A (Re)bus Tour of Canada Trivia Quiz

Answer: Vancouver

Van + coo + verre = Vancouver.

Vancouver is the largest city in British Columbia, and one of Canada's most important ports. It was named for the 18th century British explorer Captain George Vancouver.

Answer: Calgary

Cal + Gary = Calgary.

Calgary occupies the site formerly known as Fort la Jonquiere, a French fur-trading fort. It is in the foothills of the Rockies and was named for the Scottish hometown of Colonel James MacLeod of the Northwest Mounted Police (the forerunner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police) in 1875. Calgary is world-famous for its annual Stampede, the rodeo which attracts visitors from every part of the globe.

Cal is short for calorie and Gary Trudeau is the creator of the satirical-political 'Doonesbury' comic strip.

Answer: Victoria

Vic + tor + rhea = Victoria

Victoria is a gem of a city and the capital British Columbia. It's on Vancouver Island, which lies across the Georgia Strait from the lower mainland of BC. Eight ferries a day ply the strait year round, linking the island and the mainland. The trip takes roughly an hour and a half and passengers can often do a little whale watching during the crossiing. Victoria was originally a Hudson's Bay Company fort, trading for furs with the local indigenous peoples. It was named, of course, for Queen Victoria.

Answer: Quebec City

Kay + back + sit + tea = Quebec City

Quebec City is the capital of the Province of Quebec and lies on the St. Lawrence River. It was founded by French explorer Samuel de Champlain in 1608 and was named for the Algonquin word kebec which means 'where the river narrows'. It is one of the oldest continually occupied cities in North America and the only city in North America which retains the wall that surrounded the original settlement. The Plains of Abraham lie above the city, and it was here in September 1759 that French forces under Louis-Joseph de Montcalm attempted to fend off the invasion of the British under General James Wolfe. The Brits won and Quebec and the rest of Canada became a British colony. Both Montcalm and Wolfe perished from wounds received at the battle of the Plains of Abraham. If you visit Quebec City be sure to take a tour of the Lower Town, the oldest part of the city. You'll be transported back to the 17th century. Oh, and don't leave home without your French-English dictionary.

Answer: Ottawa

'ot + tar + war = Ottawa.

Ottawa is Canada's capital city and was formerly known as Bytown, named for Lieutenant-Colonel John By, the Royal Engineers commander of the men who were sent into the Ontario wilderness in 1826 to build a city. The site they chose was a trading site called Adawe (an Algoinquin word meaning 'to trade' which was occupied by the Outaouaks, so it would seem that the city, which was re-named Ottawa in 1857, derives its name from either Adawe or the indigenous people who lived there).

The Rideau Canal in Ottawa (also built by Colonel By and his Royal Engineers) was once known as the longest outdoor ice-skating rink in the world, until Winnipeg created an even longer outdoor ice-skating rink on the Assiniboine River.

Answer: Winnipeg

Win + nap + egg = Winnipeg.

Winnipeg is slap in the middle of North America, and it's pronounced Winna-peg, not winny-peg, and only twits refer to the city as The Peg. Winnipeg is best known for mosquitoes in the humid summers and blizzards in the sub-zero winters, but Winnipeggers are the friendliest people on the planet and always celebrating at some sort of festival - from the Festival du Voyageur in February which commemorates the city's fur-trading roots to the Children's Festival in the spring to the Folk Festival in July, Folklorama (which celebrates the diversity of ethnic groups who have made their home here) and various music, film and theatre festivals.

Answer: Charlottetown

Char + Lot + own = Charlottetown

Charlottetown is the capital of Prince Edward Island, Canada's smallest province. It was founded in 1720 on the island of Abegweit (the original Mi'kmaq name meaning 'cradled on the waves') by French Acadians under the leadership of Michel Hache-Gallant. The Acadians called their settlement Port la Joye. It was taken by the British in 1758 and re-named in honour of the wife of George III, Queen Charlotte of Mecklenberg, and in 1799 the island was re-named in honour of Prince Edward of England. When the French settlers in Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island, and New Brunswick refused to take an oath of loyalty to the British crown they were forced off their lands and dispersed (remember Longfellow's 'Evangeline'?) Many went to Louisiana, others to Maine and some made their way to Quebec.

Charlottetown is known as the Cradle of Confederation because it was in Charlottetown in 1864 that the framework was created for the new Dominion of Canada.

Answer: Halifax

Hal + if + axe = Halifax

Halifax is an important sea port in Nova Scotia (and the capital of that province). Haligonians and indeed all Nova Scotians are known as Bluenoses, hence the clue. Most European settlers arriving in Canada between the late 1870s and the 1940s landed in Halifax.

In 1917 the collision in Halifax harbour between a French munitions carrier and a Belgian relief ship caused the greatest man-made explosion the world had ever known - a record that stood until the detonation of the first atom bomb in 1945. Thousands died and the city was literally laid waste, leaving thousands more homeless. To add insult to injury, one of the worst blizzards ever recorded in Nova Scotia hit the next day and lasted for a week!

Answer: Toronto

Tor + runt + oh! = Toronto

Toronto, situated on the shores of Lake Ontario, is the capital of Ontario and Canada's largest city. I'm one of the few people living west of Mississauga - which is a suburb of Toronto - who loves Toronto. (One of the favourite indoor sports in Canada is hating Toronto!) The city is ethnically diverse, easy to navigate via subway, offers a great variety of entertainment venues, from museums and art galleries to restaurants, nightclubs and concerts, and is generally a great place to visit.

Answer: Montreal

Mon + tree + all = Montreal.

Montreal is one of my favourite cities. If you intend to visit, brush up on your French because it is the first language of the city. Montreal was founded by Paul de Chomedy, Sieur de Maissoneuve, on May 18, 1642, and has grown to be a vibrant, cosmopolitan city. Just be careful crossing the streets in Montreal. In my experience the drivers in that city take a very laissez-faire view of such impediments as traffic lights and stop signs! Montreal is the home of the world's largest comedy festival 'Just for Laughs', which is well worth a visit, and it is also the city in which the world-famous Cirque du Soleil first saw the light of day.