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Over 30,000 km it was Canada everywhere (59)
Like other provinces, every town in Southwestern Ontario were busy under the constructions of roads, and surely had something to claim as a sightseeing spot. However, none of them attracted me for their intentions. I was still searching for something natural, and met another Mennonites region in a rural area.
It was when my car ran up a little slope of a road surrounded by farmlands that in a distance a lady wearing a black dress on a open horse-buggy glanced at me and turned to a path to a house handling the horse. It struck me as if I were in a moment transported into a movie. By the moment I reached her, she was already showing her back making her way from the main road to a house. I wondered is she resides there or visits someone.
The world of Mennonites can't be described merely as the people riding on carriages. As a matter of fact, the Mennonite in Manitoba I met were quite modernised without old things. In short, they were divided into small sect in accordance with detailed precepts, but they choose their church by themselves instead of being baptised by someone else.
It was amazing to see such a simple or primitive life-style in this developed country. I don't believe in Jesus Christ so can't understand the belief, but I can say at least that they haven't been utilising Jesus Christ for their own benefits. In that term, I can't help sympathising with them. Interestingly, in spite that they are not allowed to marry another sect person the Mennonites have been spreading all over the world.
A boy was carrying a large bucket with both hands by full force leaning his body on a road. The house he was heading for had a beautiful farmland, which looked an ideal for farmer-immigrants to Canada. While getting off my car and taking pictures of it, the boy was back and passed by me on a bike joyfully; I thought since he completed a chore he must be allowed to go out to his friend's place. Then, suddenly a black carriage with a horse passed towards the opposite direction. And then, another adult man wearing a hat on a bike approached me from the house. His clothing smelled animal. He asked me to take pictures of his house also just behind us and to send to his place. He said the boy was his nephew. I had no chance to send the photo yet. Sorry, Amon Weber.

