1. Canada consumes more macaroni and cheese than any other nation in the world.
2. Residents of Churchill, Canada, leave their cars unlocked to offer an escape for pedestrians who might encounter Polar Bears.
3. Prostitution is legal in Canada. Buying the services of a prostitute is not. This places the legal onus on the people that are usually in the position of power, rather than sex workers themselves.
4. The first Canadian casualties of the Afghanistan war were from an American pilot bombing a training exercise. Way to go, America.
5. Licence plates in the Canadian Northwest Territories are shaped like polar bears. They're beary cute!
6. In 2010, a Canadian man rescued a newborn baby from a dumpster, only to find out he was the father.
7. In Newfoundland, Canada, the Atlantic Ocean sometimes freezes so, as is custom in Canada, people go out and (Continued)
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as is custom in Canada, people go out and play hockey on it.
8. Santa Claus is technically Canadian! Every Christmas, 1 million letters are addressed to Santa Claus at his own postal code: "H0H 0H0, North Pole, Canada."
9. With 1,896 km (1,178 mi) of road, Yonge Street in Canada is the longest street in the world.
10. The Mall of America is actually owned by Canadians.
11. The U.S. / Canada Border is the longest international border in the world and it lacks military defence. Not sure what that says about the fact that America's newest president is currently so concerned with building a literal wall along America's Mexican border.
12. Canada has no weapons of mass destruction since 1984 and has signed treaties repudiating their possession. They also don't allow people to carry guns (except with a hunting license).
13. "Canada" is an Iroquoian language word meaning "Village." Canada basically got its name by mistake. When Jaques Cartier, a French explorer, came to the new world, he met with local Natives who invited them to their kanata (the word for village). The party mistakenly thought the name of the country was Kanata or Canada.
14. If you want to weigh less, go to Canada! Large parts of Canada have less gravity than the rest of Earth. The phenomenon was discovered in the 1960s. Though the weakness is slightone part in 25,000, or a tenth of an ounce for a 150-pound (68-kilogram) personscientists have argued for years about the cause.
15. Some Police Departments in Canada give out "positive tickets" when they see people doing something positive. However, it should be noted that Canadian Police Departments, like their US neighbors (or should I say, neighbours??) are still known for (Continue)
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However, it should be noted that Canadian Police Departments, like their US neighbors (or should I say, neighbours??) are still known for racial profiling and carding. The Black Lives Matter movement is an integral part of the fabric of Canadian politics.
16. Americans have invaded Canada twice, in 1775 and 1812. They lost both times.
17. In Canada money has Braille-like markings on the bills for the blind.
18. Canada is a lot bigger than the US in land mass, but our population is considerably less. The populations of Los Angeles and New York City would be around 30 million people. The entire nation of Canada has around 32 million people.
19. During WW2, Canada gave out buttons to people who tried to enlist but were refused due to medical reasons to show their willingness to fight.
20. Canada consumes the most doughnuts and has the most doughnut shops per capita of any country in the world.
21. Canada and Denmark have been fighting over an uninhabited island by leaving each other bottles of alcohol and changing their flags since the 1930s. Here's the story: Far in the Arctic North lies the barren and desolate Hans Island. The uninhabited half-square-mile island, possessing no apparent natural resources, is a bizarre sliver of territory for two countries to fight over. However, since the early 1930s, this nondescript rock has been at the center of an ongoing disagreement between Canada and Denmark. Hans Island is technically located in both Danish and Canadian waters. Denmark's minister of Greenland affairs visited the island in 1984 and planted a Danish flag. At the base of the flag, he left a note saying (Continued)
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"Welcome to the Danish island," along with a bottle of brandy. And since then, the two countries have waged a not-quite-serious "whiskey war" over Hans Island. When Danish military go there, they leave a bottle of schnapps. And when [Canadian] military forces go, they leave a bottle of Canadian Club and a sign saying, 'Welcome to Canada.'
22. There's a service called "Cleaning for a Reason" in the U.S. and Canada that cleans the houses of women with cancer for free so they can focus on their health.
23. When flights got diverted or grounded during 9/11, Canada housed, fed, and sheltered over 33,000 passengers.
24. One of the thirteen articles in the 1781 U.S. Articles of Confederation states that if Canada wants to be admitted into the U.S., it will automatically be accepted. Canada has yet to take them up on the offer.
