We are on mission people; a mission to gather as many Never Have I Ever, TO (NHIETO) moments as possible. While Mayor John Tory lived his NHIETO moment by braving the EdgeWalk on the CN Tower, we decided to discover our moments in 4 different ways- go museum crawling, go neighbourhood hopping, eat our way through Toronto and pamper ourselves with a nice staycation. Our first stop: culture town. But first things first, let us fill you in on the whole NHIETO movement.
Never Have I Ever, TO is a city, and now a popular hashtag #NeverHaveIEverTO, started by Destination Toronto in collaboration with the City of Toronto, the campaign aims at promoting local tourism, essentially a citywide game of Never Have I Ever that urges Torontonians to safely embark on new adventures in the city and then share their #NeverHaveIEverTO moments on social media.
Circling back to our cultural exploration- one of the perks of living in a pluralist paradise-like Toronto is that you have a lit art and culture scene at your disposal. Now, we are all for ROM, AGO, and Hockey Hall of Fame. They are unarguably among the best museums, not just in Toronto but in Canada. However, after the long lockdown, we have a newfound love for the city and a strong desire to know it better. And so we set out to unravel some less frequented cultural gems in the city and discover a few amazing Never Have I Ever, TO moments.
So, this is us sharing our NHIETO moment (or 6) with you hoping that you’ll find yours in there too. FYI, some of these museums are covered under the My Toronto Pass (MTP), a mobile pass that gets you some great deals at several Toronto attractions. You can check out the entire list of attractions here.
Black Creek Pioneer Village (MTP applicable)
This open-air heritage museum is your chance to witness life in the 1800s. The museum houses several heritage buildings fully furnished with over 50,000 artifacts, heritage breed animals that you can pet and some eye-soothing landscape views. The most interesting is the fully functional replica of an 1860-style brewery.
Fort York National Historic Site
Taking advantage of the nice weather that Toronto’s been sporting these past few days, we managed to add yet another open-air heritage museum to our list. The 43-acre archeological park is the preserved battlefield of the Battle of York. While the original military buildings take centre stage, the immersive multimedia experience, the live demonstrations and the prepared-in-front-of-you food tasting is not to be missed.
Of course, there was going to be a museum of art on the list and this one happens to depict the real picture of contemporary art in Toronto. Interestingly, the museum does not have a permanent collection but holds temporary exhibits by primarily Canadian and occasionally international artists.
Little Canada (MTP applicable)
This one is the newest of gems on Toronto’s map. The recently opened to the public and as you might have already guessed from the name houses miniatures versions of some of Canada’s iconic cities and landmarks. There is no way you walk out without falling in love with Little Toronto or the very-realistic working train model.
Stephen Bulger Gallery (MTP applicable)
Another artistic inclusion but this time it’s photography. The gallery boasts of an in-house collection of around 30000 historic photos, thousands of books and of course, the temporary exhibits. Of course, we were impressed, as will you be.
Museum of Illusions (MTP applicable)
This is one where you’ll have to challenge your brainpower ‘cause nothing is really what you think it is. Testing the unimaginable while experiencing it is quite an adventure, and believe us when we say so. Not convinced? Take a moment in the Anti-gravity Room and we’ll talk again.
Which of these will make it to your Insta?
Check out the Destination Toronto website here to find out all about the Never Have I Ever, TO, and get ready to go neighbourhood touring with us soon. You’ll be surprised how much there is still to explore.
