Though you caution us about the dull nature of the Canadians, it is with a candid honesty which is itself amusing. If I had paid attention to this, then I wouldn’t have giggled my way through some of this article.
As I didn’t read all 6,500 words, I will not, unfortunately, be buying myself a drink.
ps. did you know that I’ve just come back from the NYC - was there for a year.
Will, I’ll check with my ghost-writer, but I’m pretty sure that you were intended to ‘giggle your way through’ at least some of this article… Thanks for commenting, though, not least because your comment revealed a bug in the way I’d set up some of the back-end of the site, which I think I’ve fixed now. I would probably have noticed it sooner, but no one bothers to comment very often.
And no, I didn’t know that you were in New York: that sounds exciting. I’ll send you an email.
Perhaps the 18 feet of predictable snow each winter; which forces residents indoors for more than half the year, is responsible for creating their dull nature, as it stunts their opportunities for social interactions, not to mention thwarting their gene pool. It’s possible that you witnessed the only surviving human species that are all descended from the same two ancestors.
Unfortunately you’ve missed the best of Canada. I found Montreal to be a very sexy and exciting city and Quebec was like going back in time, when life was simple and people loved out loud which was anything but dull. It might be worth your while to take another look at Canada and make Quebec your destination. I’m free to travel in June.
I have lived in London (England) for the last thirty years, a supposedly fascinating city with a rich history. I am extremely interested in history ( I often write about it as a journalist) and yet…. I am utterly bored with London and Britain. I have close relations here, but apart from that if I never saw this country again I would not shed a single tear.
I am married to a Canadian from Vancouver and am longing to move there. I have often been to Vancouver and find this city which left you so indifferent the most wonderful place on earth….I love the sheer physical beauty of the setting with blue snow-topped mountains in the background and the great shining Pacific in front dotted with halcyon little islands. I love the masses of beautiful Asian women, the friendliness of the Canadians in comparision to the surly Brits, the unequalled Asian cuisine, the cheerfulness of it all, the dazzling sunlight, the maginficent fragrant pine forests.
Sorry to overboard a little with the purple prose, but you get my drift.
How come I live in Canada and find it “like the US, but much, much, much better”?
The truth is you have to know the locals, get into their lives, to understand a different society. With all due respect, you have not tried to do that. You set out with a preconcieved notion that Canada is somehow an second-rate US. You did not try to find out what is different about it as a socio-political entity.
I live in Richmond, British Columbia, and find it an incredibly interesting place, a happy mixture of races.
A pity you did not enjoy canada, but never mind. It’s a very fine place all the same, for reasons you might never find out.
How funny that eight months after its published, this article gets two comments in as many days from people with whom I have absolutely no connection whatsoever. Welcome, both of you.
Parbat Laldeng, I can fully sympathize with your not wanting to live permanently in London. Though I suspect some of my reasons are different from your own, it’s something we have in common: I was born and brought up in the UK but am now glad to have returned to my paternal family’s origins in Sydney. It’s also quite funny to read your encomium of Vancouver because we’ve got all those things here in Sydney and then some.
As for you, ‘How Come’ (not your real name, surely? but if it is, how unfortunate, and my apologies), I think it is you who have come to this article ‘with a preconceived notion’. In fact, I’ve just re-read what I wrote and I don’t think it’s a fair conclusion to draw that I went to Canada with any prejudices whatsoever. Rather I was excited and interested to visit the ‘senior dominion’.
What I think is important to understand is that one’s experience and impression of a place is completely different when one is visiting rather than living there. When I lived in Geneva for a year, I found it to be completely fascinating, not to say enthralling. However, I was not so blinded by my fascination to realize that for people who come to visit the city it probably isn’t nearly as exciting as I found it myself. In fact I know that for many passing visitors Geneva is just like a French provincial town only slightly cleaner and slightly more dreary.
Also, ‘How Come’, I don’t know where you got the idea that I ‘did not enjoy Canada’. I don’t think I wrote that, either. Just because I found English-speaking Canada dull doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy being there. After all, it all contributes to the tapestry of human experience.
Anyone wondering whether I will complete my account of my North-American quest, well, wonder no more. I have been very busy with the semester that is just now drawing to a close, but one of the things I hope to do during my month’s break is to update the site with lots more photos and description of what I saw and did. Beginning, of course, with an account of my time in Quebec before heading south to Boston and New York.
I read this post with much amusement. I am originally from Calgary and moved to Europe a few years ago. I have now moved back to Canada and live in Toronto. I must say that I agree with much of what you said about English-speaking Canada. I find Toronto to be very bland and dull. It is surrounded by soul-destroying suburbs that can be tremendously boring. The city centre has a few things to offer but overall it is nothing compared to the richness of culture offered by European cities. In addition to being dull, the city is also quite expensive. I seriously regret moving back.
Dear Richard,
Thank you for taking the time to share your journey through Canada with everybody on the web. Further, thank you for your upfront honesty about Canadian culture: “nice but dull”. I live in Vancouver, and have also lived in Toronto for many years. That said I’m originally from the States, so I feel I have an informed opinion as to the “nice but dull” image that Canadians often get labeled with. Yes, it’s true! And guess what? You’re not the only one to come forward with this observation. I have Canadian friends, and share their lives, stories, etc.
