Right now its February 21st and I've been in Surabaya, Indonesia for over a month. One question that I get fairly frequently is "Business or Vacation" and I tell people honestly that it is neither. Of course that makes them confused as it is either business or fun, right? Then I tell them I'm here to escape Canadian winter. That's not actually false. The day I arrived in Surabaya which was a comfortable 24C low and 28C high temperature, my sister sent me a message saying her town was in a deep freeze at -38C.
That's actually a rhetorical question as no sane person chooses a temperature which can kill you quickly if unprepared.
However escaping Canadian winter and living somewhere else gives perspective. I'm in a much less affluent country yet I do not see homeless people sleeping on sidewalks. I do not see people intoxicated with alcohol or drugs being disorderly in neighborhoods I'd prefer to avoid. I also look at the hotels I'm staying at which are so fancy I could never afford them in Canada. On that note a quick comparison of two hotels.
Image from Marriott Bonvoy booking page
Image from Marriot Bonvoy booking page
(The JW Marriot in Surabaya is really nice but the Sheraton is nicer and same price in case you wondered why I didn't choose same brand).
Here is the thing. I've stayed in both. They are both beautiful. They both have awesome staff and luxury amenities. You feel special in both and the food, pool, meeting spaces etc are really top notch.... for the same price.
But the prices actually have a deeper story behind them.
In Surabaya wages are low. The city has few tourist spots. There is low demand here for major conventions and gatherings. Base food costs are a fraction of the cost in Canada. Competition is also fierce as there are a lot of very good hotels here and a much lower tourist base. Premium luxury can be crated for a much lower cost and hotels compete aggressively for patrons.
In Vancouver? Wages are much higher. The city is postcard perfect with no end of beautiful places to visit. There is more demand than available space for major conventions. Food and maintenance costs are much much more expensive. There are fewer hotels due to lack of space and high demand for the rooms available. Premium luxury is very expensive
I use that example to serve as an indirect example of the housing crisis. The idea is that when there is a lack of space things get expensive. That goes for both hotels and homes. Last year my son got an excellent job in Vancouver. He is also the ideal tenant. Makes good money. Spends much of his time working and weekends at home. He has an excellent credit score which is proof he pays his bills on time. Plus he is scrupulously clean and as a tradesman he can fix anything that goes wrong. Plus he knows the area well as he has family in the area.
How long did it take him for find a place to rent?
Was he picky? Did he just hold out for a great deal? Did he want the best neighborhood? Nope. Six months to find :
Admittedly after staying there for 6 months he was finally able to find a nice room for rent where he gets a shared cooking space, two bathrooms to share between 4 tenants, and a key for $800/month. However, it still stands: Finding a space to live can be brutal even for locals with money and contacts. For those who fall on hard times homeless camps are a very real problem.
Being homeless is bad. Sleeping on the streets is never fun. However, a few years ago the BC government decriminalized drugs. Drug abuse became more prevalent, more open, and deaths from overdose skyrocketed. It was decriminalized and supervised injection sites were created with nurses and security staff on site. Unfortunately it made the streets much sketchier. Not everywhere of course but places like the downtown east side became something .... I don't even know the word. Unpleasant just doesn't seem strong enough.
If you are curious you can check out a YouTube video Here
To say that those problems are caused by the government would be a gross overstatement. However, the previous federal government under the former government didn't help. Justin Trudeau led the country for a lot of years. I personally didn't care for a lot of his policies. He was very much about reconciliation with aboriginal peoples. He was very much for inclusion of visible minorities. He was very much for people living as they wish. Part of living as you wish was legalizing marijuana and taking a soft stance on hard drugs. I'm going to say that was not a net positive for Canada. He also had a stance of allowing many immigrants into the country. In theory I love the idea of more immigrants as they make Canada far more vibrant. However, I believe that you don't invite someone to stay in your house overnight unless you have somewhere for them to sleep. In the same way you shouldn't invite more immigrants than there are homes for them to live in.
A soft or even permissive stance on illicit drugs and an open door policy for immigration leaving no places for people to live are certainly contributing factors to what I see as two of the biggest problems where I live in Canada.
Often a new government gets elected and there is always the same routine. Lots of promises, lots of talk, and everything stays the same. Sound familiar?
This time was different
2026 was when Canada had a chance to vote Justin Trudeau and the Liberal party out of office. The country was widely set to vote in a new leader from a different part. Then our closest neighbor and ally became hostile.
In January 2025 President Trump was elected into office as President of the United States. Canadians generally thought of the Americans as family. Kind of a older and younger brother vibe. We had great trading relations, preferred entry for vacations and a long history of co-operation.
Then overnight their President calls us freeloaders and that Canada has an artificial border with the USA and that we should become a state because Canada really isn't a country. Perhaps I'm paraphrasing but the idea is clear...the very existence of our country was attacked. That deeply insulted most Canadians and it brought us together as a nation. Parts of the country that used to bicker against each other and internal rivalries seemed petty against our nations survival. As a nation we banded together to boycott American products and travel to the USA. Seeing a maple leaf on home grown labels is now commonplace whereas before it would have been considered silly.
