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We have recently moved to Calgary and are really enjoying it!!
So this is going to be our home; quite an unusual concept
considering the sheer number of temporary residences we've had
over the years.
Alberta. The Canadian stereotype of Alberta is redneck,
cowboy country with great skiing and lots of oil under the
ground. Well, that's about right! In a few words
that sums up the province, and that's a good thing. People
in Alberta are very independent, hard working, suspicious of
government and quite proud. In this way, I would say that
Alberta is the Canadian province that is most like the United
States.
The People
Are there lots of
rednecks in Alberta? Hell yeah! Are there lots of
non-rednecks in Alberta? Of course. We live in
Calgary and find there to be quite a mix of people, partly
because of the size of it (around 1 million) but also because of
the availability of jobs which draws people from all over.
Many people you meet will be from BC, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and
Ontario, plus quite a few from the east coast of Canada, which
makes it quite cosmopolitan, at least by Canadian standards.
But if you visit during Stampede, you will find 100% cowboy
culture everywhere as most non-cowboys like to dress up as
cowboys during this time and pretend they are hard core cattle
ranchers, despite their shiny boots being devoid of even small
traces of cow dung.
Things to Know
There are two major cities, Calgary in the south and Edmonton in
the north. The main tourist area is in the Rocky Mountains
straddling the border of British Columbia extending for hundreds
of kilometres and including such towns as Jasper and Banff as
well as many, many ski hills. Edmonton is quite an
industrial city and is the heart of the "working" oil industry.
Calgary, on the other hand, is the heart of the "head office"
oil industry and therefore is less industrial and has more bean
counters than pipe handlers.
Where to Stay
Come stay at our place! Just give us a ring.
Where to Eat
Come eat at our place too! Just bring some nice wine
along.
Things to See and Do
This is really strange talking about what to do in the province
we actually live in, especially since we haven't seen much of it
ourselves. In Calgary it's worthwhile to visit during
Stampede, which is a big rodeo and theme park event.
There's lots of things to do in Calgary but even more within an
hours drive of Calgary. For example, Banff - the picture
postcard town, is only an hour from here and is a neat place to
visit. You can also visit Kananaskis country for great
hiking and skiing, just watch out for the grizzly bears.
To the east is a town called Drumheller where archaeologists
have dug up more dinosaur bones than almost anywhere else.
In recognition of this they have built life-sized dinosaurs all
over the town plus a dedicated museum.
Our friend Ian has a condo in a town called Canmore which is
less than an hour from Calgary. We spent a weekend with
him there and had an absolutely lovely time! It is a
gorgeous little town, similar to Banff, but with few tourists
and more charm. We went cross country skiing at the Nordic
Center which is just outside of town and has many fantastic
trails.
I'll update this section as we ourselves get out there and do a
little more exploring!
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Click for 
On top of Banff
Curious gopher
Banff springs hotel
Barb and Gerry
At Lake Louise
Our new house!
Chinaman's peak
Visit from the grandfolks
Bridge graffiti
Tyrell museum
Tyrell museum
Tyrell museum
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