The day was cold and grey. Finally, there was Canada on the horizon and we were soon going to go ashore to our new country. For a child, it couldn't get better then this - the adventure and excitement just kept coming. If I ever make it back to Halifax, there's no way that I'd miss visiting Pier 21. Thanks for the site!

Heads or tails" father said as he balanced the coin on his fingertips. "Tails", mother said without hesitation. The coin flipping ceremony was decided upon after many hours of heated discussion, ending in a stalemate. They had agreed to emigrate, the choice was between Australia and Canada. Mother opted for the former because her sister had emigrated to Free mantle in the late thirties. She married an Aussie soon after her arrival; her letters were filled with glowing commentaries of life down under. Father, on the other hand, had relatives in Canada, who also wrote urging him to take advantage of the many opportunities waiting in Canada. They agreed to let the coin decide.

Canadian and British naval servicemen on board the H.M.S. Whitehall, circa 1942. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

My brother still talks about the wonderful soft white bread buns that were served – they were so delicious.

In 1963 we bought our first house in West Vancouver

Refugees from the S.S. Walnut. Origins Unknown.

...Eventually the Customs and Immigration people were done processing us and we were free to leave the area.

It was all done within the course of a flight and the 30 minutes in the airport. That was it. And that was me, at that point, a permanent resident of Canada and it was like: wow! This is, this is it! I’m free to work, I’m free to do anything here. So, no, there was nothing to hold me back.

We were grateful for the roof over our heads and no one complained…

Pakistan High Commissioners in Montreal, QC, September 1960. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Thank you Canada, thank you dear Canadian friends, who helped us to feel here completely at home.

"...On the train, we were given Franco American Spaghetti and Blue Bonnet sliced white bread, that my brother called SPONGE. He refused to eat and my mom didn’t know what to do for us..."

My mother came from Czechslovakia. They were running from Hitler because they were gypsies. I love Canada.

I thank God for Canada and the life my family has enjoyed here. It has been a terrific country to grow up in and to live. There's no place on earth I'd rather live.

I'm proud of my new country Canada, because of the culture, diversity positive people; it feels like home away from home. Some things that I appreciated about Canada were that Canadians stand up for what’s right and they work hard to keep the environment clean and safe. They’re also friendly and will do anything to help each other and the stores open early rather than at one in the afternoon. Now that I think about it, I feel very happy and grateful to live in Canada. Canada feels like home.

Baltic refugees on board the Parnu. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

...At first the soft white sliced bread tasted like cake to me

Arriving in New York harbor on 12th October, shipyard workers re-painted the huge American flag on each side of Washington’s hull, advertising her neutral status. Andrew’s underpants, hung out the porthole to dry, received a coat of red paint. I never learned which of the original 13 colonies they were baptized by.

We have had our share of sorrows, but also lots of joy. Life has been wonderful here in this marvelous country. I am thankful and grateful that I have had the opportunity to live here. Canada, in my opinion, the greatest country and the most generous, fine people to be found.

The door was opening and like I was curious, like let me breathe the air from Canada, okay and I feel like, hmm yeah the sky is blue, you know and the air is so fresh, I feel okay, you know, I’m in Canada now, it’s different.

I look back on how Canada has changed me and my values. I think the hardest part of emigrating was changing the way I believed things should be done. I was brought up to understand that the British knew how to do things correctly.

In 1948, over sixty years ago, Canadian representatives of the Immigration and Employment Department came to Malta to select young tradesmen to immigrate to Canada. I, Lewis Borg, was one of the 500 select to immigrate.

We have had a wonderful life in this country. My brothers and sisters join me in saying, Thank you Canada - definitely the land of opportunity! and God bless the staff at Pier 21 for making sure we, as a family

We are grateful and thankful that we immigrated to Canada. If we had stayed in post-war Europe, none of us would have had the opportunities that Canada offered. As soon as it was legally possible, we became Canadians. Canada became our country and we love Canada.

Immigration Officer McFaul at Erin Meeting, Queens Hotel, October 1958.Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

...Actually I already know a few words. When a man comes around selling food I just say, "Ham sandvits!"

I moved to Canada when I was 16 (2010) It was hard at first, but people here are nice. I am now Canadian citizen. Thank ü Canada. HaHaHa...

Canada allowed me to become a Canadian Citizen, gifted me a future, one of freedom of speech and religion, the opportunity to make choices, allowing me to determine my future! I am eternally grateful to Canada for all of these gifts and privileges!

