Let's go to the Ex

The CNE is a time honoured tradition worth a visit every year

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When I was in elementary school, we got a free pass to the CNE when our report cards were handed out at the end of the year. The start of the CNE was always a reminder of the end of summer, but it was still something wonderful to look forward to.

I took my daughter every year when she was young until she decided, appropriately, that she should be going with her contemporaries. 

On a rare visit home, the same daughter, now 27, decided it would once again be OK to head to the Ex with her dad. I couldn't wait, and we were not disappointed. It felt the same as when I went as a child and brought out both our inner children. (According to the Economist, "kidulting" is a thing now.) And I got to enjoy the nostalgia of introducing her to it all over again.

There is something wholesome and fun about the Ex that you just don't find anywhere else. The crowds there are just nicer and friendlier than at other amusement parks. Maybe it's because it's only once a year and there are no regulars, and it has a novelty feel despite its age. Whatever it is, everyone is smiling. 

We went for the afternoon when the crowds were primarily teenagers (girls in twos and threes, boys in pairs and groups) and grandparents with smaller children. As the evening crowds started to arrive, it was parents with their small children and even more teenagers. There are people of every age and multicultural Canadian hue and from every socio-economic stratum enjoying themselves together. (This Globe and Mail piece describes it much better than I can: A unifying tradition in a fractured world.)

The midway stage band played contemporary rock, and the crowds were milling around as carnies shouted their offers. My daughter beat me at whack-a-mole, and we watched people win stuffed animals and sometimes money as all the traditional shooting galleries, fishing ponds, and crown and anchor games were back for another year. 

Before getting on the rides, we had to choose between the corn dogs, hot ice cream waffles and other classic midway fare, but for us, it was a no-brainer...Tiny Tom Donuts with icing sugar, the essential ballast for being thrown around on the Zero-Gravity machine and Crazy Mouse roller coaster. 

We resisted the haunted houses and fun mirror walks and stuck to the rides. Disoriented, we mused aloud about how to get back to the Exhibition GO station, and other visitors quickly showed us the way. Having left Oakville at 1, we were back in time for dinner feeling happy and satisfied.

You can take the GO train direct to the Ex; it's not even a 5-minute walk to the grounds. Entry is $25, Ride all day $70, Tiny Toms $6. We did 22 ride tickets, enough for four rides, so our per-person cost was $56 plus the GO train. It's open till September 4th every day from 10 am, and special trains are on to get you home if you stay late.