amymahon.com » Canada

Eastern Canada in the Fall

Amy — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 15:57:56 +0000

Chris and I are thinking about going to Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island in the fall, providing we can clear up our design work beforehand. Our tentative plan is to fly into Halifax, rent a car then head to Moncton, Charlottetown and St. John before crossing on a ferry back to Nova Scotia and driving along the coast back to Halifax. Let us know if we missed anything or if you can make any recommendations!

View Proposed Canada trip in a larger map

Canadian Slang and Dialect

Amy — Fri, 03 Apr 2009 19:14:10 +0000

EH!

word you add to the end of a sentence, to ask for a response of agreement or disagreement, similar in meaning to “don’t you think?”, or “right?” (ie. “The Leafs are gonna lose this year, eh?”)
expressive agreement (ie. “That was a great concert!” “Yeah I know, eh?”)
ascertaining the comprehension, continued interest, agreement, etc., of the person or persons addressed (ie “So. I was right there in the office, eh, and he said to pack my things”)

This is a word that Canadians are constantly made fun for, but people who mimic it usually do so in the wrong tone and context. For true Canadians this word will just roll off the tongue!

Term / Phrase	What it means
Tim’s, Timmy’s, Timmy Ho’s	Tim Horton’s: a cult coffee shop chain that Canadians swear by.
double-double	If you’re at Tim Horton’s and you order this, you’ll receive a medium coffee with two creams and two sugars
deuce	Similar to ‘dibs’ – you say this when you want to claim seconds on something. This can also be used in bathroom context (ie. “I need to drop a deuce”)
kills	Similar to ‘deuce’ except you are claiming the last little bit of something
two-four	a case containing 24 bottles of beer
LC, L-bo	Nicknames for the Liquor Control Board of Ontario. In Ontario you can’t buy hard liquor or beer from grocery stores.
brewski	a beer
blue	Labatt Blue, a type of beer brewed in my hometown of London, Ontario!
kegger	a crazy college party in which one or several kegs of beer are consumed
mickey	1 pint of hard liquor
26er	a 26 fl oz bottle of hard liquor
40	a 40 fl oz bottle of hard liquor
Texas mickey	a 3L bottle of hard liquor (are you beginning to see a trend?)
doob, doobie	rolled marijuana joint
roach	what’s left of a doobie after it has been smoked
smoke	n.- a cigarette v.- the act of going outside to smoke (smoking is banned inside buildings)
big smoke, t-dot, T-O	Toronto, Ontario
poutine	a delicious portion of fries topped with cheese curds and gravy
Loonie	a Canadian $1 coin
Toonie	a Canadian $2 coin
deke	1.— to leave suddenly (ie. “Ashley deked out early on her party”) 2.— in hockey, to fake one way and then go the other to trick an opponent
hork	to spit phlegm, usually on purpose (ie. “I horked on that teacher’s car”)
brutal	really bad!
over the river	border cities like Niagara Falls say this when referring to the USA
the states	how we refer to the USA
Newfie	derogatory term for people from Newfoundland & Labrador (sorry, Karen!)
bum	derogatory term for a homeless person
hoser	derogatory term to describe a man who sits at home and drinks beer all day. Made popular by Bob & Doug MacKenzie
“Take off”	“Go away”
bathroom / washroom	as opposed to toilet
cottage	a small summer home on the Great Lakes that you flock to as soon as the nice weather arrives
serviette	a nice looking napkin
cutlery / utensils	knife, fork and spoon
faucet	the bit of the sink that water comes out of
Kleenex	tissue
homo milk	full fat milk
hydro	electricity
runners	running shoes
touque	winter hat

Canada vs. England

Amy — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 12:14:09 +0000

Better in Canada		Better in England
Peanut Butter: okay, I know, I’m a peanut butter snob Roads: While Canada has wider roads, larger shoulders, less curves, no hedges or stone walls to crash into, we do have bigger pot holes and bumpy surfaces. I still prefer driving in Canada, though! Restaurant prices: give me Swiss Chalet anyday! $15 gets you a huge rotisserie chicken meal and a drink (including taxes and tip!) How bars & clubs operate: I prefer the tipping system because it motivates bar staff to work harder and ensures you’ll be served quicker if you tip better. Subway: Choose from three types of cheese and yellow mustard. How I miss yellow mustard. Public Toilets: I much prefer American toilets. The water levels are so low in the UK / Europe that more often than not the entire bowl smells like pee Recycling: You wouldn’t believe how bad the recycling system is in Bath & North East Somerset… Plus I have a feeling it all ends up in the dump anyhow. There should be a bottle deposit on alcohol cans and recycling bins beside public trash cans… Central heating: I prefer vents to radiators, and in Canada we keep our houses warmer, generally. Television: namely Comedy… I don’t ‘get’ British comedy Coffee: You know I love my Tim Horton’s!		Dairy products: Skim milk is actually delicious and cheese is incredible Cider: There are are so many different kinds – my favourite is Pear Checkout queues: aside from Lloyds bank, they keep the queues moving faster here Fashion: always a step ahead of Canada, but prices are double (or more) Traffic intersections: traffic circles make so much more sense than traffic lights or four-way stops. Window shopping: I love having everything on a ‘High Street’ where all the shops are terraced and all the good shops are crammed together with nice window displays. Public transportation: trains, in general. They run so often and are much cheaper. Houses: gotta love the Georgian architecture in Bath!!! Fireplaces: there’s one in each room here, including the bathroom! Accents: you know all us North Americans are suckers for the accents… Slang: Not only is everyone familiar with American slang, but they have a whole set of slang Design: signage, menus, magazines, etc are much nicer here, on average Pub cleanliness: well, the ones I’ve been to anyways…

amymahon.com » Canada

Eastern Canada in the Fall

Canadian Slang and Dialect

Canada vs. England

Better in Canada

Better in England