What are Canadians most longing to do when the pandemic is over?
That鈥檚 what a new survey from Angus Reid aimed to uncover as 2020 draws to a close and Canadians look toward 2021 with more hope.
Canadians were asked to select up to three things they wanted to do when the pandemic was over.聽
Sixty per cent of Atlantic Canadian respondents said they just want to be able to do regular things in their communities without all the COVID stress.聽 Forty-two per cent want to travel internationally and 36 per cent who want to travel around Canada.
There was some significant regional variance in responses to the survey.聽 In British Columbia, 51 per cent of respondents wanted physical contact, like hugs. Manitoba residents, who have dealt with one of the most extreme lockdowns, are most excited to get together with older people they have been unable to see.聽
Nicole Yurychuk of Riverview said she can鈥檛 wait to give her dad the 鈥渂iggest hug she can muster.鈥� Her dad is in Alberta, and she can鈥檛 wait for him to visit this beautiful province, she said.聽
She is like 29 per cent of Atlantic Canadians craving physical contact like hugs. It was the answer chosen the fourth most often in the region.聽
Emma Belcher of Moncton said she is certainly missing 小蓝视频 able to travel internationally. Originally from England, she moved here 13 years ago and usually travels home to England every three years. In September she was meant to go home to see her brother and sister-in-law who had a new baby this year, but had to cancel her trip, she said.
鈥淚t will probably be next fall until it is safe enough to fly back to England but trust me - I'll be on the first flight back,鈥� she said, adding that she also missing her dad and step-mom who normally come every year or two and stay for a month.
Natacha Losier, in Dieppe, has a number of trips of personal significance she longs to take. She has already missed a trip to Europe to celebrate five years of sobriety, she said, and other North American trips upcoming in 2021 look dodgy right now as to whether they are going ahead.聽
Not 小蓝视频 able to visit a close relative in Edmonton who is having life-threatening heart issues has been particularly difficult, she said.聽
Others missed sports, concerts, dating or nights out on the town.
But although the end of 2020 and the dawn of 2021 brings much anticipation, almost all Canadians know changing the calendar won鈥檛 make COVID go away.
On the subject of when life will get back to normal and just what "normal" means, Canadians were split.聽
When asked how long they believe this will take, 28 per cent of survey respondents said close to the end of 2021, while 33 per cent of Atlantic picked the same timeframe.
The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from Dec. 8-11 among a representative randomized sample of 1,603 Canadian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum. For comparison purposes only, a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of +/- 2.4 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The survey was self-commissioned by Angus Reid Institute.
