| by:
Dave Lympany
Canada is located in North
America and stretches all the way from the
Atlantic to the Pacific, being made up of ten
Provinces and three Territories. To the North is
the Artic ocean; Davis Strait on the North East
separates it from Greenland, to the East is the
Atlantic Ocean; the South is bordered by the
United States of America and the West by the
Pacific Ocean and Alaska.
A country of outstanding
natural beauty, Canada has a wide variety of
landscapes; the mountains, the prairies, lakes
and rivers with many national and provincial
parks to protect the habitats. With a total land
mass of 9,984,670 sq km (3,855,103 sq mi),
Canada is the second largest country in the
world. There are more lakes and inland waters in
Canada than any other country, in fact 7.6% or
755,180 sq km (291,577 sq) is made up of fresh
water.
Most images of Canada
refer to the Mounties, bears, snow or the Rocky
Mountains with the amazing turquoise lakes
though there is truly more to this vast
landscape. Tourism is a large part of the
economy with the abundant natural resources
quickly turning Canada into a rich and vibrant
country that is a permanent listing at the top
of the best places to live. With distinct
seasons – the winters are cold with plentiful
snow and then warm summers, the best way to
survive is to make the most of natures
offerings. Skiing, snowboarding and snowmobiling
are popular pastimes and great exercise and fun.
In the summer, hiking, camping and exploring the
great outdoors are fantastic ways to spend your
free time. This is especially true when you are
amongst the most breathtaking and fabulous
scenery the world has to offer!
The monetary unit is the
Canadian Dollar. It is made up of cents with 100
cents making 1 Canadian dollar. There are 1 cent
coins usually called a penny, 5 cent coins
usually called a nickel, 10 cent coins called a
dime, 25 cent coins called a quarter, 1 dollar
coins called a loonie and two dollar coins
called a twoonie. The notes or bills are in 5
dollar, 10 dollar, 20 dollar, 50 dollar and 100
dollar denominations. The Canadian dollar
traditionally trades at a lower value than its
American counterpart but is now coming closer to
parity.
All motor vehicles are
driven on the right hand side of the road and
are left hand drive. Each Province or Territory
is responsible for its own driving laws and
regulations so each has a different system.
Demographics
Canada has a population of
30,007,094 (2001 Census), compared with
28,846,761 (1996 Census) which shows a 4%
increase. Most of the population lives in the
cities and most of these are located in the
South of the country; about three quarters of
the population live within about 300 kms of the
U.S. border. The most populated Provinces are
Ontario and Quebec with Toronto (in Ontario)
being the most populated city.
There are two official
languages - English and French - and Montreal in
Quebec is the world's largest French-speaking
city outside of France. All of the services
offered by the Federal Government are in English
and French. Almost every product you buy has
English and French on the labels and most public
services are available in both languages.
Outside of Quebec the majority of people speak
English; about 18 percent of Canadians are
fluently bilingual.
The First Nations or
Indian people were the original inhabitants of
Canada and the name comes from their language
and means "Village" or "Community". The Vikings,
who arrived in the 11th century and didn't stay
for long, were the first Europeans to land in
Canada.
More Europeans arrived in
the 16th century bringing with them manufactured
goods which they traded for furs and native
products - because of this they were made
welcome by the indigenous people. The two main
groups of European settlers were the French, who
came first, and then the English. Despite France
losing its part of the territory to Britain in a
war in 1760, many of the French speaking people
stayed. In 1867, three colonies of Britain
merged in an event called Confederation; this
created a partially independent state of four
Provinces. Six more Provinces and three
Territories have since been added and in 1931
full independence was achieved. Canada still
belongs to the Commonwealth of Nations.
Canada is a Democratic
Federation and has both a Federal and Provincial
Governments. The responsibilities and powers are
divided between the Federal and Provincial
Governments which make for a complex political
system.
Education
Public education is the
responsibility of each Provincial Government
(please refer to our Provincial pages for more
information) and is paid for through taxes.
Public education is free and all children are
required by law to attend school from the age of
6 years until they are 15 or 16, the majority of
students continue until they are 18 and graduate
high school with a high school diploma.
The main languages of
instruction are English and French.
Healthcare
Canada has a public health
care system; essential medical treatment is
available to all Canadian citizens and permanent
residents. Although the health care systems are
run by the Provincial ministries of health, the
Federal Government sets the standards for health
care across the country.
There are three Provinces
that charge healthcare premiums (BC, Alberta &
Ontario). In the other Provinces and Territories
healthcare is paid for through taxes. In some
Provinces there is a three month waiting period
before you qualify for healthcare, so you should
make sure that you have insurance to cover any
medical expenses for this period.
Canada is a vast and
beautiful country so travel to Canada and enjoy
your visit. |
