What country holds annual bathtub races and has a prepared landing pod for UFOs? Also,
it has a place where there are so many snakes that they look like spaghetti on your plate!
Still no idea, eh? Ok, I'll give you a huuuuge hint: this country produces more than 70%
of all maple syrup in the world! Yep, you nailed it: this awesome country is Canada,
and here are 50 cool facts about this place!
- Canadians are famous for saying sorry all the time, even when the other person is clearly
in the wrong. In fact, they apologize so much that an “Apology Act" was passed in 2009.
It allows saying sorry in court without being afraid that it’ll sound like admitting your
guilt.
- Approximately 90% of Canada's land area is uninhabited. Even though it’s bigger
than the US, it has only 11% of America's population!
- At 4,860 miles (7,820 km), the Trans-Canada Highway is almost the longest national highway
in the world, beat only by Australia’s Highway 1.
- Also, when you travel along the Trans-Canada Highway and reach Quebec province, pay attention,
and you may see the most cheerful town in the world: "Saint-Louis-du-Ha! Ha!" Yep, just
like that, with two "ha's" and two exclamation marks! The town even has a Guinness World
Record for "most exclamation marks in a town name."
- It's illegal for polar bears in Canada to break into houses and steal food. So, if you
see one rummaging around in your fridge - call the cops! You can laugh all you want, but
there's even a Polar Bear Jail in Churchill, Manitoba. Bear-troublemakers stay there until
they get relocated.
- Canada received its own flag in 1965, almost 100 years after it became a separate country
in 1867!
- People in Nanaimo, British Columbia, are fans of a very exciting kind of sport. Since
1967, they’ve been organizing and participating in bathtub racing! These unusual competitions
take place every year and involve bathtub boats and a lot of fun!
- Several of the most popular superheroes, such as Wolverine and Superman, were created
by Canadians! Thank you so much, guys!
- The most dramatic weather change happened in Canada on January 10, 1962. The temperature
in Pincher Creek, one of the windiest places in the country, jumped from -2.2 to 71.6 degrees
F (-19 to 22 degrees C) within a couple of hours!
- Canadians LOVE hockey. As they say, these people breath, eat, and live hockey. But despite
their passion for the game, Canada's national sport is lacrosse!
- One area in the Hudson Bay region has less gravity than any other region on the planet.
So, if you want to jump higher and weigh less, that's the place to be!
- One crater on Mars was named Gander, after a town in the Newfoundland and Labrador province
of Canada, to honor its space research efforts.
- How about this one: Santa Claus is Canadian. That's what Canada's Immigration Minister
announced in 2012. So, maybe that's why his famous outfit is made up of mostly 2 colors
- red and white, which are the national colors of Canada.
- Even though the Stanley Cup, which is the National Hockey League trophy, has its own
bodyguard, hockey champions still manage to put all kinds of things in it. I mean, they
drink chocolate milk from the poor thing!
- In 1930, Canada's hockey team did so well that they were put straight through to the
final game. They didn't even have to take part in knockout rounds, and in the end, they
won the gold!
- Canada's territory occupies a whopping 3,855 million sq. miles (10,000 sq. km), which makes
it the second largest country in the world after Russia. For comparison, Canada is bigger
than the whole European Union and 15 times larger than France, the biggest European country!
- Ottawa, the capital of Canada, isn't the largest city in the country. With a population
of about 1 million people, it comes second to Toronto, the capital of the Ontario province.
Almost 3 million people live in that city.
- Canada is officially the most educated country in the world, with 56% of its population having
some kind of post-high-school education degree.
- In St. Paul, Alberta, they’ve built the first landing pad for UFOs. Well, I guess
you can never be too prepared. The platform weighs more than 130 tons (118 tonnes) and
contains a time capsule which has to be opened in 2067.
- In a 2018 Happiness Report, Canada was ranked #7. I mean, even despite all that cold?
- The number of Canadian lakes is mind-blowing. The country has more than 3 million lakes,
which is more than the rest of the world combined!
- Besides, all these lakes contain 20% of all the fresh water on Earth!
- Okanagan Lake is supposedly the home of Ogopogo, a mythical creature similar to the
one that's said to dwell in Loch Ness, Scotland.
