The Toronto Eaton Centre has been an anchor point in my life, much like and much associated with the Santa Claus Parade in terms of grandeur and sparkle. It really goes all-out for winter decorating, and it's new and something to behold every year. Born in Toronto, I was 4 when we moved to the country and my trips into the city could stretch years between them, but the EC has stayed the junction where tourism meets daily locals and caters to everyone.

The fountain that has been in repair for the last few years was a favourite place to sit and rest, watching the basin of the fountain slowly fill with water. After the basin was full, the fountain would erupt with several magnificent jets of water reaching up from the bottom level all the way to the top, so it was viewable from all around. The whole process would repeat frequently throughout the day and was a favourite meeting spot for navigation purposes.

The EC has had a number of changes, renovations, and facelifts over the last 40 years that I've been going to it. Some of the biggest and most appreciated updates have been things like touchscreen information kiosks () in multiple languages for both tourists and city residents, much greater accessibility between both the green P parking the mall boasts a rather huge amount of, and the connections to public transit both streetside and underground on the TTC. Not to mention there are always taxis outside. () The touchscreens have been proven to have video cameras in them collecting face data for facial recognition, for a long line of excuses. There have been lawsuits with CF. They never have disclosed that they are/were collecting and storing facial data from these. Do with that what you will, but as a trans dude, anything involving privacy and tracking scares the pee out of me.

Speaking of, the EC is hugely, expressively a LGBTQA2S+ safe space and many stores encourage full identity expression and really put their money where their mouth is.

While everyone benefits from increased accessibility, the biggest quality of life change for everyone has been the full renovation and creation of the food court. Spanning the distance of nearly half the mall's length, from Dundas subway station in the north to nearly Queen subway station south of that. It boasts a truly stellar array of food choices, from some of my favourite pho and char siu bao to crowd staples like a very large and scaled-up McDonalds that looks like a McCafé but serves the full menu, to smaller places like Ruby Thai and A&W and Subway. There are plenty of other options I've tried once or twice, so be it burgers or sushi, this is a food court where you can find lots of choices no matter what your preferences might be.

The food court's seating is also huge and diverse, from my preferred tall stools and bars with hooks underneath for backpacks and purses and shopping bags -- and with outlets in several of the spots to get a quick mobile charge -- to round tables easily seating 4-6 and the edges lined with diner-style couches around a table. There are dedicated tables with wheelchair-designated spots, and the range of heights allows for a lot of mobility restrictions. Despite the sheer number of seats and tables, you still have a good amount of personal space and there is room for strollers.

There are actual sit-down restaurants with wait service etc in the mall, but only one is accessed via the food court. The biggest and most impressive (and most recently updated) bathrooms are located just at the escalators, and unlike a couple that have steps to access them, these ones are accessible and are kept seriously clean for their super high traffic use.

There are so many fun stores, but I'm running out of text space -- but the EC comes highly recommended whether you're local or visiting TO for the first time. It's big, it's clean, it's only wildly crowded in November/December, but there are always lots of people there and now that they've out back the benches and seating between shops, it's also an easier place to go to while taking breaks.