What I had to be surprised with Finger Lake was that even such an area as few people reside the water, and that are quite large, was polluted as fish decreased. Lake Huron as well. Of course, it is not only the fault for Canada but the United States which share much of Finger Lake. I made up my mind to stake my fortune of off-shore fishing in the most north's Lake Superior.
At the Ministry of Natural Resources, Wawa, I asked for the fishing information. He suggested several points at the mouthes of revers to Lake Superior, where are not only for Rainbow but also Coho Salmon. I asked why Lake Superior as well as the other Great Lakes has sea species such as Salmon; actually, the each lake has Chinook, Pink and Coho salmon.
His explanation was this: Coho salmon were to be incubated at the hatchery of Thunder Bay to make them inhabit and multiplied in the saltwater of James Bay for fishing industry. It was in the 1960's when the importance of ecosystem was not realised yet. Meanwhile, an airplane carrying the eggs of Coho Salmon dropped it to Lake Superior by mistake. Then they got increased significantly spreading into the waters of the other lakes. "Interestingly," he said, "though they couldn't go with the saltwater of James Bay, they have fully got accustomed to freshwater of Great Lakes."
We laughed at the same time for this story. Maybe other Salmons should have followed the similar process. However, later I noticed that Atlantic Salmon have also been stocked in Lake Ontario and North Bay recently, when the importance of ecosystem was fully recognised. Needless to say, the Rainbow, which are mostly preferred by fisher for aggressive and showy fights, were introduced from West Coast to Great Lakes, too. Now, the each lakes are busy for cruisers or what not to do enjoy their so-called Sports Fishing in that they don't eat them.
Come to think of it, it might well say that people here changed the environment for their game's sake. I don't know what extent the Christianity influenced such humans-oriented activities, but certainly Japan as well as other Asian countries are being influenced by North American people.
Later I knew that hatching fishes for humans' own sake has long history in this country: by 1950 federal and provincial hatcheries were producing approximately 750 million freshwater fish annually, primarily for the purpose of re-stocking wild populations. It means improving the yield of aquatic organisms by deliberate manipulation of their rates of growth, mortality and so on.
From the stand point of Japanese or Orient, who feel that people are made to live by Nature, this humans-oriented behaviours were totally acceptable and equal to blaspheme Creature. The earth is not yours; the earth is its very own.
Let's getting back to the original topic: his advice on fishing didn't work at all. I couldn't for the life of me remember having such an experience before. Well, after all maybe he was a scientist not a fisherman. The rivers were full of dirty water for recent heavy rains, and the fish were all washed out to the Superior! Far from fishing, due to a destroyed bridge by flood I had to stay overnight and wait for the re-construction.
Meanwhile, I sticked the off-shore fishing out. Visiting a bate and smoke fish shop, I learnt the landlord, John, was the Nipigon Metis Council President. He said that from a certain coast of Lake Sperior nearby I should easily fish Rainbow. However I searched the coast, it never appeared. I couldn't for the life of me remember having such an experience before! This maybe the Canada.
Reporting this to him, he wasn't ashamed but looked at each other his White wife. As she went out, the old two kissed deeply with sound. There was a phrase from Bible on the wall behind them. He then introduced and gave Metis goods in the shop to me. My interest to them made him offer a cap of coffee sitting at a table.
I asked him about what I couldn't understand about Metis and First Nations so far: "Why don't many mix-breeds in First Nations call them Metis?" "Because they are ashamed of being a Metis. They are proud of being an Indian." "Why are Metis between British and Indians scarce?" "Because, because of their Christianity. They didn't admit our way of thought, 'People belong to land, not land belong to people.' Thus, we were always looked down and discriminated not only in schools but also in the society in this English environment of Ontario."
I thought he meant the system established by British people. At the same time, I thought, he may have been having great contradiction within himself, because his wife was a Christian. As his story went further, I saw his eyes show more and more complexity with anger. The light of his eyes were like orphans in the third world, as if losing the target at which he angry. "Until recently," he said, "we were sleeping. But now we got up establishing the Metis Nation of Ontario in 1993."
It was very interesting that his thought of English quite agreed with me and I could quite easily understand him. His English was perfect of course, but something was different. And this was not only the case; what Indians claim in English can all easily made me understand.
However, I had only one exception so far at WaWa's First Nations. She was the director of the band office, and when I asked about the band, she said she was brought up in a Catholic family in a city and she had difficulty in understanding the way of Indian culture. She confessed she couldn't admire Nature instead of God. Her English was also perfect, but I could feel no sympathy with her.
"Until 20 years ago or so, Indians had not been allowed post secondary educations in Canada," she pointed out. What brought her there sounded like just for jobs. Such a migration to and from First Nations were to be common at least in Ontario. Then, whatever is the sake of the reserved First Nations? I was thinking they exist for preserving the people there. She was as if a White with an appearance of half-Indian, a bridge between the government and the people.
Well, apparently Canada goes with aboriginal people introducing their culture, which looked like different than the other British Colonies and the USA. However, it must be described as 'white wash.' Doing something discriminative in the places where are not to be seen from tourists is equal to a child's play. The opportunity for educations is one of the basic humans' rights. Given the First Nations' people had not been allowed good educations, what a White teacher of First Nations I met at Thunder Bay told that the isolated situations with less infrastructures were the cause of their low-life is quite irrelevant; what's the aim of the governments confining them into small areas?
Later I came to know that even now First Nations' people were not recognised as aboriginal people for Canada officially. On the other hand, Metis were finally recognised recently. It is nothing but absurd. The original people of Canada are not regarded as humans! I have to say there is no justice in this country. Even though many Canadians dislike the USA and the way of USA, what they do is just the same as them; both of them justify their selfish activities under the name of 'Manifest Destiny.' Canada and Canadian people must respect their Nature and their Native people as their elders. Otherwise, no matter how successful may be they shouldn't be able to wipe out the feeling of sin so that they have to go to and from churches every time.

Well, I met an officer of Ministry of Natural Resources, Atikokan, by Quetico Provincial Park. Because I wanted to know the pollution level of Canada, other than the fishing information.
They issued 'Guide to Eating Ontario Sport Fish 2003-2004' in a thick booklet. In that, each fish-species' edibility with risk rates are tabled in accordance with classified detailed rivers areas and lakes. Many matured fishes of the waters including Great Lakes were regarded as dangerous to eat for health. "The Great Lakes look like clean with blue water, but this booklet shows they are really contaminated. Why?" His explanation was not clear; he seemed he didn't want to condemn paper mills and other industries interior of and along the coast lines, and rather he emphasised the pollution level was getting lower recently.
Then, I asked, "I travelled across Canada, but never saw such a guide book to warn fisher the danger for eating. Does this mean that Ontario freshwater is most polluted in the freshwaters in Canada?" "No. Not really. I suppose each province would be in the same level. It merely mean Ontario can offer this for our budget." According to this book, we should not eat almost all of the trophy-class fish; that is to say, many fisher are repeating to catch and release inedible fish which primarily edible. I said to the young officer, "I thought Canada should be cleaner than Japan, but the situation was just the same." He laughed a laugh with me.
After getting a Northern Pike and White Fish, whose shape was different than the one of Waskaganish, Québec, I hurried my way through meandering waterways to the West. The snow winter was approaching. When reaching a city, I felt I saw this scene before; a cemetery in front of a huge paper mill with smoke along the highway. I finally remembered that I came this way in the outward trip. I didn't realise I was taking that way so far; I had thought I took the other Northern route for the outward trip. My sense of travel got paralysed for long journey in the same-like landscapes. I want to get home soon.

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by tetsu95jp | 2008-02-11 08:12 | 23.Ontario southward
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