Things I Like In Wales

After all the ranting I’ve done about the UK’s shortcomings, I’m sure I’ve given the impression that I hate it here. And it’s true. But there are things I like and even wish were done the same in Canada. If I were from here or even an immigrant here, I’d turn a blind eye to the offensive elements and see nothing but the positive; who would want to be dissing their home? But it’s not home, it’s just a temporary arrangement and thus is constantly being compared to home. Sometimes favourably. Here’s a few things I like.

I’ve often complained about the twisting, narrow, unmarked roads that burn up the expensive fuel but they have necessitated smaller cars with smaller engines that have a smaller impact on the environment. To encourage people to ‘go small’, the government charges a “Road Tax” that is tied to the size of the car’s engine; the smaller the engine, the smaller the tax. It’s an idea that was floated in Vancouver not so long ago and unsurprisingly was defeated by voters. All those commuters idling in their 4x4’s on the freeway didn’t see the value in giving more of their disposable income to the government. But it transfers the expense of developing and maintaining roadways to the people that use them and makes them responsible for the environmental damage they cause. I don’t get a break on my taxes by riding a bike.

Highchairs in the pubs. Maybe it normalizes drinking for the kids and maybe even encourages them to start drinking sooner (drinking age is 21), but I doubt it. Longitudinal studies would be needed to assess the long term outcome of allowing children into pubs but the pubs are central to the culture here and not just for alcohol consumption. People come to meet their friends,watch a game, celebrate or commiserate. It’s a focal point of the community and I was pleased to see children sitting on their mother’s laps when I went to local pub to see Wales take on England. Kids played, parents high-fived as the Welsh rugby side earned a win and stoked the national pride. Shouldn’t kids be a part of that? Is it any different if the Grey Cup party is at my house where the cheaper alcohol flows even faster? Perhaps excluding the children would only deepen the mystique and heighten the anticipation for them so that when they’re finally allowed in they’d explode onto the scene with more vigour. They are excluded after dinner hour. Fair ‘nuff. They might get stepped on.

The postal service is amazing. If I post a letter today, it’s anywhere in the UK tomorrow. I sent a book recently to a friend in Warrington, about the distance to Kelowna from Vancouver, a 3-4 hour drive. She texted me the next day to say the payslip I’d used as a bookmark was still in the book and she’d mail it back. I got it the next day. AND they have deliveries on Saturdays.

The wine here is cheap and sold in the supermarket. I can buy quality wine that would cost 30-40% more in Vancouver - even cheaper if it’s on sale - and I like to be able to buy it with my groceries. I like that the stores compete for customers and treat wine like any other product on the shelf. It also highlights the expense that import duties add to wine in order to protect local producers. My feeling is that if Canadian vineyards can’t produce a competitive product in both price and quality then maybe that land could be used for growing something more viable.

They don’t have central heating here, in fact, many of the houses had no heat at all until houses were retrofitted with a central boiler to supply both hot water and heat. Newer houses have followed in their footsteps and most heating here comes from the radiators in each room. Not only does this allow different temps in each room it’s an awesome place to place your laundry saving a ton of money on electricity which is very expensive and is provided, in a large part, by coal burning plants. More money in my pocket, less pollution in the air.

If Deb were writing she’d tell you about the horrors of the school curriculum and honestly I don’t like the way they treat kids here. But I do like school lunches, after school clubs and a holiday every six weeks. There’s a ‘breakfast club’ every morning so parents with an early start can drop off the kids on their way to work and after school there are supervised sports or art activities to keep the kids safe and entertained until Mom or Dad returns. The schools also provide nutritious lunches very cheap. I couldn’t pack a sandwich and a piece of fruit as cheap as they provide a hot meal with dessert and milk.. The school year runs longer here than in Canada - about a month - but there’s a week long holiday every six weeks which provides respite for young minds and opportunities for families to spend time together. Of course I’m biased because we use that time to travel but it also allows better use of the buildings and opportunities for maintenance work.

The road tax, tv tax, sales tax, income tax, fuel tax and who knows how many other hidden taxes leave the populace with less money in their pockets but fund social programs thay increase the quality of life for those unable to adequately care for themselves. There are malingerers, as there are everywhere, but everyone is guaranteed a decent standard of living - even the mentally ill. In Alberta, the richest province in Canada, they give the least amount to the disabled. In Vancouver a disability pension ($857/month) puts the recipient so far below the poverty line that to rise to it would double their standard of living. In the UK the mentally ill wear decent clothes they’ve purchased in a store, not a handout from a charity. They can occasionally enjoy takeout, even own a phone. It’s embarassing to describe the financial condition of our mentally ill in BC. With all our wealth, we should be ashamed.

And finally: the architecture. We just don’t see this stuff in Canada. Quebec has some stuff from the 1800’s, this place goes back forever. Most of the impressive buildings were built during its economic heyday in the 1800’s when coal and shipping and the British Empire were supreme. But I’ve visited graveyards here with dates from the 1700’s and castles with Roman remnants. Thousands of years of history underfoot. I love walking the streets and gawking at the old stuff, imagining the lives that have passed through there. It’s why I put my Canadian life on hold.