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Fogo Island, Newfoundland and Labrador
One does not simply stumble upon Fogo Island, and while the journey is quite the trek—comprised of a drive from the airport to a ferry that leads you to another drive—it’s well worth the effort. Plus, the ferry ride is just shy of an hour and punctuated with blasts of North Atlantic wind. It’s that same epic force that dictates life on the island, casting something of a cinematic veneer over the resilient coastal landscape. Lashed at by the wind and waves, it’s against this backdrop of unbridled nature that the cod-fishing communities of Fogo Island have made their homes. The locals hold onto a distinctively settler heritage, with many families tracing their roots back to Ireland and England some three centuries back. It’s a beautiful and historic bottleneck that puts on different charms depending on the time of year. The islanders like to say there are seven seasons here—in the fall, when the berries carpet the ground, there’s also Feile Tilting, a celebration of Tilting’s Irish heritage, as well as the Shoretime festival, a biannual gathering of artists, ecologists, and cultural thinkers. During “trap berth” (between spring and summer), you can spy icebergs and plenty of whales; summer is for wildflowers and pond swimming. Some locals will tell you the shut-in season of winter is the most gorgeous time of all. It’s made for snowmobiling and snowshoeing through the island’s interior by day, and come evening, getting invited into someone’s warm shed for a tipple and a chat.
Toronto, Ontario
An unwritten rule: there are two t’s in Toronto, but if you pronounce the second one, it’s abundantly clear you’re stopping by from elsewhere. That said, you may know the city better as “The Six,” as christened by local rapper Drake when promoting his 2016 album Views, the cover of which also iconically displays him sitting atop the very Torontonian CN Tower. It’s a nickname that nods to the “416” area code, and the six municipalities—Toronto, East York, North York, Scarborough, Etobicoke, and York—that make up the larger urban complex of Toronto. If that sounds like a lot to you, it’s because it is: the city hosts over 200 different nationalities of people who speak just as many languages. Toronto’s residents don’t give up on all the textures and nuances that make up who they are, which means you’ll always have the chance to explore something new, whether you’d like to do as the tourists do and visit well-trodden and nonetheless beloved sites like the St. Lawrence Market, or “go local” and find nicher, newer venues like the BAND (Black Artists Network in Dialogue) Gallery.
