Musings from Toronto

Volume 2.

I am counting down my days in Toronto, and Canada, and to be honest, I don’t feel like leaving. There’s just this feeling or lifestyle difference when you live in a society that just works, and no matter how hard you try to explain it, I’m afraid you won’t find the right words. However, before someone reads this article and decides to sell their family home to relocate to Canada, let me offer some caveats, starting with some reality checks.

It could get Depressingly Lonely

We arrived in Canada towards the end of the cold winter period. Some of my folks still tell me that what we met was not winter and we should count ourselves lucky. However, the weather was extremely cold when we arrived, and to make matters worse, I had booked and paid to live in a basement apartment for a month.

To be honest, this was no fault of the Airbnb host, since it was stated in the description, but blame the Nigerian in me for not carefully reading it, or maybe I just couldn’t fathom the implications of living in a basement. But we needed somewhere close to Mississauga for our primary assignment in Canada, and I thought a Condo wouldn’t fit our needs. So I saw pictures of a beautiful apartment and boom, booked.

With that one action began our depressing stay in the harsh cold of Canada. For my Nigerian audience who still can’t fathom or understand what a basement looks like, living in one typically means you are living underground, you don’t see the sun, you don’t see the moon, you can’t tell if it is snowing outside or if your delivery guy is at the door. I would sometimes wake up feeling like someone was walking on my head because the ceilings were low. So low, I could touch it without standing on my toes. We had to live under these circumstances until our primary assignment was completed. It couldn’t have been more difficult with a 2-year-old boy, whose main preoccupation was seeing the world, and during a period when we needed all the support we could get.

Immediately, we were done with the primary assignment in Mississauga, I booked another apartment in Downtown Toronto, and we did not even wait to finish our stay in the basement before checking out. And trust the saying that your home affects your mood and your mental health far more than you think. Moving to a Condo with an exhilarating view of the city quickly made me forget the initial, depressing, lonely period. And so I don’t limit this to an apartment; having conversations with folks who have been in Canada for a while also shows how the first few years can be extremely difficult and depressing, especially if you don’t have a solid plan or support system. Notice this is the only bold text in the body. Take it seriously!

Having started with the caveat, Canada really feels like a place where dreams can come true, where you feel genuinely safe, and where there are opportunities for a decent lifestyle. And one way to measure this is the number of pets in the city. This is no joke, by the way. There is a positive correlation between wealth and pet ownership, particularly dogs, which is my next point.

There are more Dogs than Kids in Downtown Toronto

Living in a high-rise condo in Downtown Toronto, with a 180-degree view of the city, meant I could see what was happening on the street from my apartment. And while I am not sure of the exact statistics, I am certain I saw more dogs than kids in downtown Toronto. You would, infact, see someone pushing a stroller, only to get closer and notice that it is a dog, not a baby.

I found this fascinating, coming from a background where you are supposed to be scared of dogs and expected them to be in a cage until recently, when we now have pet dogs in the house, and even at that, we still limit them to smaller breeds. I saw dogs that are almost the size of a lion being kept as pets, and the owners would even encourage you to touch them because they are friendly. Abeg oooo.

And dogs, by the way, are not the only pets in Toronto. I walked into a bank branch to set up an account some time ago, and my experience also underscores why living in a society that works makes life easier. From the little things like offering me something to drink and walking me through all available options so I can choose what works best for my needs. But I’ll try to limit this section to pets. I saw two dogs in the banking hall by the way, and I couldn’t help but imagine if the security guys at the bank in Nigeria would allow you to bring your dog into the banking hall.

So I got talking to the lady who was helping me to set up my account. From her home country, India, to her African boyfriend, to life in Canada, we got to the conversation about the number of dogs in Toronto, which she also found fascinating, and then she told me she has her pets too. And you won’t guess the pets, two cats and a ball python. Mama, how far now? I didn’t say this, though. I just laughed and imagined how she is able to deal with such a combination in my head.

