Klondike Goldrush

Did you know Canada.. The Klondike Gold Rush began in July of 1897 when two ships landed on the west coast of the US. The Excelsior, landed in San Francisco and three days later The Portland landed in Seattle and both were carrying bags of gold worth $5,000-$100,000. The news spread like wild fire and this set off the Klondike stampede.

(Miner's camp at the head of the Yukon River during the Klondike Gold Rush, from the Canadian National Archives. Date: 1st May 1898)

An estimated 100,000 people started out in the gold rush but only about 30,000 made it to Dawson City in 1898 after travelling through torturous passages to reach the Klondike River and the gold.  The most difficult route was from Edmonton and overland through the wilderness.  Edmonton  became known as a "Gateway to the North" for gold prospectors en route to the Yukon.

For those that arrived the gold did not live up to the reports.  Locals had already claimed all of the gold-bearing creeks and most of the gold was not at the surface, but rather 10 or more feet below. To reach it, the miners had to dig through the permafrost.

Edmonton's Capital EX, formerly known as Klondike Days is a celebration of the Klondike history with the theme revolving around the Klondike Gold Rush.

Source: virtualmuseum.ca, Wikipedia

Best Places to Live in Canada

Did you know Canada.. Canada's personal finance website MoneySense has an annual report on the best places to live in Canada. In the number one spot is.. Ottawa-Gatineau! Ottawa scored 71.7 points out of a possible 105 and is the winner for the second year in a row.

In second place is Victoria BC - up from 8th place last year and third is Burlington ON - same place as last year.

According to the MoneySense website: Canada’s Best Places to Live 2011 is based on data compiled from 180 Canadian cities and towns with populations over 10,000 people. Cities were rated based on home affordability, climate, prosperity, crime rates, access to health care and lifestyle, with subcategories in each area. Points were also given for the categories of transit, ammenities and culture.

Do you agree with the MoneySense Rankings?

Source: MoneySense

Staycation

Did you know Canada.. it looks like many people are still enjoying "staycations" and travelling closer to home as Statistics Canada Reports Domestic tourism spending by Canadians was up 0.4% at the end of last year - a continuing trend.

Statistics Canada notes that higher spending on accommodation, food and beverage services and, most notably, non-tourism commodities such as groceries, souvenirs and clothing contributed to the overall increase in tourism outlays at home.

In my family last year we went to a cottage in Muskoka for vacation and this year we plan on doing a lot of day trips to local attractions and try our hand at camping - again staying pretty close to home.

What are your vacation plans this year?

If you plan to stay in Canada be sure to enter our contest from DK Canada's Travel Boutique to win an Eyewitness Guides book set!

Source: Statistics Canada

Minority Governments

Did you know Canada.. Canada has had eleven minority governments!

A minority government is when no party has a majority of seats in the legislature therefore governments must rely on the support of other parties to stay in power, providing less stability than a majority government.

At the federal level no minority government has lasted a standard four-year term. Most minority governments have lasted less than two years.

And now for the second time in our history an election campaign is underway following three successive minority governments.

Source: The Canadian Encyclopedia, Wikipedia

Royal Winnipeg Ballet

Did you know Canada.. The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, is Canada's oldest ballet company! It is also the longest continuously operating ballet company in North America.

Founded in 1939 by Gweneth Lloyd and Betty Farrally it was first known as the Winnipeg Ballet Club. In 1953, the Company received its royal title, the first granted under the reign of Queen Elizabeth II!

Notable dancers associated with the Royal Winnipeg Ballet include Evelyn Hart and Mikhail Baryshnikov.

Source: rwb.org, Wikipedia

Giveaway! DK Canada: Eyewitness Travel Guides Canada

Winner: Congratulations to tinkarooroo@hotmail.com for winning this fantastic Eyewitness Guides 4 book set from DK Canada's Travel Boutique! It sounds like these books are going to be perfect for her and we're so happy - congrats again!!

Update: Giveaway is now closed - thank you everyone for commenting - I've loved reading all your responses.  The winner is being contacted now and will be announced when Canadian Address confirmed.

Did you know Canada.. I have been reading THE perfect book for me the last few days - Eyewitness Travel Guides Canada by DK Canada. Right now there is 20% off all Eyewitness Travel Guides in their Travel Boutique!

