Welcome
Hello and welcome to the new location for Weekend Coffee Share! I’m glad you are here. Please help yourself with a cup of coffee, tea, or hot chocolate at my “coffee station”.
Alli at Eclectic Alli used to host the party until last weekend. I’m your host with the following guidelines for this weekly Coffee Share blog feature:
- Everyone is welcome to join in the Weekend Coffee Share in any and every week.
- Topics are open – e.g. What’s been going on in your life? What are your weekend plans? Is there a topic you’ve just been ruminating on that you want to talk about?
- Use the Inlinkz link provided to join the party or leave the link to your Weekend Coffee Share post in a comment below my Coffee Share post.
- You can link to your post any time between 8 a.m. Friday and 5 p.m. Sunday (both Toronto time).
- I will be flexible in the way I title my Weekend Coffee Share posts.
- I’d ask that participants be social. Read my post and two posts from other Coffee Share participants and leave a comment so we know you’ve dropped by.
I’m trying to build a fun, positive, social, and supportive blogging community here. So, as the owner of the blog and the host of the link-up, posts that I deem to be unsuitable for my audience will be deleted without notice. These may include ads, “drop and run” links, promotions, and any that are offensive in nature, overly political or religious.
Two in One excursion
This past week, the weather was typical for winter here with the average temperatures slightly above freezing point. I went cycling a few times on the Waterfront Trail which is reserved for cyclists, joggers, and pedestrians and is cleared of ice and snow.
I made a stop at a building complex that would be a fabulous place for us to virtually celebrate our first Weekend Coffee Share in 2021. It has a grand entrance, red carpet, and total floor area 9,300 square meters (100,000 square feet).
I call this excursion a Two in One because the building has two names (Ontario Government and Liberty Grand) and my trip serves me two purposes (Health and Leisure). By visiting the building complex, I get my exercise from cycling outdoors and have fun examining the building architecture and taking photos.
Name #1 Above the arch – The Ontario Government Building, in Beaux-Arts style, is a heritage building, designed by the architectural firm of Chapman and Oxley in 1926. It was built to display Government of Ontario exhibits during the Canadian National Exhibition.
Name #2 Below the arch – Since 2001, the Liberty Entertainment Group has a long term lease to use the building for private events. The Liberty Grand Entertainment Complex has several areas for banquets and balls, including three grand ballrooms, and one contemporary open-concept room.
There you have it. A Two in One highlight from my first week of 2021. The rest of my week went very well.
Weekend Coffee Share is now underway from Natalie the Explorer blog. I hope that together we make this a fun social event for every weekend in 2021. I’d love to hear your comments.
Linking with Thursday Doors, Life This Week, Senior Salon, The Weekly Smile, Lovin’ Life.
Copyright © 2024 natalietheexplorer.home.blog – All rights reserved.
Natalie the Explorer 
That building sure looks big enough for a socially distanced gathering! Lol. Love the red carpet entrance.
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Safe socially distanced gathering was on my mind when I chose the venue 🙂 Thanks, Joanne, for joining Weekend Coffee Share.
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What a magnificent building. I love the doors and the architecture and the fact that it serves multiple purposes.
I also like the meta-nature of posting to a challenge within a challenge. That’s pretty cool.
Good luck with your challenge, and thanks for supporting Thursday Doors.
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Dan, Two challenges in one post, lol. When I volunteered to host the Weekend Coffee Share, I didn’t think of it as a challenge. That’s a sign that I’m a newbie blogger 🙂 Thanks for hosting Thursday Doors.
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It doesn’t have to be challenging. If you haven’t already done it, register the challenge at Cee’s place. She has a list of all the challenges currently running.
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Thanks, Dan. I’ll hop over to Cee’s blog now.
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A beautiful building that is such good shape. I’m always smitten with Beaux-Arts style. And blue skies.
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Ally. I’m glad you like the building. There are some nice Beaux-Arts buildings in Toronto, and fortunately many sunny days with blue skies in the winter.
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Wow! What a spectacular building. Of course, your photographs are wonderful, Natalie. Thanks so much for the tour. Happy New Year!
