Annual visit to the C.N.E.(Canadian National Exhibition)

For the past 30 years, my family has made the annual trip to the C.N.E.(Canadian National Exhibition). "The Ex" as it's known to many. Going to the Ex is a tradition my wife and I started when we were dating and now continue with our grown children.

(Source: Jasonbu)

"Let's go to the Ex, Oh baby, let's go to the Ex" is a tune that many familiar with the Ex will recognize. For those of you not familiar with the Ex let me begin with a little background.

Canadian National Exhibition(C.N.E.) - The Ex - Toronto, Canada

The Ex started back in 1847 as a fair sponsored by the Provincial Agricultural Association, essentially a farmers market, displaying wares and products typical of arts and crafts of that time. It wasn't until 1879 that it was given a permanent home by the Toronto City Council, in partnership with the Provincial Agricultural Association and named the Toronto Industrial Exhibition. It has been staged in the same location for 139 years (with a pause between 1945-1946) and still harkens roots back to the Agricultural Association.

It's among one of the ten largest fairs in North America and runs for 18 days at the end of the summer. Around our house, the trip to the Ex signifies the end of summer.

This is what the Ex looked like at the turn of the twentieth century.

(C.N.E. circa 1900 - Source: Wikipedia)

Looking back at the history of the Ex is fascinating. Here are two more artifacts from the C.N.E. history books. Even back in the early 1900's families flocked to the midway to see the acts and mysteries of the World. The next photo reminds me of a Little Rascals episode.

(C.N.E. Midway circa 1904 - Source: Wikipedia)

Check out the banner from the 1919 fair. Tributes to World War I.

1919-poster
(C.N.E. Poster circa 1919 - Source: Wikipedia)

The Ex Now - Tradition

The CNE

Nowadays the Ex is big, loud and a fantastic people-watching venue. There are all sorts of different things to do; the food, the crafts, the shows and the rides. The food assortment is vast and the shopping for crafts and other knick-knacks is exhaustive.

As I've mentioned we've made it a tradition to end the summer. Traditions provide families with memories and gatherings that can root the family identity. In some cases, that tradition is linked to a holiday or simply an outing. Having traditions gives you the opportunity to convey a story or history about your family to your kids and their families.

Here's a photo montage of our tradition, rooted in the annual trip to the Ex. The two oldest boys ham it up after winning in the midway.

Ham it up 2005
(The boys, midway at the Ex 2005 - Source: Jasonbu)

A little bit of convincing and my wife relented to a ride on the Spinner.
Mom and boys the Ex 2006
(The boys ride with Mom at the Ex 2006 - Source: Jasonbu)

Many of the photos did not include our youngest as my wife and I traded off watching him while he sat patiently in his stroller. Here he is riding with me in the kiddie midway in 2010. The two older boys are in front of us having a good time.

Dad and the boys 2010
(The youngest gets a ride with me(Dad) at the Ex 2010 - Source: Jasonbu)

The Ex even attracts the celebrities, like Col. Chris Hadfield(Canadian Astronaut). I'm sure he has attended the Ex at some point. He commented on Facebook about this sculpture at the Ex.

(Chris Hadfield Sand Sculpture - Source: Jasonbu)

I mentioned the food. Each year there are many vendors that try to tap into the up and coming trends. This year was no exception. The trend is active charcoal infused food. Typically the trends are a little on the crazy side. One year it was the cronut burger(that didn't turn out so well), last year it was the Bug Bistro and a Bug Dog and beetle smoothies.

Not to miss out on the charcoal infused food we grabbed a charcoal infused ice cream cone before heading out. Black ice cream and black waffle cone. They even had charcoal infused lemonade - apparently, it's all the rage.

Charcoal Cone
(Charcoal infused ice cream and waffle cone - Source: Jasonbu)

That about wraps it up. One final photo. The family selfie just before closing down the midway and heading home.
Group Selfie
(Group Family Selfie - Source: Jasonbu)