Germany
Canada Travel and Destination Guide
BACKGROUND INFO
Full Name
Canada
Capital City
Ottawa
Area
9,976,000 sq km
Population
31,830,000
Time Zone
GMT/UTC -7
GMT/UTC -6
GMT/UTC -5
GMT/UTC -4
GMT/UTC -3.5
GMT/UTC -8
Daylight Saving Start
first Sunday in April
Daylight Saving End
last Sunday in October
Weights Measures System
Metric
Geography
Situated north of the USA, between the Atlantic and Pacific oceans, Canada is the world's second largest country (Russia takes the guernsey). It extends some 7700km (4775mi) east to west and 4600km (2850mi) north to south. Nearly 90% of Canadians huddle along the 6379km (3955mi) southern border with the USA. Though much of the land is lake and river-filled forest, there are mountains, plains and even a small desert. The Great Plains, or prairies, cover Manitoba, Saskatchewan and parts of Alberta. These former grasslands are now responsible for Canada's abundant wheat crop. Western Canada is known for its Rocky Mountains, while the east has the country's major cities and also its most visited geographic feature, Niagara Falls. The Canadian Shield, an ancient, rocky and glacially sanded region formed more than 2.5 billion years ago, covers most of the north of the country. The Arctic region, in the far north, is where you'll find frozen tundra merging into islands that are ice-bound year-round.
Languages
• English (official)
English and French are the country's two official languages, though the province of New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual area in the country. You will, however, notice both languages on maps, tourist brochures and product labels.
• French (official)
The French spoken in the province of Québec has a rich local vocabulary, its own idioms and sayings and a range of accents. If you speak standard French, Québecers will have no problem understanding you. Also note that within the province of Québec, French is legally the only official language and, outside of tourist areas, English is not widely spoken.
People
British descent, French descent, Italian descent, aboriginal peoples, plus significant minorities of Irish, German, Ukrainian, Dutch, Greek, Polish and Chinese descent
Religion
Catholic (45%), Protestant (36%) and minorities from most of the world's major religions
Government Type
Constitutional Monarchy
Government Leaders
Stephen Harper
Prime Minister (head of government)
Michaëlle Jean (representing Queen Elizabeth II)
Governor General (head of state)
Country Dialing Code
1
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