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Happy New Year, Jill! I passed by this building so many times and finally got some photos up close to share with you. Have a wonderful weekend!
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Thank you for the invite. Happy New year!
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Happy New Year, Alice. Thank you for stopping by. You’re welcome to join the Weekend Coffee Share blog link any week.
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Hi Natalie.
Thanks again for taking over the host role for our coffee share. I thought you were going to have us drop links in as comments to the weekly invitation, but the details above mention the inlinkz link like Alli used to provide.
Did you change your mind and was the link for this weekend supposed to be in this post? Did I misunderstand somehow?
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Hi Gary, Yes, I added the Inlinkz link at the end of my post. So there are two options to join the party: Inlinkz or leave link in my Comments section. Thank you for your patience.
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Gah. . . . Never mind. I found it
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Great! See you at the party.
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Thanks so much for hosting the weekend coffee share! What a wonderful post, two in one! I love the architecture of the beautiful building and it seems like a grand place to visit and share what’s been happening over coffee. Cheers to you for a wonderful weekend! ❤️🤠
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Thanks, Diana. I added the Inlinkz at the end of my post. Feel free to link your post any time. See you at the party. Have a great weekend!
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That is some interesting architecture! I would enjoy cycling around there as well 🙂 No snow on the ground? Or ice? Most people here have winter tires on their bikes now. Thank you for hosting the coffee share.
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No snow or ice accumulation in downtown Toronto atm. Today is cold and sunny with clear blue sky. Thank you for stopping by, Maria. Hope to see your post at the blog party.
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Hi Natalie, what a great way to start my morning. Reading your weekend coffee share and drinking my cup of tea. Your photos are fabulous and your post really brightened my day.
This afternoon I am off to play social tennis on a sunny day with a top of 34′. (Victoria, Australia)
thanks for posts.
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Hi Lorraine, Thank you for your visit and comment. I’m glad my post brightened your day. How wonderful that you’ll be playing social tennis and the day is sunny and warm! It’s sunny with clear blue sky here today, except the high temperature is about minus 2 Celsius and feels like minus 5 Celsius…A nice wintry day 🙂
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Majestic architecture. Love the red carpet!! What a grand welcome it offers.
I am curious, do you take your bicycle to these locations via car or bus, and then pedal about? Or do you start out on bike from home? I just cannot imagine leaving my home here and bicycling to the part of town where we would have anything somewhat comparable to view and enjoy. It would be 10-12+ miles and the roads would be heavily trafficked.
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Hi Leslie, I start out on bike from home. I don’t own a car so I bike or walk everywhere. The Waterfront Trail is fantastic for my bike rides. It’s connected to the Great Trail that goes across Canada so I can ride for days if I choose to do that. Thank you for the ping back. You’re welcome to join the Weekend Coffee Share any week.
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Thanks for hosting the coffee share! I just started blogging in October so I’m grateful for the networking opportunity.
As someone with a physical disability, that building looks beautiful AND POTENTIALLY handicapped accessible. That’s a very big deal. Most old buildings aren’t. Would love to see the inside! It looks gorgeous!
Happy weekend 💜
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Thank you, Dinah, for your comment. I’m hosting the Coffee Share but it’s the participants that make the blog party fun. Feel free to add your post to the link party and make new friends.
The Province of Ontario where I reside has Accessibility laws so the building that I share here is handicapped accessible. The inside of the grand ballrooms changes with the event (e.g. wedding or corporate event) but in general it’s beautifully decorated with chandeliers, flowers, etc.
Have a great weekend!
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Hi Natalie, what a beautiful Historic building. Good to hear the week has been good to you. Congratulations on your first coffee share linkup.
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Thank you, Jennifer, for joining in the blog party. I’m glad you liked the building. Have a great weekend!
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Thank you for the invitation to join in your first coffee share link up. I have added my post. The buildings look amazing. I love the history of our buildings here in Australia too but we have such a relatively young white settlement which brought style of architecture from other countries. Of course our Aboriginal peoples were here (and still are!) thousands of years earlier.