- Forests cover more than 40% of Canada's land territory. But New Brunswick province
is especially "foresty" - trees cover 85% of its territory! Walking in the forest without
a compass doesn't sound like fun anymore.
- Canada has the world's longest coastline. If you decided to walk along the Canadian
coast without stops, it would take you more than 4.5 years. No wonder, since you'll have
to cover about 151,000 miles (243,000 km)!
- In Quebec, they produce 77% of all the maple syrup in the world. And Canadians do love
this sweet pancake topping. On the other hand, who doesn't?
By the way, rumor has it that somewhere in Canada, there’s a strategic maple syrup
reserve!
- About 10% of Canadians are either vegetarians or vegans. That means 2.3 million vegetarians
and 850,000 vegans. Most of these people are under 35.
- The national animal of Canada is the beaver. By the way, it's Canada's largest and the
world's second largest rodent!
- The capital city of Canada, Ottawa, is at the top of the list of the world's coldest
capitals.
- Canada is home to the biggest number of polar bears in the world. See for yourself:
out of approximately 25,000 left on the planet, 15,000 live in the arctic regions of the country.
- Canada straddles not one or two but 6 time zones! They are Newfoundland Time Zone, Atlantic
Time Zone, Eastern Time, Central Time Zone, Mountain Time Zone, and the Pacific Time Zone.
Hey --Time out!...
- The lowest ever recorded temperature in Canada was -81.4 degrees F (-63 degrees C)!
Brrr.
- Tap water in Canada is as good as bottled water. What's more, some people are sure that
it even tastes better.
- While driving in northwest Canada, be prepared to see license plates shaped like a polar
bear!
- By the way, there are so many bears in Canada that in some areas drivers leave their cars
unlocked! Why? - you ask. It's done to make sure that people have a chance to escape from
the bears by hiding inside a car.
- The largest mall in the US is the Mall of America. But did you know that its owners
are Canadians? Wait, what?!
- If you're a fan of narwhals, go to Canada! There you can buy a coin with this "unicorn"
whale. On the other hand, be ready to part with $300 since the coin is made of gold!
- Or, if you want to play big, you can buy a Canadian $1-million coin. No kidding! This
largest coin on the market is made of 220 pounds (100 kg) of 99% pure gold. But hurry
up! There are only 5 such coins in the world, and only 1 is for sale!
- Ever heard the word "loony"? Yeah, well, in Canada, this is, in fact, a form of currency!
Loonie, and Toonie as well. The loonie is a $1-dollar gold-colored coin, and the toonie
is, as you might guess, s $2-dollar one.
- Canadians love their famous interjection "eh." What's more, it's listed in the Canadian
Oxford Dictionary as a real, valid word!
- The first British Columbians used fish instead of candles! Oolichan, aka candlefish, is so
fatty that when you dry it and string on a wick, it’ll burn brightly.
- In Canadian McDonald's, you can buy the McLobster, sold exclusively in this region.
- If your biggest fear is snakes, never ever visit the Narcisse Snake Dens in Manitoba.
There are more snakes in that place than in any other part of the world. Thousands of
red-sided garter snakes are concentrated in that relatively small area.
- In Saskatchewan, you don't wear a hoodie, you put on a "bunny hug"! True.
- Every spring, the coast of Newfoundland and Labrador witnesses a stunning iceberg
parade, when massive chunks of ice break off glaciers and make their way through "Iceberg
Valley." Entrepreneurs "harvest" these mini icebergs to use them in the production of
alcoholic drinks and skin care products.
- Wood Buffalo National Park, created in 1922 to protect the largest herd of roaming Wood
Bison in the world, is larger than Switzerland.
- One of the most popular dishes in Canada is poutine. Crispy fries covered with cheese
curds and rich gravy – hey, what's not to like?
- Canadians eat more macaroni and cheese than any other nation in the world. You didn't
see that coming, did you? By the way, the Canadians have been crazy about this dish
ever since 1845.
- Canadians are some of the friendliest people in the world. You probably can’t find a
rude Canadian even if you try really hard!
- Lots of Canadians speak French as their first language. And Montreal is the second
largest French-speaking city in the world! After Paris, of course.
Pretty cool, eh? Say, Have you heard any other curious facts about Canada? Let me know down
in the comments! If you learned something new today, then give this video a like and
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