It is a beautiful introduction to Canada through it's history, events, National Parks, shopping locations, wildlife and more. The photos are just breathtaking which make you want to jump on a plane in a second to visit so many places in our beautiful country.

Not to be outdone by the photos, the information is spot on with up-to-date maps with all the right details.  It also gives you just what you want to know about events and locations with phone numbers, hours and a great short description so you can decide if it's right for you without having to do secondary research by phone or internet.

The traveler's needs section on Where to Eat and Where to Stay is a fantastic colour coded section that's easy on the eyes while reading through great descriptions on locations that include pricing details, outside tables information for restaurants (how cool is that), noted exceptional wine list selection and more.

There's also a fantastic section at the back of the book called the Survival Guide that includes practical information for any traveller with details on time zones, border information, a conversion chart, phone directories, and banking information just to name a few sections.

I plan to take this book with us on every trip in our beautiful country - the information in this book can't be beat, with all the phone numbers you need, local information on museums, events and restaurants along with maps and local history - it would take you hours on the phone or internet to gather all this information for even one location.

According to DK Canada's website: Launched in 1993, Eyewitness Travel Guide continue to be a mainstay of the DK Publishing list with over 15 million copies sold worldwide.

Visit DK Canada's Travel Boutique to view more information about the Eyewitness Travel Guides Canada and find out more about the entire Eyewitness Travel Guides Series with 150+ titles.

Giveaway

We also have exciting news that thanks to DK Canada's Travel Boutique you can win a copy of Eyewitness Travel Guides Canada along with Eyewitness Travel: Top 10 Montreal, Top 10 Vancouver and Top 10 Toronto - the Top 10 series are fantastic books with up-to-date travel information, more beautiful photos, insider tips and more.  Plus something that I think is so fantastic and a must have for any traveller - a pull-out map and guide that includes fold-out maps of city metro systems, useful phone numbers, and 60 great ideas on how to spend your day!

How to Win

Just comment below!  Let me know where in Canada you would like to visit.  Contest is open Monday March 28, 2011 to Friday April 8, 2011 - one entry per person, drawing will be held Friday April 8 at midnight EST and winner will be contacted to ensure Canadian address before being announced.  If the winner does not respond by Tuesday April 12, 2011 another winner will be chosen. Please note you must leave a way to contact you in the event that you win, such as an email address.

This contest is only open to Canadians.
Disclosure:  We received a copy of Eyewitness Travel Guides Canada to review - our opinions are our own.

We are Canadian Blog Hop! - Week Two

Did you know Canada..  I am pleased to join week two of the We are Canadian Blog Hop!  Met some great people last week and looking forward to meeting more this week!

The Loon

Did you know Canada..  not only is the Loon on Canada's 1 dollar coin and the offical bird of Ontario but it is also known to many as a symbol of Canada's Wilderness.

The Loon's haunting call brings back special memories for many that spend time around a lake in the summer at a cottage or camp.  There are five species of loons: the Red-throated Loon, Pacific Loon, Arctic Loon, Yellow-billed Loon and the Common Loon.  It's the Common Loon that is the offical bird of Ontario.

Loons are known as great divers and have many bones that are solid, rather than hollow like those of other birds, which aid its diving ability.  In fact a Loon can dive to depths of 80 m or more.

Source: Environment Canada, Hinterland Who's Who, Wikipedia

Dinosaur bones

Did you know Canada.. Dinosaur bones have been discovered in the oilsands of Alberta. They are thought to be about 110 million years old - which is significantly older than bones found in near by Dinosaur Provincal Park which are thought to be about 75 million years old.

It is believed the bones belong to an Ankylosaur - a rare find. While fossils from Ankylosaur have been found in Alberta before, the discovery is significant because almost the entire fossil has been well preserved.

Very exciting find!

Election Update for Friday

Did you know Canada.. as we mentioned earlier this week Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff introduced a non-confidence motion against Harper government which will be voted on today.

The Confidence vote in House of Commons, has been delayed until 2pm this afternoon. This will likely lead to an election in May.

Update: As expected Liberals, Bloc and NDP all vote in favour of the non-confidence motion.  The Harper government has been found in contempt by a vote of 156-145.