It is cool, rainy and sometimes a bit sunny here on the east coast of Australia now. We are doing OK covid wise but still lots of restrictions.
Stay safe and warm and take care
Denyse
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Thank you, Denyse, for joining the Weekend Coffee Share link up. There are some Heritage buildings and historic sites that are well-maintained in Toronto. Not as many old buildings as those in Europe or South America or Asia because Canada is also a relatively young country.
We’re still in lockdown until at least Jan. 23. Today it’s sunny and cold here. I had layers on before I went outside. I hope you have a wonderful weekend!
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Hi Natalie, love the concept of Weekend Coffee Share and I’ll be joining you. Thanks for the opportunity to link up and share our thoughts x
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Hi Sue, Thank you for joining me at my debut Weekend Coffee Share party. I hope you enjoy it and meet new friends.
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Hi Natalie, yes, I’m looking forward to meeting new friends in the blogging world and having a new link up.
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Hi, Natalie – That’s such a majestic building. I love how you completed two challenges with one post. Well done!!
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Thank you, Donna. I’m glad you liked the building. Some efficiency to be had with a two-in-one post 🙂
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A majestic building! Like an elephant 🙂 I love how the grey stone is outline by the bright blue sky.
You are very lucky to be able to go out and cycle, Natalie 🙂
Yeah, it looked cold by how clear and bright the sky was 🙂
Best wishes, Pat
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Pat, I’m grateful to be able to go out and cycle during the pandemic. Otherwise I think I’d be very cranky. On some cold days here, it’s sunny with clear blue sky. I can do cold and sunny 🙂 Enjoy the weekend!
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Some of my best memories are of cycling in the woods near Nuremberg 🙂
Cold and sunny, joining any day!
Have a lovely weekend too.
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This building is spectacular, Natalie. I love the statues. Thanks for sharing these interesting pictures and a little bit of the story.
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You’re welcome, Roberta. It’s fun for me to visit local sights and take photos for my blog. Have a nice weekend!
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You too, Natalie.
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Perfect place to have the first coffee share of 2021.Thanks for hosting the party, Natalie 🙂
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Thanks, Moumita, for joining my debut Weekend Coffee Share party. I’m glad you liked the building I chose 🙂 I hope you enjoy meeting new blogger friends.
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Hi Natalie – an interesting building and a new blog share party – a great way to get into the weekend.
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Yes, and to cultivate existing and new friendships in a new year. Thank you, Leanne, for joining me at my debut Weekend Coffee Share party. I hope you enjoy meeting new blogger friends.
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That was lovely. Thank you for taking over the hosting of the coffee share. I really needed it today!!
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Thank you, Sadirose, for participating in my debut Weekend Coffee Share party. I hope you have fun meeting new blogger friends.
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thanks for sharing some great door finds. nice to meet another biker who braves the cold for fresh air and adventure.
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Fresh air and adventure are irresistible 🙂 Have a nice weekend!
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It does look like a Grand building! You seem to have had a great start to your new year. Glad you were able to get out cycling! And stopping to smell the roses, or at least look at the architecture, makes it all the better. Thank you so much for taking over the Coffee Share! Have a wonderful week!
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Thank you, Trent, for joining in my debut Weekend Coffee Share party. January is good so far. It’s typical winter temperature but no ice or snow storm yet so I’m able to go cycling most days. I hope you enjoy the blog party. Have a nice weekend!
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I agree that it is the ice and snow that limits winter activity – I went running this morning even though it was below freezing. The same run can be awful for days after even a small snowfall. Enjoy the rest of your weekend!
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And tanks again! It was a great success and a great smile 🙂
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Thank you, Trent, for your encouragement and support.
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What a fabulous building! I do love fancy architecture, especially if there are statues involved.
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Marian, I’m glad you like the building. The statues are nicely done all around it.
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Natalie, thank you for taking over the hosting of our beloved Weekend Coffee Share. I have been part of the group since 2015 and I would be sad to see it disappear. So, big thanks and I look forward to linking up. I will be a once a month coffee sharer for the next little while but I hope to still get a chance to pop in and see how you are all doing.
