Casa Loma (2011)

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■ NXNE
North by Northeast (or NXNE) is an annual music and arts festival held each June in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The festival’s main focus is live music, particularly emerging talent. Acts that have had break out appearances at NXNE at small venues early in their careers include Lizzo, Daniel Caesar, Run the Jewels, The Lumineers, Grimes, Gary Clark Jr., The Arkells, Feist, and Billy Talent.

Here is a Flashback article for NXNE 2011.

There was actually no article for Tuesday, June 14, 2011, because NXNE didn’t actually officially start until Wednesday. That meant that we spent the entire day exploring the city of Toronto.

As you can see from my photos, we started the day with at the Toronto harbor, across from the Billy Bishop Toronto City Airport (which is an island). You can see the CN Tower from anywhere in the city, as it’s the tallest-standing building.

We saw Much Music Award stage being setup in the middle of Toronto. Based on that poster, it looks like Lady Gaga, Bruno Mars, Avril Lavigne, City and Colour, and Black Keyes will be performing, with host Selena Gomez. It looks like a killer show.

My favorite thing about this day was spending time at the Steam Whistle Brewing, a local brewery that is operating in the defunct Canadian Pacific Railway steam locomotive facility. I think for very few dollars (like $5), you get a walking tour of their brewery and all-you-can-drink beer samplers as you move along from points to points. Then at the end, you get a metal bottle opener keychain. That was worth the price of admission, alone.

Most of the day was spent finding Casa Loma. You wouldn’t know it, but it’s just north of central Toronto. You have to take a bus (or was it the subway?) to get us closet. Then you have to make a long, long climb up the hill. I could be wrong, but I believe it’s the highest elevation in the city. Looking at the bottom of the hill, the castle is much further than it looks. By the time you get to the top, you’re out of breath, and just ready for a long nap.

I don’t remember how much we paid, but it was expensive. Looking online, it looks like the current rate is $30. I’m not sure if we had a self-guided tour option, but I remember that we had a guide. He (or she?) talked about how the owner of the house was very wealthy and he wanted to build a castle for his home. You get the idea of how life was like in 1900s, as they employed lived-in housemaids and butlers and owned horses and stables. They were living in luxury and the house was massive. Sun room, dance room, dining hall, etc. It is a fascinating look into the once life of the rich.

Next post: NXNE finally!