Then the Canadian election came and the president said who he thought would be the best choice. The person who was most likely to win the election handily lost steam almost overnight and the underdog and leader of the liberal party became the new leader. No more Trudeau, now we have Mark Carney as Prime Minister.
And that's a difference. Mark Carney got a Bachelors Degree at Harvard and a Masters Degree at Oxford. He is a banker who led both the Bank of Canada and the equivalent in the United Kingdom (not at the same time). Justin Trudeau was a high school drama teacher (yes, also math, humanities and a few others..but still).
We went from someone who tried to make everyone happy in Canada. A person who insulted Saudi Arabia by saying they needed to change their views on women's rights. A person who insulted India to the point where he wasn't greeted by their Prime minister when he arrived but rather a lower cabinet member. A prime minister who got in a political fight with China over holding a foreign national on an extradition request by the USA. To a Prime Minister who got standing applause at Davos by the international community.
Now Canada has traditionally had free trade with the United States. Our borders, pipelines, and shipping is absolutely aimed at sending things south to the USA. At least until their President said "we are putting tariffs on everyone".
Canadian auto manufacturing suffered severe losses. Our steel and aluminum industry has had huge uncertainty. In general there has been an awful lot of economic uncertainty.
Now we are worried about things like: Will we be taken over? Will the USA invade? Will we have jobs? How badly will our economy suffer because of this?
... in addition to the problems that were already there before like homelessness and drug addiction.
Canadians have always been proud of our country and our flag. Now we are more united than ever and the slogan "Elbows Up" resonates with many. If you don't know the term it's from hockey, our national winter sport, and refers to putting up your elbows when you need to fight. We aren't crazy, we don't want to fight with the Americans, but we aren't just going to cower either. I'm glad President Trump brought our country together.
Additionally our new Prime Minister is actively working to diversify our trade markets and reduce our independence on the USA. More than that he is actively working to create new infrastructure inside the country and spend tax dollars on projects that will create value in the years to come. Instead of spending money on keeping people happy, he seems more focused on getting financial returns on the money spent. I guess that's the banker in him rather than the drama teacher :)
and a lot of that shows up in new cars.
For years Canada has followed the USA when it comes to vehicle regulations. The USA puts 100% tariff on Chinese vehicles...Canada follows suit. The USA puts vehicle size and safety restrictions on foreign cars so Canada follows suit (and I can't get a KEI car from Japan). Makes sense because with free trade Canada actually makes many "American" cars. Then American tariffs poisoned the Canadian auto industry. Then Canada started looking elsewhere.
I think that's a good thing. American tastes are for large vehicles. Large expensive vehicles. In that regard the market for inexpensive vehicles in Canada is virtually non-existent anymore. A decade ago I bought a Mitsubishi Mirage for about $15,000 and even a couple years ago it was still selling in Canada for about $17,000... but it was the last of the subcompacts in Canada. Right now the least expensive vehicle is the Nissan Versa which would be about $26,000 after paying fees and taxes. It has been scheduled to be taken off the market in Canada.
Average vehicle price in Canada right now is well over $60,000 dollars! Owning a car used to be a must have and a new car was something to look forward to. Now? People start looking very hard at the numbers before purchasing.
Recently Canada signed a deal with China to reduce the tariff on their electric vehicles from 100% to 6% and allow some inexpensive Chinese vehicles into the Canadian market. Right now I'm in Indonesia and I can see these vehicles on the street and in the showrooms. Prices for cars here starts at $12,000 after fees and taxes which is less than half what I'd pay in Canada.
Chinese cars at a low price point in Canada? That shakes up the market. It makes a crack in the old "fortress North America" and promotes competition. I see that as a very good thing.
In addition our Prime Minister is committed to seeing that Canada makes innovative vehicles moving forward. Hopefully with an eye towards partnership with Chinese automobile brands. That is huge. It shows we are committed to the future and alliance outside just Canada/USA.
Sure it was comfortable and convenient when we have one big, rich, trading partner. Overall I think having a diversified trading network will be much better in the future.
I wish I could say that everything is great in Canada. I can show you beautiful postcard pictures and point to orderly streets and rule of law but things certainly aren't all rosy. With the old ways changing and new realities showing up the road ahead is uncertain and that is scary. However, people have gone through dark times before and survived, I'm quite sure that will happen again this time. I didn't vote for Carney as Prime Minister (I wasn't in the country so I couldn't vote) and I may not agree with him on lots of stuff. However, a competent change in government followed by putting money to use wisely and diversifying trading networks seems like a shift in the right direction.
And as always feel free to disagree and leave comments. That's my response to the Hive Learners prompt on what's bad in your country (homelessness, drug use, threats to sovereignty) and what is good in the country (shaking up the old ways to find new, hopefully better ones). Thanks for reading this far, always appreciate the views.
