Geordie Lass

Sorry you have found that but it's not my experience. A couple of the ladies I have met have become really good friends of mine -one in particular I spend a lot of time with and she's nothing like you describe. There are some nice Canadians out there...

ExKiwilass

+2.

Nearly all my friends are not locals. Everyone is 'nice' in neighbourhood/kid's school but it's impossible to break in..not that I care...the non-locals are better anyway....

I am married to a local, and he is a classic example of why it's hard to break in here. He has his group of friends from his highschool/uni years and his family, there's not a lot of time for newbies.

Shard

No word mincing here !

bats

Yep, don't turn your back on them especially at work.

I have made some good friends here but they are not the average Canadian by any means.

bats

She did say most.

Steve_

I do agree somewhat with the "faux" assessment. Canada has a reputation of being "nice" but it does seem to me to be a bit of a false veneer. To some extent I think it is because a lot of Canadians spend six months in their basements watching hockey so they lack social skills. They are very polite but that isn't being friendly.

This is brought home to me whenever I get on a plane or I meet a Canadian in the US. Get on a plane in the US, everyone yaps to each other, perhaps from nervousness but OMG they will not shut the hell up. Get on a plane in Canada and you could hear a pin drop. I've sat on flights where I've been in the aisle seat and the people next to me don't even say anything to me when they want to go to the toilet, they just point. You can always spot the Americans on a Canadian flight because they make all the noise.

Talk about the British being reserved, I think Canadians have a frozen upper lip.

I sometimes think it is my imagination but when I meet Canadians in the US they're much more standoff-ish than Americans are.

People from Newfoundland seem to be the friendliest imx.

Geordie Lass

What's funny is I was talking to my son's teacher who is a typical Canadian - very very friendly and I was trying to explain to her the culture shock that us Brits have coming over here.

She lived in England for two years and she said she felt like people thought she was too much and fake at times and she got her feelings hurt. That's what I was trying to explain to her... Her British neighbour only just admitted to her after knowing her for 3 years that when she met her she thought she was fake because she was so friendly... My son can be shy and the constant talking to him at 100 miles an hour leaves him reeling a bit sometimes... I got through to her eventually (I think).

It works both ways I guess... I have to say at times I was dumbstruck by the friendliness and thinking in the beginning "Are these people for real" - it takes some getting used to.

There are good eggs and bad eggs everywhere you go. I've been lucky to get in with a good bunch.

Shard

I think the problem is reading too much into the initial-friendliness (or fake chumminess as it's been called). The reality is that the over friendliness is a veneer, and Canadians don't take it that seriously. It's like if you go on holiday and meet fellow Brits, and make plans to get together when you're back in Blighty, but have zero intention to do so. It's just a social mechanism.

I don't think it's right to construe the friendliness as fake or to bemoan the locals as being superficial. And I don't think it's anything to do with good eggs or bad eggs ("genuin"e or not) it's just kind of conversational "tone" no more, no less.

Geordie Lass

Man that's a bit deep for me.... I take people as I find them - some I then become friendly with - some I don't. Simple.

Shard

That's the joy of being a northerner, I guess. But when in Rome...

Geordie Lass

I don't live in Rome. I live in Canada...

JonboyE

I think maybe some people make the mistake of assuming that the level of friendliness indicates a desire to make friends. It doesn't. It is just that the default level of social interaction is set at friendlier level than in Europe.

Novocastrian

+1. I lived in California for 5 years before I moved (for the first time) to Canada.

I used to summarize my opinion of Californians to new Canadian friends as follows: "Five minutes after meeting someone there you're friends. Five years later nothing's changed".

The Canadians would nod and agree, but 5 years later nothing would change.

Shard

That, is what I was trying to say!

Gazman

You're quote "the default level of social interaction is set at friendlier level than in Europe" is a very interesting notion and I can see why you make that point, but suddenly aren't we're getting into analytics...rather than expressing gut instincts...???