As a traveler, and a photographer, I know a good landscape when I see it. I’ve shot the Amazon jungle, the ruins of Italy, the English countryside, the temples of India, the gardens of Japan, the Andes, the Cloud Forests of Costa Rica and countless other places that have, literally, taken my breath away.

But I am biased. Horribly and blatantly biased. You see, I have also shot the coastline of Newfoundland, the Rocky Mountains of BC and Alberta, the frozen monochrome of Manitoba in the winter, the highest tides in the world at the Bay of Fundy, the rocky isolation of Peggy’s Cove and the sheer wonder that is Northern Ontario. And I happen to think I live in the most beautiful place on earth.

This is not only a land of immense natural beauty, it’s also a land of diversity, art, fashion, research, progressiveness, compassion and resourcefulness, framed by a national identity that celebrates tolerance, compassion, peace and equality.

Here I am, a first generation Canadian, an Indo-Guyanese mix and a young woman. Here, I can be anything I want to be. I can practice any faith that works for me, or none at all.  I can soar without limitation based on my age, colour or gender.

Yes there is always room for improvement – there is racism just like anywhere else. There are failures of our government to steward the vast riches of our natural inheritance, the terror of the oil sands, the tragedy of the seal hunt… so don’t think that I’ve got rose-coloured glasses on. There is much work to do, but there also so much to be so very proud of.

Here are a collection of photographs, taken coast to coast, that celebrate this beautiful country that I am proud to call home. Happy Canada Day!

Tobermory, Ontario

Long Beach, British Columbia

Kilarney, North Ontario

Wheat Fields, Quebec

Hopewell Rocks, the Bay of Fundy, New Brunswick

Banff, Alberta

Selkirk, Manitoba

Peggy’s Cove, Nova Scotia

The Battery, Newfoundland

Goldstream Falls, Vancouver Island

Terra Cotta Reserve, Ontario

The Rocky Mountains, Alberta