Just a bit more about Canada and Canadians today before moving on to write about my American friends tomorrow on their national holiday.
I see I have a few readers in such far flung places as Iran and Russia.Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and I hope you will be a bit more informed about Canada for the effort.
It's said that most people who live in Canada live within a couple of hundred miles of the American border,so that we all tend to be strung out along a few thousand miles of border.Certainly almost all of our larger cities are very close the the American border.And,living in Calgary in the western part of Canada,I am quite typical in that respect.The same was true for the many years I lived in Moncton,as it to is within about two hundred miles of the border.I expect that this has some effect on us.We are a lot like Americans in many ways,except of course,you can buy good donuts here.Even the Americans think so.But we have a lot of contact with Americans,we speak the same language,many of us have family members who are American.And of course we all watch American TV.What would we ever do without American Idol or without CNN to tell us how the world really works?Well,we could watch CBC for a good laugh,or tune into The Red Green Show,when we want to be informed.Or is that the other way around?
Moncton is my home town,and it bears some mention because it has a kind of unique demographic.When I was growing up there were very few visible minorities in town,yet Moncton was quite ethnically mixed.In fact,you would notice the province of New Brunswick looks a bit like a square if you check out the map.If you were to divide that square from north west to south east,you would find very Francophone communities on the north and east side of the diagonal and very Anglophone communities(United Empire Loyalists) to the south and west.Moncton is cut right through the middle by that line and it's population reflects this.For the most part West Moncton is Anglophone and East Moncton and Dieppe is French.It has been known to cause tension at times,but seemingly more in the past than now.
Today I live in Calgary,nearly 5000 miles from my home town.Calgary is best known for it's Stampede,which this year celebrates it's 100th anniversary.Calgary Stampede is,of course a huge rodeo.More on that in a few days perhaps.What Calgary is also well known for is as a centre of the petroleum business and it is one of the very fastest growing cities in North America.That changes with the fortunes of oil,of course.
In between Calgary and Moncton,there are a lot of empty spaces.You see,while we are the second largest country on earth,we have a population roughly equal to California.Much of the country is rural then.Much of the North,that part of Canada that is say,500 miles or more away from the American border is very sparsely populated and quite remote.It has a lot of Canada's resources though.And Canada is blessed with a wealth of resources.There's oil out west and the prairie provinces,are sometimes called the bread basket to the world.Many people live and work on farms in the western third of Canada,and wheat covers the land like a blanket.
Well,more Canadian Studies 101 in a few days.After an interlude to salute our neighbors to the south tomorrow.
But here are a few Canadian popular TV shows to keep you entertained,in case you can not tolerate tomorrows blog on all things American.
I see I have a few readers in such far flung places as Iran and Russia.Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and I hope you will be a bit more informed about Canada for the effort.
It's said that most people who live in Canada live within a couple of hundred miles of the American border,so that we all tend to be strung out along a few thousand miles of border.Certainly almost all of our larger cities are very close the the American border.And,living in Calgary in the western part of Canada,I am quite typical in that respect.The same was true for the many years I lived in Moncton,as it to is within about two hundred miles of the border.I expect that this has some effect on us.We are a lot like Americans in many ways,except of course,you can buy good donuts here.Even the Americans think so.But we have a lot of contact with Americans,we speak the same language,many of us have family members who are American.And of course we all watch American TV.What would we ever do without American Idol or without CNN to tell us how the world really works?Well,we could watch CBC for a good laugh,or tune into The Red Green Show,when we want to be informed.Or is that the other way around?
Moncton is my home town,and it bears some mention because it has a kind of unique demographic.When I was growing up there were very few visible minorities in town,yet Moncton was quite ethnically mixed.In fact,you would notice the province of New Brunswick looks a bit like a square if you check out the map.If you were to divide that square from north west to south east,you would find very Francophone communities on the north and east side of the diagonal and very Anglophone communities(United Empire Loyalists) to the south and west.Moncton is cut right through the middle by that line and it's population reflects this.For the most part West Moncton is Anglophone and East Moncton and Dieppe is French.It has been known to cause tension at times,but seemingly more in the past than now.
Today I live in Calgary,nearly 5000 miles from my home town.Calgary is best known for it's Stampede,which this year celebrates it's 100th anniversary.Calgary Stampede is,of course a huge rodeo.More on that in a few days perhaps.What Calgary is also well known for is as a centre of the petroleum business and it is one of the very fastest growing cities in North America.That changes with the fortunes of oil,of course.
In between Calgary and Moncton,there are a lot of empty spaces.You see,while we are the second largest country on earth,we have a population roughly equal to California.Much of the country is rural then.Much of the North,that part of Canada that is say,500 miles or more away from the American border is very sparsely populated and quite remote.It has a lot of Canada's resources though.And Canada is blessed with a wealth of resources.There's oil out west and the prairie provinces,are sometimes called the bread basket to the world.Many people live and work on farms in the western third of Canada,and wheat covers the land like a blanket.
Well,more Canadian Studies 101 in a few days.After an interlude to salute our neighbors to the south tomorrow.
But here are a few Canadian popular TV shows to keep you entertained,in case you can not tolerate tomorrows blog on all things American.
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