in Toronto. The I AM logo above is taken from the center of the words Invictus Games.

In Dundas Square we were able to add blocks to help form a big I AM on the ground and show our support for the games.

The Canadian Armed Forces were also in the square, offering a unique opportunity to see some of their equipment.

We were able to go inside an armoured transport vehicle.

The highlight was a tank that had been driven into the square. They were offering the opportunity to climb onto the tank. Nuit Blanche is an all night event which runs from dusk until 7 AM the next morning. Even though it was close to 4 AM we still had to line up for our turn on the tank.

While standing on the tank we had a nice view of the Hard Rock Cafe. Sadly, this location closed earlier this year.

Inside The Tank Brought To You By Dasani.

We were also able to take a look down into the tank and see where the crew is jammed in while on active duty.

Lastly, we had the chance to stand next to the cannon which was pointed towards the Eaton Centre. It was fun to see this equipment up close. We can only imagine the experiences inside this equipment for the men and women taking part in the Invictus Games. We wish them well in their competition.

This location is near Dundas subway. Visit other Toronto TTC stations.

Map of Our World

Yonge-Dundas Square

Post # 193

Wednesday 20 September 2017

The Murdoch Experience (Sullivan Studios Backlot)

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Address: 66 Hymus Road
Date: July 2014
Website: sullivanmovies.com

In 2014 we attended a two day event called The Murdoch Experience. The event was designed for fans of the Murdoch Mysteries television show and the first day featured a tour of Sullivan Studios in Scarborough. The show is about to air its tenth season so we thought now would be a good time to share some of the filming locations that appear in almost every episode. This blog post focuses on the backlot.

Above is Station house No.4, which is where Detective Murdoch (Yannick Bisson) , Dr. Julia Ogden (Helene Joy), Inspector Brackenreid (Thomas Craig) , Constable George Crabtree (Jonny Harris) and the rest of the police officers work. They have passed through these doors many times and often Murdoch is running out to hop onto his bicycle parked nearby.

The other areas of the backlot have been used many times throughout the years and have been shot from many different angles.

This is the same street as in the previous photo, but shot from the opposite direction.

This shot is taken looking into the archway in between the stores.

The store signage is also changed as needed for different episodes. This store could belong to a jeweller for one episode and then a bespoke tailor the next.

Some of the stores could be entered into while other doors just lead behind the scenes. The barber shop above was all dressed and ready for filming to begin.

One episode which makes great use of the backlot is episode 3 of season 6 called "Murdoch on the Corner".

In this episode the building above plays the Bank of Toronto.

Murdoch sets up a camera in a building on the opposite end of the square in order to catch a killer.

The camera is placed in the window to the right of Murphy's Tavern. During our tour the Murphy's Tavern signage was set up.

Murdoch Mysteries is set in the late 1890s and into the early 1900s. It is meant to represent Toronto, Canada during that period. The sets have also been used for other television shows from the same time period such as Road to Avonlea.

In the alleyway above you can see the rigging that would hold lighting or other equipment. This would help create just the right look for when someone meets their demise.

Once they do, it won't be long until Murdoch rides around the corner on his bicycle or Crabtree shouts "You there!" as he joins the pursuit. We will continue our Murdoch Experience in future blogs, but for now we will leave you with some more pictures of the Sullivan Studios backlot.