by Jerome Carter

Created on: October 28, 2010

Canada is the world’s second largest country in terms of land area.  Its population, however, is just a fraction of that of the United States.  Not surprisingly, then, the country contains vast expanses of unpopulated wilderness.  Yet Canada also boasts of thriving urban centers such as Toronto, Montreal, Vancouver, Calgary and Edmonton.

Southern Quebec and the St. Lawrence Valley

The province of Quebec is unique in North America because of its dominant French language and francophone culture.  Visitors to Quebec can visit historic Quebec City, one of the earliest surviving European settlements in North America.  The city’s winter carnival is the Quebecois equivalent of New Orleans’ Mardis Gras.  Further up the St. Lawrence River is the vibrant and heterogeneous city of Montreal, one of North America’s major ports and urban centers.

Southern Ontario and Ottawa

Southern Ontario is one of the most densely populated and most fertile region of Canada.  This is the home to both some of Canada’s best farmland and to its biggest city, Toronto.  This multicultural metropolis is the chief destination for immigrants arriving in Canada.  The city’s economic magnetism also draws migrants from across Canada.  In Toronto you will find a wide variety of festivals and events going on year round, in a safe and clean city.  Outside of Toronto is Niagara Falls, one of Canada’s most popular tourist destinations since at least the late nineteenth century.  Here you can watch one of the world’s largest waterfalls and explore a small town that seems to be entirely devoted to the tourist industry.  The Niagara Region is also home to some of Canada’s best wine-growing territory.  In Kitchener, west of Toronto, you can visit the local farmers’ market in the summer.  Ottawa, Canada’s capital city, is located on the Ontario-Quebec border.  The city is known for its government buildings and museums.  In the winter the city’s Rideau Canal freezes over and turns into a vast skating rink.

The Prairies

The Canadian Prairie provinces- Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta- are Canada’s answer to the American Wild West.  Since the early part of the twentieth century, the region has provided much of Canada’s wheat and grain harvest.  Before that the region was frequented by fur traders and herds of bison.  More recently

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