Geography and Climate
Canada, with total area of 9,984,670 sq km, is the second largest country in the world and has the world’s largest coastline. The country borders North Atlantic Ocean on the east, North Pacific Ocean on the west, the Arctic Ocean on the north, and the United States of America (USA) on the South. Canada is over 7,000 kilometres from east to west and it would take around seven days to drive from Halifax in Nova Scotia to Vancouver in British Columbia or about seven hour if you travel by air.

 

 

Canada has 10 provinces and three territories in five main regions. Following table shows the regions, their provinces/territories and the capital of each province/territory. Ottawa, the national capital of Canada, is in Ontario.

 

 

Each region has different climate. North region is like a frozen desert and most of the year is covered by snow. Summer in this region lasts approximately two months and temperatures rise above freezing only a few weeks a year. The West Coast has more temperate climate comparing to other regions. Four distinct seasons (spring, summer, autumn and winter) can be seen in the most of Canada but the weather and temperatures in each season is different from one area to another area. Spring in most of Canada is March, April, and early May. The average daytime temperatures in spring are about 12ºC, but the nights are cooler. July and August are summer in most parts of country. Summer is very warm, especially in southern Canada in which daytime temperatures are normally above 20ºC and sometimes rise above 30ºC. Autumn begins in September when the weather cools and the leaves on many trees change colour. Autumn, or fall, can be very rainy and in some parts of Canada snow may begin to fall. Average daytime temperatures are 10ºC to 12ºC in most of the country. Winter officially begins in December and lasts till the end of February. The temperature in the most of the country usually stays below 0ºC and sometimes drops below -25ºC. In most of Canada, snow falls from December to the middle of March.

Economy and Government
Canada is one of the world’s wealthiest nations and its economy is quite diverse. Canada’s economy is made up of three main types of industries: natural resources, manufacturing and services.
From oil and gas to precious minerals, lumber, and agriculture, the country is rich in natural resources Natural resources industries, such as mining, oil and gas extraction, farming, agriculture, forestry, and fishing have always been important to the Canada’s economy and have played an important role in country’s development. Manufacturing industries, centred in Ontario and Quebec, are important sources of jobs and export earnings. The most significant manufactured products include paper, automobile, food, technological equipment, and clothing. Canada is also a world leader in the field of telecommunications, biotechnology, aerospace technologies, information technology and pharmaceuticals. Service industries provide thousands of different jobs in areas like transportation, education, health care, construction, banking, communication and government. Service industry employs about three quarters of Canadians.

The Canadian dollar is the basic unit of money and the $50, $10, and $20 bills are the most common paper bills, but $50 and $100 bills are also used. Canadian coins include penny (one cent), nickel (five cents), dime (10 cents), quarter (25 cents), loonie ($1) and toonie ($2). The Canadian 1 dollar coin is commonly called loonie because of the picture of a loon on one side of the coin.

 

Canada is a democratic federation. Canada is democratic since it has a parliamentary system of government and is a federation because powers and responsibilities are divided between three levels of governments: federal, provincial, and municipal. These governments are elected by Canadian citizens.
The federal government, in general, is responsible for matters that affect all of Canada. These include national defence, foreign policy, banking, postal service, criminal law, immigration, and citizenship. Provincial/territorial governments look after matters that are related to their province/territory, matters such as education, health care, transportation and highways, farming, and environment.
The municipal (or local) governments of each city or community are responsible for local matters and services. These include police and firefighting, snow removal, water and sewer services, recycling programs, and local public transportation.

