Oh Canada!

A Love Letter to the Great White North

Welcome to Canada, where we apologize for everything, including this blog post if it offends you in any way! But, hey, that’s just part of our charm. Here’s a Canadian tapestry of facts, trivia, quirks and accolades ­– Some great reasons to celebrate this July 1 wherever Canadians are, or have made a home outside our home and native land. So grab a jug of maple syrup, a case of beer and drink a toast to Canada Day: It’s all good!

1. Big Land, Few People

Canada is immense – 10 provinces, three territories, and the second-largest country on the planet – and with a population of only 39.1 million people, we’ve got all the space we need. It's like a giant backyard that's mostly empty.....Perfect for socially distanced hangouts. 

2. “Sorry” - The Most Canadian Word

“Sorry” is the magic word here. Someone bumps into you? You say “sorry.” The bus is late? “Sorry.” Apologizing is our national pastime, second only to hockey. So, don’t worry about offending anyone; we’ve already said sorry for you.

3. Beer, Eh?

As for hobbies, there is beer. Canadians consume 1.2 million litres on Canada Day. Put that way, it sounds an awful lot of "eh!" in one weekend. 

4. The Caesar - Our Signature Cocktail

We have a national cocktail, the Caesar. For those not familiar, it's a Bloody Mary prepared with Clamato juice (a heavenly blend of clam juice and tomato juice) with vodka, Worcestershire and Tabasco added, and topped with celery salt and lime. Delicious … and with the clam juice, a guaranteed hangover cure after all that beer.

5. Good Neighbours Make Good Borders

Canada and the US have the longest undefended border in the world – 8,891 kilometres of friendly fence-free living. We celebrate together, lighting up the skies on July 1st and the 4th at Niagara Falls. After all, what's a little border between friends?

6. The Mighty Beaver

Our national animal is the beaver. How cute is that? Until you actually confront one. They might look like water puppies with buck teeth, but they’re not as cuddly as you might think. They’re basically the bouncers of Canadian wetlands

[Pure Muskoka Banner]

7. Loonies and Toonies

Only in Canada would our money be said to sound like cartoon characters. The gold $1 coin is a Loonie, for Loon (the bird on it), and naturally the $2 coin was given the name Toonie. Makes sense, eh?

8. Coastline for Days

We’ve got the longest coastline in the world at 243,976km. It’s spectacular along its jagged edges from Nova Scotia to British Columbia, and from Newfoundland to the Gulf of the St Lawrence, and we’ve got rock, soil, sediment, mussels, seagulls and breathtaking vistas galore. Not to mention Muskoka adds its own twist with our own pristine lakeshores and rugged cliffs.

9. The Metric/Imperial Mash-Up

Canada is the pot-smoking kid in class trying to convince you that splitting the difference is a fine way to convert between the imperial and metric systems. We still weigh ourselves in pounds, but we travel on the highway in kilometres. We measure the weather in Celsius but mark our height on charts in feet and inches. It’s a delightful mix of British precision and American convenience.

10. Tim Horton’s Takeover

There’s a Tim Horton’s on every block in Canada. Thanks to us, there’s soon one on every block in the world. If there ever is a wall between here and America, they’ll build it out of Tim Horton’s cups. The coffee might be mediocre… but it's our mediocre.

11. Multilingual-ish

Two official languages, English and French – though on the ground, outside Quebec, and with Canadians who learn French as a second tongue, bilingualism is more a hope than it is a living reality. Still, plenty of us try. We really do!

12. Santa’s North Pole Address

Santa Lives Here. Yes, really. Letters to Santa are sent to the North Pole, Canada. Our volunteers respond in over 30 languages. It’s our gift to the world.

13. Kraft Dinner Kings

Every year we consume 1.7 million boxes of Kraft Dinner.” Which is, literally, a third of the world’s supply. The Barenaked Ladies sang about it, but we live it. It’s practically a food group.

14. Lakes Galore

More than any other country in the world, Canada is full of freshwater lakes. 1600 of those are found in Muskoka! With this much water, it’s only natural that we’re such chill people.

15. Hockey Love

Sure, lacrosse is technically our national sport, but hockey is where our hearts are. From Wayne Gretzky to Sidney Crosby, we’ve produced some of the greatest players in the game, whether we win the cup, or not. It’s our icy love affair.

Thus, this Canada Day, drink a Caesar, scarf down some KD, and say "sorry" a little more. Cheers to the True North, strong and free! Happy Canada Day, friends! We’re lucky to call this vast, beautiful, and wonderfully quirky place our home. From friendly people to the stunning landscapes, there’s no place we’d rather be.