As a first time visitor of the West Coast of Canada, I was excited to experience Vancouver for the first time. My partner and I spent an intense three days in the iconic city. Here’s how we best made use of our time and our favourite experiences. Prince of Whales whale watching was a unique experience. With many companies offering whale watching, we loved that Price of Whales offered sunset whale watching. While there is no guarantee of seeing whales or orcas we saw four humpback whales within 30 minutes of our excursion. While we never saw orcas, the team…
Author: Hillary LeBlanc
Walk With Me is a film directed by Heidi Levitt, the wife of Charlie Hess who has early on-set Alzheimer’s. The film explores his decline, her efforts as a care-giver and where health research led the couple. As someone whose mother has had early on-set dementia for 10 years, I can confirm how difficult this disease is to navigate for everyone involved. What was most touching about this film is how the couple had documented their lives before Heidi started filming Charlie’s cognitive decline. You can see them young and in love, both in their prime, Charlie an artist working…
The Weeknd, Abel Tesfaye, is on his After Hours Til Dawn tour and has been playing to sold out crowds for months. Recently The Weeknd performed across Canada setting stages ablaze, literally. His show celebrates the span of his work, with the singer performing older hits like House of Balloons, new hits like Timeless and his iconic feature on the 50 Shades of Grey soundtrack Call Out My Name. Crowds screamed songs during acapella moments, and with the light up wrist bands – the crowd itself were part of the show’s entire visuals. The stage is built like a cross…
Les Hay Babies are a band from Moncton, New Brunswick who has been around for 14 years! They recently played at Horseshoe Tavern in Toronto as part of their summer festival touring session. The three female members, Katrine Noël, Julie Aubé and Vivianne Roy have been doing music since they were in high school and have no plans of stopping. Their fifth album Tintamarre was written in Louisiana which is the cajun sister community to the Acadians of the Maritimes. During their set at Horseshoe Tavern they shared stories of creating the album, like going to a remote area and…
On June 6, 2025, Manga Hotel Group officially commemorated the opening of TOOR Hotel, part of JdV by Hyatt, in Downtown Toronto, Ontario. The 33-storey building Includes the 2-level MUSE Bistro + Bar and 179 upscale rental residential units as part of the 203 Residences, situated atop TOOR Hotel. Distinguished guests included Premier of Ontario Doug Ford, MPP for Brampton East Hardeep Grewal, Scott Richer of Hyatt Hotels, representatives from Destination Toronto, Ontario, Restaurant Hotel & Motel Association (ORHMA), Greater Toronto Hotel Association (GTHA) and valued community partners. The celebration featured a ribbon-cutting ceremony and a reception with food and…
Last month, The Hollywood Reporter threw their second annual Women in Entertainment Canada Summit and Awards event honouring five of Canada’s finest women in entertainment who have changed the way we consume media in various ways. The panels during the day featured amazing insightful conversations touching on the Art of Leadership, Women to Watch, Empowering Women in Entertainment, the Power of Music, Directing Change and a fireside chat with honouree Jeanne Beker moderated by Suzanne Boyd. One of my favourite Women to Watch is Ebonnie Rowe of Honey Jam which has offers musical development program for girls and women. Row…
Walking into the Dean Davidson Atelier feels like an oasis in Toronto chaos. The store is beautifully laid out with gorgeous stone-like walls and beautiful jewellery laid out. Dean himself is just as effortlessly cool as his store, when we chatted about his work. “I’ve had my business up for 16 years. I worked in a completely different field prior to this, and I got introduced to a clothing designer in Calgary where I was living at the time.That led me to launch in my first solo collection three years later and moving to Toronto and now it’s been a…
One of the most sought after events of the year is approaching and nearly sold out. The 24th annual Holt Renfrew presents Scrubs in the City Paris in collaboration with Mantella Corporation, a huge party in support of Sick Kids Foundation, will be held at Evergreen Brickworks on June 5th. This year, Evergreen Brick Works will transform into the City of Love and Light with elegance and sophistication on full display. Guests will enjoy gastronomic delights à la française; epic entertainment; and experience a memorable night of dancing and celebration all in support of SickKids. To date, the annual event…
On April 10th, rock band Heart performed at Coca-Cola stadium bringing out longtime fans for an evening unlike any other. Playing hits Crazy On You, What About Love and Barracuda, the crowd was not disappointed. The band, with members Ann Wilson, Nancy Wilson, Ryan Waters, Ryan Wariner, Paul Moak, Tony Lucido and Sean T Lane, are on their Royal Flush 2025 tour. The founding members, who are all in their mid-70s, sounded as good as they have throughout the decades. The tour is continuing on through the USA until August 30th. Learn more here: https://www.heart-music.com/ *photos by Criss Cain
For Syreeta Hector, the unfortunate reality of not fitting in as a Black person started young, in Saint John, NB. She always wanted to be a dancer, but quit while in NB to do horseback riding. She recalls both spaces lacking representation. “I have this vivid memory of going to a community center danceathon, and one of the little girls was like, ‘why do you look like that?’ So I quit. I did not do dance in New Brunswick at all.” From there Hector moved to North Carolina where she decided to pursue dance as a high school elective. There…
On April 30th, the Canadian Foundation of AIDS Research (CANFAR) held their annual Can You Do Lunch? luncheon. This annual luncheon serves as a gathering of community as well as a learning opportunity for those attending. This years theme, Aging with HIV, featured a panel including Juno winning jazz musician Billy Newton-Davis, advocate Randy Davis and Dr. Alice Zhabokritsky moderated by Valerie Pringle. All panelists shared the interesting phenomenon that, with current treatments, people with HIV/AIDS are living longer than ever and now data is being collected around what aging with this disease looks like. Billy Newton-Davis is in his…
The new Departure Festival, formerly Canadian Music Week, ran from May 6th to 11th with big hitters gracing the Toronto conference stage, and stages around the city with comedy, music, DJ sets and more. We heard from amazing talent over the course of the festival and here are some of our highlights. Bryan Adams Unveils New Album At Departure Bryan Adams sat with Jamar McNeil and Josie Dye from CHUM 104.5 in an intimate conversation about his legacy and new works he is developing. He showed the crowd several minutes from a music video and then the latest album art work.…
With Earth Month coming to a close, I learned about a plethora of products and companies working to make the world a cleaner and better place. Dive into the list below to see how to look good and feel even better knowing your beauty routine is not compromising Mother Earth! Wildcraft – Canadian, Indigenous, Female Owned Wildcraft is Toronto based and made, with 100% natural ingredients, priced under $45. The brand is also part of the 1% for the planet pledge, where 1% of proceeds support environmental causes. Founded by Laura Whitaker, her goal was to bring affordable conscious skincare…
One of the most highly anticipated evenings on Toronto’s social calendar, Mad Hot Ballet, has an exciting new theme to bring together dance lovers, trendsetters and culture connoisseurs for a one-night-only celebration of ballet – and a healthy dose of fashion. Mad Hot Ballet is The National Ballet of Canada’s most important fundraising event and since 2007, has raised over $17 million to support the company’s Community Engagement programmes. Mad Hot Ballet: New Wave aims to raise $1 million for these vital initiatives in just one unforgettable evening! Principal ballerina Heather Ogden knows first hand how important these Community Engagement Programs…