#yongest

On the second floor of the Muji store in the Atrium on Bay (20 Dundas Street West), there Is a curious-looking bit of automation sitting on their coffee bar. Introducing Jarvis, the robot barista. Installed in spring of 2024, the automated coffee maker whips up your beverage order using two robotic arms; steaming milk, pulling espresso shots and even creating espresso art, just like a human…

At 819 Yonge Street, just south of the Church and Yonge Street intersection, you will find a Heritage Toronto plaque for Conrad The Raccoon. Who is Conrad The Raccoon you may ask? Well, ten years ago, this dead raccoon on a downtown Toronto street sparked an impromptu sidewalk shrine. Passersby laid flowers, candles and cigarettes around the critter. Conrad went viral in 2015 after his remains…

Passing through the busy area of Yonge and Dundas last week, I encountered a new claw machine arcade called Ohyo Spree at 340 Yonge Street. Apparently Ohyo Spree has a twinned store in Empress Walk in North York called Ohyo Fun. These Asian claw machine arcades seem to be all the rage at the moment, and there’s another nearby one called Octo Zone at 247 Yonge Street (I covered that one briefly…

Continuing on the “dead mall” theme (see my earlier post on the deserted Cumberland Terrace), we’ll take a little look at another urban mall that just didn’t make it: the Aura Concourse Shopping Mall (alternately, The Shops at Aura). The mall is located under the magnificent Aura tower on the corner of Yonge Street and Gerrard Street East. Standing at 80 storeys high, Aura is Canada’s tallest…

The last time I walked down The Esplanade, I was struck by how many new condos have sprung up in that neighbourhood. I thought it may be interesting to put together a little photo journal of the structures I encountered that day. More condos going up Novotel, on The Esplanade Novotel, on The Esplanade Novotel, on The Esplanade In behind Meridian Hall (aka The Okeefe Centre/Hummingbird…

Photo Project Using a filter and utilizing some moody street lighting, my intent was to emulate – if possible – those wonderful, grainy old 1940s/50s night images of a large urban centre in the wee hours. I captured these images a few weeks ago when walking in the Yonge-Dundas area:

In a nutshell, St. Patrick’s Day observes the death of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. The holiday has evolved into a celebration of Irish culture with parades, special foods, music, dancing, drinking (and more drinking, and more drinking) and the wearing of a whole lot of green. Here’s a few shots of the parade that went down Yonge Street. In true Toronto style it proved to be a fully…