Reviewing Whatever

The CN Tower
301 Front Street West
Toronto, Ontario M5V 2T6
Canada

You should know
I went to Toronto. Of course I went to the CN Tower. But did I mention my horrible fear of heights? Or the fact that the weather forecasters called for thunderstorms that day?

So?
It was a rainy Sunday, as I recall. Chris and I went to church, got lunch, then did the obligatory touristy thing and bought tickets for the CN Tower. Thanks to the wind, the Sky Pod was closed, and we had no interest in playing in the video arcade, so we just got the standard ticket.

To call it “a hell of a view” is major understatement (and a mild profanity), but it’s really the best way to describe it. You may need to crane your neck and sneak into the restaurant, but you really can get a magnificent 360-degree view of Toronto and the surrounding suburbs.

They didn’t kick us out of the restaurant for looking, but it was still fairly awkward. Almost necessary, though – about half of the level is taken up by the restaurant, so one has to look through there to see what there is to see.

The level below the main observation room houses the glass floor. I refused to stand on the glass floor – setting one foot on it took all of my nerve. Chris, on the other hand, sprawled out on it and had me take picture after picture. I know I have nothing to worry about: it’s designed to hold the weight of 14 large hippos. Which, to be honest, I’d really like to see. How cool would that be?

Ideally, there would be more information from the tour guides, and fewer wall murals. Also, I wouldn’t have minded if the tickets were a little less expensive, or barring that, if there was a bit more to do for the money. We didn’t do the Sky Pod, simulators, or games, and didn’t buy food or souvenirs, and still spent C$21.49 each.

Fun fact, though -- on the way back down, the glass elevator drops at the same speed as a military parachute.

Rating
Catch it if you can.
If you are in Toronto and have time to check out the tourist attractions, I definitely recommend adding the CN Tower to your list of stops. Still, as amazing as the view is, I would have been ok with not having gotten to go. Don't go to any superhuman lengths to go, in other words, but if you have the oppurtunity? Take it.

The rest of the Internet
The Wikipedia entry.
Pictures of the Tower at Flikr.
A picture of the tower getting struck by lightning.