Toronto, Canada’s largest city
Toronto is Canada’s largest city and the fifth-largest city in all of North America. With a population of 4 million, the metropolis situated on the northwest bank of Lake Ontario stretches over more than 40 square miles like a rectangular grid.
As Canada’s financial and cultural center and the capital of Ontario, Toronto is a booming, multicultural and, at the same time, clean and safe city. Together with the neighboring towns of Etobicoke, Scarborough, York, North York and the administrative district of East York, the Toronto area is Canada’s largest metropolis. A city that brings together people from 70 nations speaking over 100 languages, Toronto is a cosmopolitan city containing residential districts with a typically ethnic character. Several Chinatowns, Little Italy, Greektown and Cabbagetown are signs not only of Toronto’s worldly attitude but also of the changes the city has undergone since the middle of the 20th century. Most of its residents used to be of British origin, but nowadays the population is made up of a wide range of cultures and ethnic origins. The Indian meaning of the city’s name, which is “assembly point”, now genuinely reflects the city’s character. Its cosmopolitan nature is also reflected in its location beside Lake Ontario, a lake whose environmental equilibrium has been the subject of increased preservation efforts in recent years.
Toronto’s stock exchange ranks second only to that of New York among North American financial markets, and Bay Street, leading down to the harbor, is comparable to Wall Street. Modern buildings like BCE Place or the Royal Bank, with its windows adorned with gold, are signs of Toronto’s economic significance. Nor does this boom town lack culture: countless museums and art galleries, almost 50 theaters and concert halls, plus festivals and events, ensuring a lively arts scene.
