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Everything about Canada

Posted on: June 26, 2009 4:04 PM, by Greg Laden

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Well, it was pretty good, but does it really have to take more than six minutes to tell us all about Canada?

Okay, that's a joke, but this part is true. Everywhere I have vacationed in Canada, the locals have asked me why I'd want to spend my vacation there.

Posted by: Stephanie Z | June 26, 2009 4:50 PM

Rick Mercer is a Canadian icon :) His explanation here is pretty good.

Stephanie - you've obviously never been out west here in the Kootenays - we'd ask "why would you want to leave?" :)

Posted by: Doug Alder | June 26, 2009 5:37 PM

... and every word of it true.

I love my country. The people who don't know how it works? Not so much.

Posted by: itzac | June 26, 2009 7:10 PM

In fairness, if you've been to NS, and you were anyplace but visiting Cape Breton's highlands, or the Annapolis Valley during the apple blossom blooming, then yes, "why would you want to spend your vacation THERE?" e.g. Halifax. Who spends any time in Halifax unless you live there, or have some sort of business there?

The head of state business is ridiculous. Michelle Jean is a little ridiculous herself, with the proroguing. I can't wait until we excise that last vestige of British colonialism.

itzac, Doug, you're Canucks too? Awesome. I'm among my peers/betters.

Posted by: Jason Thibeault | June 26, 2009 7:29 PM

Another Canuck here, living in the Midwest, the heart of conservative paranoia.

I remember the crap that was flowing from the mouths of the right wingers all too well. The clamoring for the heads of the coalition was barely drowned out by the cries of treason and communism. In my opinion, these people have yet to meet a rational thought they liked.

Posted by: GaryB, FCD | June 26, 2009 7:42 PM

Doug, you're right. I've never been out your way. As Jason says, I've mostly been in the Maritimes.

Jason, the first place I heard that was on PEI, where we went for our honeymoon (two years after we got married) and traveled with friends for our ten-year anniversary. We rented a cabin just off a beach both times and had lovely times there when we weren't doing silly touristy stuff (Potato Museum!) or soaking up local history and eating fresh seafood.

NS was only a half week on the way back. We had to see the tidal bore, of course, on the way to Halifax. But we also took in the Maritime Museum, the local science museum, the Citadel, the Gardens and just generally prowled the town.

Posted by: Stephanie Z | June 26, 2009 8:32 PM

The Tidal Bore, while it is a great bit of physics and you get the sense you're seeing SCIENCE!!!, the "bore" part is not just referring to its mode of travel.

PEI is apparently gorgeous, according to everyone I know on the island and everyone that's vacationed there. It's also tiny, but that's what makes it very prone to being tourist-trappy. The locals don't understand why people go there, but non-locals definitely do.

Gary: glad to hear there are rational folks out in the Prairies. And I can't wait to see how long it takes for the Cons to abandon Alberta once they realize the money's not pumping out of there as quickly as it once was.

Posted by: Jason Thibeault | June 26, 2009 8:43 PM

Jason, it helped that we took the geeky approach, with time lapse photography. And that one of our party is the chair of her physics department. And that we have an infinite capacity to be amused by other tourists...and each other. Then we went and got beer.

It was also very cool that Truro was the only place I've ever been where the mosquitoes preferred other people to me.

Posted by: Stephanie Z | June 26, 2009 8:51 PM

Jason's right 'The Valley' (Annapolis Valley, where we live) is beautiful at the end of May when the Apple Blossom festival is held, and it's a fantastic time to visit (just avoid all of the actual festival crap). If you're into wine, the wine industry in Nova Scotia is booming and there are plenty of tourism agencies that will take you on tours around the province stopping at all the little vineyards/wineries along the way. I recommend visiting the one I work at ;)

Posted by: Jodi | June 26, 2009 8:55 PM

The Kootenays are okay (I grew up there), but the Okanagan is better. Sadly, the only place that's more expensive to live in Canada than the Okanagan is Victoria. Like Nova Scotia, we also have a number of wineries over here. but we don't get 10 feet of snow every winter. I've been pretty much all over the two westernmost provinces, and have yet to visit the Other Coast.

Perhaps some day.

Posted by: sinned34 | June 27, 2009 1:00 AM

Additional suggestion for summer reading

How to Be a Canadian (Even if You Already Are One)) by Will Ferguson & Ian Ferguson.

Posted by: Veronica. Abbass | June 27, 2009 5:06 PM

I grew up in central Canada so please someone tell me what a coast is...

Posted by: Geoff | June 29, 2009 3:02 PM

Stephanie, Toronto is f*!@n'awesome. Canada in general is full of people used to apologizing and saying thank you every five seconds, sorry about that. Thanks for listening to me feel proud of my country and city.

Posted by: Glendon Mellow | July 1, 2009 4:18 PM

Happy Canada Day, Glendon. :)

Posted by: Stephanie Z | July 1, 2009 4:59 PM

Thanks for posting Mercer, Greg!

And thanks Stephanie!

Posted by: Glendon Mellow | July 1, 2009 10:11 PM