Canada Day is July 1st, and we cannot wait to celebrate our great country! In the spirit of this special day, here are some fun facts about Canada that you may not know:
- "The Vikings visited Canada! They arrived in 1021, several hundred years ahead of Christopher Columbus. They are believed to have settled on the northern side of Newfoundland at L’Anse aux Meadows, just past Greenland" (Fact File).
- Canada's money is waterproof! That's right, our banknotes are made of plastic. They also include braille to help the visually impaired, and are transitioning from a horizontal to a vertical design. We do not use pennies anymore, and have the infamous Loonie ($1 coin), and Toonie ($2 coin).
- "[Canada is] bigger than the entire European Union (33 times bigger than Italy and 15 times bigger than France), more than 30 percent larger than Australia, five times as big as Mexico, three times as big as India and about the same size as 81,975 Walt Disney Worlds put together" (Reader's Digest Canada).
- The Hudson Bay is mysteriously lacking the same level of gravity as everywhere else! If you were to go to the Hudson Bay, you would weigh about 0.10 ounces less than back home. It may seem insignificant, but scientists still cannot figure out exactly why this happens.
- "The United States has actually tried to invade Canada during two different wars and failed both times. Turns out, the nicest people around are also pretty good at defending themselves and their country. They aren’t letting anyone else in charge" (Fact File).
- It's a stereotype that Canadians love maple syrup, but the facts certainly back this up. Not only is Canada the top producer of maple syrup, but they hold the mysterious maple syrup reserves! These reserves hold billions of liters of maple syrup, and are highly protected. Let the conspiracy theories begin!
- "[Canada has] more surface area covered by lakes than any other country in the world... The Great White North has 563 lakes larger than 100 square kilometers. The Great Lakes alone contain about 21 percent of the world’s fresh lake water (Reader's Digest Canada).
What's your favourite fact about Canada? Let us know in the comments below, and HAPPY CANADA DAY!
(Image via Canva)