Canada is a land of vast distances and rich natural beauty Economically and technologically, it resembles its neighbour to the south, the United States, although there are significant differences between the two countries Canada became a self-governing dominion in 1867 by an act of the British parliament, and is a member of the Commonwealth of Nations By 1931 it was more or less fully independent of the UK Though a medium sized country by its population, Canada has earned respect on the international stage for its strong diplomatic skills as a kind of "Switzerland of North America", while certainly not as neutral in its international alignment Domestically, the country has displayed success in negotiating compromises amongst its own culturally and linguistically varied population, a difficult task considering that language, culture, and even history can vary significantly throughout the country In contrast to the United States' traditional image of itself as a melting pot, now also falling out of use, Canada prefers to consider and define itself a mosaic of cultures and peoples Canadians are used to living and interacting with people of different ethnic backgrounds on a daily basis and will usually be quite friendly and understanding if approached in public You will never look out of place or feel like an unusual sight while traveling Canada, although this will be less so in rural areas such as the Saskatchewan countryside Canada is very much a multi-cultural nation and Toronto may very well be the most multi-cultural city on the planet! The information below will get you started, but be sure to check the specifics for given regions and cities
The Canadian Sir Sandford Fleming first proposed time zones for the entire world in 1876, and Canada, being a continental country is covered coast to coast with multiple zones Quebec uses the 24-hour clock system
Canada's official measurement is metric, however many people except already fully metrified francophone Quebec, especially those 40 and over, will still use the imperial system for many things One of the most common holdovers from the imperial system is the use of feet and inches for measurement of distances and heights, and you will still hear older Canadians use the term 'mile' when referring to informal distances, and may also give temperatures in fahrenheit All weather forcasts will be in °C
Trying to distill the climate of Canada into an easy-to-understand statement is impossible, given the vast area that this country occupies Much of southern Ontario has a climate similar to the northeastern United States On the other hand, Iqaluit, the capital of Nunavut, is just south of the Arctic Circle and remains very cold for most of the year
However, as most of the Canadian population resides within a few hundred kilometers of Canada's border with the United States Edmonton and Calgary being the only major cities that aren't, visitors to most cities will most likely not have to endure the weather that accompanies a trip to the northern territories In fact, summers can be hot in parts of Canada Summer temperatures over 35°C 95°F are not unusual in extreme Southern Ontario and the southern Interior of British Columbia, with Osoyoos being the hot spot of Canada Toronto's climate is only slightly cooler than many cities in the northeastern United States, and summers in the southern parts of Ontario and Quebec are often hot and humid In the BC British Columbian Interior, Alberta and Saskatchewan, the humidity is often low during the summer, even during hot weather In the winter, Southern Ontario is only slightly cooler than the northeastern United States, but temperatures under -20°C 14°F are not uncommon
The climate in Canada also depends on how close to the coast you travel Many inland cities, especially those in the Prairies, experience extreme changes in weather Winnipeg, Manitoba also colloquially known as 'Winterpeg' has hot summers that can easily exceed 35°C 95°F, yet experiences very cold winters where temperatures around -40°C -40°F are not uncommon The hottest temperature in Canadian ever recorded was in southern Saskatchewan, at 45°C 113°F Conversely, southern coastal cities in British Columbia are generally milder year-round and get little snow The Atlantic Provinces are usually not as mild as the Prairies and the Territories although they constantly experience temperatures below zero in the winter The Atlantic Provinces are also well known to experience many blizzards during the winter season In British Columbia, Vancouver and Victoria are temperate and get very little snow, and seldom experience temperatures below 0°C or above 27°C 32-80°F