As for Ontario, I use to live there. One of the things I miss is how many wonderful things there are to see and do.
Thanks for the virtual cup!
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Thank you, Shari, for your visit and comment. So great that you’ve been with the Coffee Share group since 2015. I joined last year I think. You’re welcome to join any week when you can. Have a nice weekend!
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Thank you for the wonderful tour. And big bear hug thanks for taking on the Weekend Coffee Share. I substituted for Ali for a short time and although I enjoyed the experience, it proved to be a BIG responsibility. I am confident you are up to the challenge.
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Thank you, Antoinette, for your vote of confidence and for joining us today. I blog weekly so taking on the Coffee Share host duty is a small addition at this time, mostly the InLinkz set up. I’m glad you’re enjoying your stay on Hilton Head Island. Have a nice weekend!
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Beautiful buildings! I miss being able to walk around in cities. I love this type of old architecture.
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Yes, it’s a pleasure to walk around and examine old and new architecture. Thank you, Susanne, for joining in this Weekend Coffee Share. I hope you enjoy meeting new blogger friends.
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I’ve enjoyed having coffee with you. It’s a beautiful grand looking-building. The name is apt.
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Thank you, Regina, for stopping by. I’m glad you like the building I chose. Do you have a blog post that you’d like to add to the InLinkz party? That would make our party global with bloggers from five continents.
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I’ve just added my link to the InLinkz party! Five continents – that’s amazing 🙂
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Thank you, Regina. We’re the world 🙂
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Ah, here you are. I had trouble finding you to post a link. Here’s my share for the week. https://jellicoswritingnook.home.blog/2021/01/10/weekend-coffee-share-10-january-2021/
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Glad you’re here, Bear. If you click on the blue Follow Natalie the Explorer button at the top right of this page, below my photo, you’ll receive notification for my posts. Thanks for joining my debut Weekend Coffee Share party.
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Took me a second spin through to find the slinky. I was looking near the top, not the very bottom. I’ll look lower next week. 😊
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I love that they clear the snow from cycle/walking paths, that must make it a little bit easier to get outside and exercise during the colder months. Although, from my very comfortable spot in California, I have to say that I can’t imagine getting on a bike in the snow. I can hardly stay upright!
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We’ve had no snow this week and no snow in the forecast for next 4-5 days for downtown Toronto. On snow days, I just wait until the snow is cleared then go outside or if it’s a snowstorm, then stay inside with a good book.
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That is a beautiful building Natalie! Now that I know about your new link up I will keep it in mind to link up to! I hope you’re keeping well over there. xo
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Thank you, Min. I’m well. I look forward to having you at the link up any week. Next link up starts on January 15 at 8 a.m. Toronto time.
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What a beautiful building. I must get in the habit of switching my Monday post to a Friday one.
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Thank you, Jo. My next blog party starts on Friday January 15 at 8 a.m. and closes on Sunday January 17 at 5 p.m. Toronto time. I look forward to having you at the link up any week.
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I would love to join in with your linkup. It’s a great way to keep in touch with other bloggers and read what they are up to. I’ll keep an eye out for it on Friday
Regards, Christina
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That’s great, Christina. See you at my upcoming Weekend Coffee Share party.
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Thank you for hosting WCS. And also, thank you for the tour!
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Thank you, Julie, for participating in my debut Weekend Coffee Share party.
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Hi Natalie,
Thanks so much for taking on the Weekend Coffee Share. UNfortunately, with the change over I missed to new deadline. I live in Sydney, Australia and am not up on Toronto time. I have a running joke that I’m always on Byron Bay time, which means any time you like basically. Very casual.
Here’s a link to my post: https://beyondtheflow.wordpress.com/2021/01/12/weekend-coffee-share-11th-january-2021/
Best wishes,
Rowena
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Hi Rowena, No worries. I host the Weekend Coffee Share every week, from Friday to Sunday. Sydney time is 16 hours ahead Toronto. I hope to see you at the next link up.
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I think I’m actually having a zoom call with my school friend in Toronto in the morning and will be posting here tomorrow night. What a coincidence.
