Podcast - Brew North: How Canadians Made Beer and Beer Made Canada

This is the story about Canada’s relationship with beer. From Victoriana through thes tubby to the invasion of the Americans to global corporate giants and finally the contemporary story of a new golden era.

Ian Coutts is the author of Brew North (Greystone; 2010). He joins for this journey –a Journey into Beer which is also a Journey into Canada.

At: http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/

Podcast - Save the Deli: In Search of Perfect Pastrami, Crusty Rye, and the Heart of Jewish Delicatessen

As a journalist and life-long deli obsessive, David Sax was understandably alarmed by the state of Jewish delicatessen–a cuisine that once sat at the very center of Jewish life had become endangered by assimilation, homogenization, and health food trends. He watched one beloved deli after another shut down, one institution after another shutter only to be reopened as some bland chain-restaurant laying claim to the very culture it just paved over. And so David set out on a journey across the United States and around the world in search of authentic delicatessen. Was it still possible to Save the Deli?

In this Journey, we join David as he investigates everything deli–its history, its diaspora, its next generation. He tells us about the food itself–how it’s made, who makes it best, and where to go for particular dishes. And, ultimately, there there is for hope–David finds deli newly and lovingly made in places like Boulder, traditions maintained in Montreal, and iconic institutions like the 2nd Avenue Deli resurrected in New York.

It’s a great topic and he does a wonderful job - a cultural history of Jewish food, a vibrant travelogue, and a rallying cry for a new generation of food lovers.

http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/

Podcast For Remembrance Day: Conn Smythe

Conn Smythe (February 1, 1895 – November 18, 1980) is best known as the principal owner of the Toronto Maple Leafs (1927 to 1961) and as the builder of Maple Leaf Gardens. As owner of the Leafs during numerous championship years, his name appears on the Stanley Cup eleven times: 1932, 1942, 1945, 1947, 1948, 1949, 1951, 1962, 1963, 1964, and 1967.

Smythe is also known for having served in both World Wars, organizing his own artillery in the Second World War.

In this Journey into Hockey at the time of Remembrance Day, we remember Conn Smythe the soldier and patriot beyond the hockey rink.

Our guest is author and hockey historian Kevin Shea, who among his works co-authored with Thomas Stafford Smythe the 2000 book, “Centre Ice: The Smythe Family, the Gardens and the Toronto Maple Leafs Hockey Club (Fenn).

http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/?m=201102

Podcast: Canada’s Game

Hockey is more than just Canada’s National sport – it is the most recognizable symbol of what it is to be Canadian, an intrinsic part of the nation’s culture, economy and politics.

In this Journey into Hockey we speak with Andrew Holman, professor of history and Canadian Studies at Massachusetts’s Bridgewater State College about his book “Canada’s Game – History and Identity”, a compendium that addresses a range of themes in hockey – past and present.

At: http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/?p=515

Gallery: 5 Up-and-Coming Canadian Cities (Postmedia News via The Montreal Gazette)

From Postmedia News via the Montreal Gazette:

If major cities like Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal are giving you a headache and even underdogs like Calgary or Halifax don’t thrill you, you might consider relocating to one of the other metropolises blossoming in our great nation. Here are five Canadian cities on the up and up

http://www.montrealgazette.com/business/story.html?id=4177610

Podcast: The Town Where Friday the 13th is a Special

In Port Dover, Ontario Friday the 13ths are special.

It seems that this community on the shore of Lake Erie has become a meeting place for motorcylists – thousands. But it happens only on a Friday the 13th.

So, whenever the 13th falls on a Friday, whether it’s April or December, motorcycles of every type, make, and model will make their way to the welcoming streets of the bustling town.

In this Journey into Canada, we chat with Barbara Tanner-Billings of Port Dover about how this all came to be – and just what you might expect to see and experience if you should come to town on a Friday the 13th.

At: http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/?p=499

Podcast: Lord Stanley - The Man Behind the Cup

One of the most important figures in Canadian history, Frederick Arthur Stanley’s most enduring legacy is not his term as the country’s sixth Governor General but the trophy cup that bears his name.

As the playoffs begin, we speak with author and hockey historian Kevin Shea about the man has name is associated with hockey champions. Shea is author of Lord Stanley: The Man Behind the Cup (Key Porter Books; First Edition edition (June 14, 2007)).

In this Journey into Hockey, we explore with Kevin Shea Lord Stanley’s political legacy — his diplomacy in dealing with the United States, his embrace of Canada’s West, and his nimble handling of domestic crises — fleshing out a man who was far more than just an avid sportsman.

At: http://conversationsontheroad.podbus.com/?p=445