Apart from having usually milder temperatures year-round than the interior areas of Canada, coastal areas can have very high rainfall Areas such as coastal British Columbia get some of the highest rainfall in Canada, but it can be very dry in the southern BC Interior due to the Coastal Mountains acting as a rain shadow It is also popular with the highest tourists The wind can be a big factor on the Canadian Prairies because there are wide open areas not unlike those in the Midwest states of the US, and makes for unpleasant windchills during cold weather in the winter The average temperature is typically colder in Canada than in the US and Western Europe as a whole, so bring your jacket if visiting between October and May, and early and later than this if visiting areas further north The rest of the year, in most of the country, daytime highs are generally above 15°C 60°F
In addition to most western holidays Christmas, New Year's, Good Friday, Easter, Labour Day, Canada has the following national holidays that aren't celebrated elsewhere:
Canada is formally a constitutional Monarchy, headed by Queen Elizabeth II, represented in her absence by the Governor General Michaëlle Jean from September 27 2005 Canada is a separate Kingdom from the UK but happens to share the same person as the Sovereign; as such when that person is in Canada, or acts for as happened during the reopening of the Vimy Ridge Memorial he or she is the King or Queen of Canada, alone This method of sharing the monarch confuses many people, including Canadians, don't worry In the actual running of the country is completed by the Government of Canada, whom neither the Queen nor the Governor General attempts to influence
Government is run through the Westminster System British style parliamentary similar to the UK, Australia and New Zealand Parliament is comprised of two chambers bicameral: the Senate and the House of Commons
The Senate is made up of 105 Senators, appointed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minster
There are five main parties on the country's political spectrum: the Conservative Party right of centre, the Liberal Party centrist, the New Democratic Party left of centre, the Bloc Quebecois a party that promotes separation of Quebec from Canada - rather disliked in many areas outside of Quebec, and the Green Party environmentally oriented Only the Conservatives and more often the Liberals have ever been the national government, though the NDP have governed various provinces The Bloc do not participate in provincial politics, but another separatist party, the Parti Quebecois, have governed Quebec The Greens though regularly attracting ~10% of the popular vote have yet to win a seat in parliament Compared to American politics, all of these parties are more liberal
The Conservative Party currently holds more seats than any other party in the House of Commons, and therefore forms the government However, they do not have a majority of seats which would be 50% + 1 or 155 of 308 seats, so they are what is known as a minority government This means it needs the support of at least one other party to pass legislation Since the current government is a minority government, it can be defeated in a "vote of non-confidence" in the House of Commons, which would result in a country-wide general election It is extremely rare, if not unprecedented for a minority government to last its full term of 5 years, so don't be surprised if you arrive in Canada in the midst of a general election campaign
The current Prime Minister is Stephen Harper, leader of the Conservative Party The Official Opposition is the Liberal Party, which holds the seconded highest number of seats; their leader is Michael Ignatieff, who represents part of Toronto in Parliament The last federal election was October 2008
Each province and territory also has its own legislative assembly These are also Westminster style legislatures, which elect their own Members of Provincial Parliament MPPs, also known as Members of the Legislative Assembly MLAs in some provinces Two of the three territories' legislative assemblies Nunavut and the Northwest Territories are peculiar, as they are non-partisan - no political parties are represented
English and French are the only two official languages in Canada All communications and services provided from the federal government are available in both languages Many Canadians are functionally monolingual, although some parts of the country have both English and French speakers Over a quarter of Canadians are bilingual or multilingual Many people in Montreal are at least conversationally bilingual
English is the dominant language in all regions except Québec, where French is dominant and actively promoted as the main language However, there are numerous francophone communities scattered around the country, such as:
Likewise, there are anglophone communities in Québec, such as some of the western suburbs of Montreal