Education and Health Care
Since Schools and Universities are overseen and run by the provinces, there are many variations between the provinces. In general, Education is divided into Elementary School (Primary School), Secondary School (High School), and Post Secondary (University, College). Primary and secondary schools teach students up to the grade 12 level. Eeducation in Canada is compulsory and the compulsory age for most provinces is 16 (two exceptions are Ontario and New Brunswick, where the compulsory age is 18). There are both public and private schools and most elementary and secondary schools are public and free of charge. The school year usually runs from late August or early September until mid-to late June. Most provinces have provided kindergartens and pre-kindergartens to make the students ready to start their first grade in elementary schools. Primary or elementary schools teach students from the grade 1 up to the end of grade 6 or 8. The secondary education, then, is followed in high schools up to the end of grade 12. Students are required to complete their secondary education in high school to be able to obtain an admitted from a university or college. Post secondary education is not free and tuitions need to be paid by students. The regular university year runs from late August early September until the end of April.

Canada’s public health care system is one the finest health insurance programs in the world that covers critical health care services for Canadian citizens and also Canadian permanent residents. Medicare is a national service, but each province runs its own program. Hence, there might be some variations from province to province. In some provinces, for instance, newcomers will not be covered as soon as they settle in the province (permanent residents in Ontario, British Columbia, Quebec, and New Brunswick have a three-month eligibility waiting period) or in some provinces you have to pay a small monthly fee for the insurance. Services that are covered by public health insurance include examination and treatment by doctors, many types of surgery, hospital care, X-rays, Many laboratory tests; and most immunizations. Ambulance services, prescription drugs; dental care, and glasses and contact lenses, and alternative medicine services are not covered by the Medicare.

Family and lifestyle
Canada with around 33 million people has one the lowest population density, 3.3 residents per sq. km, in the world. Canada is an immense and culturally diverse country. In fact, there are more than 200 distinct ethnics in Canada and “the Canadian Multiculturalism Act” recognizes this cultural diversity. The Multiculturalism Act states that all Canadians are free to maintain and share their cultural heritage. Women, men, children, and seniors are all equally respected in Canada and shared values such as belief in equality, respect for all individuals in society, working together and helping each other make Canada a friendly, helpful, amiable and secure society in which to live. Working together and helping each other are very important ethics in Canada and millions of volunteers, people who help others without being paid, who join community groups to help with local projects.
AS one income is not enough to raise a family most mothers work outside and both parents share the responsibility of shopping, cooking, cleaning the house, and looking after the children. Marriage is a significant event in a Canadian’s life and all family members get together in a wedding ceremony. Divorce is recognized as a way to legally end a failed marriage and either wife or husband can ask for a divorce. As divorce has become more common, around 12 percent of Canadian families are one-parent family.
Some social practices are well established in Canada including lining up and respect for the principle of “ first-come, first serve”, not smoking in private homes and ask for the permission to smoke when you are in people’s home, punctuality, protecting the environment, and avoidance of littering. In addition to these social practices, there are some laws that all Canadians should be aware of:

As a permanent resident of Canada who holds a PR card, you must renew your card before its expiry date to keep your status as a permanent resident. To renew your PR card you must live in Canada for at least two years within a five-year period. The permanent residents of Canada can also apply to become Canadian citizen. There is no obligation for immigrants to become Canadian citizens and they are free to live in Canada for as long as they wish, provided that they are in the country legally and abide by the laws of the land.
To be eligible to become a Canadian citizen, you must be aged 18 or over, have permanent resident status in Canada, have lived in Canada for at least three years (1,095 days) of the past four years before applying (except for children) and be able to understand, speak, read and write English or French. In addition, you should not be convicted of an criminal offence during your stay in Canada and must not be under a removal order (an order by Canadian officials to leave Canada).
You must take a ‘citizenship test’ to demonstrate that you know about the rights and responsibilities of a citizen, and have a reasonable knowledge of Canada’s geography, history and political system. The citizenship test is usually a written test of around 20 questions, but you may be asked to come to an interview with a citizenship judge. Children under 18 and adults over 54 don’t need to sit a citizenship test. If you pass the test and meet all the other requirements, you will be notified to attend a ceremony to take the oath of citizenship. The citizenship ceremony is the final step in becoming a Canadian citizen. Canadian citizens have the right to vote in federal, provincial and territorial elections, be candidates in elections, and have a Canadian passport.