Feel Good Guru

I love playing tourist in my own town. Every once in awhile on a Sunday, I pretend I’m on vacation with a couple of good friends, throw on the running shoes and go on an urban walkabout. Toronto’s one of the great walking cities. It also happens to be a global leader in urban greening. With 4.7 million residents from every country you can think of, it’s one of the most ethnically diverse metropolises on the planet. In the course of an afternoon wander in Toronto, you can truly span the globe, from Italian street festivals to dim sum in Chinatown, to Indian religious celebrations, to Portuguese Fado by the lakeshore. It’s a vibrant world-class city worthy of a long, leisurely stroll. Savor it. It’s growing at an almost frightening pace. (more…)

With more trees than people and about 8,000 hectares of parks, ravines, valley lands, woodlots and waterfront natural areas, it’s no wonder Toronto residents have long been passionate environmentalists.

Mayor David Miller, who has been first to implement many radical green policies, credits the citizens for this success. “Torontonians get it,” he says. “Our green bins program (for composting) has had 90% participation from the beginning. If you make things effective, practical, simple and realistic, people want to participate.”

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=Heart-Warming Coolness! Cold February nights in Toronto call for more than another log on the fire and a snuggle on the couch with hot cocoa and another episode of whatever. Cold February nights in Toronto call for a huge dose of foolish joy to jolt you out of the rabbit hole of hibernation and depression. I’d say even a little insanity is necessary to match the derangement you’ve been feeling at the thought of another eight weeks of winter. And Toronto the Fabulous has the perfect prescription for your family and friends on suicide watch: WinterCity Festival! Worth a trip out of hibernation just to see Pi-Leau by Close Act of The Netherlands transforming Nathan Phillips Square into an underwater fantasy where the sea level is rising and all creatures struggle for life and love… (more…)

My dear friends Nicola and Andy built their dream home off the grid near Rice Lake about 2 hours out of Toronto. They now hold meditation workshops and teach people how to walk lightly on the planet. Their body work studio has floor-to-ceiling windows so while you practise your qigong, you can see the passing deer and occasional wolves playing in the rolling hills.

The cuisine is out of this world, and you can even spend a weekend learning how to create fabulous organic foods. Both Nicola and Andy are authors – all their books are (more…)

Love love love this gym with its “whole health” approach to fitness. This is not one of those overcrowded chain fitness clubs with broken equipment and washrooms you wouldn’t dare go barefoot in. The King St. location (455 King St. W) is 15,000 square feet of award-winning design…it’s workout zen for a jet set clientele. The naturally-lit open-concept wood-floored studio has been featured in architectural magazines, and is equipped with state-of-the-art machines. The trainers at Totum are world-class, worth every dime you pay them to make you sweat. (more…)

By Living Libations. Nadine Artemis and partner Ron Obadia transform the pure ingredients of raw cacao, hemp, maca root, goji, vanilla, mangosteen, camu, blue green algae, yacon, pau d’arco, grapefruit, angelica and cococreme into something transcendent.

This delicious, exotic concoction is free from dairy, soy, nuts, roasting, refined butter and sugar. The metallic blue gift-wrapped package encourages you to “experience the bliss of pure source energy: real chocolate created with nutrient rich botanical super-foods.” Just a small bite will take you there. (more…)