Since arriving in Toronto, Lori Kufner and Kevin Bracken have been giving Torontonians excuses to celebrate. Whether it's partying on a subway, or painting hearts along Queen West, their NewMindSpace platform has made planned spontaneous fun a delight across the city - and has also given city bloggers something interesting to write about.

Today, they did it again, with their City Hall Bubble Battle. Meeting this afternoon outside of Old City Hall, about 400 revelers arived, armed with all manner of bubble making devices: from small bubble wands, to bubble guns, to home made bubble making wire contraptions; there were even a few bubble swords to be found.

Most of us view cars as, at best, a necessary evil - they smell, pollute the environment, create traffic jams, and kill cyclists, but they do get us to Ikea and back.

Thankfully, the folks at the 'Community Vehicular Reclamation Project' in Kensington have discovered a way to modify a car to not only ensure that it never again needs to face heavy traffic, but that will also actually help reduce greenhouse gasses in the city - they've turned one into a planter.

The opening of a public building, especially one that performs so popular a function as the Four Seasons Centre, is very much akin to the lifecycle of an insect. Not content with just one birth, it has many, and at each it takes a new form.

First the project is announced, and the location selected; then the births begin. The groundbreaking ceremony kicks it off; the construction tours continue it. The building is finished, and the ribbon cutting ceremony celebrates its completion. Then comes the big gala opener boldly announcing itself to the world. Soon, the final birth will occur, when the building first hosts an actual opera, in this case, the Ring Cycle. Now though, was its penultimate birth, the weekend it first opened its doors to the public at large.

And the public responded, in large numbers.

A heads-up to Hogtown cyclists: just as April showers bring May flowers, and as lighting a cigarette summons a bus; with the waning of the inaptly named Bike Week invariably comes the police bike crack-down - be warned.

With reports from a number of cyclists in different parts of the city, we can safely say that the blitz is on; police will be aggressively pulling over bike riders who don't have the mandatory equipment - lights, a bell, and if you're under 18, a helmet. With fines reaching over $100 depending on the infraction, it's probably going to be much cheaper (and safer - I don't know how I'd survive without my bell) to get the equipment now, rather than hoping you just don't get nabbed. Cops will also be targeting sidewalk riders, and those who ignore traffic rules.

Today was the big day, the day that the general public got their first chance to experience the accoustic qualities of the new Opera House as they enjoyed the sounds and swells of a gala concert. Of course, if like myself, you didn't have $150 to lay out for a seat, you could share in the experience across the street, at Nathan Phillips Square.

Unfortunately, the subtleties of a finely crafted opera house do tend to get lost when transposed onto an open air stage, making the experience lacklustre as a whole. Despite this (and the inability to reliably know what it sounded like indoors) the singing was top notch. One singer even managed to hit a Super C - which, according to my opera singer companion for the evening, is a note that is extremely rare and impressive to be able to hit.

It still needs a few finishing touches - getting rid of construction tape here, applying glue to light fixtures there - but it's officially official now: after nearly a quarter century of waiting, Hogtown finally has the opera house it needs.

The outside of the building is gorgeous - at least on the North and West sides. Although there have been naysayers, to my eyes, it is the very model of a modern opera house. It may not be flamboyantly purple in its design, but that's not what Toronto needs; rather than gaudy it has gravitas. The design, using blue-grey bricks and lots of glass is a touch of genius. The brick gives the structure its weight, its power; it makes the building look imposing and important. The glass, especially around the City Room, prevents the Four Seasons Centre from being weighted down by its own ambition; it is light and airy, and opens the house up to the city around it. This is exactly as opera should be - both serious and entertaining; special, yet democratic.