Zoe and Don’s Kingston, Ontario

May 22, 2009
6 min read

Greetings, city-lovers! Today we’re heading north to Kingston, Ontario, a city Zoe and Don Timperon want recognized for its World Heritage status, and much much more.

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Kingston, Ontario is My City

The first place I take a visitor from out of town is World Heritage site Fort Henry and Kingston’s downtown waterfront.

When I crave a delicious and refreshing margarita I always go to Margaritaville.

To escape the stresses of life I head to the waterfront and either go sailing or enjoy a ride on the Wolfe Island ferry.

If I want to relax for a couple hours I go Kingston Mills Locks and watch the boats move along the World Heritage Rideau Canal.

For complete quiet, I can hide away at Big Sandy Bay, a remote shangri-la white sandy beach on Wolfe Island away from everything.

If you come to my city, get your picture taken with our town crier Chris Whyman, ambassador of Kingston.

If you have to order one thing off the menu from Tir Nan Og it has to be shepherd’s pie.

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Modern Primitive is my one-stop shop for great unique and stylish yet very reasonably priced jewelry.

Locals know to skip the malls and check out the quaint downtown boutiques instead.

When I’m feeling cash-strapped I go to Kingston Brewing Company.

For a huge splurge I go Casa Dominica.

Photo ops in my city include Royal Military College and Kingston’s waterfront full of sailboats. The best vantage points are Fort Henry and Confederation Basin.

If my city were a celebrity it’d be Julia Roberts, beautiful while gracious, unassuming and unselfish.

The most random thing about my city is it’s on the “good side” of Lake Ontario–it gets far less snow than cities on the south side of the lake.

In my city, an active day outdoors involves sailing and scuba diving in the summer, figure skating or playing hockey in the winter, and soccer, baseball, and bike riding in the spring and fall.

My city’s best museum is World Heritage Fort Henry.

My favorite jogging/walking route is along Kingston’s waterfront.

For a night of dancing, go to the Joy Supper Club. Or, for live music, check out Raxxs.

Wooden Heads is the spot for late-night eats.

To find out what’s going on at night and on the weekends, read Kingston this Week or Kingston Whig-Standard.

You can tell a lot about my city from the people who live here–they are happy, helpful, friendly and just plain nice.

You can tell if someone is from my city if they know what limestone is, as Kingston is the Limestone City and many heritage buildings were built using limestone from this area.

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In the spring you should get your boat in the water as early as possible so you can enjoy it throughout the summer and fall.

In the summer you should take a Kingston 1000 Islands Boat Cruise.

In the fall you should check out ballroom dancers from all over the world at Canada DanceSport.

In the winter you should go for a family skate at Market Square.

A hidden gem in my city is The Royal Military College of Canada.

For a great breakfast joint try Morrison’s.

Don’t miss the Limestone City Blues Festival in August.

The best way to see my city and the 1000 Islands is from the air via the Kingston Flying Club Aerial Sightseeing Tours.

If my city were a pet it would be golden retriever as they are extremely friendly and genuinely love everyone, just like Kingstonians.

If I didn’t live in a city, I’d live on the ocean.

The best book about my city is Jack Chiang’s “Kingston”.

When I think about my city, the songs that come to mind are any song by The Tragically Hip, as they are from Kingston and a world-renowned band.

If you have kids, you won’t want to miss Playtrium.

World class fresh-water sailing and scuba diving could only happen in my city.

My city should be featured on your cover or website because it’s a World Heritage Destination, it’s a city with a vibrant waterfront downtown and it’s also Canada’s best-kept secret.

Photos: courtesy of Paul Wash, City of Kingston, and Wayne Heibert

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