We Are Canadian: A Canuck in Europe Kristen Webster February 16, 2013 Commentary 3 1950 I have been in Europe, mostly Spain, for a little over a month now, and although I have gotten much better at speaking Spanish I am still not anywhere near fluent, thus I must rely on choppy English words said in a Spanish accent or a big game of Shirades. My over exaggerated mimeing normally leads to the question, “Es usted de los Estados Unidos de América?” or are you from the USA. I guess with the accents being so similar its a fair question, but it seems to me that when people hear us say “Canadiense” their smiles get a little bit bigger and they seem more than happy to spend an hour with us looking for soy sauce. The common questions come next. “where in Canada are you from”, ” do you play Hockey”, “how much snow is there”, the common stereotypes. People here in Spain really like to give you their opinion. Opinions about where to go and where not to, and that, well, Spain is the best so why are we bothering to go anywhere else. I am traveling with a Canadian flag ironed onto my back pack, and I guess the Canadian kindness over the years has paid off, people see it and say hello, invite us to their table or ask us if we need help. So far its been a really warm welcome and a very easy transition from life in Toronto. And of all the continents I have been to in my travels Europe has offered the warmest reception to the red and white! How are Canadians received around the world on a whole? This series will investigate the worlds perception of Canadians on our worldly travels, and what the reception is like when the locals are made aware that “We Are Canadian”. Think this is Awesome? Share it:TweetShare on TumblrPocketPrintEmail Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Google+. Loading Facebook Comments ... Please enable JavaScript to view the comments powered by Facebook. 3 Responses awesomecanada February 16, 2013 While the idea may not be entirely original, every Canadian has their own unique experiences on there travels. We are only bringing you those experiences of our contributing writers and their first hand interactions. Reply Darya Kowalski-Ewczynski February 16, 2013 Wouldn’t it be interesting to do something “unCanadian”; something outside the stereotypical expectations of what a Canadian does just to show there’s more to us? Reply Darya Kowalski-Ewczynski February 16, 2013 Charades. Interesting article but not a new idea. Sorry. Reply Thoughts? Cancel reply
awesomecanada February 16, 2013 While the idea may not be entirely original, every Canadian has their own unique experiences on there travels. We are only bringing you those experiences of our contributing writers and their first hand interactions. Reply
Darya Kowalski-Ewczynski February 16, 2013 Wouldn’t it be interesting to do something “unCanadian”; something outside the stereotypical expectations of what a Canadian does just to show there’s more to us? Reply
Darya Kowalski-Ewczynski February 16, 2013 Charades. Interesting article but not a new idea. Sorry. Reply
