Photo credit: nathangibbs from Flickr
Toronto is one of the most multicultural cities in the world. It’s something that I admittedly miss about that city. Being born and raised in a multicultural family had its unique ups and downs and made for a sometimes difficult time “fitting in” as a child. Well, since May is Asian heritage month, I thought I’d open the site up and put out a call for East Coast Guest Posts on the theme of “East Coast Roots.”
What’s your story? Where did you come from? Are you an East Coaster through and through? If so, what does that even mean? What are your traditions, if any? Do you have some fabulous recipes that you want to share?
If you’re interested in sharing your story (whether your ancestors have lived here for generations or not), please e-mail me at kimberly.aliasgrace [at] gmail [dot] com or DM me on Twitter. I’ll post the stories at the end of the month.
[P.S. Don't forget that the Nova Scotia Multicultural Festival takes place from June 25-28 at Alderney Gate. Mark your calendars for days of yummy food and wonderful entertainment from around the world, right here in the city!]
Kimberly Walsh is a social media and online community manager. You can follow her on Twitter @AliasGrace.
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Funny, I’m also from Toronto originally though we’ve found ourselves to be a bit nomadic in our recent past. Vancouver, Washington DC, Ottawa, Prague (Czech Republic), Dublin (Ireland) – we’ve lived all over and we’re not even in the military! But in moving back to Canada, we had to decide where to settle, and after “interviewing” a pile of different towns and cities, chose the East Coast as our destination of choice. It’s relatively small for a city (all sorts of benefits there) but still has a vibrant core, the people are friendly (unlike Toronto, people talk in lines, elevators, on the street, etc.), nature’s at our doorstep, and it’s just pretty laid back. And of course, if you have to look at the economy (we didn’t make a huge deal of that but given where we are today, it’s a plus), there are rarely any huge peaks or troughs; not like Toronto’s little girl who had a little curl right in the middle of her forehead. There’s some comfort in that.
Sure, Toronto may be more cosmopolitan, is comprised of people from all over the world, is exciting and cultural and fun! But though born and bred there, I must say it’s now a place to visit, not to live long-term. And while we’ll always be “blow-ins” from “away,” perhaps my daughter will become a true East Coast local, which is something to be proud of.