Welcome to Canada

Mom and I have been in Canada for the last couple of days, so we've been more difficult to contact than usual. It turns out that when we started planning this trip, we kinda forgot that Canada is another country, with it's own laws and money and stuff. In fact, the entry started inauspiciously. The border control agent asked us some questions. "Do you have any tobacco products?" "Do you have any firearms?" "Do you have any pepper spray?" We answered. "No, no, wait, pepper spray?" I had discovered it earlier when I was rooting around my glove compartment looking for something else. It was a little key chain pepper spray bottle, that, as it turns out, is illegal in Canada. Mom tries to get it out to hand it to the border control agent, and he kinda yells at her to drop it, please. Anyway, we have to go park and let a (very cute) Canadian customs officer take it out of the car. For future reference, it's legal to have bear spray and dog spray, but nothing for use on humans.

Anyway, we make it into Canada (after I signed away the rights to my pepper spray - I had to agree to let them have it and never get it back), when we realized that we would need to get some Canadian money if we wanted to eat. However, neither of us had called our banks to let them know that we would travel internationally, so my ATM card did not work. Her card was fine though (apparently it's not a problem for BB&T) and we managed to get money. I called my bank and got my cards activated, so all is good now.

Other fascinating Canadian facts:

1. People really are nicer here (even the toll lady - which is very different from the toll collectors in New Jersey).
2. You can get gas and then pay for it inside (I guess that they're not worried that you'll drive away without paying).
3. When you're driving, there are "exits" that aren't really exits, they're just turns.
4. There's a dollar and two dollar coin, but other than that the coins are in the same denominations as American money.
5. One random man in the grocery store recommend that Mom try head cheese (she was looking for pimento cheese - not the same).
6. Everything is written in English and French (however, New Brunswick is the only officially bilingual province).
7. It is very beautiful here.