A few months ago I headed back to Canada after nearly 9 years without a visit. It was a trip I’d been looking forward to for a long time for obvious reasons (friends, family, Christmas, a nice change from the constant Thai heat), but also one that I was a bit nervous about. I don’t think I’ll ever move back permanently. I like to think it’s always a backup option – but what if this trip reveals once and for all how difficult it would be for me to fit back in to Canadian society and culture? I was definitely a victim of reverse culture shock.

The first thing I couldn’t get over was that I could just get a cup of water from the faucet and drink it down. A huge jug, if I wanted to! Despite being deemed safe to drink, tap water in Bangkok is usually avoided unless it’s in small quantities. That means there exists an entire ecosystem here of water delivery companies and plastic bottle recyclers to deal with the all the water that everyone drinks.

While we’re on the topic, bottled water in Canada is INSANE – $2, $3, or even $4 (between 70-140 baht). A 550ml bottle of drinking water in Thailand costs about 8 baht.

It led to a stereotypical Canadian standoff – two people at a standstill, both going “No, after you!”

I was also really unprepared for how courteous Canadian drivers are. In Bangkok, it’s simple – whoever has the most mass wins. But while back home I was constantly stopping before crossing the streets in order to let the cars whiz by, only to find them stopping for me, waiting for me to cross. It led to a stereotypical Canadian standoff – two people at a standstill, both going “No, after you!” Many streets don’t even have crosswalks and – get this – pedestrians have the right of way! I make a joke of it, but it was seriously disorienting.

Canada has weirdly specific graffiti.

Canada has weirdly specific graffiti.

The weather, of course. The west coast is the ‘tropical’ part of Canada and as such it only got down to about 2ºC or even 0ºC one night. As someone who has spent the last decade in a place where it’s about 25ºC almost every day, this took a lot of getting used to. I don’t know how the hell I survived growing up in Calgary when it regularly dipped to -35ºC during the winter months – without the wind chill.

Another thing I loved about Vancouver was how active everyone was. The (ample) parks were filled with people jogging, biking, walking, stretching, or yoga-ing. Kids were out running around despite the chilly weather, and no one seemed at all bothered with being a bit cold while exercising.

But one of the most salient moments for me was when I saw a few RCMP (Royal Canadian Mounted Police) officers walking around in Vancouver. Iconic hat, yellow stripe down the outside of each pant leg, bulletproof vest stuffed with paraphernalia…nothing uncommon to see in Canada, but I was unexpectedly overcome with a surge of national pride. To put it mildly, police in Thailand inspire no such feelings (yes, I know I’m not Thai and therefore wouldn’t experience national pride at seeing anything Thai. Go away.) But when I saw these cops – just regular dudes walking their beat – I knew that if shit went down, I wouldn’t have been able to bribe myself out of a ticket, nor would I have been able to “refuse a breathalyzer test” or get some flunky to take the heat for me – and neither would anyone else. Generally speaking, they represented fairness, honesty, and the rule of law. Those things exist in Thailand, but they are by no means evenly distributed or consistent.

“Don’t let the comically short vest fool you – I’ll beat your ass into the ground if you deserve it. And then apologize.”

But beyond these rather superficial hiccups, if I had to move back to Canada, I think I’d blend back in pretty well. Like riding a bike, the quirks of one’s national psyche are easily remembered and picked up after time away. But I’d still never get used to paying for bottled water when it’s so abundantly available.

A few pictures below.