Santa Claus Parade Toronto 2019

Who doesn’t like the start of the holiday season? All around you Christmas colors of red, white and green cheer you up and the sound of Christams jingles can be heard. The holiday season in Toronto kicks off with the Santa Claus Parade each year. It first started a 115 years ago and has been held every year since then and has become the longest childrens parade in North America and is broadcast globally to countries as far as New Zealand.

Hoping to get some clear views I went to a corner near the historic St. Lawrence Market and scoped out a good spot to stand on a cross road in front of a lamp post hoping that the road would give some uninterrupted views. I was quite disappointed by this choice as the crowd actually spilled out on to the road instead of staying on the curb ultimately obscuring my view most of the time. But I did manage to get some shots. Two hours of waiting in the 3C cold took a toll on me even before the parade started but relief was at hand in the form of Nutella people giving away samples the delicious “Nutella Go and pretzels”.

As I waited for the parade to reach our location I looked around at the buildings of downtown Toronto and wondered at how well the old and the new fitted together each contrasting the other.

As I stood munching the chicken sandwich that I had packed I could see kids joyfully running on the empty roads. Slowly the crowds started to build up and you could feel people jostling to get a good spot. I saw one guy actually bring a ladder and perch on it to get an elevated view of things.

Finally the parade reached our point and for the few hours I stood and watched the many bands, floats and people pass by. I have some of the highlights that I captured including some photos and short video clips please enjoy them below.