#nonamericanasks

[jandjsalmon]

1 and 4 😊

1. favourite place in your country?

Canada is an amazingly beautiful place - and there are so many places I could choose... but honestly, I love my home the most. I’m from Southern Alberta and to me, it’s the prettiest and best place in the whole world. The first picture is right in the middle of Lethbridge - which is the little city nearest to my home town. That train bridge is iconic to me and every time I drive through that Coulee I automatically feel comfort and peace and happiness - because I’m HOME! The second picture is of the prettiest city in the whole world - Calgary is the closest city to where we live now and the best place in the world. It really is that gorgeous - with the mountains nearby and the Tower and the Saddledome. It’s a freaking wonderful place to live and be from.

4. favourite dish specific for your country?

We have a lot of desserts that are very Canadian - and even Kraft Dinner is considered our ‘de facto national dish’ by Wikipedia - but my favourite Canadian food (not dessert) is definitely Poutine. Cheese Curds and Gravy all over crispy french fries! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

NonAmericanAsks

[jandjsalmon]

Non American asks 26 and 27 😁😁

26. does your nationality get portrayed in Hollywood/American media? what do you think about the portrayal?

Usually we get portrayed as the comic relief. We are pretty hilarious, to be fair. But the stereotype that we’re dopes - that gets old. 

27. favourite national celebrity?

This is a tough one - because as I mentioned in a previous answer - we have a LOT of great Canadian celebrities. I was torn - because I love Nathan Fillion - and I adore Jay Baruchel - and of course - THE RYANS. But honestly - the most Canadian of all Canadian celebrities... the reports of his honest to goodness decency and quiet and humble kindness? Gotta choose Keanu.

NonAmericanAsks

[jandjsalmon]

Hey!! 6,14,16??

6. most hated song in your native language?

Okay - so our native language is a tough one... because we have two official languages (English and French) and like a bajillion Native American languages. I have never actually listened to a First Nations song and I wouldn’t know whether it was loved or hated. BUT I can say that I loathe The Tragically Hip (a band that is venerated and loved here in Canada) so if I were to choose the Canadian song I hate most - it would be one of theirs. Of course, even our Prime Minister cried when the lead singer (Gord Downie) died last year - so I’m pretty sure I’m the only Canadian who’s not a fan so ‘most hated’ might just be applicable for me. lol.

14. do you enjoy your country’s cinema and/or TV?

Sometimes? We have this thing called the CRTC which regulates how much Canadian Content is required on our Canadian run radio and television channels. This can sometimes be a challenge (but also sometimes it’s good - Like giving my boys Marianas Trench a ton of radio play and success) - and there is a government run channel called CBC that plays a lot of Canadian made television etc. But most of it’s awful. lol. 

Culturally, we are similar to the United States - so we get nearly every American television show (usually even on the same nights - because we get the same channels) so we can fangirl over them with the rest of our 300 million neighbours to the South. 

That being said - there are some strictly Canadian things that have a spot in the hearts and minds of every Canadian my age anyway. Shows like Fred Penner’s Play House, The Big Friendly Giant, Road to Avonlea, Mr. Dressup, and of course the ever awesome original Degrassi Jr. High and Degrassi High (which are far, far superior to any of the Degrassi shows you think you know). Most of these are shows we watched as kids - before we were influenced too handily by US Culture - for example, I watched Mr. Dressup religiously but only have seen Mr. Rogers as an adult. 

ALSO - we pride ourselves on our sense of humour - so some of the most successful Canadian shows (like Red Green and Corner Gas) are funny. But we export a lot of our Canadian Talent (comedic and otherwise) - like Ryan Reynolds, Ryan Gosling, Jim Carrey, Mike Meyers, Dan Ackroyd, Keanu Reeves, Sarah Chalke, Lorne Michaels, Nathan Fillion, Eugene Levy, Michael J Fox, Phil Hartman, Joshua Jackson, Taylor Kitsch (the man is gorgeous), Jay Baruchel, Neve Campbell, John Candy, Michael Cera, Rick Moranis, Ellen Page, Seth Rogan, Martin Short, SO many more - and I mean - come on. Darth Vader is Canadian! (at least Hayden Christensen is anyway. ;)) 

16. which stereotype about your country you hate the most and which one you somewhat agree with?

Well - the stereotype that we live in igloos and only drink beer and are a bit dopey... well none of those things are true (though there are Canadians who live in igloos - and who drink beer - and there are definitely dopey Canadians too - but no more than usual). So it’s frustrating when people think we’re just America’s dimwitted cousin. Because we’re SO not. And a lot of our own nationalism is built with comparing ourselves to our neighbour with “well, we’re not like the Americans in this way. Or that way. etc.”

BUT the stereotype that we’re nice and we say sorry - that one is true. I mean - there are jerks everywhere - but the vast majority of people I know here are legitimately NICE. As a culture - we’re nice. We embrace diversity - it makes our whole country better to be inclusive. We don’t like to impose on people. We’ll scrape the neighbour’s driveway and not expect to be paid for it. We’ll hold doors open for people behind us and say sorry when they bump into us. ;)

ALSO one more stereotype that’s true is the hockey one. Like... not everyone loves hockey - but for a country that has 33 million people - the fact that 22 million Canadians watched Sidney Crosby score the “golden goal” for the overtime win at the Vancouver 2010 Olympics, while 26.4 million viewers watched part of the game. Literally - 85% of Canadians watching television at the time were watching the gold medal game. And if you didn’t watch it live... you probably part/most of the game after the fact. Like - we love our country and we love our hockey - that’s a stereotype that I love. 🇨🇦

NonAmericanAsks