Cambridge, ON

Cambridge, England is home to the revered University of Cambridge. Cambridge, Massachusetts is home to the mighty Harvard University. Cambridge, Ontario is home to the humble McDougall Cottage Historic Site. The stone cottage was built in 1858 on the bank of the Grand River. It is named after the first Read more…

Howe Island, ON

Two ferries connect Howe Island to mainland Ontario. The west end ferry runs every half hour with breaks for crew at lunch and dinner, the east end ferry runs on an as-needed basis with no schedule because it only holds three cars at a time. While the west end ferry Read more…

Niagara-on-the-Lake, ON

Niagara is a region of confusing names. There are two Niagara Falls, one on each side of the border. Then, there’s the Niagara Falls, the waterfall. There are also two Niagara-on-the-Lakes, one is the town and the other is the wine region, the two overlap with slight border differences.  Camp Read more…

St. Catharines, ON

It’s really too bad that the weather was terrible when I went to St. Catharines because it’s location on Lake Ontario allows for wonderful photo opportunities. Lakeside Park, which features a colourful carousel and a beach on one side and a lighthouse on the other, looked absolutely miserable in the Read more…

Sherbrooke, QC

In the heart of the eastern townships of Quebec, Sherbrooke reminds me of Lausanne in Switzerland. It’s not quite as beautiful, but the St. Micheal’s Cathedral on the top of a hill can be seen from Rue Dufferin like how the Lausanne Cathedral can be seen from Post Charles Bessières. Read more…

Slubice, Poland

With fortifications stretching back to the 17th century Slubice has a complicated history of sovereignty going back to the Holy Roman Empire. However, all is good nowadays with Slubice and neighbouring Frankfurt (Oder) sharing waste management systems, open borderless bridges, cross-border taxis, public transit, and schools mandating both German and Read more…

Kostrzyn nad Odra, Poland

Like how the German border town of Frankfurt an der Oder is frequently mistaken for Frankfurt am Main, the Polish border town Kostrzyn nad Odra is sometimes confused with the smaller Kostrzyn near Poznan. The name is a mouthful for anyone who can’t speak Eastern European languages so I know Read more…

Arthabaska, QC

Arthabaska has been amalgamated with Victoriaville, but it was inhabited as early as 1830 while Victoriaville was only named after Queen Victoria in 1861. More famously, Arthabaska is known to be the summer home of Sir Wilfred Laurier, the first Prime Minister of Canada who spoke French as a first Read more…

Shawinigan, QC

Like other industrial towns of Quebec, Shawinigan used to be ruled by an anglophone elite on Rue des Érables. The land was owned by the Shawinigan Water and Power Company and the town was centrally planned as company land. The Olmstead Brothers Agency planted the trees in Shawinigan in the Read more…