These are true generalizations about Canadians: Canada is a SAFE country. Follow the rules here, please. Canada is not a dynamic country, on the contrary its a bit complacent—and dare I say smug about itself. Canadians are shy: they are not as brash, loud, or as outgoing as their noisy, mouthy, southern neighbors. Things happen here slowly, gradually, methodically. Think of watching paint dry, or corn growing in the night. This is how Canada operates. Canadians are very polite. Its a ‘stay at home with the family’ culture here, or think of Canada as a vast bedroom community. Canadians are do-gooders, and a bit hokey at times. You can live in Canada for a very long time before getting a job, or making friends. They’re just not all that interested in you (no offense). And finally, Canada is very expensive place to live: you’ll probably need 2 jobs just to get by and pay the bills. Oh—and don’t forget we’re just getting over prohibition here: that’s why 6 pack of Labatt’s (that costs $5.00 in the States) costs $14.00 here in Canada. Government liquor stores here are generally closed on Sundays, and closed early (7pm) all other days except Fridays. Some provinces ONLY have government run alcohol stores (Ontario’s dreadful LCBO and ‘beer store’ franchises come to mind, just awful). Canada is, on the whole, decidedly reserved and a tad bit Victorian on the whole—which dovetails nicely with your observation of Canada being “nice but dull”. It definitely is.
In all fairness many states in the USA are also dull, there is some overlap between USA and Canada. Europe has much more ‘buzz’ and things going on than both USA and Canada if that’s what you’re after. Maybe because its so much more compact and interconnected. On the bright side Canada lacks the howling, obnoxious, violent types that are rife in so many parts of USA. After a recent visit to the States I came to appreciate the polite civility of Canadians to be honest.
Indeed, synonyms for Canada are as follows: boring, dry, reserved, complacent, unemotional, orderly, proper, expensive, and bureaucratic. It could be better—but it could be worse. I guess one has to take it or leave it in the end.
Bro. Andrew Kosmowski
7 November 2009, 2.36 am #
Dear Richard,
Peace be with you.
I’m a friend of your brother, Thomas. If you find yourself in St. Louis on a Sat. or Sun., I’d gladly show you the sites. You can email me.
william Hickman
17 November 2009, 2.38 pm #
Richard,
Though you caution us about the dull nature of the Canadians, it is with a candid honesty which is itself amusing. If I had paid attention to this, then I wouldn’t have giggled my way through some of this article.
As I didn’t read all 6,500 words, I will not, unfortunately, be buying myself a drink.
ps. did you know that I’ve just come back from the NYC - was there for a year.
Richard Flynn
17 November 2009, 11.20 pm #
Will, I’ll check with my ghost-writer, but I’m pretty sure that you were intended to ‘giggle your way through’ at least some of this article… Thanks for commenting, though, not least because your comment revealed a bug in the way I’d set up some of the back-end of the site, which I think I’ve fixed now. I would probably have noticed it sooner, but no one bothers to comment very often.
And no, I didn’t know that you were in New York: that sounds exciting. I’ll send you an email.
Trish Friedman
6 January 2010, 5.01 pm #
Hi Richard,
Perhaps the 18 feet of predictable snow each winter; which forces residents indoors for more than half the year, is responsible for creating their dull nature, as it stunts their opportunities for social interactions, not to mention thwarting their gene pool. It’s possible that you witnessed the only surviving human species that are all descended from the same two ancestors.
Unfortunately you’ve missed the best of Canada. I found Montreal to be a very sexy and exciting city and Quebec was like going back in time, when life was simple and people loved out loud which was anything but dull. It might be worth your while to take another look at Canada and make Quebec your destination. I’m free to travel in June.
Parbat Laldeng
11 June 2010, 5.31 pm #
What can I say, Richard?
I have lived in London (England) for the last thirty years, a supposedly fascinating city with a rich history. I am extremely interested in history ( I often write about it as a journalist) and yet…. I am utterly bored with London and Britain. I have close relations here, but apart from that if I never saw this country again I would not shed a single tear.
I am married to a Canadian from Vancouver and am longing to move there. I have often been to Vancouver and find this city which left you so indifferent the most wonderful place on earth….I love the sheer physical beauty of the setting with blue snow-topped mountains in the background and the great shining Pacific in front dotted with halcyon little islands. I love the masses of beautiful Asian women, the friendliness of the Canadians in comparision to the surly Brits, the unequalled Asian cuisine, the cheerfulness of it all, the dazzling sunlight, the maginficent fragrant pine forests.
Sorry to overboard a little with the purple prose, but you get my drift.
And you found all this tedious?
HOW COME
12 June 2010, 9.39 pm #
How come I live in Canada and find it “like the US, but much, much, much better”?
The truth is you have to know the locals, get into their lives, to understand a different society. With all due respect, you have not tried to do that. You set out with a preconcieved notion that Canada is somehow an second-rate US. You did not try to find out what is different about it as a socio-political entity.
