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You've waited long enough and tonight's the night!! The Canadian leg of the NA tour kicks off.

To all our Canadian friends going to see the aussies - enjoy.

And we don't forget poor old mikinik over on the 'west side'. Bob, tickets are now on sale here for next years UK tour so catch yourself a ticket or two, get that Lear jet revved up and get over here. 

Hiya Mike!

Thanks eh. 

I'm looking forward to hearing from Pawan, and others about tonight's show.

Be guaranteed that you all will hear from me, warmonger & Devon on Monday night or Tuesday after the December 4th show in Halifax.  We've all been waiting a year for this day to come.

Tonight is Toronto, Hogtown, the Big Smoke.  The largest city in Canada (5th largest city in North America after Mexico City, New York City, Los Angeles, and Chicago) and the capital of the Province of Ontario.  It is home to the CN Tower, the world's tallest free-standing building & the Hockey Hall of Fame.

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As Canada's economic hub and a major world city, Toronto is highly-developed in the sectors of finance, telecommunications, transportation, media, software production and medical research. The city is home to the CN Tower and many national and transnational corporate head offices. With the help of immigration, Toronto has a very cosmopolitan population representing cultures and ethnicities from around the world. Because of its low crime, clean environment and generally high standard of living, the city is consistently rated one of the world's most livable.

Toronto is an Iroquois word meaning "place where trees stand in the water". It refers to the area north and south of what is now Lake Simcoe (then known as Lake Toronto), where the Huron Indians planted tree saplings to corral fish. The portage between Lake Ontario and Lake Huron along this route was called the Toronto Portage.

The first European presence was established by French traders at Fort Rouill? in 1750, on the current Exhibition Grounds. The first influx of Europeans was the result of United Empire Loyalists fleeing to unsettled lands north of Lake Ontario during the American Revolutionary War. With its natural protected harbour, the settlement served as a British naval base.

The town was named York by Lieutenant-Governor John Graves Simcoe in 1793, when he selected it to replace Newark as the capital of Upper Canada. By 1800, the town was still smaller than Kingston, and consisted of probably not more than fifty families. In 1813, as part of the War of 1812, York was captured and major buildings were burned by American soldiers. The town's surrender was negotiated by John Strachan.

Toronto's Yonge Street in 1903.The city grew rapidly through the remainder of the 19th century, as a major destination for immigrants to Canada. On March 6, 1834, York reverted to its original Iroquois name of Toronto. By then a bustling steamboat entry port, the city's development was aided by the addition of gaslit street lights and sewers. Toronto's growth further accelerated after it was linked by rail to the Upper Great Lakes in 1854. Industrialization in the 1870s ensured Toronto's place as a major economic centre in the new Canadian Confederation.

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By the 1920s, Toronto's population and economic importance in Canada was surpassed only by Montreal, and in 1934 the Toronto Stock Exchange had become the largest in the country. The city experienced an influx of immigrants following the Second World War and sustained immigration after 1970.

Following the separatist victory in the 1976 Quebec provincial election many national and multinational corporations moved their head offices from Montr?al to Toronto. By the 1980s, Toronto had emerged as Canada's most populous city and the generally-acknowledged economic hub. The city became home to a majority of corporate headquarters in Canada and the largest banking and exchange centre.

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AHHHH, brings back memories.....I remember Yonge st the night when Canada beat the US during the winter olympics in 2002 for the gold medal. It was hewaving, but really friendly. Enjoyed a great night with the Canadians, stopping off at Tim Hortons en route!

I really hope you have agreat time Rob. Are you taking Mrs Centurion with you?

One other thing about Toronto that always interest me, is that a good deal of the down town core is air conditioned using the deep and cold water from lake Ontario. It's pumped up from the bottom of the lake and used in  cooling systems. Totally safe on the environment and is a really "cool" idea!

Bob