Canadian English uses a mixture of British and American spellings, and many British terms not usually understood in the United States like "bill" instead of "check" are widely used in Canada Certain words also follow British instead of American pronunciations
Atlantic Canada is reported to have the greatest variety of regional accents in English-speaking North America, largely as a result of the isolated nature of the fishing communities along the Atlantic coastline prior to the advent of modern telecommunications and transportation A visitor to the Atlantic provinces may have some difficulty understanding strong local accents rich in maritime slang and idiom, particularly in rural areas From Ontario westward, the accent of English Canadians is more or less the same from one region to another and is akin to that spoken by those in northern US border states
English-speaking Canadians are generally not required to take French after their first year of high school, and thus many citizens outside of Québec do not speak or use French unless closely related to someone who does, or have chosen to continue French studies out of personal or professional interest Education in many other languages are available, such as Spanish, German, Japanese, etc However, these are rarely taken and most immigrants are required to learn English or French as opposed to being able to get by speaking in their native tongue
In Québec, one can usually get by with English in the major tourist destinations, but some knowledge of French is useful for reading road signs as well as travels off the beaten path, and almost essential in many rural areas It may also be useful to know at least a few basic French phrases in the larger cities, where some attempt by travellers to communicate in French is often appreciated The French spoken in Québec and the Acadian regions differ in accent and vocabulary from European French Some Franco-Europeans have difficulty understanding Canadian French
Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal are home to large Chinese migrant populations, and Cantonese is commonly spoken in the Chinatowns in these cities
There are also dozens of aboriginal languages spoken by many Canadians of aboriginal descent In Nunavut more than half the population speaks Inuktitut, the traditional language of the Inuit
See also: French phrasebook
Canada's currency is the Canadian dollar symbol: $ proper abbreviation is CAD, commonly referred to simply as a "dollar", or "buck" slang One dollar $ consists of 100 cents ¢ In the 1970s, the Canadian dollar was worth more than the US dollar, but it slipped to about 66 cents US by the mid-1990s Currency traders made jokes about the "Hudson's Bay Peso" In late 2007, with the US dollar falling against most major currencies worldwide, the Canadian dollar was briefly worth slightly more than the US Dollar again As of October 2009, it is down to about 96 US cents
Canadian coins are of 1¢ penny, 5¢ nickel, 10¢ dime, 25¢ quarter, 50¢ rarely seen/never used, $1 loonie and $2 toonie The penny, nickel, dime, and quarter match their US counterparts in size, shape, and colour, but not in metallic composition Canadian notes come in $5 blue, $10 purple, $20 green, $50 red and $100 brown denominations The $1,000 pinkish bill has not been issued since 2000 as part of the fight against money laundering and organized crime Although it remains legal tender, banks have been taking them out of circulation In addition, the $1 green/black and $2 terra-cotta bills no longer circulate but are still considered legal tender
In comparison to the United States, Canada tends to be more expensive with some things costing almost double as to what they would in the United States Be aware that Canada sells fuel gasoline, diesel, etc in liters, as opposed to gallons However, as of August 2009, many of the goods on sale in Canada have a price equivalent to that of the United States when the exchange rate is taken into account American prices have surged due to the world economic crisis, and most US products are far more expensive than they were a year ago A sweater on sale in the United States that costs US$40 will typically be valued at C$50, which is approximately the same When you factor in cross border duties and taxes, the sweater will actually be cheaper in Canada While many Canadians are under the impression that shopping south of the border is less expensive, as of late, it has been cheaper to shop in Canada Beer is much more expensive, although some of it is only available in Canada,
