OK, so today we will side track from weddings, maternity, and family portraits a little bit and give some attention to the Toronto Raptors and their Championship Parade...because it’s We The North Day and our basketball team just won the 2019 NBA Finals! Of course we went out to document this historic date for Canada!
Like the millions of Canadian fans, Warden and I had the opportunity to witness the parade this morning! It was a super exciting time to see the team that had worked so hard to get to this very moment! The anticipation was surreal. People were on their condo balconies, rooftops, top of TTC bus shelters, on the roads, kids on top of their parent’s shoulders and even the city’s service staff had a chance to enjoy the moment as they did an amazing job keeping fans safe. Boy, when it comes to finding a good spot at a parade, some people are just so creative! Construction workers were on the high levels of their buildings and some fans got onto the Gardiner Express Way and watched the parade from there; they were everywhere! Fans were chanting “Let’s Go Raptors! Let’s Go Raptors!” before the parade was even a close to them. And when it came close, all you hear were fans screaming out of excitement the player’s name and of course “MVP” when Kawhi arrived! Champagnes from the top of the double-decker buses were popped and showered down to the crowd. Jerseys and hats tossed up in hopes of a signature from the champs. Some even brought a 3 foot house-warming plant known as the “kawactus” in hopes of having Kawhi stay for another season.
If you were there today, you would understand how hard it was to see every player on the double-decker since they were dispersed and moved around; so nevermind of getting a good shot of them. Thankfully, we did get some shots of Drake, Siakam, Green, Vanfleet, Lowry; sides of Jeremy Lin and Gasol; and Ibaka showering the crowd with champagne! And when you’re on the same side where Kawhi is standing, you’d be firing those shots non-stop!
Overall, the experience was fun and exciting as everyone was out there to unite in celebration! Sharing this same joy with so many others was great! Enjoy some of our photos and let us know what you think in the comments below. Also, we have included a snippet video of the parade from an iPhone (there’s likely better videos out there but just thought to include it to complete the experience).