(04-25-2022, 08:08 PM)nms Wrote: Europeans tolerate smaller living spaces as there is a proliferation of "third spaces" that have become an integral part of their urban fabric. This includes things like pubs, cafés, public parks and public squares. Has anywhere in Canada caught up to creating local spaces where it is expected that the general public would hang out for long periods of the day without being asked to move along?
That's true, Europeans spend a lot more time outside of their apartment/house than we do. It's not that we've "been trained" to expect individual bedrooms or lots of space. It's more so that over here, our culture is very anti-social in comparison to Europe, while also having a very pseudo-independent mindset. That is, people expect to have backyards to sit in, an expensive coffee maker to make coffee, a fridge full of stuff and friends with cars who can drive over to your house. It has created a very different mental mindset of people.
When I spend time living in Germany, my flat is usually pretty small but I don't spend much time in it apart from the days I want to stay in, work from home, cook, sleep etc. When you want to do something else, you just go out and do it. Hop on your bike, a bus, a tram, a subway or a train (or just put your shoes on and walk) and go to a café, bistro, restaurant, bar, cinema, gallery, library, park, square and so on. You can be there, but be alone or meet up with strangers or friends. But over here - while we have those things - the accessibility generally sucks outside of our major cities (Toronto, Montréal, Calgary, Edmonton, Vancouver) and most people seem to have a mindset of individualism that has made them fairly anti-social in nature. You can't even say hello to someone in the street without seeming like a dangerous creep, whereas in many European countries you can strike up a conversation anytime, anywhere and with anyone.
This continent and culture just sucks.