Ice Festival 2014 at Yorkville, Toronto

Today, whenever the word Yorkville is mentioned in Toronto,  pictures of  trendy shops and expensive condos appear in one's mind.

 Yorkville is a trendy and desirable address in downtown Toronto around the Bloor Street and Bay Street area.

Yorkville has been transformed and evolved into a beautiful area today.

Ice Fest 2014, Yorkville, Toronto

However, it was not always like that.

An Ice Sculpture with Sunglasses and Beautiful Teeth

 I have been told by my elderly friends that in the 1960's Yorkville used to be a hangout place for hippies who often congregated there and were busy with organizing anti war protests, smoking pot and putting flowers in their hair.

A Warm Sun!

It was a beehive but not always a pleasant place to visit in the 60's.

A Couple of  Icy Bikini Beauties Suntanning Themselves

But today, Yorkville is a very nice place to visit be it in the summer or in the cold Canadian weather.

An Ice Mermaid at the Yorkville  Ice Fest

This weekend, there was the Ice Fest held in the Yorkville area and it drew many Torontonians to the area.

A Pineapple

The Yorkville Ice Fest has been going on for the past few years and this year's theme was anything to do with the tropical scene. 

The weather was just perfect for this event. We have had an usual cold winter with much snow.This past few days, we have a break with milder temperatures hovering in the minus 3-7 degrees C.

Maple Syrup Toffee was Freshly Made on an Natural Ice Table 

People were out taking advantage of the warmer weather, enjoying the music, the food and snapping pictures in front of the ice sculptures.

It was a welcome change from being cooped up indoors.
















Families and kids enjoyed themselves with the ice blocks trying to build an igloo and something out of them and having a lot of fun!

A Child Size Chair for Kids to Sit and Relax!

When the kids got tired, there were even chairs specially built for them to sit on and relax!

A little souvenir ( $2.00 each)  for the little ones to take home was a little toy car, animal or a cute small toy that was encased in a block of ice. 

A Sea Horse

We saw many beautiful ice sculptures related to the theme of water at the Ice Fest.

Putting Finishing Touch on the Ice Sculpture

An interesting part was watching how some ice sculptors putting their finishing touch on some of the ice sculptures.

The weather has been mild for the past few days and we do hope that the sculptures could stay on for a few more days before melting away.  


The Yorkville IceFest - a great community and family event that was enjoyed by many in the midst of the Canadian winter in Toronto!

R.T.
Toronto