Oh Canada

Man, it's sure nice being back in Canada. I missed it. Please don't get me wrong, I'm grateful for the last 8 months in Estonia and beyond. It was a pleasure and an honour to see firsthand a changing culture like that in the Baltics, in transition to freedom. To meet actual relatives, young and old, and hear the stories - good, bad and tragic. To have a better insight into my parents and who they were like I've never known before. To experience some fascinating cities like Prague, Helsinki and St Petersbug, and to compare the three Baltic capitals (Tallinn, Riga and Vilnius) who are bound by a shared history and yet are quite different in so many ways. To eat Estonian food like my mom used to make :-) To meet so many Estonians and Baltic Russians and have the time and opportunity to speak with them, trying to understand their lot in life, their struggles and dreams. Yes, this has been amazing and I'm sure I'll write more in the coming months... But make no mistake, I'm glad to be home and feel like a Canadian once again.

The top ten things I have missed in Canada (besides friends & family):

1. My little red Honda Civic beep beep!!
2. The drive, with said Civic, between Ottawa & Toronto with jazz, blues and 70s music in the tape deck (Yes, I said TAPE deck)
3. Diary Queen Banana Milkshakes
4. Shooting stick with the guys
5. Walking through Yorkville / Harbourfront / Beaches / Queen (in Toronto) or Elgin / the Glebe / the Byward market (in Ottawa)
6. Improv at the Bad Dog or Jazz at the Rex
7. Montreal.
8. Riding a TTC streetcar
9. Watching the Ottawa Senators choke in the playoffs ;-)
10. Beer, wings, newspaper and hockey/baseball on the tube at the Chick'n Deli (Toronto) or Local Heroes (Ottawa)