Random Thoughts

Tomorrow I'm flying back to Canada for a couple of weeks to take care of quite a few things including doctor, dentist and optometrist appointments. Don't worry about Lori being here alone, she is going to China, Jordan and Oman while I'm away. The thought of being back in Canada has me thinking about how different life is in Europe as opposed to life in North America and I thought I would share a few of my random thoughts on the subject.

• The most famous Canadian city outside of Canada is not Toronto nor Montreal nor Ottawa. It's not even Moose Jaw. The most famous Canadian city is Vancouver. Almost everyone I've met knows Vancouver, has a positive impression of Vancouver and wants to visit Vancouver. You can debate the value of hosting an Olympic games but you can't debate that it's helped the image of Vancouver.

• English has become the world language. Esperanto is a language created by a L.L. Zamenhof in 1887. His goal was to create a common language that could be used when people of different cultures and countries interacted with each other. It never took off but it sure seems that English has filled that role. I was in the airport when a French employee was speaking to a Spanish customer and they couldn't understand each other, so they both switched to English.

• After eating French butter, I will never again eat margarine or mass produced butter. I don't care about calories or fat or the "Heart Health Benefits" of canola oil. What's the point of living longer if you're not happy.

•  North American plumbing is much, much better than European plumbing. I'm sorry Europe, you win on food, lifestyle and health care but lose terribly on toilets.

•  The French are much friendlier than their reputation. I think the idea of the French being rude comes from a few snooty store clerks and waiters. I've found the general population to be very friendly and helpful. They are funnier than you would think too. They are well aware of their reputation for poor customer service and bureaucratic nightmares and can be very self-deprecating about it. Believe me, that waiter is not ignoring you because you're a tourist, he is ignoring the locals too.

• It doesn't matter where you live or what language you speak, people are basically the same everywhere. They just want to live their life in peace and spend time with their friends and family.

I won't be updating the blog very often for the next couple of weeks but Lori has promised that she will post something. Talk to you later.

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