Bargaining is extremely rare in ordinary retail shopping in Canada and attempts to talk a retail worker down in price will result in nothing besides testing the employee's patience This is rarely a problem, as most retailers in Canada price their items fairly and do not look to extort their customers due to the highly competitive market and well-off economy For larger-ticket items, especially high-end electronics and vehicles, many employees work on commission, so bargaining is possible for these items, and sales-people may offer you a lower price than what is ticketed right from the get-go Some large retail stores will offer you a discount if you can prove to them that one of their competitors is selling the same product for a lower price However, in certain establishments such as flea markets, antique stores, farmer's markets, etc, you may be able to negotiate a lower price, although it is, again, often unnecessary to put forth the effort
In all cities and towns, it is possible to convert between Canadian dollars and most major currencies at many banks In addition, most retailers in Canada will accept US currency either at par or at slightly reduced value All Canadian banks provide currency exchange at the daily market value In some areas, private exchange bureaus will give better exchange rates and lower fees than banks, so if you have time during your travels to look one up It might save you some money on the exchange both when you arrive and before you leave, because Canadian dollars may not be worth as much in your home country, particularly the coin
Private businesses are under no obligation to exchange currency at international rates Even in the most rural areas, converting between Canadian and American dollars should not pose a problem, although travelers expecting to convert other currencies at a Canadian bank may need to be patient In fact, most tourist destinations will accept American dollars as such, and are most likely to give a very good exchange rate This is particularly true of regions that rely on tourism as a cornerstone of their local economy
As Canadian Banks cash Canadian dollar travellers cheques free of charge, almost all businesses will do the same This makes travellers cheques a safe and convenient way to carry money in Canada
Many businesses across Canada accept US Currency based on their own exchange rate for general purchases Bills are taken with the current exchange rate US and Canadian coins, however, are similar in size, so they are used interchangably; it is quite common for change to be given in a mix of Canadian and US coins Almost all automatic vending machines will reject US coins
Credit cards are widely accepted, with Visa and MasterCard being accepted in most places, American Express somewhat less frequently and Diner's Club only in the more upscale restaurants and hotels Discover is usually accepted at places geared towards Americans such as hotels and car rental agencies Generally, using a credit card also gets you a better exchange rate since your bank will convert the currency automatically at the prevailing daily rate
The banking system is well developed, safe and technologically advanced ATM usage in Canada is very high There is a safe and widespread network of bank machines ATMs where you may be able to use your bank card to withdraw money directly from your account at home, but the fees involved can be more than for credit cards If possible, try to use chartered bank ATM machines as the fees are often cheaper than the independent ATM machines All Canadian banking institutions are members of the Interac international financial transaction network Most retailers and restaurants/bars allow purchases by ATM card through Interac, even if they do not accept major credit cards, and many Canadians rarely use cash at all, prefering electronic forms of payment Other ATM networks, including PLUS are widely supported and will be indicated on the ATM screen
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No more GST rebates Until 2007, travellers to Canada could claim back their GST on leaving the country, but this is no longer possible |
Be aware that in contrast to other countries where what you see is what you pay and so called "hidden costs" are forbidden by law you will almost always pay more than the prices displayed They usually exclude sales tax and any number of very inventive extras and/or more or less mandatory tips So don't get your dollar ready when you to the cashier in a thrift shop, because he will ask you for 112
Taxes will be added on top of the displayed price at the cashier Exceptions where the displayed price includes all applicable taxes are gasoline the amount you pay is as it appears on the pump, parking fees, liquor bought from liquor stores, and medical services such as eye exams or dentistry
A Goods and Services Tax GST of 5% is applied to most items In addition to the GST, most provinces charge an additional Provincial Sales Tax PST on purchases The Atlantic Provinces of Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador have joined or "harmonized" the PST and GST In these provinces, instead of being charged two separate taxes on a purchase, consumers will see one tax called the Harmonized Sales Tax HST