I live in Richmond, British Columbia, and find it an incredibly interesting place, a happy mixture of races.
A pity you did not enjoy canada, but never mind. It’s a very fine place all the same, for reasons you might never find out.
Richard Flynn
14 June 2010, 12.19 pm #
How funny that eight months after its published, this article gets two comments in as many days from people with whom I have absolutely no connection whatsoever. Welcome, both of you.
Parbat Laldeng, I can fully sympathize with your not wanting to live permanently in London. Though I suspect some of my reasons are different from your own, it’s something we have in common: I was born and brought up in the UK but am now glad to have returned to my paternal family’s origins in Sydney. It’s also quite funny to read your encomium of Vancouver because we’ve got all those things here in Sydney and then some.
As for you, ‘How Come’ (not your real name, surely? but if it is, how unfortunate, and my apologies), I think it is you who have come to this article ‘with a preconceived notion’. In fact, I’ve just re-read what I wrote and I don’t think it’s a fair conclusion to draw that I went to Canada with any prejudices whatsoever. Rather I was excited and interested to visit the ‘senior dominion’.
What I think is important to understand is that one’s experience and impression of a place is completely different when one is visiting rather than living there. When I lived in Geneva for a year, I found it to be completely fascinating, not to say enthralling. However, I was not so blinded by my fascination to realize that for people who come to visit the city it probably isn’t nearly as exciting as I found it myself. In fact I know that for many passing visitors Geneva is just like a French provincial town only slightly cleaner and slightly more dreary.
Also, ‘How Come’, I don’t know where you got the idea that I ‘did not enjoy Canada’. I don’t think I wrote that, either. Just because I found English-speaking Canada dull doesn’t mean that I didn’t enjoy being there. After all, it all contributes to the tapestry of human experience.
Anyone wondering whether I will complete my account of my North-American quest, well, wonder no more. I have been very busy with the semester that is just now drawing to a close, but one of the things I hope to do during my month’s break is to update the site with lots more photos and description of what I saw and did. Beginning, of course, with an account of my time in Quebec before heading south to Boston and New York.
Cubano
23 September 2010, 6.35 am #
I read this post with much amusement. I am originally from Calgary and moved to Europe a few years ago. I have now moved back to Canada and live in Toronto. I must say that I agree with much of what you said about English-speaking Canada. I find Toronto to be very bland and dull. It is surrounded by soul-destroying suburbs that can be tremendously boring. The city centre has a few things to offer but overall it is nothing compared to the richness of culture offered by European cities. In addition to being dull, the city is also quite expensive. I seriously regret moving back.
stephen
19 October 2010, 7.20 pm #
Dear Richard,
Thank you for taking the time to share your journey through Canada with everybody on the web. Further, thank you for your upfront honesty about Canadian culture: “nice but dull”. I live in Vancouver, and have also lived in Toronto for many years. That said I’m originally from the States, so I feel I have an informed opinion as to the “nice but dull” image that Canadians often get labeled with. Yes, it’s true! And guess what? You’re not the only one to come forward with this observation. I have Canadian friends, and share their lives, stories, etc.
These are true generalizations about Canadians: Canada is a SAFE country. Follow the rules here, please. Canada is not a dynamic country, on the contrary its a bit complacent—and dare I say smug about itself. Canadians are shy: they are not as brash, loud, or as outgoing as their noisy, mouthy, southern neighbors. Things happen here slowly, gradually, methodically. Think of watching paint dry, or corn growing in the night. This is how Canada operates. Canadians are very polite. Its a ‘stay at home with the family’ culture here, or think of Canada as a vast bedroom community. Canadians are do-gooders, and a bit hokey at times. You can live in Canada for a very long time before getting a job, or making friends. They’re just not all that interested in you (no offense). And finally, Canada is very expensive place to live: you’ll probably need 2 jobs just to get by and pay the bills. Oh—and don’t forget we’re just getting over prohibition here: that’s why 6 pack of Labatt’s (that costs $5.00 in the States) costs $14.00 here in Canada. Government liquor stores here are generally closed on Sundays, and closed early (7pm) all other days except Fridays. Some provinces ONLY have government run alcohol stores (Ontario’s dreadful LCBO and ‘beer store’ franchises come to mind, just awful). Canada is, on the whole, decidedly reserved and a tad bit Victorian on the whole—which dovetails nicely with your observation of Canada being “nice but dull”. It definitely is.
In all fairness many states in the USA are also dull, there is some overlap between USA and Canada. Europe has much more ‘buzz’ and things going on than both USA and Canada if that’s what you’re after. Maybe because its so much more compact and interconnected. On the bright side Canada lacks the howling, obnoxious, violent types that are rife in so many parts of USA. After a recent visit to the States I came to appreciate the polite civility of Canadians to be honest.
Indeed, synonyms for Canada are as follows: boring, dry, reserved, complacent, unemotional, orderly, proper, expensive, and bureaucratic. It could be better—but it could be worse. I guess one has to take it or leave it in the end.