Mrs Hilary Weston, the Dublin-born Lieutenant General of Ontario, greeted the President, Mrs McAleese, when she arrived in Canada's largest city yesterday morning on the fourth day of her state visit.
The President and her party, including Dr Martin McAleese and the Minister for Foreign Affairs, Mr Andrews, with Mrs Andrews flew into Toronto by special Air Canada jet from the federal capital, Ottawa, to a VIP welcome.
Roads were blocked off from the Macdonald-Cartier International Airport to the Royal York Hotel so the presidential party could pass smoothly. Last night the President was guest of honour at a black-tie dinner in Queen's Park, the provincial parliament, hosted by Mrs Weston.
The day started on an academic note with a visit to St Michael's College, now part of the University of Toronto, where Mrs McAleese mingled with students and staff. In her address she told them she was delighted their Celtic studies programme was to be expanded through the endowment of the first Celtic chairs of Welsh and Scottish Studies in Canada.
At other engagements during the day the President emphasised the economic resurgence in Ireland. Ireland, she told a luncheon hosted by the Deputy Prime Minister, Mr Herb Gray, was completing a charmed circle of economic and cultural renaissance and also a political renaissance. Ireland now possessed a modern, high-tech, developed economy on a par with the rest of western Europe which had a long-term impact on employment levels and living standards.
But the greatest and seemingly swiftest change in Ireland had been the transforming of the longstanding Northern Ireland question through the signing of the Belfast Agreement.
The terrible bombing in Omagh, she said, had had the effect of creating a tremendous sense of the transcendent. The Irish had now said Yes to peace and the small minority who said No were told that it was over.
Mrs McAleese expanded on Ireland's economic progress when she addressed a business round table at Canada's oldest bank, the Bank of Montreal, in the afternoon and paid tribute to the bank's Irish-born chairman, Mr Matthew Barrett.
At a meeting of the Apostles of Ireland of Toronto she spoke of the Irish influence in Canada and of the Apostles goal of building bridges between members from different backgrounds. The Canadian tradition had allowed Orange and Green to understand each other. The Belfast Agreement would encourage them to build together and achieve peace and prosperity. It rectified an imbalance, and all were considered first-class citizens.
This morning, after an Ireland Fund breakfast, the President and her party will fly to Montreal.