When I was little, my family often went traveling on vacation. Whenever we went anywhere, the first thing I did every morning, before even getting out of the hotel room bed, was asking my mom “What are we going to do today?” To which she often replied, “When in Rome, do what Romans do.”

I was never satisfied with that answer - the Romans would never pay overpriced tickets to tour their own city.

But the more traveling and moving I do, the more I’m beginning to understand what my mother meant. I've been in Toronto for a week now  and I know a total of 3 streets here: the intersection I live on and the street I work on. So yesterday, I decided to go out with my camera and give myself the grand walking tour of the city. I chatted with my neighbors, sat in an off-leash dog park, and enjoyed the bubbling friendliness of Church Street. I even scouted a girl. She was 5’10’’, slim, had great bone structure and fair skin. I wanted to ask her for a photograph, but sadly, never worked up the courage to. I now understand how men feel when they approach girls, asking for a date.

As the evening slipped into night, I wondered the city alone, half lost and half enjoying the peace of the desolate streets. I promised myself to experience all this city has to offer over the next few months.

It was nice to pretend that I belong.