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How Others See Us

My lawnmower was acting up, and my handy son number one (who can fix anything) took a look and diagnosed, “It needs a new spark plug” – and out he went to purchase one. When he returned, he had a big grin on his face. “Mom, there is a red German “Feuer wehr” van in front of Canadian Tire, you should go and see it”.
I was puzzled about the German fire van here? Was he pulling my leg? “No, really! It has German license plates and emergency phone number 122 on it”, he assured me. Well, I had planned to go to the camp anyway, to return the washed bedding from my company the week before. I packed a sandwich, took my dog and was on my way to spend a leisurely day by the lake — but took a detour along Broadway Avenue and really! There was the red Feuer wehr van! Under the pumper it had written in sure German correctness; ‘service vehicle not in operation anymore’.
I couldn’t help it, I stopped right beside it, knocked on the side window and said in German, as a young smiling man rolled down the window: “what is the German Feuer wehr doing here in the middle of Canada?” (I assumed he spoke my language).
“We are travelling through Canada and beyond “, came his answer. “Winnipeg is our next stop”. I don’t recall exactly the impromptu conversation that followed, but just as many pleasant encounters in my life start spontaneously – so did this. He extended his hand through the window, my name is Konstantine and pointing to the back of his van, which was converted into a cozy living space, and this is my wife, Janneke.”
“I am Karin”, I said, “Are you on a strict schedule? Or can I invite you to my rustic cabin by a lake to swim, and good conversation…?
Both agreed. Then I remembered I had nothing prepared for a meal. Only my sandwich… and it wasn’t enough for three…
I explained to both my problem-but as experienced travelers they were prepared. I led them in the Feuer wehr halfway to my camp, parked it, and both with a small backpack joined me in my truck, navigating potholes and rough spots.
It turned out to be a wonderful day with glorious sunshine, nature pure and two very interesting smart strangers (no more). I can only repeat snippets of conversation, for example, how did the converted fire van came to Canada? By container, landed in Halifax. How long have you been married? Janneke looked at her watch-and after a long pause said, six weeks! We had a goodbye party arranged for friends and family: of course everybody was dressed casually, and then we surprised everyone by saying “We are getting married today!”
Lastly we talked about one of my dear to my heart subjects, “littering!” We did not want to elaborate on such a beautiful day about trash, so Konstantine promised to give me his opinion in writing later. Here’s what Janneke wrote in my logbook and what Konstantine thinks about our pristine country”
“What a wonderful and welcome afternoon in the wilderness Konstantine and I were stealing the Wi-Fi from Canadian Tire when we heard an unexpected knock on our Feuer wehr van. “Who could this be?” we thought.  Fantastically Karin had tracked us down via her son and took us here-to the most glorious cabin in the woods for an afternoon of sunshine, lake and amazing white chocolate biscuits.
We’re only at the start of our trip but what brilliant memories to be making already! Thank you for finding us and picking us up and bringing us here. Sharing stories and sitting in the sunshine-beautiful!!”  ~ Janneke
A few days later, Konstantine sent an email to my daughter-in-law Brenda at Wawa-news. Here is his response:

A few words about litter…

Canada. The word has always evoked a sense of vastness in me. It stands for pristine remote wilderness and bountiful beautiful landscapes. Its people are renowned for being incredibly friendly and helpful. I have dreamt about coming to Canada for decades. It’s been a childhood dream.
Now, this dream has finally come true. I’m currently driving across Canada with my wife as part of our bigger adventure of driving across the Americas. When we were planning this trip we always wanted to make the most of all the beautiful places we would visit. For us, that usually means outdoor activities. So far we’ve been hiking, trail running and canoeing in various national and provincial parks, and most of the ideas I’ve had in my head about Canada have been confirmed. It’s beautiful, it’s vast, it’s wild. We have seen some incredible wildlife.
Only pristine it was not. Even on the shore of the remotest lake we canoed to we stumbled across empty power bar wrappers. At the end of trails we ran we found empty beer cans. On rocks at the bottom of a waterfall in the middle of nowhere we found cigarette butts.
We were shocked. Canadians were mistreating their biggest asset. Nature.
Wherever we can, we pick up after other people. The outdoors (and any place really) are just nicer without the rubbish. You’ve already carried in the full cans of beer and the power bars and the water bottles and the sandwiches. Now, refreshed and strengthened from your little snack, surely you have the energy to pick it all up and carry it out.
And then there’s the pit toilets. Both common sense and the signs on every toilet clearly state: please no rubbish, as it won’t decompose. We’ve even seen toilets where people had decided they didn’t like the smell of it, so they instead relieved themselves just outside. Such disrespect towards the park rangers who will have to clean it up is truly mindboggling.
If you look closely, you’ll find that the ditches lining the trans-Canadian highway are full of litter too. There’s lots of plastic bottles, some of them filled with the urine of truckers, we’ve seen diapers and even completely full garbage bags.
Of course, you’ll find rubbish wherever you go in the world. It just doesn’t fit my picture perfect images of Canada.
So for now we travel on westwards, searching for a spot that is truly remote and free of rubbish. ~ Konstantin
You can follow Janneke and Konstantin on their blog – http://guidiary.com
Brenda Stockton
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