The year was 1953 as the ship pulled away from the docks of Naples. Leaving family, friends and possessions; Vincenzo Armenti said goodbye to his homeland. He also left behind memories of unemployment and destitution in a country still suffering from a devastating war. He set out for Canada in hopes of finding prosperity with a chance to work and earn money so his family could have a better life other than the certain poverty they faced in Italy.

At that time we had 3 choices for immigration: Australia, South Africa and Canada. We decided on Canada because it was closer and a return trip to Germany would have been less expensive. It also seemed more interesting than the other two countries.

The airport doors opened and oh my God, the breeze of air, the cold breeze, it felt like it pierced through my body like I was like, oh my God, I’m not even wearing anything like for suitable for this, this climate and I came right back in and just sat down, I was very cold, I was, I was, like I wasn’t prepared, like I wish I would have brought like something, something warm with me, but I wasn’t really resourceful in Afghanistan either.

I thank God many times for bringing us to Canada.

M.S. Saturnia, April 1959. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

R.M.S. Ascania, December 1947. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Greek Hellenic youth, 1949. Image courtesy of the Delefes family.

S.S. Queen Frederica, March 1958. Image courtesy of the Brana family.

...I know it was hard for most of us coming from a strictly rationed country to adjust to all that lovely Canadian food.

Adjusting to life in Canada was a bit challenging in the first couple of months but I soon started meeting people and learning about the culture, going to university and being part of the community,

Bottos family with group on board the S.S. Conte Biancamano, August 1953. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

The Netherlands is our country of birth and always will be our homeland but now we are Canadian. We will be forever grateful to the staff and all who were, and are now, associated with Pier 21

I came to Canada to visit my uncle and it didn't take me long to fall in love with this great Nation after stepping off the airport. The air, the environment, the people, the culture and the lively vibe of the city, things I have never experienced before.

You imagine how, how it’s going to look, the land. You start looking from the window of the airplane, see a big land, you say for sure I’m going to fit somewhere in this

Pier 21 airing gallery. Origins unknown.

Second World War Canadian nurses, with Vera M Ruth Sullivan. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

…Our first house was near Botanical Gardens so guess where we went for walks on Sunday afternoons?

Doppenberg family on board the S.S. Ryndam, 1960. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Mom and Dad worked had to improve the family way of life

Trans-Atlantic Wives Club, 1947. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Wartime bread was grey and heavy and tasted like cardboard. Everything here was delicious.

We took one bit and gagged - SALTED BUTTER!

Red Cross nurses during the Second World War. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Damiani family with Officers on board the S.S. Olympia. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

Heidi Hart on board the S.S. Beaverbrae, March 1949. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

…In early March, 1970, I attended a meeting on co-op housing in Sackville, and came home a member of a Co-op shortly after that, we were assigned a building lot, allocated $14,000, and we were on our own.

I came to Canada 2013. I lived in Regina. I am happy to visit in Moose Jaw Museum. There are a lot of interesting histories, I’m glad to know that. I am proud to live in Canada I am from Somalia.

I love being a Canadian. The greatest thing is not having to live in fear. I had no money but I had everything because I had peace. This wasn’t so with everyone. Some of my friends cried, cursed, etc., because they were homesick or had hard employers. Some even ran away.

Doris Peter, Margaret Burt, and others in Toronto, 1940. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

My father fled Romania in 1988 while my mother was pregnant with me. He was captured in Yugoslavia and spent time in prison there before being accepted as a refugee in Canada. It was two years before my mother, older sister and I were all able to join him. My family chose Calgary because they had Romanian friends in the city. The adjustment was difficult for them having to leave behind their friends, family, good jobs and the sense of security that comes from being surrounded by people who understood their native language and shared a culture with them. I am in awe of their bravery, positivity and resilience. Even though my father’s engineering degree was not recognized in Canada, he was able to prove his aptitude as an elevator repairman and work his way up. My sister and I have both gone to school, gotten married and made lives for ourselves here in Canada. I am so grateful for the sacrifices my parents made to bring us here!

Having been brought up with hard crusty bread we found the loaf we bought extremely soft with a strange smell that has remained with us ever since. We never ate that bread nor have we ever consumed that bread since our settling in Canada...

When the server came around with this bread, we didn't know what to think. We surely thought we would not be able to swallow it since we couldn't crunch it in our teeth. We thought it may get stuck in our throat!..."

