Canadiana Backpackers Blog

Jannie is a young German girl who is part of the first generation to be born in a united (at long last) Germany.

Oddly, Jannie was born in the former (now present) capital city of Berlin but moved with her parents to the (now former) capital city of Bonn. It’s complicated.

But Jannie just finished her school studies and had opted to take a “gap year” and has come to Canada on a working/holiday visa before returning to University.

She has actually planned this trip for quite a long time.

She has wanted to visit Canada since she was a little girl looking at photos of her father’s North American backpacking experiences a generation ago. He came here in the early 1980′s when the infrastructure for backpackers was far less developed.

Apparently his Canadian adventures involved a lot of camping; especially in the western Rocky Mountains whose scenic beauty has long captivated Jannie.

She plans to work and explore Eastern canada for a while; then head west for the ski season.

Unlike her father before her, she will be visiting a Canada that is much better prepared to host young, budget backpackers.

We think her father knows that too.

This Monday is a public holiday in Canada. It is Thanksgiving and it is uniquely Canadian.

Alright, we sort of stole the idea from the Americans where some of the first settlers apparently shot a turkey and gave thanks for their bounty. (It’s likely a good thing they didn’t shoot a skunk.)

Since it is a “Canadian” Civic Holiday, most shops, restaurants and bars close down as the city goes home for the long weekend.

The holiday (Monday) is typically celebrated with a family dinner of roast turkey, salad, potatoes and pumpkin pie.

We have a lot of backpackpackers at this time of year (the hostel is full) but with most Canadians at home with their families they are often a bit left out.

Not at our hostel in Toronto.

A few years ago we found a small, intimate Pub that remains open and offers a “special” Thanksgiving Dinner of roast turkey with all the “trimmings” – even the pumpkin pie. The prix fixe menu is a reasonable $10.

Those who have participated in past years lead us to estimate that between thirty to forty backpackers will sign up for the meal.

Add a few drinks to accompany your meal and a pretty festive time can be had for a mere $20.

If your interested in the Thanksgiving “brunch”. Contact our main desk.

Andy from Oz and Sophie from France are two backpackers who spent the summer with us with work/travel visa’s.

As often happens at the hostel certain couples meet and really “hit it off” as it were.

The two began dating here in Toronto and now that Fall has arrived, have decided to head west to work in the ski resorts of Alberta and British Columbia.

If you have followed our blog, you will have seen the incredicle number of romances that have had their genesis right here at our hostel in Toronto,

There have been so many marriages between people who have met here that we have lost count. (But there have been, at least, a dozen.)

We’re not saying andy and Sophioe fall into that category (at least, not yet!) but they make a pretty attractive pair and seem to be a happy couple!

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Mario is a Mexican citizen working for their national carrier Aeromexico. He has lived for all but two years of his life in Northern Mexico where his father is a much respected academic and civil servant.

Her has come to Canada to obtain a birthright for his two Mexican born daughters.

Mario’s father first came to Canada to comlete a master’s degree in agriculture at the University of Guelph (an institution renowned for agriculture studies). He was accompanied by his young wife, Mario’s mother.

Mario was fortunate to have been born in Guelph, Ontario. And that makes him a Canadian citizen.

Since his daughters were both born in Mexico, he has come to claim Canadian citizenship for his two girls as they were born out of Canada but to a Canadian father.

Mario is well aware of the benefits and advantages because of his dual Mexican/Canadian nationalities. He is looking to see to it that his two girls will enjoy the same adantages,

Marcella is a professional dancer from Columbia who is a new addition to our hostel staff.

Needless to say, her Spanish language skills are very useful with the incereasing number of backpackers and language students from Latin America and Spain.

Unfortunately, Marcella is not available for certain shifts. She spends her weekends in Niagara Falls where she dances in the Casino Cabaret Revues.

As well as dancing in professional theatre, she also teaches at a aschool in Toronto.

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