Canada, Our Home

I’m sure no one who reads this blog needs me to tell them Canada is an awesome country. From coast to coast to coast we have spectacular landscape and scenery, flora and fauna, and each province and territory has its own strengths which together make Canada one of the best places in the world to live. I know Denmark has been named the happiest country on Earth, and I have often been asked why I chose to leave such a place and settle in Canada.

It wasn’t a conscious decision, really. Neither Jan nor I were ever so dissatisfied with our life in Denmark that we decided we’d had enough and wanted to live somewhere else. We were young, adventurous, and in between jobs, so when I saw an ad for a greenhouse foreman in Leamington, ON I jokingly said to Jan “why don’t you apply for that one?” Over the next few months one thing led to another and the joke became a little more serious. We both wanted to see the world, and this was a perfect opportunity to experience this huge northern country we really didn’t know too much about.  Canada had a certain mystique about it in my 23-year-old mind, and the more I learned, the more excited I became that we might actually go there for a year or so before we settled back down in Denmark.

On November 17, 1975 we set foot on Canadian soil for the first time. That was the beginning of the love affair we have with this country. For the past 40 years we have explored many corners from coast to coast to coast, and we marvel at each turn. We gave up our Danish citizenship to become Canadian citizens and we feel proud and privileged to call ourselves Canadian. To us, this is the best country in the world, and we are happiest when we are here. Canada may not be our native land, but it is our home.

Here we are on the night before we boarded the plane for Canada in 1975

And here we are 40 years later, a little heavier and grayer, doing what we love the most--hiking in the mountains