25. In 2015, a Canadian man was arrested after tying more than 100 balloons to a garden chair and flyingover the city of Calgary.
26. It's estimated that 93,000 Canadians live in the U.S. with expired visas, more than any other group of immigrant. Yet, people in America are far less likely to accuse Canadians of being illegal immigrants than those of other countries.
27. Canada's lowest recorded temperature was -81.4 degrees fahrenheit (-63 celsius) in 1947.
28. Basketball, while invented by a Canadian, was actually invented in the United States.
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29. Famous Canadian celebrities include Justin Bieber, Michael Buble, Joni Mitchell, James Cameron, Jim Carrey, Celine Dion, Ryan Gosling, Rachel McAdams, Mike Myers, Ryan Reynolds and William Shatner.
30. Dog food is tax-deductible in Canada.
31. Sometimes Canadians refer to dollars as bucks. Like, 45 dollars could be called 45 bucks. There isn't one clear reason why, but most people think it's in reference to the days when people would trade things for deerskin, otherwise known as bucks. "I'll give you five bucks for that wagon!"
32. The average Canadian watches 21 hours of television per week. 128,000 Canadian households have TVs in the bathroom.
33. French and English are the two official languages in Canada. It was recently announced that they are thinking of also adding sign language.
34. Canadians drink more fruit juice per capita than any other country.
35. If you die in Canada, you die in real life.
36. Canadian radio stations are required by law to play a certain percentage of music from Canadian artists.
37. Once, 60 million pounds of maple syrup was stolen from (Continued)
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a reserve in Quebec.
38. Canada is home to the worlds smallest jail in Rodney, Ontario; its only 24.3 square meters (270 square feet).
39. There are parts of Canada where, at certain times of the year, the sun never sets and at other times it never rises.
40. A bear cub named Winnipeg was exported from Canada to the London Zoo in 1915. A little boy named Christopher Robin Milne loved to visit Winnipeg (or Winnie for short) and his love for the bear cub inspired the stories written by his father, A.A. Milne, about Winnie-the-Pooh.
41. Canada holds the record for the most gold medals ever won at a single Winter Olympics, winning 14 at the 2010 games in Vancouver.
42. Canadians love ketchup so much we have ketchup flavored chips, and they're delicious.
43. OnJuly 20, 2005, Canada became the first country outside Europe and the fourth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage nationwide after the enactment of the Civil Marriage Act. Same-sex adoption has also been legal in all provinces and territories under varying rules.
Sources
When American tourists travel abroad, they often find themselves startled if not downright perplexed by several international cuisines.
If haggis doesn't sound disgusting enough, they find themselves even more shocked by how awful it tastes.
What these very same tourists might not take into account, is that visitors from abroad are often equally baffled by several iconic American dishes.
And no, we're not just talking about the gargantuan portions.
Redditor Seraphicly329 was curious to hear all the American cuisines foreigners can't quite wrap their minds, let alone their tongues, around, leading them to ask:
"Non-Americans what American foods do you find unusual or odd?"
Can they Not Taste How The Root Beer Compliments The Ice Cream?
"Used to host a lot of non-American when they came here from Europe or Asia."
"Root beer floats baffles them every time!"
"Tastes just like their toothpaste and can’t understand how we enjoy it."- WhiskeyTangoFoxy
Say CHEESE!
"My friend from the Mediterranean said 'You Americans put cheese on everything'."
"'Cheese on eggs, cheese on meat, cheese on pasta, cheese on salad, cheese on BREAD, on FISH!!'"
"And you know, she's right."
"Love me a tuna melt."- WildAsTheyCome
Sweet And Salty
"I moved to the states years ago and the first time I saw chicken and waffles I was confused by this combo."-SmittenKitten0303
Chicken And Waffles Syrup GIF by F*CK, THAT'S DELICIOUSGiphyWhat Is So Offensive?!?!
"I had a Swedish friend who told me he wasn’t even willing to try mac and cheese because it sounded gross lol."- offbrandbarbie
"Kraft boxed Mac and cheese."
