(Updated Dec. 30, 2013): Please check “Find Your 2014 New Year Levee in Toronto or in the GTA” for my latest Levée news. The rest of this article pertains to January 2013…
A cheap and cheerful choice for “what to do on New Year’s Day in Toronto” is to attend a levée, a classic winter event in Toronto.
Or think of it as your civic duty. If you don’t attend, then dignitaries, politicians, and their staff would be forced to eat all the snacks themselves.
Be sure to check the “TTC Day Pass” paragraph near the end of the article for an important tip.
The 2013 New Year Levee at Queen’s Park in Toronto
The Honourable David C. Onley will host the Lieutenant Governor’s levee in his suite at Queen’s Park in Toronto from noon to 2pm.
It’s unlikely that anyone will be protesting at College Ave. and Queen’s Park Circle on New Year’s Day 2013. If they do have a presence at the Ontario Legislature on Jan. 1, 2013, I would want to give a word of encouragement to the Idle No More supporters. And maybe mention it to the Lieutenant Governor.
Official details for this vice-regal New Year Levée are in “Lieutenant Governor welcomes all Ontarians to attend annual New Year’s Levee“.
This Toronto levée at Queen’s Park gives you time to nip over to City Hall.
The Toronto Mayor’s Levee at City Hall
Although current Toronto mayor Rob Ford had considered holding a family skating party on the rink at Nathan Philips Square in lieu of the Mayor’s Levée, later he opted for the traditional venue inside City Hall.
Among others, the Toronto Star reported “Traditional mayor’s levee is back on: Jan. 1 at Toronto City Hall” on Dec. 21st. Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday said, “City Hall reception from 2 to 4 p.m. on Jan. 1”.
You could still go skating at Nathan Philips Square on New Year’s Day 2013. I’ve looked at schedule information and found nothing to prevent it. If you’d rather go elsewhere, check the list of skating rinks in my previous article, “Try Skating at Harbourfront for 2012 Kwanzaa in Toronto“. If this report is accurate, you might find the news reporters are relegated to the great outdoors. I’m sure they will be interested in your views; or perhaps you could offer to ask Mayor Ford a question on their behalf.
Regardless of which activity you choose, Toronto City Hall stands on Nathan Philips Square at the corner of Queen St. West and Bay Street.
An Anglican Levee: the Archbishop’s Levee
The Archbishop’s Levée 2013 will be held from 2:30 until about 4pm on Jan. 1st at the Cathedral Church of St. James in Toronto. That’s at the corner of King Street East and Church Street.
The “choral evensong service” follows at 4:30pm, according to “The Archbishop’s Levee 2013“. Now that’s something different to do on New Year’s Day.
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Do Toronto City Councillors Hold New Years Levees?
For the second year, I’ve found it difficult to find comprehensive information about levées sponsored by Toronto city councillors. Rather than mention any but ignore others, I’m going to leave this section blank.
My best suggestion is to contact your local councillor about any municipal issue, and provide your e-mail address. Then you will likely learn their levée plans, as well as other useful news items throughout the year.
If you have a local free-thanks-to-advertising newspaper, it’s worth scanning the edition for this type of announcement from your local politicians.
Do Toronto MPs or MPPs Hold New Years Levees?
The same advice applies for federal and provincial politicians: check your local freebie newspaper, or correspondence from your elected representatives.
I did find “North York MPPs host New Year’s levees“. Note that MPPs Kathleen Wynne, Michael Coteau and David Zimmer host their levées on Jan. 5, 13 and 20 respectively.
What’s Up with ‘Levée’ versus ‘Levee’?
The “acute accent” in ‘Levée’ comes from the French spelling. We’d pronounce it “lev-ay” (with emphasis “ay” is in “bay”, eh?).
The New Year’s Day Levée custom is an adaptation from the French monarchy, where a favoured courtier would help His Majesty get up in the morning and freshen up. The English word “levitation” has its roots in ‘Levée’: “risen” or “rise” or “arising”.
It seems that Canadian dignitaries don’t need help getting up in the morning, and are willing to wait until noon or 2pm before hosting a levée.
Similarly, where civil engineers raise a dike to prevent floods, the artifice is a ‘levee’. A typical American pronunciation would be “lev-ee” (as in “tee-hee”, see?).
Transit to New Year’s Day Levees with Extended TTC Day Pass Deals Through Jan. 6, 2013
The TTC offers their family Day Pass deals from Dec. 22, 2012 through Jan. 6, 2013.
This is an all-day pass for up to 2 adults and 4 children, but read this page for the fine print: “Day Pass” (as of Dec. 30, 2012; I expect the page to be updated later).
Looking for More Annual Toronto Events?
Check the “annual events” or “Toronto events” categories toward the end of the left-hand menu for other fascinating, free or frugal annual events in Toronto.
Consider Ssense clothing for a levée or other slightly dressy affair, whether you’re a man in the market for a new tie or a lady seeking a Damir Doma scarf.
Disclaimer: DeHaan Services has no relationship to the organizer(s); I am not reimbursed for writing this article. However, DeHaan Services does write web site or advertising copy for clients. Our skills are demonstrated in online articles in Decoded Science and other web sites. That’s why DeHaan Services highlight these online articles on this blog page, although it’s purpose is to answer the question “What to do on New Year’s Day in Toronto?”.
