Cavorting in Canada: York Cemetery

After spending five nights in Montreal, it was time for me to move on. I had a flight to Toronto, where I would be spending a few more days. However, as Toronto is more a happy place for me, having been there several times in the past, I didn't really do some major sight-seeing. Instead, I revisited the places I liked, and additionally, I met up with some friends who live near the area. But there was one thing that I decided to check out, the York Cemetery.

The York Cemetery is very near to where I was staying. Accommodation in Toronto was rather expensive when I visited, so I had to stay outside of the centre. Instead, I found a hotel in North York, and nearby is York Cemetery. It's a funky cemetery, I must say.

I suppose it showcases Toronto's ethnic diversity. As I was taking a stroll in the cemetery, I found various different "neighbourhoods" within the dead. There were plenty of Chinese graves, there's even a massive Buddhist temple within the cemetery. Aside from the Chinese, I also saw Armenian, Romanian, and many other ethnic groups, buried close to each other.

One thing I found fascinating as I was looking at the Chinese graves, was how one's place was already reserved. There were gravestones for couples, but for the most part, one of the couples isn't dead yet. So they engraved the names, yet cover the names of the still-living person in red tape. It was an interesting practice. I suppose some couples like to think that love is forever, and they would be together, also in the afterlife. So now I wonder, what if the still-living person finds a new partner. How would the graves be arranged then?

In any case, it was an interesting cultural snippet which I saw while in Toronto. And for the rest of my time, I just ate my way to the various amazing ethnic restaurants that the city had to offer.

This ends my Canadian series of travelogues. There's another one coming up, of course, so stay tuned.