OH CANADA!

I'm back.
In Indiana.
Yippy!
First off, I was WRONG about where we were going. Pointe Pelee (which I learned that I've been pronouncing WRONG for years...) is not a park where you can camp at. So, they directed us to Rondeau Provincial Park - and it turned out to be AWESOME!!! Here's a new map, explaining where we ended up.
Second, I'm going to start this off with some pictures, before I get into my thoughts and experiences in Canada.

I'm told this means "Following too closely, kills". those Canadians have a sense of humor!

Zach and Jason at our campsite. It was VERY nice and SPACIOUS.

As if it was a twist of fate, our campsite was on Manning Road. Rondeau was the main road in the camp.

There was a nice long pier in the park. This was on the Canada side, in the bay - looking back north, towards Canada.

It appears that Canadians have a much more advanced Bird House Building Philosophy. Or, this might be a hotel?

I SWEAR, we had NOTHING to do with the table ending up in the middle of the water...

I found this hatch. I REALLY wanted to find some dynomite and blow it open. I can only imagine what's down it...

Other signs read:
"Fatigue Kills, Take a Break." and
"Drinking and Driving Kills. Don't Drink and Drive."

Okay. Now onto my thoughts on Canada.
I LOVE THE COUNTRY and I LOVE THE PEOPLE.
EVERYONE is nice.
Example, from Canadian Customs - as we were crossing the bridge into Canada:

Canadian Customs Officer: Where ya goin' boys?
Us: Camping at Rondeau Park, sir.
Canadian Customs Officer: Do ya got any booze in theer? (YES, mispelled on purose)
Us: No sir. We didn't think we could bring it across the border.
Canadian Customs Officer: Ooohhh.... Well, ya shoulda been buyin' it at the Duty Free. Its cheep an' no taxes on it.
Us: Really? And we can bring it across the border?
Canadian Customs Officer: O' Course! I don't know whereya gonna be gettin' it now.
Us: I'm sure we'll find somewhere.
Canadian Customs Officer: Well, if you go... (HE GIVES US SOME DETAILED DIRECTIONS, I DON'T REMEMBER THEM...)
Us: Well, thank you, sir.
Canadian Customs Officer: If you boys be comin' back, I suggest the Duty Free, it's tha best place to buy stuff. Enjoy yer stay!

Let me just say that the Unites States Custom guy WAS NOT friendly AT ALL. He was rather, rude and mean. He looked ex-military, and like he didn't trust a word we said. He was short, simple, and didn't talk much, other than to ask us question about what was in the car and why we were in Canada.

This brings me to my First Point: Canadians ARE SUPER-FRIENDLY. EVERYONE is nice. EVERY road we drove down, people on the side of the road waved at us - EVERYONE. This is no exaggeration.

Here's a short quick list of the notes I made about Canada:

1. They use thinner and longer straws.
2. They put gravy on their french fries - and look at you very funny when you ask for "no gravy".
3. Potato Skins are actually THE SKIN OF POTATOS - not the same are America.
4. I was told I sounded like I was from Australia.
5. Nobody likes the government - probably because the tax rate is 14%!!!
6. People are very friendly and talkative - they walk right up to you and start talking about stuff. I almost punched the first guy who did it. I was scared!
7. No one locks their bikes - ANYWHERE. Outside of the supermarket, the drug store, the park - no locks on bikes, EVER.
8. The don't have Mt. Dew - instead its called Dew Fuel. I forgot to take a picture.
9. "Detour" means - the lanes up ahead and merging into one road. NOT - you have to take an alternate route.

Luckily, almost all of the Canadians we talked to were VERY willing to teach us about their culture and their country - without treating us like we were morons.

One really odd fact is that there is no SET exchange rate. At the Gas Stations there was NO EXCHANGE RATE. At the Beer Store it was 1.06 to 1. At the restaurants it was 1.09 to 1. At the Park it was 1.11 to 1. Eventually we asked someone after things weren't making sense. Basically, there is no set rate - each business can set their own rate. However, this is the bank rate: They BUY U.S. Dollars at a rate of 1.09 to 1, and the SELL U.S. Dollars at the rate of 1.13 to 1. It's an odd country... But, I can't complain about the service and the kindness. At the final gas station we stopped at - we were trying to spend the rest of our Canadian Dollars, and we forgot about the 14% Sales Tax, and ended up being 30 cents short - the guy at the counter was like, "Forget aboot it. It's cool. I'll take care of it." REALLY!?!?! Yep. The guy said we were fine, and let us go. It was cool, good kharma for you - Canadian Gas Station Man.

Also, we learned that in school the Canadians have to learn the U.S. Pledge of Allegiance and the National Anthem. It was crazy to hear that. This one girl we talked to told us that she could probably answer more questions about United States history than we could about Canadian history. We didn't even test her, or argue with her, we told her she was right.

The ENTIRE time were we in Canada, we NEVER ONCE saw a police car or police man, and we only saw the Park Ranger once. Also, sadly, I never got to see the two guys on horseback... Someone told us that we'd only see law enforcement "...if something was really wrong..." Interesting...

There WAS NOT a McDonalds the entire time we were there. Although, we were told there was one in Toronto. Also, NO STARBUCKS. However, we were told there was one in London, but only in a bookstore called Chapters. Appearently, that's their version of Borders.

If only people in American could be nice as Canadian. I look forward to going back sometime. It was a REALLY GREAT TRIP.

Oh, and we camped too. And we were eaten alive by mosquitos. We forgot citronella candles. That was a MISTAKE!