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Sounds good, Rowena. See you at the blog link up. Have a nice weekend!
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What a beautiful building! Thank you for the Coffee Share announcement. I will join next week.
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That’s great, Laurie. See you at my upcoming blog party.
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I’m a tea drinker (no surprises really!) and thoroughly enjoyed this read with a pot of tea. What a majestic looking building indeed.
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I’m glad you enjoyed my post while sipping tea. Tea drinkers are also welcome to join in my blog party any week. Thank you for stopping by.
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What a gorgeous building. There’s so many details to take in. I bet you notice something different every time you visit.
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That’s true, Catherine. I see some new details every time I visit this building. I find the statues, their outfits and expressions amazing.
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Thanks for explaining the double-naming of this majestic building, Natalie. We passed by it – and took photos – during our brief visit to your city during that hot summer a year and a half ago. I believe the park around (or near) it was closed back then.
You’re off to a fabulous start of hosting the Weekend Coffee Share and of 2021! As you can see, I’m late to comment, after a crazy busy (and sick) week. I’ll try and join in (and maybe I’ll do better) this Friday? 🙂
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Liesbet, Sorry to hear you had a crazy busy and sick week. They tend to go hand in hand as in stress weakens our immune system and so we tend to get sick when we’re under stress. I hope you’re feeling better.
The first Coffee Share party went well. You’re welcome to join in any week. See you soon!
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Interesting post of these beautiful buildings, Natalie. Thanks!
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Thank you, Jane, for your visit and comment. I greatly appreciate it. Have a great week!
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What an amazing building Natalie and thanks for the explanation and tour! Visiting from #lifethisweek
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Debbie, I’m glad you like the building and my brief tour. Have a great week!
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That’s a gorgeous building! Thanks for taking us on a tour! Also, loving the idea of the Weekend Coffee Share link-up – I think I used to link up to one years ago. Will join yours too 🙂
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That’s great, Sanch. Look forward to having you at the Coffee Share party. Have a great week!
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So very beautiful and I will be here on weekends.
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That’s great to hear, Patrick. See you at the upcoming Coffee Share blog party!
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Congratulations on the success of your first week of the link up Natalie. I am sure it will do well under your stewardship.
Thank you for linking up for Life This Week. Next week the optional prompt is Back To. 3/51 #LifeThisWeek 18 Jan. I hope to see you there. Denyse.
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Thank you, Denyse, for your vote of confidence and support. I greatly appreciate it. I’ll see you at the link up.
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Wow, so many comments here Natalie. I haven’t read them all and ‘think’ I commented on this Monday, but you’ve gone into hard lockdown just recently haven’t you?
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The stay-at-home order across Ontario just started on January 14. Exceptions include essential outings such as shopping for groceries, outdoor exercise, or accessing health care.Thank you for stopping by, Deb. Have a great week!
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Natalie, how wonderful that you can take over Weekend Coffee Share! 😀 A great start and I feel so welcome and as a non-coffee drinker I helped myself to a hot chocolate! Very tasty!
I love the building, very grand and what amazing different uses! 😀 I feel I’m getting to know the city well through your posts!
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Annika, I’m glad I have hot chocolate for you and that you like the building I chose. You’re welcome to join my Coffee Share blog link any week. I’m sure other bloggers would love to read your blog and books. Have a great week!
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You have a good blog. I encourage you
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Thank you, Alozade A., for your visit and comment. You’re welcome to join my Weekend Coffee Share blog link any week.
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Happy 2021….Welcome dear friend 🌹
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What a grand entrance. I hope you had one just like that into 2021. All well to you.
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Thank you, Manja. Wishing you a grand 2021!
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Hi Natalie. I post at random times when the muse strikes and when I have time. But if that happens on a weekend, I’ll try to remember to link up. I think regular link-ups are a great way to build community and meet new bloggers.
Jude
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Hi Jude, You’re welcome to link up with us any weekend and your post could be written from a weekday. The Weekend Coffee Share blog community that I host has voices from five continents and everyone seems to have met new bloggers. I look forward to having you on board.
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