Our amazing country celebrates its 150th Birthday tomorrow.
We are observing the 150th anniversary of the July 1, 1867, enactment of the British North America Act, which united the three separate colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia, and New Brunswick into a single Dominion within the British Empire called Canada.
I've lived here nearly 13 years & have barely scraped the surface of this vast, wild land. My kids are Canadian, with the accent and all. I love the country - it can be brutally cold in the winter & scorchingly hot in the summer & it's people are as diverse & multicultural as they come.
Canada has been a great friend to The UK - with huge contributions during both World Wars & a deep,rich contribution to everyday British life.
Anyway let's hear where fellow Charlton Lifers are celebrating with the rest of the Nation tomorrow from Oakster in Canmore, Alberta.
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How is that playing out in Canada?
@iainment is right, there is a dark side to Canada's history which ranks up there with anything suffered by blacks in South Africa or Aborigines in Australia. For whatever reason it has managed to keep that out of sight of most of the rest of the world - it is something I knew nothing about until my wife because a social worker here and started telling me about the native communities she works in and the truly disturbing history of the residential school system. Attitudes are changing, albeit far slower than they should, but as Oakster says, there are still lots of people in severe poverty living on reserves in a country which can afford to treat them better.
All that said, Canada is as an extremely multicultural place. I live in the Edmonton and the joke is that no one in Edmonton is actually from Edmonton and it does ring true a lot of the time. In the park tomorrow I will see people from all corners of the globe celebrating what is a great country. Anyone who says multiculturalism can't work hasn't been to Canada. I'm sure I will even see a few Native faces, although I am also sure there are some from that community who won't be celebrating.
That side of things is such a shame because I have found it to be a vast, beautiful country full of happy, welcoming people. There is still a certain Britishness to the place, minus a lot of the baggage of the class system. I love it here more every day and miss home a bit less every day and I am very thankful that I get to live here. Dark past or not, there is still plenty to be celebrated tomorrow.
Can still remember when @Oakster was leaving 13 years ago. Seems like a lifetime ago now mate. I have so many good people I like scattered in all four corners of the globe but circumstances dictate I can't visit them and as I get older and the thirst for travel grows, it's something I think about a lot.
Much love to you and your family @oakster mate. Top bloke
Fitting that the first Tim hortons in the U.K. Is opening today, sadly it's in Glasgow though.
Happy Canada day one and all.
I'd move to Calgary tomorrow if i could.
Would return to live in a heartbeat.
Happy Canada Day.
Why dont Canada play cricket like the rest of the commonwealth?
Off to Trafalgar Square later for the Canada day celebrations.
Regarding the second, Canada had a couple of things happening that impeded the popularity of cricket - firstly the undeniable influence on our culture from the US & hence the popularity of basketball a game actually invented in Canada), Baseball & Gridiron. Secondly the much more diverse nature of immigration into this country - not only Brits, but Germans, Italians, Portuguese, Icelanders, Chinese, Japanese, Latinos - this helped to dilute Britishness & also eradicate the old British class structure(thankfully!)
It is still played here extensively, every major city has a thriving cricket scene - the vast majority of players are of India, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan & Carribean descent.
So presently Ice Hockey is our No. 1 sport but the ridiculous cost and time commitment is driving kids away from this & football will be the eventual winner.
Yeah, they also like clubbing seals to death, nice country!
I won a sales incentive back in 2009 to go out to our Toronto office for a week
It was a lovely week weather wise. Think I came in the time there was a bank holiday Monday in August. I remember a Caribbean theme to the day or something
I went up to Niagara Falls, the village of niagara and went to Dan ackroyd's vineyard
A couple of good meals down by the lake in the evening
Really good place
Have a good friend in Vancouver - will try and get over there next summer
Love Nova Scotia and PEI, have to say Canmore is my favorite place to stay when in Alberta, it does not have the hustle and bustle of Banff up the road.
It has some great places to eat and drink always try to be up there when the Highland Games are on the wife loves the place.
Our friends have a big ranch out in Cochrane so it is Convenient and a straight run down the road to Calgary Airport.
Canada is definitely a richly diverse and vast country with some great people. They don't always like to put their hand in their pocket though