While the GST and PST or HST are charged on most goods and services, some items are currently exempt from taxation While this list can vary by province and tax, some common examples are: basic groceries not prepared, prescription drugs, residential housing, medical and dental services, educational services and certain childcare services
The sales tax rates as of 2008 are:
Additional taxes have been placed on some goods such as alcohol and gasoline and vary by province; however, these taxes are often included in the displayed price of the good
English Canadians may be mystified if you ask where you can get Canadian food Although you will find some regional specialties, especially at the Eastern and Western edges of the country, in English Canada there isn't much food known as "Canadian" except for maple syrup, nanaimo bars chocolate-topped no-bake squares with custard or vanilla butter filling and crumb base, buttertarts tarts made with butter, sugar and eggs, beaver tails fried dough topped with icing sugar, fiddleheads curled heads of young ferns, and a few other examples They are an important, if somewhat humble, part of the Canadian culinary landscape In other respects, English Canadian cuisine is very similar to that of the northern United States Canadians may be unaware that they even have national dishes, especially in the more urbanized areas, such as Toronto, and if you ask for a beaver tail or fiddlehead, you may receive nothing but a strange look or a polite giggle That being said, there is a rising trend among Canadian chefs and restaurateurs to offer locally-produced ingredients, and most major cities have bistros which specialize in local cuisine This can even include game meat dishes such as caribou, venison, moose, grouse or wild turkey prepared in a variety of European styles
French-Canadian cuisine is distinctive and includes such specialties as tourtière, a meat pie dish that dates back to the founding of Quebec in the 1600s, cipaille meat and vegetable pie, cretons mince of pork drippings, ragoût de pattes pigs' feet stew, plorine pork pie, oreilles de Christ fried larding bacon, poutine, a dish consisting of French fries, cheese curds and gravy its popularity has spread across the country and can be found from coast to coast, croquignoles home-made doughnuts cooked in shortening, tarte à la farlouche pie made of raisins, flour and molasses, tarte au sucre sugar pie, and numerous cheeses and maple syrup products Staples include baked beans, peas and ham French-Canadian cuisine also incorporates elements of the cuisines of English-speaking North America, and, unsurprisingly, France
One peculiar tradition that you may notice in nearly every small town is the Chinese-Canadian restaurant A lot of the reason for this is the role Chinese immigration played historically in the early settlement of Canada, particularly in the building of the railroad These establishments sell the usual Chinese cuisine marketed towards North American Fast Food customers In Toronto and Vancouver, two large centres of Chinese immigration, one can find authentic Chinese cuisine that rivals that of Hong Kong and Shanghai In Toronto, visit the Chinatown area of Spadina-Dundas; if north of the city, consider a visit to the Markham area, which has recently seen an influx of newer Chinese immigrants
Montreal is well known for its Central and Eastern European Jewish specialties, including local varieties of bagels and smoked meat In the prairie provinces you can find great Ukrainian food, such as perogies, due to large amounts of Ukrainian immigrants
If you are more adventurous, in the larger cities especially, you will find a great variety of ethnic tastes from all over Europe, Asia and elsewhere You can find just about any taste and style of food in Canada, from a 20oz T-Bone with all the trimmings to Japanese sushi indeed, much of the salmon used in sushi in Japan comes from Canada Consult local travel brochures upon arrival They can be found at almost any hotel and are free at any provincial or municipal tourist information centre
Americans will find many of their types of cuisine and brands with subtle differences, and many products unique to Canada, such as brands of chocolate bars and the availability of authentic maple syrup
You will find that many American chains have a well-established presence here
Canadian chains include:
