Valentines Day is usually about love, love of people with each other. We have had a bit of fun over the years on that topic.
This year, we want to celebrate our love for Canada that doesn't involve celebrities. We still love Canadian celebrities. Anna Maria Tremonti's new More podcast celebrates an internal push from Canadian celebrities. Our focus is on things we appreciate about Canada that are distinctly Canadian.
Newfoundland in the snow
Newfoundland has its share of storms: last month's snowscape was intense even for Newfoundland. Getting ¾ of a metre (2 ½ feet) of snow is incredible enough. The howling 150+ km winds brought a force to the island.
Stumbled across an impromptu Georgetown block party with bonfire in the middle of what should be a street. Beer and comraderie freely shared with all #nlwx #NLStorm2020 #blizzard2020 pic.twitter.com/QxUlea6rti
— Peter Cowan (@PeterCBC) January 19, 2020
How the people of Newfoundland celebrated the snow from snowboarding down the steep roads that are a part of downtown St. John's to building bonfires in the street to hang out with neighbours. Most of what we saw was from St. John's due to the limitations of covering the rest of the province during a horrible storm. You showed Canada and the world that no matter how intense the blizzard was, you would still have fun.
CBC The National
CBC The National slightly skews its numerous hosts lineup
Canada PM Stephen Harper says he prefers watching U.S. news
CanadianCrossing.com journalism coverage
Then Prime Minister Stephen Harper once bragged that he watched American news instead of Canadian news. Most Canadian TV news isn't that meaningful. CTV and Global aren't bad; they just aren't good for a country of 36 million. The National is a nightly newscast that is meaningful to Canada and the world.
You can make fun of the 4 anchor setup. You can poke fun at the ratings compared to CTV and Global (which have American TV shows as their lead-in). Night after night, the best TV newscast in Canada and the United States is The National.
Americans should appreciate that while the newscast has disappeared from cable boxes outside those areas that get the CBC, you can watch the newscast on Facebook and YouTube.
Politeness
Canada isn't always polite. Canada is often more polite, everything else being equal.
When you travel and deal with Canadians, they have a politeness that is refreshing when visiting the country. Canadians are reasonably friendly and helpful. They are polite. Do them a favour and learn a few things about Canada to show how polite you are when you visit them.
Alberta and Saskatchewan
The rhetoric of division in Canada reveals a lack of understanding
They were pretty angry during the election and didn't stop being angry after the election. There will be a Wexit party on future ballots.
These provinces have felt angst from many generations of feeling underrepresented in Parliament.
The Canadian Senate is unelected. Ontario and Quebec get 24 senators each while Manitoba, British Columbia, Alberta, and Saskatchewan combined have 24 senators. As we saw in the 2019 election, improving the vote total in Alberta and Saskatchewan doesn't get you that many more seats in the House of Commons.
The area produces some great Canadian resources from beef to potash. Oh, there is oil as well. There are a lot of great people in these provinces. A lot of them are conservative but not in a mean way. Most might be frustrated but they aren't as angry as their elected leaders.
Harry and Meghan
Prince Harry and Meghan Markle living in Canada will be easier by staying fewer than 6 months
I know we said no celebrities. This isn't really about them. Vancouver Island is a gorgeous place in Canada. Having the (former) royals stay there will draw attention to people who otherwise might not have considered the island as a travel destination.
Americans can fly to Seattle and sail from downtown Seattle to Victoria. You can take a bus to Nanaimo and Tofino. Renting a car? Gas is more expensive because, well, Canada and being on an island.
If you are trying to "accidentally" spot the royals (with respect, of course), they are reportedly in North Saanich. That community is south of Swartz Bay, the destination from the ferry from Tsawwassen, an hour by bus to Victoria. North Saanich is also just south of the Victoria International Airport. They will likely be in Victoria and Vancouver, the latter of which is not on Vancouver Island.
If you spend your time exploring the region and/or those two cities, you will have a lovely time, even if you don't spot anyone too famous.
Parlé Francaise
You can and should go to Montréal or elsewhere in Quebec to get a French language perspective on being Canadian. You can elsewhere within Canada to get that Francaise experience: St. Boniface in Winnipeg to Acadia in New Brunswick to numerous Franco-Ontarian cities to Edmonton's French Quarter.
Donut scandals
Justin Trudeau had a scandal (gasp) because the prime minister bought donuts from Oh Doughnuts during a Liberal Party gathering in Winnipeg. On the surface, the scenario is a boss buying donuts for his team. Employees usually want the boss to buy the good donuts for the meeting. Canadians and Americans can relate to this action.
The "scandal" was that Trudeau didn't buy donuts from Tim Hortons, majority-owned by a Brazilian investment firm. Tim Hortons is Canadians in the eyes of Canada. I haven't had Oh Doughnuts but feel comfortable in saying that fresh, local donuts from a locally owned company taste better than donuts that are reheated on site (as Tim Hortons donuts reportedly are).
The "scandal" is a reminder that in a world of Brexit and a highly angry toddler, donut scandals are not a bad speed to be traveling.
National Film Board and TIFF
We were down on them for layoffs late last year. Both organisations celebrate Canadian film. They have online resources to learn more about Canadian film. The NFB allows you to watch certain films within Canada and even outside Canada. The TIFF site has more about Canadian films shown in the festival, the list of Rising Stars, and so much more.
Coolness of Canadian celebrities
This story is about Ryan Reynolds and his generosity.
During the whole Peloton ad saga, Reynolds decided to "save" the Peloton wife (actor Monica Ruiz) and gave her a safe space in an ad for his Aviation American Gin brand.
You could cynically argue that Reynolds was trying to take advantage and increase awareness of his gin brand. Ruiz was concerned about being typecast. Reynolds tapped into the concerns people had over the Peloton ad and gave a break to a fellow actor who needed one.
2019 Valentines Day: Our love for Sandra Oh
CanadianCrossing.com travel coverage
If your Valentines Day is not going the way you want it to go, planning a trip to Canada can be a way to distract you.
video credit: CBC News
Twitter capture: @PeterCBC
photo credit: me; Aviation American Gin
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