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Photo: SimonP, CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Philosopher's Walk is a scenic footpath that follows a meandering, wooded ravine linking Trinity College to Bloor Street on the west side of the Royal Ontario Museum.
Philosopher's Walk is a scenic footpath along the St. George campus of the University of Toronto in Toronto, Ontario. It runs in the north–south direction along the ravine landscape created by Taddle Creek, once a natural waterway that was buried during the Industrial Age and is now flowing underground. The path is bounded by several Toronto landmarks, including the Royal Ontario Museum, the Royal Conservatory of Music, Trinity College, the University of Toronto's Faculty of Music, and the Henry N.R. Jackman Faculty of Law.
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The small amphitheatre midway along the Philosopher's Walk was designed to be acoustically vibrant for lectures and performances.
the ROM
One of the larger museums in North America, and the largest in Canada. Thousands of artifacts and specimens are featured in over 20 exhibits; including dinosaurs, Ancient China, native Canadians, Canadian furniture, medieval Europe, art deco, ancient Egypt, textiles, Middle East, India and Pacific islanders. The world's largest totem pole, which is over 100 years old, is also housed in a place of honour. The original building was built in 1910, and is a handsome Romanesque revival, with many carvings of people and events. The newer addition is a large de-constructivist crystal, made of steel and glass.
In order to evoke exhibits at the neighbouring Royal Ontario Museum, the supporting columns along the platforms of Museum Station were modelled to resemble the ancient Egyptian deity Osiris, Toltec warriors, Doric columns found in the Parthenon, China's Forbidden City columns, and First Nations house posts. This makes Museum the most impressive station on the subway system.
The Bloor Street entrance to the Philosopher's Walk was built in 1901 to commemorate the visit of the Duke and Duchess of Cornwall and York. It was moved to its current location from the corner of Bloor Street and Avenue Road in 1962.
Galleries featuring a collection of rare ceramics, 18th-century yellow European porcelain and Chinese white and blue porcelain. Free guided tours take place daily at 2PM.
The main building of Trinity College displays Jacobethan Tudor architecture, while its chapel was built in the Perpendicular Gothic style of Giles Gilbert Scott. The chapel features exterior walls of sandstone and interiors of Indiana Limestone, and was constructed by Italian stonemasons using ancient building methods. The building's cornerstone was laid on April 30, 1851. Trinity College was incorporated as an independent university in 1851, and a charter was granted by Queen Victoria the following year. Trinity College was originally an arts and divinity institution but, by the end of the 19th century its scope included medicine, law, music, pharmacy and dentistry. The college admitted its first female students in 1884. In 1904, Trinity College became part of the University of Toronto. Be sure to see the courtyard, with its geometric patterns, between the wings of the building.