The drinking age in Canada varies from province to province In Alberta, Manitoba and Quebec the age is 18, while in the rest of the provinces and territories it is 19 A peculiarity of many Canadian Provinces is that liquor and beer can only be sold in licensed stores and this usually excludes supermarkets In Ontario alcoholic beverages can only be sold in licensed restaurants and bars and "Liquor Control Board" LCBO stores that are run by the Province; although you can also buy wine in some supermarkets in a special area called the "Wine Rack" Supermarkets in other Provinces generally have their own liquor store nearby Québec has the least restrictions on the sale of alcohol, and one can usually find alcohol at convenience stores depanneur, in addition to the government-owned Société des Alcools du Québec SAQ stores Alberta is the only province where alcohol sales are completely decentralized, so many supermarket chains will have separate liquor stores near the actual supermarket Prices may seem high to Americans from certain states, bringing alcohol in to Canada up to 1l of hard liquor, 15l of wine, or a 24 pack of beer, is advisable American cigarettes are also quite popular to bring in as they are not sold in Canada
Canadian adults enjoy beer and other alcoholic beverages quite often Watching sports, especially hockey, is a popular time to consume these type of drinks
Canadian mass-market beers eg, Molson's, Labatt's are generally a pale gold lager, with an alcohol content of 5% to 6% This alcohol level may be higher than popular beers in the US or Great Britain, so it pays to be careful if you're a visitor Like most mass-market beers, they are not very distinctive although Americans will notice that there are beers made by these companies that are not sold in the States, however, Canadian beer drinkers have been known to support local brewers In recent years, there's been a major increase in the number and the quality of beers from micro-breweries Although many of these beers are only available near where they are produced, it behooves you to ask at mid-scale to top-end bars for some of the local choices: they will be fresh, often non-pasteurized, and have a much wider range of styles and flavours than you would expect by looking at the mass-market product lines Many major cities have one or more brew pubs, which brew and serve their own beers, often with a full kitchen backing the bar These spots offer a great chance to sample different beers and to enjoy food selected to complement the beers
The two largest wine-producing regions in Canada are the Niagara Region in Ontario and the Okanagan in British Columbia Other wine-producing areas include the shores of Lake Erie and Prince Edward County in Ontario, and the Similkameen valley, southern Fraser River valley, southern Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands in British Columbia There are also small scale productions of wine in southern Quebec and Nova Scotia
Ice wine, a very sweet dessert wine made from frozen grapes is a Canadian specialty, with products made by Inniskillin vinery 54 in particular found at airport duty-free stores around the world In contrast to most other wine-producing regions in the world, Canada, particularly the Niagara Region, consistently undergoes freezing in winter and has become the world's largest ice wine producer However, due to the tiny yields 5-10% compared to normal wine it's relatively expensive, with half-bottles 375 ml starting at $50 It is worth noting that Canadian Ice Wine is somewhat sweeter than German variety
Canada is famous in other countries for its distinctive rye whiskey, a beverage too common locally to be much appreciated by Canadians In addition to the plentiful selection of inexpensive blended ryes, you may find it worth exploring the premium blended and unblended ryes available at most liquor stores One of the most-recognized unblended ryes is Alberta Premium, which has been recognized as the "Canadian Whiskey of the Year" by famed whiskey writer Jim Murray
Canada also makes a small number of distinctive liqueurs One of the most well-known, and a fine beverage for winter drinking, is Yukon Jack, a whiskey-based liqueur with citrus overtones It's the Canadian equivalent of the USA's Southern Comfort, which has a similar flavour but is based on corn whiskey bourbon rather than rye
You can find most nonalcoholic beverages you would find in any other country Carbonated beverages referred to as "pop", "soda" and "soft drinks" in different regions are very popular Clean, safe drinking water is available from the tap in all cities and towns across Canada Bottled water is widely sold, but it is no better in quality than tap water, so you'll save a lot of money by buying a reusable water bottle and filling it up from the tap Furthermore, while tap water may contain fluoride a natural chemical that strengthens enamel, bottled water does not Tap water is actually more beneficial to drink than its bottled counterpart
