Bieber Town
Last weekend we drove two hours out of the city to visit Justin Bieber’s hometown. No, we’re not Beliebers, but we do believe in exploring this country’s small towns and getting to know the place we hope to soon call our new permanent home.
Before we even made it to Bieber Town1, we made a stopover at a tiny neighbouring town called Shakespeare, with a population of probably just a few hundred folks, to catch the Santa Claus parade.
At this point we've already seen a few such parades around the province, most notably the biggest one in the mega city that lasted a few hours and caused massive road congestions in November, so seeing a small and short Christmas march felt a little more festive, intimate and more to our liking.
It was a small parade, but Santa still came fully decked out
The parade lasted all of thirty minutes after the entire contingent circled an entire block--that's how small this town is--and then everyone went inside the only public middle school for some hot cocoa and photos with Santa.
We live in a pretty diverse city, but for the first time since we moved here I felt like we were sticking out like sore thumbs in that middle school gym as our group of brown-skinned Asian folks drowned in a sea of Caucasian families.
Nobody told us to leave, thank god, but we did get some stares and glares from a few, hopefully more because of how we looked like lost tourists partaking in a tight-knit community's holiday event than anything else more sinister.
After getting our hot cocoa fill, we drove to the main downtown district of Bieber Town and had lunch at one of only two Thai places in the city. I got to tinker with our friend R's new Osmo Pocket 3 camera, which I've been eyeing lately, and so I threw subtle glances and winks down U's way to give him a hint about what I wanted for Christmas this year. 🤭
When it was time to pay our bills the server brought us some candies, and upon closer inspection I noticed a familiar fruit on the wrapper. "Is this guava candy?" I asked her, and her eyes lit up like Christmas morning when she said yes, and that I was the first guest ever to correctly guess what kind of candy it was.
Bieber Town’s charming old-world city hall
I told her we have a lot of guava trees back home, but the fruits they bear are more of the pink kind, and that we use them as a souring agent for one of our popular sour soups, kinda like Thailand's Tom Yum. She was so amused, and I was so proud to be sharing part of my culture with a stranger. Bieber Town was freezing that day, with wind chills blowing at about minus 14, but my heart felt warm and fuzzy inside that Thai resto after that interaction.
After lunch U and I strolled down the main street, popping in and out of shops that caught our fancy. We have started a tradition of buying Christmas ornaments from the small towns we visit, which in hindsight might have been a little shortsighted because who the heck would sell us ornaments when we visit in the Summer? 😅
Anyway, we took our pick of the ornaments from Bieber town (we settled on a wreath-looking one that made sounds like a maracas) and went to the city’s most popular chocolate shop so I could buy some holiday gifts for my teammates at the office.
Bieber Town, you are beautiful 😍
Afterwards, we walked down the river that bisected the city, which at that point was already frozen solid from the frigid weather. It amused me so much because it was my first time seeing a frozen body of water. I threw a rock and thought it was cool when it slid across the surface of the rock-solid river. I’m easy to please. 😝
When dusk came the town’s holiday lights started lighting up one by one. We even made our way to the ones on this mini-island in the middle of the river, where we also got a majestic view of the full moon beaming its light down the sparkling frozen river.
I don’t really like a lot of the small towns we visit around here—a lot of them lack the character or charm or feel too manicured and catered to outside visitors.
Somehow, Bieber Town feels different. Perhaps it’s the old architecture and winding roads that characterized the downtown core. Perhaps it’s the river boardwalk that made the city feel like one gigantic park. Perhaps it’s the warmth and hospitality shared with the townsfolk who were kind enough to welcome strangers in their home.
Whatever it is, Bieber Town definitely knows how to celebrate the most beautiful time of the year, as its famous son once said in a song.
Lights fill the streets, spreading so much cheer
not the town's actual name↩