Yesterday it was Canada Day. If you have surfed around the world wide web there is no way that you could have missed that piece of information. Canadians are proud people; they are proud of their country and if you ever have the chance to meet a Canadian on the loose in a different country than Canada you will know what I mean.

The first time I ever met a Canadian there was no way I could have missed that he was from Canada. He had Canadian flags everywhere; on his backpack, his wallet, his t-shirt and he even had a maple leaf tattooed on his arm. Coming from a country where they call you a fascist, racist and neo-Nazi when you walk around with a Dutch flag on your bomber jacket, you can understand my first reaction; “He either really loves his country or he must really hate foreigners!”

Never shy to confront someone, I asked him why on earth he was covered with Canadian flags. His answer was simple: “I don’t want to be confused with an American and I love my country.” I always thought that going over the top and doing things bigger and better was the American way of life. How wrong was I?

It was not just that guy that was covered in Canadian flags. No… every Canadian that I meet during my travels has at least two objects with a Canadian flag. Every now and then you meet a Canadian in disguise. But if you get him drunk enough sooner or later they will drop their pants and you can see that they have the Canadian flag or maple leaf tattooed on their ass.

So when I heard that it was Canada day yesterday I got this mental picture in my head about what Canada day must be like. I bet all Canadians have their national flag hanging out the window. They all go out and get tattoos of Canadian flags or maple leafs and buy badges of the Canadian flag in bulk so they can sew it to every little piece of material they own. They do this while they drink Canadian beer or whine and listen to Canadian music and munch on Canadian snacks. I bet they have the time of their lives!

Ps. I love Canadians, they are lovely people!