A non-alcoholic drink one might drink in Canada is coffee Tim Horton's is the most ubiquitous and popular coffee shop in the country Starbucks is massively popular in Vancouver and becoming more so in other large centres such as Calgary where it is larger than Tim Hortons, and Toronto There is a Starbucks in most every city, along with local coffeeshops and national chains such as Second Cup, Timothy's, mmmuffins currently owned by Timothy's Coffees of the World but operated under original trade name, Country Style, Coffee Time Tea is available in most coffeeshops, with most shops carrying at least half dozen varieties black, green, mint, etc
Accommodations in Canada vary substantially in price depending on time and place In most cities and many tourist areas, expect to pay upwards of $100 or more for a good hotel room If inquiring always ask if taxes are included, because some offer it with taxes included, some not
Hotels play an integral part of Canadian history, with some of the country's most well known landmarks being hotels The Canadian Railway Hotels are a series of grand hotels that were construced in major cities Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Regina, Saskatoon, Winnipeg, Windsor, Toronto, Ottawa, Montreal, Quebec, St John's and Halifax in the early 1900s Most of these are still standing and owned by corporations such as Fairmont Hotels & Resorts The Grand Railway Hotels are all four star franchises, with prices ranging from C$150-C$400 a night depending on the city and the size of the room These hotels are architecturally stunning and sumptously decorated, and in addition to being exceptional places to stay, are tourist attractions in their own right Even if you are not staying in a Grand Railway hotel, it would be more than worth it to explore the main lobby or dine at the hotel restaurant
In rural areas, motels short for "motor hotel" are small, simple hotels where you might pay as little as $40-$60 for a night's accommodation especially in the off season In many areas, a B&B bed and breakfast is a nice option These are normally people's homes with suites for guests The price - anywhere from $45 a night to $140 a night - usually includes a breakfast of some kind in the morning Try 55 for listings
Other options include cottage rentals on the lakes and in the countryside and apartment rentals in the cities Prices compare to hotels and motels and this type of lodging provides some comfort of home while you are traveling
Youth hostels are a good choice, offering lodging in shared dorms $20-$40 or private rooms $45-$80 Some useful resources are Hostelling International Canada 56, Backpackers Hostels Canada 57, SameSun Backpacker Lodges 58 and Pacific Hostel Network 59 which also covers Alaska and the Northwestern United States Most hostels in Canada meet very high standards
Some universities will rent their dormitory more commonly called "residence" or "rez" rooms in the academic off season -May- August Check university websites for more information
Finally, there is a huge number of campgrounds in Canada These range from privately owned RV parks to the publicly operated campgrounds in national and provincial parks, and are almost always well-kept and generally very beautiful
Canada is generally a good place to work The minimum wage varies by province, from $850/hour in New Brunswick and $880/hour Alberta to $1025/hour in Ontario As with most of the developed world, the economy is shifting from one dominated by manufacturing to one dominated by services Thus, factory and manufacturing work is becoming scarcer every year and are highly sought, with most factories requiring a high school education or trade certificate Minimum wage jobs are becoming more common every year, however with the housing market booming there is still a fair amount of good construction jobs to be had
Hiring practices are similar to those in the US
| Meal in inexpensive restaurant | 11.7 CAD |
| 3-course meal in restaurant (for 2) | 57 CAD |
| McDonalds meal | 9.43 CAD |
| Local beer (0.5 draft) | 5.51 CAD |
| Foreign beer (0.33 bottle) | 5.7 CAD |
| Cappuccino | 4.14 CAD |
| Pepsi/Coke (0.33 bottle) | 1.8 CAD |
| Water (0.33 bottle) | 1.59 CAD |
| Milk (1l) | 2.23 CAD |
| Fresh bread (500g) | 2.48 CAD |
| White Rice (1kg) | 4.18 CAD |
| Eggs (12) | 3.26 CAD |
| Local Cheese (1kg) | 11.41 CAD |
| Chicken Breast (1kg) | 13.84 CAD |
| Apples (1kg) | 3.5 CAD |
| Oranges (1kg) | 3.28 CAD |
| Tomato (1kg) | 3.89 CAD |
| Potato (1kg) | 2.16 CAD |
| Lettuce (1 head) | 1.72 CAD |
| Water (1.5l) | 2.24 CAD |
| Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) | 14.85 CAD |
| Domestic Beer (0.5 bottle) | 2.91 CAD |
| Foreign beer (0.33 bottle) | 3.23 CAD |
| Cigarettes | 10.23 CAD |
| One way local bus ticket | 3.32 CAD |
| Monthly pass for bus | 80.5 CAD |
| Taxi start | 3.41 CAD |
| Taxi 1km | 1.72 CAD |
| Taxi 1hour waiting | 35.8 CAD |
| Gasoline (1 liter) | 1.39 CAD |
| Utilities for a "normal" apartment | 175.08 CAD |
| Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) | 18.92 CAD |
| Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre | 748.69 CAD |
