Location Taken: Ontario, Canada
Time Taken: June 2010
I was happily surprised to see a Tim Horton’s in Toledo, Ohio while driving through there yesterday. Then I saw signs pointing towards two other ones not too far from the first. They’re invading! The Canadians are invading!
Tim Horton’s is a Canadian institution, you see. Or a Canadian religion, one of the two. Well, at least as much of a religion as Starbucks is in America (people certainly visit their local coffee shop far more often than their local church…). In a list of things that are quinissentially Canadian, Tim Horton’s ranks up there with hockey and poutine. It was even started by a hockey play, not surprisingly named Tim Horton, who decided to spend his money on starting up a chain of coffee and donut shops rather than spending it on, say, large cars and chocolate fountains for every room in a massive mansion. It spread across the nation, since it does have good donuts and (I suppose) good coffee. I only tried the donuts once, and the coffee never. Donut-and-coffee shops lose a lot of their glamour when you don’t really like donuts and are allergic to the caffeine in coffee. At least Tim Horton’s is better than Starbucks. I once went into a Starbucks for a meeting with a teacher, and tried to find something to order so I wouldn’t just be rudely taking up a table while waiting for the teacher to arrive (I was early). I failed to find anything. It was all either caffeinated or far too sweet for me. I haven’t been to a Starbucks since then.
I might visit a Tim Horton’s again, though.
