A Day at The Ex: fun at the Canadian National Exhibition

Dufferin entrance @ The Ex/Canadian National Exhibition

Am sure folks are glad that the term, “The Ex,” can be associated with fun over here in TO. It actually refers to the annual event at Exhibition Place starting 18 days before and leading to Labour day. When I see ads of The Ex on TV and outdoors, it usually signals the end of summer and that school will start soon. This is when I try to cram everything I can in the last few weeks of summer. Why is it ever so short?!!

The fam and I had not been to The Ex in years. DD#1 cannot remember it and DD#2 has never been. So this year, we decided to meet with a friend and check it out again. Am so happy we went!

The CNE (Canadian National Exhibition) offers a lot of experiences for everyone. There are midway rides and games, shopping, and tons of food. There are also concerts, celebrity chefs, performances as well as farm animals, mascots and even a casino!

Buddhist monk sand art demonstration at CNE 2016

Balancing rocks and Sand Sculpture exhibits at CNE 2016

We started off with shopping, of course! We looked at some deals at the Outlet place then moved on to the International Pavilion. We really enjoyed going from booth to booth and looking at (ok, ok, buying some) goodies from various countries.

We paused midway to catch the Superdogs show 

Superdogs show at CNE 2016

and while we were going around the Enercare Centre, we caught a couple more shows--(Amethyst Scottish Dancers of Nova Scotia and the Ukraina Dance Ensemble. The girls enjoyed watching the dance performances and I especially loved the costumes!

Ukrainia Dance Ensemble performance at CNE 2016

We also caught a glimpse of Celebrity Chef, Lynn Crawford, but we didn’t stay to watch the cooking demo.

Celebrity Chef Lynn Crawford @ CNE 2016

We spent most of our time here but also checked out more shopping at the Arts and Crafts Pavilion.

At the Food Building, they had the usual classic fair foods, international cuisine as well as the crazy concoctions they make available just at the CNE. In the past they’ve had Doughnut Burgers (two doughnuts with a burger patty in between), Poutine balls (deep fried, of course), and spicy peanut butter Sriracha rolls. This year, they had Bug Dog (hot dog topped with crispy crickets), Spam Double downs (sandwich made of two thick slices of Spam with bacon, tomato, cheese and sauce in between),  and Philly Steaklair (Cheese Steak inside an éclair) among other things.

Philly Steakclair booth at Food building, CNE 2016

We didn’t get to try these anymore as we decided to get pizza to tide us over while shopping. By the time we got to the Food Building, we were still full so we just got dessert of brownie ice cream sandwiches instead. Next time we go, I will make sure to plan around the Food Building and try not to get too distracted with the shopping (well, I said, try!).

Mint Chocolate Chip ice cream brownie sandwich at CNE 2016

To cap the day, we caught the second and last performance for the day of the Aerial Acrobatic and Ice Skating show featuring Olympic medalist Joannie Rochette. It was a very entertaining show where the awesome skaters performed mostly to 80s music. They got some Bruno Mars towards the end so they took us back to the present as well.

Ice Skating show at Ricoh Coliseum, CNE 2016

Joannie Rochette at the Ice Skating Show, Ricoh Coliseum, CNE 2016

We had a fun day all around even if we no longer went on rides or played games. We could’ve spent all day here, but we had to go. I don’t think we will wait another 8 years before we visit again! Our whole fam loved it! If you haven't been, there is still some time to catch it.