I would later learn that keeping dogs or owning pets, especially here, is not just a passing desire or for fancy, but for their psychological benefits and to guard against the depressing loneliness I had earlier referenced. So fair one, I must say.

You are able to feel and touch Science and Math

Important musing from Canada is how you are able to see and use Science and Mathematics in your everyday life. One simple example of this was our visit to the 360 restaurant at CN Towers. It was a good day, and Arsenal, which is my club, had just won the league, so I asked that we step out for dinner.

We dined at the 360 Restaurant, which completes one rotation every 72 minutes, giving you a full-circle view of Toronto while you dine. While the view of the city from such a height was magnificent, it also effortlessly explains how the Earth can revolve around the Sun, and it doesn’t feel like the Earth is rotating. We were sitting in the restaurant, and it felt like the city was moving, not the restaurant. Also, because the CN Tower is one of the tallest free-standing structures in the world, ascending the elevator also quietly explained Dalton’s Law, which explains how atmospheric pressure drops as you ascend in altitude.

And this is just one example of how you interact with Math and Science in your everyday life. The average Nigerian has a math or numbers problem, and to be honest, you won’t blame us. While almost everyone learned units of measurement in primary or secondary school, we didn’t use them to quantify physical properties in our everyday lives. For some of us, the default measurement for food items growing up was “Derica”, “paint”, “tin milk”, and other informal, non-universal measurements. Now imagine you have to deal with standardised measurements when shopping online, or cardinal directions when you ask someone to tell you how to get to a place. The average Canadian would say, go North, turn East, then go south, not your default go straight, turn right, and then another right. While this may be difficult at first, you will quickly catch up with standardised measurement, and the next time you see 200 grams on the spaghetti label while shopping online, you will be able to decide whether that is what you want or something bigger.

So if you are planning to relocate and you don’t want to waste money while shopping online like me on some occasions, start learning standard units of measurement, and specifically the International System of Units (SI) if Canada is your destination.

The Spring Bloom, Taxes, and Inexistent Neighbours

I mentioned that we got to Canada towards the end of winter, and the first question I asked myself when I experienced the magical spring bloom was: why don’t we experience this in Nigeria? Well, I searched and found that Nigeria does not experience a “spring bloom” because it is located in the tropical zone near the equator, which means it doesn’t have the four distinct seasons (spring, summer, autumn, winter) seen in temperate regions. For my Ikorodu folks, the spring bloom is the seasonal awakening of plants, flowers, and trees, and it felt amusing or almost magical waking up to find a withered tree had blossomed overnight.

Another musing is the fact that you will see taxes everywhere you turn or in everything you do. You’ll see HST on almost everything, including property tax, even if you’re just renting. And you are not spared even if you are visiting. You’ll complain at first. But then you see where it goes. The roads are fixed before potholes become craters. Snow is cleared at 4 AM. The library is free and air-conditioned. The park beside your condo has washrooms (yes, not toilets LOL) that work. You realize taxes here are not “contributions to Asiwaju’s 2027 ambition.” They’re subscriptions to a society that works. Painful subscription, but you’re getting value.

And the neighbours... In Lagos, your neighbour, especially the mainland neighbours, knows your business before you know it yourself. Here, your neighbour can live beside you for 2 years, and you’ll only know their name if you both reach for the elevator button at the same time. No gist, no unsolicited advice on your marriage, your child, or your car. At first, it feels cold. But then you understand: privacy is respect here. People assume you can handle your life until you ask for help. They won’t enter your business. I miss the noise. But I’m learning that silence can be a form of care too. So the spring bloom gives you air. The taxes buy you order. The neighbours give you peace. None of it is free. All of it is intentional.

Yet despite the initial caveats, I still don’t feel like leaving. Because here, there is a correlation between effort and results. When the traffic light works, when the delivery arrives, when the math in the CN Tower elevator makes sense, you start to believe that things can work. And that belief is dangerous in the best way. It rewires, motivates, and pushes you.

So, while we must leave now. We will be back. And of course, why not? Canada is now a second home, and even more so now that we have a Canadian citizen in our family.

See you again, the Great White North.