O Canada!

What a day -a new country and a new culture, all under sunny skies. Of all of the places I’ve been in the world, I’ve never visited Canada, so I hopped out of bed easily this morning at 6am and headed for the airport to conduct a training on doing business with India. The weather in Atlanta was miserable, cold and rainy, but soon the plane rose above the clouds and we rode gold light and the blue arc of the earth all the way to Montreal.

I met a French Canadian in the seat next to me, and I asked him for some tips. I have traveled enough to know that no matter how similar you think a culture is to your own, that is an illusion not worth keeping. We talked of the traffic signals in Quebec (no right turn on red), the food, driving, and things to see. Before I knew it we were descending over the city and all at once I had added a new country to my globe hopping.

I sailed through immigration and sat at an airport cafe with a sandwich, looking around and watching people go by. You can learn a lot from the airport, and by the time I changed currency into Canadian dollars, listened to people converse in French, and glanced at the headlines in the local papers, I felt as if I’d traveled to Europe. Some of the surface differences between the cultures of Canada and the United States jumped out at me almost right away and I was anxious to learn more.

I spent time at the rental car counter to ask about road rules, but more so because I enjoyed chatting with the friendly clerks. I told them it was my first time in Canada and they welcomed me with gusto. By 1:00pm I was headed down 20 West to Brockville, past flat farmland and small towns, brown vegetation and signs in English and French. The music on the radio was great, and eventually I turned to the local news. A deejay was giving his opinion about Tamil protests going on in Ontario, saying that although Canada’s immigration policy welcomed one and all, people should respect Canadian law. A song came on next, but I wanted to hear more about local politics.

Two hours later I pulled into Brockville and was greeted by a sign for Hosers Car Wash. I laughed out loud as I found the hotel and checked in. The clerks once again gave me a hearty welcome to Canada and even gave me batteries for my camera. Brockville is small but beautiful with old homes overlooking the river, huge European style churches, and everything within walking distance.

After a short rest the client and his wife picked me up for dinner and we sat down to curried prawns, Canadian salmon and chocolate torte at a local restaurant. We watched the boats navigate the choppy waters, looked across the border to upstate New York, and talked of how the Internet has changed living abroad. I only wanted to take in more of Canada.

Tomorrow is my India training and my participants are mostly Canadian born, and I’ll look forward to hearing their perspectives and thoughts. It’s been an incredible day in this interesting country, so stay tuned for a day in Montreal!