My mother assured him that we only had personal belongings and oil and cheese, he marked the trunks with a check mark and away we went on the train. If course it wasn’t the whole truth because my grandmother was loaded up with liquor bottles sewed inside the coat she was wearing…

At Pier 21, I was met by Immigration officials and after clearing the necessary paperwork, I received my landed immigrant stamp and boarded a train for Lethbridge, Alberta. My first recollection of a good Canadian meal came in the form of Kellogg’s Corn Flakes served in a mini-box. Never having seen this before, I wondered in amazement if everyone in Canada ate out of little one-meal boxes!

The bread was soft and spongy and packed in wax paper, the butter was all salty, there was only soft process cheese, instead of smoked and cured hard sausage they only had what they called baloney and peanut butter, and many other novelties that we didn't even understand. Welcome to Canada..

When my father escaped to Canada during WWII, his 9 year old sister became lost. The situation was dire and they could not turn back to look for her. All they could do was cry and pray that a kind family would help her. Two weeks later, a man who was asking them to share their meagre food told them of a young girl in the yard with newspaper wrapped around her shoes. It was my dad’s sister. Needless to say, all were joyful to share supper that night…and many since.
Roxy

Passengers on board the S.S. Conte Biancamano, August 1954. Canadian Museum of Immigration at Pier 21.

It was the Canadian Red Cross that came to our aid when our house in London was bomb damaged during the war. I was 11 years of age and vividly remember the boxes of clothing and food they delivered to our door. I promised myself that I would go to Canada one day.

One thing I can smell even today was the Wonder Sliced Bread

We were lead to other tables and received our fist nourishment on Canadian soil. Many were still seasick and the texture of the nourishment did not help. Compared to European wieners, the hot dogs were tasteless and the mustard too sweet. Along with the hot dog came a slice of white, square pieces of tasteless sponge. All of us, used to European rye bread or white rolls, did not recognize it as a standard Canadian bread.

Our first house in Canada was a farmhouse 2 km outside of Bowmanville

...I remember the first time I had Canadian bread. I rolled it up and tried to bounce it.

My first feelings about Canada, Halifax and the new world, were a mixture of confusion, terror and curiosity. While on board the Britannic waiting to dock I became aware of the requirement that upon arrival we were to be taken to a "hall". To my Hungarian ears that notion sounded unusual. You see in Hungarian, "Hal" with one "L" means "fish", so I imagined that we were all to be taken into a giant fish! And the smells upon arrival at Halifax did not do much to convince me otherwise.

We had our first corn flakes and potatoes with the skin on (my mother always peeled the potatoes). Bacon and eggs, Canadian style, went down very well. My mother insisted we eat all the food, to show our appreciation.

I was also highly amazed at the way Corn Flakes was packed and served in individual cut-open boxes. Finally I was diagnosed as having measles and released from quarantine and "landed" on Apr 5,1949. A long train trip brought us to Ajax to what seemed to be a POW camp with barbed wire around it. From there we were directed to our destinations, my mother and I to Orillia in Ontario. Thus, my arrival to Canada, never to be regretted.

When we passed customs and boarded the train they gave us two loafs of bread. Not knowing what it was I used it to play accordion as it was soft and flexible..

I arrived in Canada on July 1st, on Canada Day and it was very, very meaningful. In South America, we believe in signs and for me was a good sign that, that everything was going to be okay.

My father and his friends built our first house in 1953.

Canada was part of our greatest journey on this earth, being welcomed in this land gave us the freedom to shape us into individuals that have contributed much, and so therefore, the sacrifice of leaving our native land, facing many trials and overcoming many hurdles, says it all for us and our posterity.

I would bring my family album, learn more about my country so I can share with my new Canadian Family

The second I land at the airport as overseas student, my gosh, that feeling was so great that I actually, you know, I was, I couldn’t stop smiling. It sounds weird, but I couldn’t stop smiling. Yeah, ‘cause it’s just hope and excitement and change.

If Pier 21 could talk it could tell many stories. I am indeed glad that now that the docks are often lined with cruise boats rather than immigrant ships. Our country recognizes the important role in history that it played over many decades. Certainly Pier 21 is an important marker in my life's journey.

The light of the bright moon illuminated the cemetery walls. At this point my eyes were dimmed with tears. I kissed my son on the forehead and I whispered. Son, I promise you that in Canada I’ll do my best to help my family. I’ll work hard to bring a piece of bread to our table and some day, we’ll have our own home.