When I was three years old, my family and I emigrated to Canada. I do not remember much from life before I was about six years old, so I really only know Canada as my only home. I often take for granted now that my life is happy, and rich with friends and family and work that I find interesting. I’ve consistently enjoyed opportunities in Canada that might not have been available to me had I grown up anywhere else; learning to speak French, and attending university on government loans (all repaid in full, with interest; I promise!) are two of the major ones that have shaped my life. Canada is home for me, and I am always grateful to be Canadian. Never more so than when I am on vacation.

This blog is about some of the travels I’ve been fortunate enough to undertake, and it’s probably pretty clear to anyone who has perused my photos that Paris is a favourite destination of mine. Whenever I am here, I always enjoy everything that I love about this city: the food, the wine, the history, the culture, the language, the stylish Parisians, and even all the other foreigners and tourists who, like me, are just trying to take it all in and enjoy themselves without becoming too overwhelmed. Despite ugly weather conditions today (rain, cold, rain, hail, rain), D and I wandered around Montmartre, and then enjoyed dinner at Astier.

We have enjoyed so many wonderful moments here in Paris that the inevitable, though very occasional, negative experience still manages to anger me almost beyond reason. One such moment happened today on the metro, nothing serious and nothing worth retelling, but an incident irritating enough that I understood instantly why it is that Canadians have a reputation for being polite almost to a fault. I don’t want this to be a rant against one rude Parisian who does not have the power to ruin my trip, so I will admit that at my angriest today, I took a deep breath and reminded myself of all the really great experiences that I’ve enjoyed in this amazing city, and of all the reasons that I’m so glad I live in Canada.

Thank you, Canada and my fellow Canadians, for being “home”, for having immigration policies that opened the border to my family, for having an education system that gave me knowledge that continues to benefit me, and for cultivating a society that encourages its citizens to thrive and to actually care about one another. No system is perfect, but I believe Canada’s is closer than most, by light years.

I look forward to 40 more years.