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A cheese lover’s paradise, in South Market, selling every kind of cheese imaginable, from French cantal to the most pungent of blues. Good raw-milk cheese selection.

Lively street action is part of the charm of market Saturdays, as buskers entertain and craftspeople ply their wares outside both the north and south buildings.

The hub of Toronto’s Gay and Lesbian Village, Church Street from Carleton Street to north of Wellesley Street, is vibrant day and night. Bars and restaurants cater to an out crowd, and specialty shops, such as those selling body wear, abound. The general vibe is pink and proud and it’s no wonder that the popular TV show Queer as Folk , made in Toronto, is often filmed on location at Church Street. Pick up a copy of the free bi-weekly newspaper Xtra! , available at most shops on the street, for listings of everything the village has to offer.

This Victorian industrial district is now one of the city’s most interesting and picturesque. Pedestrian-only cobblestone streets lead past old warehouses and historic factories stunningly preserved and renovated to house galleries, restaurants, performance venues, and specialty shops (see Distillery Historic District).

The smokestack is just one of the historic features that remain at this once-thriving industrial complex, which opened in 1889 to manufacture bricks for local buildings using clay found on site. Some 100 years later, the quarry has been returned to nature as a park with ponds and meadows (see Don Valley Brickworks).

Artifacts and photographs of Toronto’s history are exhibited in free, themed shows, in the old council chamber tucked on the second floor of the South Market. See the market from a different perspective, through the large window looking out onto the floor.

Locals love St. Urbain Bakery’s dense, chewy buns, in the South Market. The bagel-cooking method – boil then bake in a wood-fired oven – hails from French-Canadian city Montreal.