Canadian Rockies
I am driving through the stunning landscapes of the Canadian Rockies. They are huge! Not just in stature, but in the volume of the area, If you are looking for an "Endless Summer" experience, try driving all of the roads up here. You will discover that there will be a lot of roads yet to cover by the time the Aspen & Birch trees begin to turn. There are micro-climates as well. Arid valleys with rain forests to the east and west. Beautiful, flat & broad agricultural valleys. Dense, verdant forests divided by pellucid mountain streams. I could almost say "Pick a spot, any spot... spend a couple of weeks there, you won't regret it." But, some folk have a strong penchant for oceans or deserts.
If you like boating and lakes... Well, come on over and have at it in these mountains. There are lakes and reservoirs, some stretching over 100 miles that wind through the mountains. Go ahead, spend a day on a boat.
Of course when in Canada you are going to be confronted with the metric system. In town you will be driving 30 - 50 kph, on the highways 80 - 100. As a person born & raised in one of the last three countries in the world to still be using the Imperial system of measurement (Myanmar & Libya are the two others), I thought it would be somewhat of a struggle dealing with it but it really wasn't. I could switch my car readout so speed wasn't a problem at all. Distances: 200 - 300 is a pleasant day's drive, 700km is a stretch. At the deli: 100grams is a nice portion. 20 - 25 degrees celsius is comfortable, above that warmer, below that cooler. it;s really not a big deal at all. In most cases, when you get used to it, the Metric system is much, much simpler.
In fact, I wonder why the US is still using the Imperial system anyhow? When you think about it it is really bizarre. if I have something that is 18 inches long, it is 1.5 feet... it is also a 1/2 yard. In the metric system it is a smidgen over 45.7 centimeters ...which is 457 millimeters or .457 meters. Of course if it is 17-5/8 inches... Oh geepers, then there are how we use fractions in measuring things... The imperial system of units is as strange as old English money... Have you ever read a Dickens novel and been confused with the units of crowns, shillings, bobs, quid, pence, pounds, & whatnot? A base-ten monetary system makes a whole lot of sense. Why not use base-ten for everything?
Right now we have a base-12 foot into a base-3 yard, after that follows 100 yards for a(n american) football field and then 1760 yards in a mile... it doesn't make sense. Want to get confused? Try cooking where 3 teaspoons is a tablespoon and 2 tablespoons is an ounce then you have 2 ounces is 1/4 cup 2 cups is a pint, 2 pints is a quart, 4 quarts is a gallon and a gallon of water weighs about 8 lbs (8 pints). I grew up with the system so I know it, but that doesn't mean it makes any sense logically... I mean... why a "gallon"? (..."why not a duck?") ...and U.S. gallons are a different size from British gallons. We are the only country in the world using our gallons... Why? How does our society benefit? Canada moved (mostly) to metric in the 1970s. Boomers & older folk will probably squawk the most, but most of the conversion is some pretty simple rules of thumb.... Drive a safe speed, that is probably the speed limit. 5km is an easy walk in an hour. 8 is a brisk walk. but if you can see the end point, it is only from here to there, who cares about units? Body temperature is 37c so when it is 40c out it is HOT 20 - 25 is comfortable. water freezes at 0°c, so if it is -10c and the sun is shining and there is no wind you probably don't even need a sweater!
All righty then, I should shut up...
That said... there is a funny and informative write up on the history of standards of measurement that can be found on this violin bowmaker's web site