"I don't understand how something so processed can taste like the color yellow and yet be enjoyable but here we are."- RagePandazXD
An Aquired Taste, For Sure...
"I had a Portuguese boss once, and our team would often go out for lunch."
"Me, being a bit of a foodie/adventurous, would often recommend lunch spots."
"I decided for a change we should go to this restaurant that served nothing but PB&J sandwiches, with various twists like the Elvis - a warm sandwich with bananas and bacon slices, etc."
"He later recounted it as "'he worst lunch [he] had ever had", and thought I did it out of revenge'."- spaetzelspiff
Kevin Smith Celebs GIF by DiggGiphyFIrst Impressions Can Be Dangerous...
"Thought smashburgers would make the burger dry and juices ooze out."
"I had one from Shake Shack when I was in NYC."
"It was delicious and crispy and not dry at all."
"A bit salty but oh well."- teems
Most Cakes Don't Have A Shelf Life...
"Twinkies."- vali241
"Those are gross to most Americans over 15 years old too."
"Honestly, most snacky cakes."
"Maybe twice a year I'll get a wild craving for a Star Crunch or a Swiss Roll, but then I'll have one and remember why I rarely buy them."- Not_a_werecat
Carbs And Fat...
"If you've never eaten biscuits and gravy, you're missing out."
"If you've had it and say you don't like it, you've either eaten it at a bad restaurant or you have no soul."- Mother_Wash
GiphyOscar Wilde Was The One Who Said "Sugar Is No Longer Fashionable..."
"Unsweetened iced tea."
"Love it."- Quinocco
So Much For Southern Hospitality...
"Things my South African/British wife found weird."
"Scrapple, chicken and waffles, biscuits, sausage gravy, chicken fried steak, okra, Brunswick Stew, real BBQ (as opposed to grilling), grits, pickled pig feet, pork brains, Boudin sausage, pecan pie, Key Lime pie, boiled peanuts."
"If I think about it, a lot of Southern/Soul food."
"She was also unfamiliar with Mexican and TexMex other than those horrid Old El Paso hard shell taco kits."- Shuggy539
A Cute Alternative Word For "Scraps"...
"Many people are repulsed by scrapple."
"I have been enjoying it all my life, but I don't try to push it on anybody."- Warren_Puffitt
hungry pork GIF by Chipotle Mexican GrillGiphyIf You Know The Origins...
"I taught history for years and now I am a chef."
"So food history is a professional area, and a personal passion."
"I have also lived in my 40 years in three country's and 6 states, and I have been to 45 out of 50 states."
"Peanut Butter was invented for medical use and an easy way to get vitamins and nutrients into patients."
"Peanut butter and jelly became popular during world War 2 due to food rationing."
"Most Americans grow up on it, so for many of us its traditional."
"Chicken and waffles is from a subset of American Cuisine, Southern Cuisine."
"Most people outside the South dont get it either."
"Also, if the balance of the savory chicken and sweet waffle/syrup is off, it really is terrible, but if you get it right, it's delicious!"
"Most people outside the South have no idea how to cook grits, or even what they are."
"Many people in the South don't do it right either."
"Gravy in America is NOT the same as in the rest of the world."
"The gravy traditionally used in biscuits and gravy is even more different, and easy to screw up also."
"Southern Biscuits go best with this gravy, and Northern Biscuits and definitely SCONES are not the same as these Biscuits (the South uses a softer wheat to make flour)."
"Many American don't get spray cheese either."
"Combining savory and sweet is not just an American thing, but we do combine them a lot."
"Keep in mind we ARE a melting pot of cultures and different cultures can combine in odd ways, especially in food."
"As an American chef I always tell people to lay off a lot of canned or packaged items in stores because of the amount of salt and preservatives, and even sugars in them."
"I even mix and sell my own seasonings to my local community to help people with this."
"If your in a restaurant and find the food too salty, chances are part or all of it was prepackaged and not fresh."- zeljadis
Fast Food GIF by US National ArchivesGiphyAt the end of the day, one's taste in food is personal, and everyone reserves the right to like and dislike whatever they want.
Even so: WHO IN THEIR RIGHT MIND DOESN'T LIKE MAC AND CHEESE?!?!?!
