It has long been a pleasant consistency to be well received as a Canadian the world over. This year, that generally well-earned reputation has become soiled. It is still a beautiful country, with friendly folks and a lot of talent, but several high profile events have begun eroding its cherished character as champion of peace and the environment.

Certainly, Canada was a global example of environmental progress: North America’s west coast is widely considered extremely health-conscious, with some of the first anti-smoking laws in the world. Canada is consistently listed among the cleanest, nature-loving countries, with cities topping the lists of ‘best places to live.’

The current Conservative government, led by Prime Minister Steven Harper, has withdrawn Canada from the Kyoto Accord. The government’s antagonistic behavior, as well as its policy, was roundly criticized at the climate talks in Durban, South Africa. Indeed, Canada was awarded the ‘Fossil Award’ for its inaction against climate change. Sadly, the country’s emission levels have “risen by 30 percent over 1990 levels,” according to beloved geneticist, environmentalist, and broadcaster David Suzuki.

China expressed regret over Canada’s decision to withdraw. Among the vocal critics was Nobel-Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu: “Canada, you were once considered a leader on global issues like human rights and environmental protection. Today, you’re home to polluting tar sands oil, speeding the dangerous effects of climate change.”

The Keystone XL Pipeline proposal, to run from the oil-rich province of Alberta into the U.S., has further stained Canada’s reputation over environmental concerns, including the plan to pass across the U.S. Ogallala-Aquifer, which provides drinking water for over two million people in eight states. On a smaller scale, Toronto, Canada’s largest city and host of the respected Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF), elected mayor Rob Ford, who slashed his own popularity along with funding for public transportation, the arts, libraries, day-cares, and other popular services.

Archbishop Tutu’s reference to human rights is particularly poignant to a country with a long and proud tradition of peace-keeping and its reputation as a gentle and humane nation. As leader of the opposition at the time, Harper’s minority supported the invasion of Iraq. After the Conservatives became the ruling party, they deported U.S. war deserters. The party later defeated an attempt to end the deportations on humanitarian grounds.

The world-famous Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) also fell into considerable disrepute. After several years of recent scandals involving a Taser death and the fatal shooting of a man in custody, this year saw more outrage involving sexual harassment, incompetence, and negligence in the handling of the famous ‘Pickton’ serial killings.

Not last, nor least, is Vancouver. Often credited for its beauty, its cultural and culinary diversity, and its high living-standards, the city became the media focus this year for its riots following the local team’s loss in the ice-hockey championship. Over all, it was a conspicuously poor year for Canada, marked by a loss of the respect and fondness it had earned for so long. What will happen in the following years depends largely on the patience and shifting attitudes of the Canadian people.

However, there have been many positive Canadian events. Its economy did not slide significantly, as did many others, and has held strong. Moreover, the ‘Occupy Wall Street’ movement began with a blog by Canadian magazine ‘Adbusters.’ Canada’s combat role in Afghanistan ended. Charitable donations increased.

There is a consistent swing of the pendulum in Canadian politics. The RCMP has begun to focus on cleaning its image and its house, and hockey is undergoing intense scrutiny. Next year might not be the disaster the Mayans predicted.

Sergei Bachlakov / Shutterstock.com

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Forget Tipperary: it is a long way to Victoria, British Columbia.  It is easy to feel sheltered, growing up on Canada’s West Coast, all the more so on Vancouver Island. There is an island mentality buffered by the remote location, which is not necessarily as bad as it sounds. It benefits from one of the mildest climates in the country.

It is still clean and beautiful, despite the best efforts of myopic developers and uninspired architects. People are generally courteous and friendly, and there is a healthy representation of many cultures getting along, which is better than many, though not without hiccups. Victoria is quaint, but growing. It is not the big city Vancouver is, but it is quasi-content to be its quieter sibling.

There are no lumberjacks bellowing or singing about the place, nor are there hippies draped across park benches as their minds wander the clouds. Instead, there are tea houses, garden tourism, cafés, varied cuisine, malls, and cinemas. It is beginning to lose its status as ‘the city for the newlyweds and nearly-deads.’

Not a kind description, though intended with some affection. It now hosts some big names at its renovated arena, as well as some should-be-big names at its cosier venues. It is a pretty city, and a nice gear down from Vancouver for the older set -beyond their 20s. It has a fantastic museum that was once free. There are killer whales, seals, horse-drawn carriages, and a park with roaming peacocks. It is a nice bubble away from the real world

Remember Tipperary: it is not so far from St. John’s, Newfoundland, and Labrador. St. John’s is as far east as one can get in this country. Cape Spear is the most eastern tip. It is closer to Europe than it is to Victoria, and the Irish charm really paints the region a more European colour (note the ‘u’ here, as much of Canada retains some European traces).

The people are possibly friendlier than reputation, and the food is hearty and tasty. The weather is not as bad as we in the West were told.  Part of the West Coast’s identity is to believe we have the best weather and that the East is a nice place with awful and incessant winters. The geography is remarkably similar in many ways to that of the west coast, yet with a distinct “je ne sais quoi.”

There are many whales off the shores, including humpback and sperm, and there are dolphins and puffins as well. St. John’s has charming architecture, houses with solid colours and trim with a colonial appearance, malls, cinemas, traditional food, and bars. It has a deserved reputation for Irish boozing, which is another stereotype and regrettably inevitable, but most are happy inebriates.

The Irish can balance intoxication and charm, and the Newfoundlanders are in many ways as Irish as their ancestors. The cultural and musical scene there is thriving and offers more than a jig and fiddle, but it is the people who might very well charm the pants off one. It is said, by Newfoundlanders, that the national magazine, MacLean’s, ran a survey in which Newfoundland was recorded as the sexiest place in Canada, the province seeing more sex than does any other.

In each case, whether the far West or the far East, the capital of the province is a beautiful and charming escape. Different stages of life might dictate how much one can get from a city, or any location, but some cities offer a greater range. Both of these cities have advantages and limitations. They are a very pleasant way to start and end a trip across this stupendously wide country, should one have that kind of time.

Flying saves time, but we would miss so many trees and much wheat. Each is a hop down to the USA as well. In either case, property is not as cheap as it was, but immigration and tourism are still healthy.

Bons voyages!

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