I really should go to bed since I’m getting up in… ahem, just a few hours to catch the train and then the plane. Not only I’m not programmed to go to bed early but I also wanted to post my last pictures, the “people of Nantes” I collected this fall.
This is what I miss the most when I’m in Canada—not the French per se but the rhythm of city life with packed bars and restaurants on weekends (weekend starts on Thursday here), kids walking back from schools, people hanging out in public places, busy sidewalks, and all of us walking to places everywhere.
I never really know what time and what day it is in Canada. Could be 11 a.m. could be 3 p.m., could be Tuesday or could be Sunday, the streets are invariably empty. People hang out at home and drive to places. All I see is cars backing up in driveways and busy parking lots.
It’s like Canadians make a point of avoiding each other while the French—and as far as I know the Chinese, most of Latin America and Southern Europe—go out just to be surrounded by perfect strangers.
I don’t understand the “doing everything at home” trend. Many Canadians I know have their home gym in the basement, have their food delivered when they don’t feel like cooking, watch Netflix instead of going to the movie theatre, buy online instead of going to physical stores. “The gym is full of germs!” “You have to tip in restaurants…” “People don’t know how to behave in a movie theatre!” “Online shopping is sooo convenient!”
Yeah, I get it. But I don’t want this life because even though I’m not super social, I like being around people. People are funny, inspiring, sometimes annoying but often interesting. I love overhearing bits of conversations, looking at the way people dress and behave, following the crowd when something is going on. It comforts me—we’re all different but at the same time, we’re all the same. We all sigh when the supermarket is out of tomatoes again, we all smile when a kid says something funny in the lineup, we all walk to the same bakery following the hot bread smell and we all go out when it’s suddenly and accidentally warm.
I like feeling this connection. It matters to me.
Okay, time to sleep now… for real.
I hear you about the lack of urbanism in most of Canada. The way the cities are designed (not only in Canada, but the US too) to be tuned to getting around with cars. Also the house sizes make it much more comfortable to stay long time at home.
Granted some places are better like Vancouver (not its suburbs), downtown Toronto.
There are also great benefits of this living.
It is much quieter outside, air is cleaner due to lower density. Lots of green space available in most neighbourhoods.
I can see some improvements with new areas having more common spaces that are livelier. Also there is more openness to higher density in constructions that will create more foot traffic, local business, etc. That will drive a growth in spending time outside.
You described it beautifully!
I used to be in love with Toronto’s downtown, until I realized I would never be able to afford living there.
I also agree on the benefits. I do appreciate how quiet it is at night, how much space we have and how easy it is to find a park (even a tiny one!). After that, it all comes down to personal preferences. I do enjoy nature but I like people best 😉