WHEN I FIRST MOVED TO STRATFORD I met up with some old friends who were in town for a show. When I arrived my friend asked, “Guess who we ran into downtown?” I wondered who we would know in common in this town and couldn’t think of anyone, then wondered if perhaps they’d run into someone famous (it’s not uncommon here). Before I could guess he exclaimed that they’d seen my youngest daughter and her friend. I was a little surprised by their excitement over this.
“Oh, sure,” I replied, “She and her best friend like to meet downtown, get ice cream at Jenn and Larry’s and walk along the river together.”
They shook their head in wonder. “We would never be comfortable with our ten year old doing that in our city’s downtown. You must just love living here.”
They were right. We do.
But it’s hard to pin down what we love most. The historic architecture, the largest uninterrupted riverfront city park in Canada, the world class theatre, the myriad artisanal small businesses, the impressive fresh and local culinary scene, the thriving arts scene, or simply the heart of the friendly people who make up this creative community?
But don’t take my word for it!