A little more than a month ago, I got a trial subscription to Sirius satellite radio for my car but until the past two weeks I had not paid much attention to it.   Then I downloaded a channel guide and skimmed through the varied options and was intrigued that in addition to channels devoted to music and musicians I like, there are several channels devoted to Canadian music, news and sports.  It seems fitting that my attention would be drawn to these channels given that the first occasion I had to listen to satellite radio was in a rental car on a trip to Nova Scotia a couple of years ago.   During that initial experience with Sirius’s offerings I hopped around from channel to channel appreciating what was for me a sense of novelty, but because I did not have a list of channels I was unaware of satellite radio’s breadth.

So, here are some of the Canada-related channels I’ve been sampling of late (descriptions and Sirius channel number in parentheses):

• Iceberg Radio (Canadian Alternative Music, Ch. 85)
• CBC Radio 3 (Canadian Indie Music, Ch. 86)
• Bandeapart (Radio-Canada New French Music, Ch. 87)
• L’Oasis Francophone (French Contemporary Music from Canada, Ch. 88)
• The Score (Uncensored Canadian Sports Talk, Ch. 98)
• CBC Radio One (Canada News, Ch. 137)
• Canadian Weather Network (Canada Weather, Ch. 138)

Although I need to explore each of these more, I’m already impressed at the way these channels add another dimension to my understanding and learning about Canada’s diverse culture.   I’m not certain whether I’ll keep the Sirius subscription after the trial period but if I do I’m sure that being able to tune into Canadian radio will be the balance tipper.