City Planners
If you could clone one element from another city you’ve visited—a building, a cultural institution, a common street food, etc. –and bring it back to your own home town, what would it be? Ben Huberman
Apart from a better linking up with a rail system, which on second thoughts would only increase our population, I’d prefer something frivolous!
When living in Effretikon, an outer suburb of Zurich, there was an outdoor ice skating rink. Loud popular music filled the air. My three year old had double skates, to stabilize her. When people would come to stay, Francesca would skate between two adults. Needless to say, she gave us stability.
Many wonderful afternoons were spent skating to the music. Being cold and outdoors, was so much nicer that a damp indoor setting. The colour of the trees and sky set the scene. Umberto came with us in the evenings; the lights would come on making it even more magical. How could one be sad exercising and music lifting spirits up into the heavens?
Pearcedale would benefit from such a fantastic outdoor facility. Set next to the ovals and tennis courts, I can see it perfectly.
Winter Evening
Painting, Canvas Print
Jill Alexander
Hendrich Avercamp
The Little Ice Age 1610
The Hague
Barbara Pyett 
Minneapolis had wonderful parks with outdoor rinks and my neighborhood park Fairview was the scene of many a frostbite because it was too much fun to go quit and go inside to warm up by the big potbelly stove and steam your mittens..
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That sounds so romantic, apart from the frost bite. I remember my sister in law, when she went to Canada in the time of mini skirts, she had frost bite on her knees!
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Sounds wonderful!
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Yes, nothing like skating under the stars!!
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🙂 x
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I love how you characterized the dreaminess of the outdoor skating rink. Wish we had more of those in Toronto 🙂
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Linzcaryl, I would have thought you would have many in Toronto! Thank you for your comment. 🙂
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You do surprise me Joanne! I thought it would be something everyone did in Canada. You are Canadian, aren’t you? Glad you liked it. 🙂
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You paint such a lovely picture of skating outdoors! It’s funny that growing up in the north where winter is so long and cold, I would have 1) learned to skate
2) learned to like it
Neither happened 🙂
… but you make it sound really nice!
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Simon, I had to look up charcuterie, not something we have here…. but yes, your wish for a full range of wonderful shops sounds excellent. I’d be happy with a deli here in Percedale!
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I’m with MR. If we have to have a supermarket then a French one would be an improvement. Failing that, I’d settle for a good parade of proper shops; a charcuterie, a good fish monger, a first rate green grocers. Actually Magdelen Road in Exeter.
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Good idea! My mom has often talked about going ice skating on the frozen ponds around the Chicago, Illinois area where she grew up. I guess our weather just isn’t cold enough, so we have indoor rinks. Not nearly as festive as what you’ve described.
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Thanks Melody for your comment. I guess with climate change outdoor iceskating will become a thing of the past!
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Wonderful idea, Ba ! My instant thought was that I want a French supermarket – preferably an E.Leclerc. Even one of the Carrefours would do. I WISH !!!!
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That would be very special, but very tempting too!
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I fell in love with France in a market…
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Which one ? Where ?
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Yes, they are wonderful, though my experience was more in Italy. The markets were just wonderful places to watch the people too. Priests bargaining for their cheese….
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I’d like that too! We had a skating pond when I was a kid in Bellevue, Nebraska, and it was so much more fun skating outside!
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Martha, such fun, I wonder if I could still do it? Probably spend more time on my bottom…
Wonderful memories though!
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