Author Archives: Cultural Quirks

A Fridge Full of French

French in my fridge
If you haven’t visited or lived in Canada, you might not know that our country is officially bilingual. Canada is a culturally diverse nation where numerous languages are spoken, but only French and English are legally protected by the Canadian Constitution. Rather than getting into a lengthy history discussion, suffice it to say that Canada is officially bilingual because we were founded by both the French and the English.

Now you might assume that all Canadians can speak both languages, but according to the Office of the Commissioner of Official Languages some 22 million Canadians can speak either French or English but not both. As of 2006, 85% of Canadians spoke English, 31% spoke French, and 2% spoke neither language.

The effects of living in a bilingual country can be easy to overlook because they just become part of your everyday life. For instance, Continue reading →

Lovely Day for a Guinness

Considering my ancestors are from Omagh (Co. Tyrone), and my husband is a born and bred Dubliner, I can’t really let St. Patrick’s Day pass without writing something. But debating the virtues of shots made with Baileys has been done, and there’s no point in offering tips to prevent your tongue from turning green at the bar tonight because it’s destined to happen. So to mix it up a bit I’ve decided to focus on Ireland’s #1 tourist destination by taking you on a photographic tour of the Guinness Storehouse.

Having visited the Guinness Storehouse in the summer of 2010, I can honestly say that it is one of the best planned and most interesting tourist traps I have ever visited. While the three Dubliners I was with might argue that the pint at the end was the best part of the day, this Canadian visitor loved every part of the tour.

Note: the photos below were all taken by yours truly, and explanations can be found by hovering over the image with your mouse.

Arriving at the birthplace of Guinness Continue reading →

Pass the Poutine, Please!

Every culture has its own distinct foods that you long for if you’ve been away from home for too many days. Some are intricate dishes, perfected over thousands of years. Others are comparatively new on the food scene, but become beloved cultural fixtures in short order. And many meals, regardless of how long they’ve been around for, take a little faith for the first-timer to try.  For instance, as I mentioned in this post, Canadians down thousands of Caesars each year. The uninitiated, however, need a little convincing to get past the whole tomato juice mixed with clam juice thing before they can truly appreciate Canada’s beloved hangover cure.  As for me, I rarely order a Caesar at home. But travelling for any extended period of time never fails to make me start craving one.

The glorious Caesar

Image by acme via Flickr

In terms of cravings though, my urge to down a Caesar is nothing compared to the itch I get for a good plate of poutine if I haven’t had any for a few weeks. If you are one of those unfortunate souls who has never sampled this nectar of the gods, I’m sorry to tell you that your life is incomplete. Continue reading →

What You Won’t Hear at U of C

Everyone loves a good Internet meme…until it’s been done to death, that is. But really, that’s kind of the point.

If you’ve logged on to any of your favourite social media sites lately, you’ve likely seen a number of posts related to the “Sh*t White/Asian/Black/Single/Drunk/Etc. Girls/Guys Say” meme. While those topics are all rather amusing, I’m partial to the “Sh*t [Insert Overarching Group] Don’t Say” take on the theme. A quick search on YouTube turns up tons of hits related to all the topics (and millions more) mentioned above, but the video that I’ve gotten the biggest kick out of relates to my alma mater.

A word of warning: a lot of the content won’t make much sense to you unless you’ve attended the University of Calgary. But if you have, you’ll likely agree with everything these guys don’t have to say.

Enjoy! Continue reading →

Clothing Bin Scams Dupe Canadian Donors

Truck Full of Donated Clothes

Image by Jen Waller via Flickr

I don’t know if this exists in other countries, but in Canada there are large bins placed around major cities where people can recycle their old clothing, shoes, and accessories. Considering the bins inevitably have the word “donation” emblazoned on them, it’s assumed that charitable organizations collect the items in order to earn revenue by reselling the pre-loved items. In such a scenario everyone seems to win; the charity makes some cash to help fund their operations, and the donor gets to feel good about recycling their old clothes and gaining back some closet real estate.

But what you see is not always what you get in the world of clothing donations, and recent news headlines warn that donors are being duped by for-profit bins that masquerade as charitable receptacles. Continue reading →

Canada Really Cuts the Mustard

If you asked someone to name a few foods that come to mind when they think of Canada, they would probably list items like maple syrup, poutine, and Canadian bacon (spoiler alert: we just call it bacon). Clamato juice might also be mentioned if they’d ever had the hair of the dog in the Great White North, or tourtiere if they’d spent a Christmas in Quebec.

But if you switched the question up and asked them to name the most popular condiment that originates in Canada, I’d be willing to bet the farm (pun intended) that not one person would provide the correct answer.

So what condiment am I referring to? Well if you haven’t already figured it out from this post’s title, here’s a visual hint: Continue reading →

Man Up and Chug that…Cider?!

Anyone that has ever ventured a few hundred/thousand kilometers from home knows that drinking patterns are culturally mediated. For instance, bourbon is huge in Australia and the Southern US, and a decent Caesar is nearly impossible to find outside of Canada.

If you take a close look at the hand a drink is in, you’ll also notice the gendered aspects of alcohol preferences. Like coolers and white wine spritzers, cider is one of those drinks that North American men tend to stay away from. It’s not that cider is a “girlie” drink, it’s just not really considered a “manly” drink.*

Mmmm...Bulmers! (Photographed on location in Dublin)

Continue reading →

Get Out the Gloves, it’s Boxing Day!

Boxing Day is celebrated in many Commonwealth countries on December 26th, and it’s one of those bank holidays that no one really seems to agree on the origins. Some say it started with aristocrats giving boxed gifts to their tenants, while others believe it used to be a day when churches opened donation boxes and distributed the contents to the poor.*

But for those of us living in Canada, we know that Boxing Day is actually a celebration of all things discounted. Too-good-to-be-true deals are advertised days, and even weeks, before Boxing Day to ensure shoppers go to sleep on Christmas night with visions of cheap goods dancing in their heads.

Boxing Day at the Toronto Eaton Centre

Continue reading →

Some Things are Better Left Unadvertised

For some reason, the restaurants lining the road that leads in to Edmonton, Alberta feel the need to advertise the status of their table availability. After being confronted with so many red neon “Immediate Seating” signs, tourists entering the city for the first time would be forgiven for thinking Edmonton is the dining out capital of the world.

Immediate Seating

Image by jumbledpile via Flickr

Continue reading →