This is My Canada

Canadian bloggers are getting together in a giant game of tag to tell you about our Canada and what you shouldn’t miss when you come visit us. I was tagged by Pamela MacNaughtan.

Canada is a pretty awesome country and I consider myself to be very lucky to call it my home. There’s a reason backpackers stitch the maple leaf to their packs. We’re generally known as a polite, funny folk with a fondness for hockey and Tim’s double-doubles but I’ve picked out a few of my own reasons why I think Canada rocks.

1. Trees of Stanley Park

I love that in a big metropolis like Vancouver you still have tons of green space, Stanley Park being the best known, bordering right on downtown. I visited during fall and one of the first things I noticed were the size of the leaves on the ground. Massive. These things are huge and I couldn’t help but throw my arms around one ample arbor. My friends always knew that I was a treehugger. I just loved driving through the park and seeing these giant trees towering over me. It made the place feel magical.

Stanely Park is also home to the Vancouver Aquarium and the former home of my favourite sea otter and YouTube star, Milo (who died last year).

Photo: Barney Moss

2. Bay of Fundy Tides

I’m originally from a town on the Kennebecasis River in New Brunswick so I have lots of experience with the wild tides of the Bay of Fundy. Where else can you be kayaking one moment and walking on the ocean floor in the same spot just a few hours later? Burntcoat Head in Nova Scotia claims the prize of highest vertical range with an average of 50′ difference between high and low tide. Fifty feet! In Saint John, when the tide rushes in it’s so powerful that it forces the St. John River to flow upstream. You don’t mess with that.

These deer showed up on our front lawn on Christmas Eve. I think they were a bit lost.

3. Wildlife on Your Doorstep

Literally. It’s not uncommon for me to hear moose sightings on the radio in the morning. Not long ago one was wrangled on the next street over from me. Did I mention that I live in downtown St. John’s? In my hometown of Quispamsis, NB it’s the deer who have no fear. My dad loves to feed them apples which pisses off the neighbours but it did allow me to get this shot on Christmas Eve.  It seems that no matter where you go in Canada, you’re never that far from Mother Nature and that rocks my eco-lovin’ organic cotton socks.

And by curling I might mostly mean John Morris.

4. Curling

And I don’t mean my hair. To the outsider this game seems slow and boring as hell but once you learn the rules and get a grasp of strategy it can leave you on the edge of your seat. Winning and losing can come right down to a fraction of an inch. Hockey may be our national game but I think think curling rivals it in it’s pure Canadian-ness. There’s a whole culture built up around the game and its focus on honest play and lack of ruthless competition plays right into our polite wheelhouse. The Tim Hortons Brier is my Stanley Cup.

Hey Rosetta & The Novaks

5. Music of Course!

So. Many. Bands. No matter what kind of music you like, there’s a Canadian band out there to fit the bill. We’ve exported some huge acts like Celine Dion and Nickelback but that’s not who I think about when I think Canadian music. We’re the land of the Tragically Hip, Joni Mitchell, Oscar Peterson, and The Band. Blue Rodeo is my favourite and to me, they embody Canadiana as well as anyone. You’ll find a thriving music scene in most cities and towns of any size so be sure to head to a club and check out the next wave of stars.

So now that I’ve told you about five of my favourite things about my favourite country I’ll be passing the baton on to Kerri from expatkerri, Jeannie from Nomadic Chick and Scott and Dee from Dream a Little Dream. What’s your favourite thing about Canada?