Another Year, Another Canada Day

On July 1, 2013, Canada turned 146. This year, I was much more excited about celebrating my new country’s birthday than I was in 2012. After the excitement of my first Canada Day in Vancouver in 2011, last year was a bit of an anti-climax. I’d seen the parade and the fireworks and wasn’t overly impressed by either of them. I can’t remember what I did to celebrate and it obviously wasn’t blog-worthy enough for me to write about.

This year was different. My brother had just arrived in Vancouver, as had the sunshine, and I was gagging for a long weekend after the craziness of starting my new job. Saying that, I did start my Canada Day by working…but it turned out to be a great decision as I was supporting our booth at Canada Place. The atmosphere was electric, with the hundred thousand people in attendance blurring into a sea of red and white. The Reconciliation Canada colours are pale blue and red, so we decided to try and stand out from the crowd by wearing blue. Stand out we did, and I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of tourists from outside Canada who had dressed in their Canada-branded best for the occasion. It was a hot day, and the two hours I spent in the sun handing out information about the Walk for Reconciliation in September flew by. The mood was definitely one of excitement and celebration, and I couldn’t help but catch some of it myself. I was inspired by the sight of a Citizenship Ceremony taking place in Canada Place in the afternoon; hopefully that will be me in a few years time!

My brother and I, future Canadians?

There’s No Place Like Home…

After 11 months in Vancouver, I’m happy to be writing this post curled up on the sofa of my house in Shotley Gate, near Ipswich, in Suffolk, England. The Christmas tree is up, the wreath is on the door, and I’m watching The A Team on Sky. I’ve been back in the country for a week now, and I still have another two weeks before I fly back to Vancouver. I’ve spent time with my family in Ipswich, friends in Southampton and grandparents in Basingstoke. I haven’t checked my work emails once, and am well and truly on vacation.

The flight from Vancouver was better than I expected it to be; I didn’t sleep or watch many movies, but I did close my eyes and listen to Westlife for 2 straight hours (oh yes). I arrived at Heathrow very, very tired but very, very excited to see my parents waiting with a huge ‘Welcome Home’ sign and a UK SIM card. Priorities indeed. I managed to stay awake for the drive back to Ipswich, and thoroughly enjoyed the toasted cheese sandwich that was waiting for me when I arrived. My first evening meal was an infamous family speciality: sausage meat pie with mashed potato, vegetables and a lot of gravy. How very British.

It's not quite Vancouver, but Shotley beach is still beautiful

Once I got home it felt like I’d never been away, and it was the same when I arrived in Southampton. I was nervous about what it would be like being back on campus, but I had a fantastic few days of coffees, lunches and dinners with friends. I found myself repeatedly pinching myself to remind myself that being back wasn’t a dream, and more importantly that Vancouver wasn’t either. I was surprised at how easy it was to settle back into old patterns, and before long I was complaining about the prices of drinks on campus and fighting for a seat on the bus to town. The only difference was that this time I was openly celebrating drinking soda with lime cordial (finally), and paying for the bus with a £20 note as opposed to exact change (a luxury). Catching up with friends didn’t feel like a whole year had passed, and the awkwardness I’d worried about just didn’t appear. It was a little surreal being back in Starbucks in Southampton High Street after so long, but this time I savoured my toffee nut mocha, knowing I couldn’t get that flavour in Canada.