50 Things I’ve Learned About Canada in 5 Years

On 10th November 2011, we moved to Canada. Initially, we planned to be here a year, maybe two. Now that it has turned into quite a few awesome years, here are a few things I have learned over the last half-decade in this beautiful country I call home. 

Published Nov 2016.

Wildlife

• Moose are actually HUGE (bigger than the average car) but are somehow pretty elusive
• The bald eagle should be Canada’s national animal, not the USA’s. So. many. bald. eagles. everywhere
• Beavers surprisingly crafty with their dams – we’ve had to portage our canoe over them more than once
• You’re far more likely to see the back end of a bear running away from you than the rest of it
• Canada has four species of native rattlesnakes

People

• Canadians are indeed some of the most polite people in the world
• French is not just limited to Quebec and New Brunswick, there are French speakers all over Canada
• Yukon Territory is home to only 30,000 people in an area the size of the UK
• Vancouver has one of the largest Chinese populations outside of China
• There are so many famous Canadians (actors, writers, musician) but a huge number mostly live in the US

The Great Outdoors

• Canada has the longest coastline in the world
• What would be a mountain in Britain, is a small hill in Canada
• There is true wilderness, the no-one-within-a-thousand-kilometres kind of wilderness
• Canada is home to rainforests, huge lakes (with tides!), deserts, glaciers, tundra, plains and more…
• It takes about 60 hours to drive from the West Coast to the East Coast, all 7,000km+ of it.

Canadian Life

• No need to park when you can almost drive-thru everywhere; the pharmacy, bank, liquor store and more
• Alcohol is still restricted to liquor stores only in most provinces (psst, it’s also pretty expensive too!)
• Hockey is everything
• Superbowl afternoon is a great day to go shopping (SO QUIET)
• The price you see is not the price you pay as taxes are added on when paying (taxes vary between provinces)

Food and Drink

• There is a big wine industry in Canada, with hundreds of wineries and thousands of vineyards
• Canadians eat more Kraft dinner (boxed macaroni and cheese) than any other nationality in the world
• 65% of the world’s lentils are grown in Canada
• Maple syrup, bacon, lobster and poutine flavoured EVERYTHING (usually separately but sometimes together!)
• Sugar is king. There are more doughnut shops per capita than anywhere else

Canadianisms

• “A gong show” refers to a something that went really wrong. Sometimes wrong in a funny way, sometimes not
• A double-double is a coffee with two cream (never milk) and two sugars
• Being “stoked” (very excited) is the opposite of “choked” (upset or mad)
• “Give’r” is a common saying meaning to go for it or to put more effort in
• A toque is a (usually woolen) beanie hat, washrooms are toilets, mickeys are small bottles of hard liquor

Weather

• There are places in Canada that get hot. Really hot. Like 40c+ hot
• There are places in Canada that do not really get very cold and snow is a novelty
• It’s quite normal to plug your car in overnight in places with extreme cold to keep the engine block and oil warm
• Don’t go outside with wet hair when it’s -20c or below – it freezes
• -40c isn’t actually as freezing as it sounds, not when it’s a dry cold

Strange but true

• $100 bills smell of maple syrup
• The modern state of Canada has technically only existed since 1982
• Santa’s address is North Pole, H0H 0H0, Canada
• $1 coins are called Loonies (they have the loon bird on them), $2 are Toonies
• Canadians are called also called Canucks, a word in use since the early 1800’s

Holidays

• There is a named public holiday almost every month
• Thanksgiving is in October and while it is similar to the US holiday, it tied more to harvest traditions
• Halloween is kinda a big deal
• Canada Day is an awesome day to just celebrate and appreciate where you live
• The start of the summer season is marked by Victoria Day (Patriotes Day in Quebec), the third Monday in May

And a few more, for the road

• Canadian immigration is SLOW, even for spouses and partners of citizens
• Driving two hours (or across the border) to go somewhere for dinner or a movie isn’t a big deal
• For such a relatively ‘young’ country, Canada has a lot of interesting history and culture (First Nation, French settlement, war with the USA, gold rush-era, building of the trans-Canada railway, Chinese immigration etc)
• People really do use the infamous red cups at parties, just like in the movies
• Canada may be one of the most beautiful and safest countries in the world and I am SO happy to call it my home

Let me know if you too have learned some interesting facts and quirks of living in Canada!

Check out these recently published posts:

West Coast Trail Packing List: The Best Items to Bring

The Floe Lake Trail: Complete 2023 Hiking Guide

Visiting Fiji in Wet Season: What to Expect