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It may be eclipsed by a bossy neighbour, but Canada has created a wonderful corner of its own. Dosas, ballet and live bands at a glittering Toronto, squeaky-clean, empty streets at a scenic Ottawa and the mighty Niagra crashing around you it's a country open for discovery
It may be eclipsed by a bossy neighbour, but Canada has created a wonderful corner of its own. Dosas, ballet and live bands at a glittering Toronto, squeaky-clean, empty streets at a scenic Ottawa and the mighty Niagra crashing around you it's a country open for discovery
The low red-bricked houses and neatly-marked streets looked familiar, and with dal and alu-bhindi for dinner, how could anyone blame me for thinking that this was just another suburb of London?
My first clue to the contrary was when I tried to get into the driver's seat ambitious, considering I can't drive even back at home and Smita gently showed me around to the other side.
It took a long while of staring at the maple tree outside my window before I could coax out that "Oh wow, I am actually here in Canada!" feeling.
The thing is, Canada tends to have an unglamorous branding. Eclipsed as it is by a bossy neighbour, we tend to neglect its existence. And with those supposedly never-ending winters, who in their right mind would go? I, in fact, was only visiting a beloved friend, something we had wanted to do for so long that when it finally happened, it didn't matter even remotely which country it was.
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The ride up the phallic (553.33m) CN tower gives a fabulous view of the city and the magnificent Lake Ontario which stretches endlessly along the horizon and could be mistaken for the ocean, though less feisty. This waterfront hosts sports and cultural activities, live bands, shops, cafu00e9s, art galleries, boat rides into the harbour and the car-free Toronto islands, and opportunities for staring blissfully into the blue.
Toronto is a multi-cultural city and the diversity is such that on a visit to the Royal Ontario Museum we saw children of every imaginable skin colour. Of 25, only about two were white. Canada has welcomed immigrants over centuries, the biggest wave of which arrived in the late 1840s from Ireland, fleeing from the Irish Potato Famine and numbering twice the Toronto population of the time!
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Entrance locks to the Rideau Canal, Ottawa. Built in the 19th century it links the Ottawa River and Lake Ontario through a system of lakes and rivers. It was never used for military purposes and today forms the longest skating rink in the world |
Over the years, settlers from many different European, Asian, African and South American countries have carved out sections of the city for themselves. You can browse in the ubiquitous China Town, but also eat spanakopita in cafu00e9s next to Greek street signs just as easily as crisp fresh dosais in restaurants with large nameboards in Tamil script. With so many different ethnic groups mingling easily, racism is really just interpersonal friction. There are infinite varieties of the English accent, with an Indian who grew up in Kampala speaking quite a different idiom from one who grew up in Trinidad. Every one of the immigrants I met was proudly, passionately Canadian, deeply grateful to this country that had generously given them lives of comfort, opportunity and pleasant stimulation.
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Rickshawallas at Ottawa's Byward Market |
Colonised by both the French and English from the beginning of the 15th century, Canada was formed as a federal dominion in 1867. Today, a federation of ten provinces and three territories, it has English and French as national languages, and Queen Elizabeth II continues to be head of state.
It was only in the early years of the twentieth century that citizens began to work actively towards the creation of a strong Canadian national identity. One of these was a group of landscape painters that came to be known as The Group of Seven. Many painters of the time were trained in France, and influenced by the impressionists. They now began to work together, painting scenes typical of Canada, its landscape and lifestyle, and together created a stunningly beautiful body of work which can be seen in museums across the country.
The McMichael collection, a gallery set in the woodland setting that inspired them is a drive out of Toronto and truly worthwhile.
It was Toronto's vibrant cultural life, all-pervasive and indigenous, that impressed me most and made me feel that under-hyped Toronto is surely one of the world's best-kept secrets. We attended the National Ballet of Toronto and the Toronto Symphony Orchestra and it wasn't just the superb, cutting-edge performances but the high-quality infrastructure and appreciative audience that added to the experience. Besides these and many other offerings of every genre in theatres throughout the year, Toronto in the summer has open-air concerts on the waterfront and in parks and gardens around the city, many of which are free of charge or pay-what-you-want.
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The boat Maid of the Mist, launched in 1846 as a ferry service between the Canadian and American sides, riding into the Niagara Falls |
On a weekend visit to Ottawa most of us don't even know that this is the capital city of Canada we visited the Supreme Court, Houses of Parliament and even the Governor General's home. Security arrangements were in place but there was no trace of paranoia or hatred and this complete lack of fear was for me the most refreshing aspect of this country, and doubtless a consequence of the thanks-to-big-brother-you-can't-see-me syndrome. The streets of Ottawa are wide and clean and coming from a land of teeming millions, there arose within me a very loud question, namely, "Where IS everybody?" which made Smita laugh. Toronto by contrast can get crowded but again, it is a relaxed place and the screaming inner-city adrenalin is absent.
On our last day, we drove out to Niagara Falls where we enjoyed looking across the gorge and gloating at those standing on the American side, peering over but unable quite to see all that we could. As we headed home, two rainbows arranged themselves over the falls on instruction from Smita of the formidable and internationally-acknowledged organisational skills, and we rode into a magnificent pink-and-purple Toronto sunset, Lake Ontario rolling alongside with the deep-throated genius Leonard Cohen belting out his soulful ballads all the way home.
Asking around, I found that many believe Leonard Cohen to be from the US and Mike Myers, Bryan Adams, Pamela Anderson, Shania Twain, though not Russell Peters or Ike from South Park.
But then again that's a fair trade if you're getting serenity and a private space to work your creativity in exchange.
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