Becoming A Tourist In Ontario
I didn’t grow up in Ontario. I grew up in Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Alberta. Part of my family now resides in British Columbia and my husband’s family is mostly in France. My husband and I have lived together in Nice (France), Alberta, British Columbia, Ontario and Quebec. Seeking novelty and variety in daily life, even in small ways is a good way to stimulate the brain and stay young at heart.
Exploring Southern Ontario – Become A Tourist In Your Own Backyard
Ann’s and Sherry’s weekend adventures inspired me to take some day trips this summer to discover more of what Ontario has to offer. We have lived in the Greater Toronto Area consecutively for over fifteen years apart from my husband’s recent two year stint living abroad in Hong Kong.
On the weekend we visited Sparta, a quaint historic farming village founded by Pennsylvania Quakers around 1820. The original founder was Jonathan Doan who fled the United States after the American Revolution and originally settled in the Niagara region. With the war of 1812 on the horizon, Mr. Doan feared losing his property and bought land around Sparta. He encouraged other Quakers to move to the area. He and his family set up a grist mill, a saw mill and a tannery in the community.
It’s around a two hour drive south-west from Mississauga, the GTA where we live, to Sparta.
We booked high tea at the historic Sparta Tea House so I wore an appropriate tea dress.
The magical gardens at Winter Wheat in Sparta are filled with enchanting folk art sculptures created from discarded items.
I highly recommend visiting Winter Wheat if you get a chance. This isn’t a sponsored post , it’s just a very unique, cool spot to visit.
Robert bought a bird house by the artist that creates them when we were there.
Isn’t it cool that he used a real old car door handle on this?
I love it when we can support local artists and help the environment at the same time. #winning!
As we were only a ten minute drive to neighboring Port Stanley we popped over there for a bit as well.
*Warning!*
If you are adverse to seeing a woman over the age of fifty showing some serious chesticles (aka natural cleavage) please avert your eyes now.
Port Stanley boasts one of the prettiest sand beaches on the shores of Lake Eerie and the King George VI lift bridge, the oldest mechanical bridge in Ontario.
They also have an old railway that is still operational dating back to 1850’s.
We really enjoyed this little day trip. Next weekend we’re heading to Paris!
What did you do this past weekend?
Linking up with Visible Monday, Turning Heads Tuesday, Fancy Friday, and Spy Girl
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