In July of 1936, temperatures in Toronto soared to 40.5 for three consecutive days. These temperatures remain the highest ever recorded in our city, despite the local newscasters recently declaring that the highest were in 1948.
I am enjoying the heat wave of 2011, afraid that if I complain it might snow. Walking around in my shorts and sandals, I see people sitting in sidewalk cafes sipping cool drinks, although in the heat of the afternoon, some retreat inside the restaurants where it is air-conditioned. In the worst of the mid-day heat, some of the streets and are almost empty. In the parks of the city, children splash playfully in the wading pools while their parents sit in the shade and watch. The new ice cream shop in the Kensington Market is busy, and beer is flowing freely at the outdoor pubs and cafes. It’s great.
Below are a few of the sights of the city I enjoyed during the heat wave of 2011.
Flowers on Spadina Avenue Ontario sour cherries
The season’s first corn Ice cream- Kensington Market
Wading pool, Bellevue Square A beer in the shade on Augusta Ave.
Kensington Avenue The Black Bull, Queen St.
Queen Street West
On a sweltering day, even this 1862 historic building looks “hot.”
For more details on the heat wave of 1936, https://tayloronhistory.com/2011/07/20/you-think-its-hot-what-about-torontos-heat-wave-in-1936/