Brandon DonnellyCanada must become a global superpower
The silver lining to the US starting a trade war with Canada and regularly threatening annexation is that it has forced this country out of complacency. Indeed, I'm hard pressed to remember a time, at least in my lifetime, when patriotism and nationalism has united so much of Canada. According to a recent survey by Angus Reid, the percentage of Canadians expressing a "deep emotional attachment" to the country jumped from 49% in December 2024 to 59% in February 2025. And as further evidence of...
Brandon DonnellyThe bank robbery capital of the world
Between 1985 and 1995, Los Angeles' retail bank branches were robbed some 17,106 times. In 1992, which was the the city's worst year for robberies, the number was 2,641. This roughly translated into about one bank robbery every 45 minutes of each banking day. All of this, according to this CrimeReads piece by Peter Houlahan, gave Los Angeles the dubious title of "The Bank Robbery Capital of the World" during this time period. So what caused this? Well according to Peter it was facil...
Brandon DonnellyThe story behind those pixelated video game mosaics in Paris
If you've ever been to Paris, you've probably noticed the small pixelated art pieces that are scattered all around the city on buildings and various other hard surfaces. Or maybe you haven't seen or noticed them in Paris, but you've seen similarly pixelated mosaics in one of the other 79 cities around the world where they can be found. Or maybe you have no idea what I'm talking about right now. Huh? Here's an example from Bolivia (click here if you can't see...
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Daily insights for city builders. Published since 2013 by Toronto-based real estate developer Brandon Donnelly.
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Daily insights for city builders. Published since 2013 by Toronto-based real estate developer Brandon Donnelly.
Brandon DonnellyCanada must become a global superpower
The silver lining to the US starting a trade war with Canada and regularly threatening annexation is that it has forced this country out of complacency. Indeed, I'm hard pressed to remember a time, at least in my lifetime, when patriotism and nationalism has united so much of Canada. According to a recent survey by Angus Reid, the percentage of Canadians expressing a "deep emotional attachment" to the country jumped from 49% in December 2024 to 59% in February 2025. And as further evidence of...
Brandon DonnellyThe bank robbery capital of the world
Between 1985 and 1995, Los Angeles' retail bank branches were robbed some 17,106 times. In 1992, which was the the city's worst year for robberies, the number was 2,641. This roughly translated into about one bank robbery every 45 minutes of each banking day. All of this, according to this CrimeReads piece by Peter Houlahan, gave Los Angeles the dubious title of "The Bank Robbery Capital of the World" during this time period. So what caused this? Well according to Peter it was facil...
Brandon DonnellyThe story behind those pixelated video game mosaics in Paris
If you've ever been to Paris, you've probably noticed the small pixelated art pieces that are scattered all around the city on buildings and various other hard surfaces. Or maybe you haven't seen or noticed them in Paris, but you've seen similarly pixelated mosaics in one of the other 79 cities around the world where they can be found. Or maybe you have no idea what I'm talking about right now. Huh? Here's an example from Bolivia (click here if you can't see...
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Brandon DonnellyVillages and mountains (in Switzerland)
Support Brandon Donnelly
Brandon DonnellyVillages and mountains (in Switzerland)
I went snowboarding today and so I’ve got it on the brain right now. It’s one of my passions. But besides the actual act of riding down the mountain on a flexible board, there’s something much more about the sport to me.
First, I love the small villages that develop – ideally organically – at the base of ski mountains. Here’s a neat video of Zermatt, Switzerland that makes it look like a “miniature" town. Click here if you can’t see it below.
//player.vimeo.com/video/28956652?portrait=0&color=ff001a
And second, I love the vistas that you get. I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but I find that they really pull you away from your everyday life. Here’s a stunning time-lapse video called the Mountains of Valais (Valais is the Swiss canton that Zermatt is located in). You need to watch it. Click here if you can’t see it below.
//player.vimeo.com/video/81082164?portrait=0&color=a3e5ff
The town of Zermatt is almost completely surrounded by high mountains and is home to Switzerland’s highest peak at 15,203 feet above sea level. I think it’s time I added it to my bucket list.
I went snowboarding today and so I’ve got it on the brain right now. It’s one of my passions. But besides the actual act of riding down the mountain on a flexible board, there’s something much more about the sport to me.
First, I love the small villages that develop – ideally organically – at the base of ski mountains. Here’s a neat video of Zermatt, Switzerland that makes it look like a “miniature" town. Click here if you can’t see it below.
//player.vimeo.com/video/28956652?portrait=0&color=ff001a
And second, I love the vistas that you get. I don’t know exactly how to describe it, but I find that they really pull you away from your everyday life. Here’s a stunning time-lapse video called the Mountains of Valais (Valais is the Swiss canton that Zermatt is located in). You need to watch it. Click here if you can’t see it below.
//player.vimeo.com/video/81082164?portrait=0&color=a3e5ff
The town of Zermatt is almost completely surrounded by high mountains and is home to Switzerland’s highest peak at 15,203 feet above sea level. I think it’s time I added it to my bucket list.
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