Hockey

Last weekend we went to our first hockey* game and saw the Toronto Marlies lose to the Grand Rapids Griffins in an overtime sudden-death shoot out.

While it was a bit disappointing to see another Toronto team lose, I enjoyed the game much more than I expected, it was very fast-paced and exciting. It was fun to watch the players all sprint towards the puck and then crash into the perspex barrier to stop and change direction – just as well they have all of that padding! They make it look so easy, but it must be exhausting. I guess that’s why the players change over so often.

We saw a couple of good fights too, which I suspect is the real reason for the sport’s popularity. While the stereotypical Canadian is very polite and friendly, you’d better watch out when the gloves and helmets come off! I even saw two 5 year old twin girls with blond plaits dressed in pink hockey jerseys standing right up against the barrier shouting “fight! fight! fight!”.

It was also entertaining to watch the Marlies’ mascot 'Duke' the dog, the ice-resurfacing truck that smooths out the arena between periods, and the girls that skate around the outside of the rink with shovels to collect the build-up of ice.

*you should only refer to the sport as ‘ice hockey’ if you want to stand out as a foreigner. 

 

Canadian Vocab Lesson - Part 1

Over the past four months, I've discovered a number of interesting linguistic differences between Australia and Canada. These differences can often result in funny lost-in-translation moments, but they also provide great opportunities to learn more about the country. Here are a few of my favourite examples:

Words

Canadian	Australian translation
Appetiser	Entrée
Entrée	Main meal
Timmy's	Tim Horton’s (Canadian coffee chain)
Double double	Percolated drip coffee with two milks and two sugars (typically from Tim Horton’s)
Homo Milk	Full cream (homogenised) milk
Timbits	Donut balls sold at Tim Horton’s
To go	Take away
Washroom	Bathroom
Loonie	$1 coin (the coin features a loon, which is a common bird in Canada).
Toonie	$2 coin (worth two loonies)
Kraft dinner	Macaroni & Cheese
Cookie	Biscuit
Rice Krispies	Rice bubbles
Arugula	Rocket (lettuce leaf)
Cilantro	Corriander
Pop	Soft drink
Canuk	Canadian
Newfie	Someone from Newfoundland
T dot	Slang for Toronto (T.O. shortened to just T.)
Snowbird	Someone who relocates to a warmer place each winter (e.g. Florida)
Hoser	Bogan / Redneck
Basement Apartment	A self-contained basement of a property that is rented out to tenants separately.
Hydro	Electricity
Void cheque	A blank cheque marked as void, which you use to give your bank details to a person or company.
Pencil crayon	Coloured pencil
Vacation	Holiday
Fall	Autumn
Toque (to rhyme with luke)	Beanie (winter hat)
Flip flops	Thongs
Burlap	Hessian

Expressions

I've also noticed a few sayings that are quite common here:

Super - everything can be described as super - it seems to take the place of 'very' or 'really' (e.g. super friendly", "super embarrassing", "super cold").

Right? - used at the end of a sentence to gain agreement/acceptance (e.g. "Monday mornings are the worst though, right?").

Anyways - tends to be used when changing topics or wrapping up conversation (e.g. "The subway was so busy this morning, I could hardly move! Anyways...").

'Feels like' - this is Canadian weather terminology that refers to the combination of the actual temperature plus humidity (in summer) or windchill (in winter). (e.g. tomorrow morning the weather in Toronto is expected to be 11 degrees Celsius, with a 'feels like' temperature of 9 degrees).

Let's practise!

Scene: Purchasing a coffee at Tim Horton's (Timmy's)

Customer: Can I get a double double with homo milk and a six timbits?

Server: Oh sure, is that for here or to go?

Customer: To go please! I’m super busy this morning, I have to pay my hydro, put an offer in on a basement apartment and buy a new toque – it’s getting cold eh?

Server: Yeah, this week has been pretty cold, right? This morning it's 7 degrees, feels like 1! Anyways, here's your double double and timbits. That'll be $4.00.

Customer: *rummages through bag* I know I had another twoonie in here somewhere! Ah, there we go. One other thing - could you tell me where the washroom is please?

Pronunciation

I highly recommend watching this funny clip: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0EsYiNA76Q

Cottage Country

The past two weekends have been very Canadian indeed for us! We packed up our warmest clothes, left the condo and headed out to 'cottage country' in Muskoka, which is where Torontonians go to get away from the big city.

On the first weekend, we were lucky enough to stay at a friend's cottage in Parry Sound, which is a beautiful area about 2.5 hours north-west of Toronto. It was a bit rainy the first day, so we lazed about indoors eating, reading and keeping warm by the log fire. In the afternoon it cleared up and we went for a walk in Killbear Provincial Park (sounds much scarier than it is). No bears were sighted, but we did see many beautiful fall colours, and a woodpecker! Back at the cottage, we enjoyed a sunset canoe paddle around the lake - it was incredibly still and peaceful, I can understand now why cottage life is so popular. The next day was sunny, so we did some more eating and relaxing outside on the deck and managed to make friends with a couple of cute chipmunks with a penchant for grapes. We had such a great time, I hope we can make it back again in winter.

Last Monday was Thanksgiving Day in Canada and we were very thankful for the long weekend that provided us with an opportunity to do some more exploring! We stayed in Hunstville with two Aussie friends, about 2.5 hours north-east of the city. On Saturday we browsed through the quaint shops in the main street and walked along a short trail in the woods to a lookout with a stunning view. The fall colours were so spectacular, it was difficult not to take a good photo! We built some mini Inukshuks (stone statues resembling humans which were traditionally used as landmarks by the Inuit people) and saw some Loons (a bird featured on the Canadian $1 coin, or 'loonie'). That night we had pumpkin pie for dessert, which was much better than I was expecting - slightly sweet with a hint of cinnamon. We took advantage of the sunny weather on Sunday to drive to Algonquin Provincial Park. The fall colours were incredibly stunning, I'm so glad we managed to get there at just the right time. We did a few trail walks and took lots of photos of the scenery. I felt so outdoorsy and Canadian - to top it off I even bought a toque (knitted beanie with ear flaps) at the visitor's centre!

It was wonderful to get out of the city grid, to look out across the colourful horizon and to see the stars at night. I have a new appreciation for 'fall' now, I think I finally understand why everyone makes such a big deal about it.