All The Fun Of The Fair

Toronto

I'm sleeping more and more these days, catching up after all those weeks in close proximity to snoring Germans. But I can't spend every day lounging around Jon's apartment in my boxers and listening to his secret stash of Abba records, so yesterday he showed me round his work. He's had a key role in organising a big family Christmas fair down on the lakefront that's running right through until New Year. There's lots of cool festive stuff like an ice rink, fireworks, llamas and so forth. It even put me in the Christmas spirit, and that's quite an achievement.

I've been to Canada a couple of times before but I'm struck again at how different it is from America. Even Toronto, which looks like those big American cities, doesn't bear much relation to them once you spend a few days here. It's not just that the Queen's head is on the money either, people seem to be more laid back here. It's often said that Canada is like America only without the Americans, which is a bit harsh on Americans, but it's as good a way of describing it as any.