Wednesday, July 02, 2008

Canada Day Celebrations

The Canadians on board the Africa Mercy in Liberia celebrated Canada’s 141st birthday on July 1st. It began with a rousing rendition of the “Oh, Canada” anthem at dinnertime followed by a party into the evening. Canadian delights included Canada Dry, Nanaimo Bars, red punch, and themed cakes. The Academy’s Canadian Geography Test was taken and the youngest Canadians scored highest (8 and under). There were several international party crashers, but in true Canadian style we politely apologized and invited them in. Unfortunately being in Liberia, there was not a touque to be seen.
I think there may be 22 Canadians on board the ship, not including some who are dual citizenship and others who are married to Canadians.
The Canadians went all out. You can see the Canada Dry (top right) and Nanaimo Bars (top left).
Eddie, our pastry chef and baker, arrived with this chocolate extravaganza of a creation. It was moist, succulent, and decadent.
This cake won for theme and hard-to-find-ingredients in Liberia. Where in the world (Liberia) did they find canned cherries and red glaze!?
The creators cut their cake with all the ceremony of our prime minister on his wedding day.
The crowds ate and mingled until a respectable hour.
You know you are Canadian when...
You understand the sentence, "Could you please pass me a serviette, I just spilled my poutine".
Mercy Ships harps on about getting its logo in all photographs. As I look through these pictures I think the Canadian flag pops up more than I remember seeing any Mercy Ships logo. Yay, Canada!
Canadian Geography Test

1. How many provinces and territories are there in Canada?
2. What are the official languages of Canada?
3. When did Canada gain Independence, and from whom?
4. Which countries are members of NAFTA?
5. Name the Great Lakes?
6. What is the capital of Canada?
7. What is the oldest city in Canada?
8. What leaf, is there in the Canadian flag?
9. How many percent of Canada’s population is made up of natives?
10. What is the national sport in Canada?
11. How many metropolitan areas are there in Canada?
(answers at the end of the blog)

You know you are Canadian when...
You wonder why there isn't a 5 dollar coin yet.
You use a red pen on your non-Canadian textbooks and fill in the missing 'u's from labor, honor, and color.
You know you are Canadian when...
You know how to pronounce and spell "Saskatchewan."
You know you are Canadian when...
You have more Canadian Tire money in your wallet then Canadian currency.
You know you are a Canadian when...
You know that the Friendly Giant isn't a vegetable product line.
You know that Casey and Finnegan are not a Celtic musical group.
You know the French equivalents of "free", "prize", and "no sugar added", thanks to your extensive education in bilingual cereal packaging.
You know what a touque is.

Answers:
1. 10 provinces and 3 territories
2. French and English
3. 1867 and from Great Britain
4. Mexico, USA and Canada
5. Lake; Superior, Michigan, Erie, Huron and Ontario.
6. Ottawa
7. Quebec
8. Maple leaf
9. 1, 5 %
10. Ice hockey, we thought. Lacrosse in actuality. (Thanks for the tips, fellow Canadians)
11. There are 20 metropolitan areas with a population of more then 100.000


Bonus Question: how many Canadian flags can you find in all the pictures in this post (not including the one below)?
Click on the article above to get the full published version.

10 comments:

Carol said...

I hate to quibble, but while ice hockey is the sport Canada is most passionate about, I believe Canada's national sport is in fact lacrosse. Despite the fact almost no Canadian could tell you how exactly it's played...

Happy Canada Day from Nepal - glad you have more Canadians around you than I do to celebrate with!

sue said...

I concur re both points about lacrosse.

Happy Canada Day from New York! I laughed at the "you know you're Canadian when.."'s.

Laura and Ryan said...

I must be extraordinarily Canadian because I thought toque was spelled "touque".

Hmm.

Michal said...

You might be right in that spelling. I just came across this one way of spelling it on-line.

I have also changed the answer to Lacrosse...thanks for all the tips and happy post-Canada Day!

Anonymous said...

Okay...here is what I just found:

"A tuque (Canadian French: tuque, sometimes also spelled toque or touque in English) is a knitted hat, originally of wool though now often of synthetic fibers, that is designed to provide warmth in winter."

Source: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuque

Anonymous said...

Bonus Question Answered: I found 29 flags.

Friar Tuck said...

Not to brag or anything but I got 11 out of 11.

I am such a nerd.

Anonymous said...

Friar tuck, you are a true Canadian.

Anonymous said...

I spotted 30.

Anonymous said...

Looks like fun! Way to celebrate Canada from the other side of the world!