A bit more Calgary and then Home Sweet Home

We were still in Calgary Tuesday morning, but already Paul's mind was back in Edmonton and to work.  I used my remaining few hours in Calgary to do things my way and with a bang!

Breakfast was about trying the waffle maker I'd eyed since day one, and then tipping the syrup grenade (liberally) over the resultant waffle.  So bad for me, but so yummy too. 

(Left: Though they were pretty, I didn't eat them.)

I started my adventures and exploring by returning to the Red Mile (17th Ave SW).  Famed for being the party / bar area at night, it was quite a bit like daytime Whyte Ave during the day -- without the night crowd line ups and neon lights, the coffee shops, bookstores, and interior decorating shops stood out.  I explored a couple, but kept walking further past the shops.  My goal was to find the wire fence that had been strangely covered with clothes on hangers which I saw from the car last night on our movie outing. 

 

The fence was there, but the clothes and hangers were gone.  No matter, the sign explaining what it was still there (a clothing exchange). 

 

Wonders did not cease!  The house right next that fence had another fence with art and yoga poses and messages... I'd stumbled onto something! 

 

(Left: I'm glad someone else also made the connection.)

Not quite sure if it was a commune, but it was something definitely community-minded. 

I kept exploring. 

An (abandoned) "Fun" Chapel (right) was only blocks away from this quaint church (below left) on Superior Ave and Scarboro Ave.  Which was all a few block away from a community garden. 

Conscious of the time, I headed back to the hotel on a different route, relying on the grid system to get me there.  The soft hidden community area soon turned more industrial, and then changed again back to downtown high rises. 

 

 

I made it back to the hotel on time to leave.  I didn't get to try the hotel's sauna (it was on my list), but I did feel I got a morning of good exploring. 

Paul took on the hard duty of driving us home.  I took it all as a chance to snooze. 

Back at home, it seemed like everything in the pots had sprouted (and then dried out a little bit too much...)

I prepared dinner while Paul returned the car.  And, it just felt good to back. 

House Hippo and Coconut were happy to see us too.  Especially so when they saw we'd brought them back an eccles cake. 

Vacation Luxuries

Wake up!  Get out bed!  Paul sprung out ready to go.  I rolled.  (Really? The baby crying in the night didn't disturb him at all?). 

He continued to sing and was probably ready in "seconds flat", but I had only just made it to the washroom.  I unwrapped the shower the cap curiously and laughed at its ordinariness.  Then I remembered: This is all luxury!  To have a special disposable cap to protect one's hair from clean,  temperate water was actually rather decadent. 

The water, surprisingly powerful (as if it wanted to push me to the other side of the tub and stop me from turning it off), was practically a miracle itself... as with everything else in the hotel. 

As it was Victoria Day (a holiday), we didn't expect downtown to be any different from yesterday.  Instead, after a very hearty breakfast*, we took the advice of a fellow bird-enthusiast photographer at Prince's Park and visited the Inglewood Bird Sanctuary and Nature Centre. 

We drove through an area that looked older but updated.  Warehouses had been converted into trendy looking antiques boutiques... just as Jeffy had said.  A bit further, making us wonder if we missed the turn, a sign told us we were there. 

I had fun walking through the Nature Centre, looking closely at the mural and stuffed birds to help identify ones I'd seen at home. 

(Left: The American robin depicted with a wide open mouth... intentional? :P)

Then we walked out to the actual sanctuary...  And didn't see that many birds at all.  Granted, they probably had better things to do than to parade around for us.  We could hear them. And we could hear the people.  This was a popular place. 

We spent a couple of hours enjoying the walk on the trails.  We found some wildlife and took pictures. 

I probably could have stayed longer -- it was a peaceful place -- but with it being our last vacation night together, there were things to do! 

Back to the city centre we went with the warehouses and boutiques turning into skyscrapers when I see a huge head! 

It's a good thing I wasn't driving -- all my attention was drawn to the sculpture.  I couldn't believe its size and tried frantically to figure out the "trick" of how it was made. 

So much public art!  That's one thing (of many on the list that had formed in my mind) of things I was envious of Calgary... even if it was a bit of a driving hazard.

Paul kept driving and we made it safely back to the hotel for a quick rest and early dinner. 


(Right: A Coconut substitute.) 

(Left: A modest meal heated up / made from the cooking facilities in the suite.)

(Below: A little off rotini.)













And we were off again! 

Q: What is the activity we only seem to have time for when we're on vacation? 
A: Watching a movie in a movie theatre!

O.k. truth be told, I'm not so keen on movie theatres, but Paul does seem to like the experience.  We'd managed to find ourselves with the time and means to go and see something we were both interested in.  Plus there was the excitement of being among the first: Star Trek Into Darkness had opened just this past week!

The movie was exciting to watch.  But some bits were a bit obvious.  Intense as it was, my disbelief still managed to poke through: How was it that everyone was practically a superhero?!  And then there's the coat!  Yes, he looks great in a long coat, but how did it make sense in the story for him, in the middle of a chase scene, to grab a random long coat that ended up fitting perfectly?!  Anyway, the main result from watching this is that my celebrity crush is back in full force.  Ack, stupid, yikes! 

Back at the hotel, as tradition dictated, we snuck up to the top floor to scope out how the rich and famous lived.  Unlike the Luxor, it wasn't that hard... nor as spectacular (a wasted view with large windows covered up by curtains). 

Back in the room, things got heated -- back to figuring out the movie!  Fingers flew across the  keyboard and we searched online:

 

1. Did anyone else see plot holes? 

2. What were they referencing? 

 

But mainly,

3. Did anyone hear what we both heard?**  Nope, it seems no one else did. 

_______________________________________________

 

* I really tried to stick with healthy choices, but the oatmeal had failed so horribly the second day.  It was glue-like and tasteless -- I could see that if anyone tried that as their first oatmeal, they would never go back.  It didn't improve much even after I liberally used the syrup grenade and added bran flakes for texture.  And so, that's my justification for this breakfast:

 

 

** (Spoiler Alert) As in, did anyone hear "My name is Kaaaaaa"?  And wonder why everyone else was gasping?

A Calgary Sunday

We ventured downtown in the morning with high hopes to see the newly renovated Devonian Gardens and found Calgary was definitely not New York* -- it was Sunday morning and everything was closed!  From the +15 downtown pedway system to most of the buildings, we were locked out. 

(* I guess even making the comparison reveals what I thought of yesterday's experiences). 

We tried to make the best of the next couple of hours by taking pictures as we walked through downtown and back to the hotel. 

(Right: Cowtown - where even pylons are cowboy hat shaped). 

Paul concentrated mostly on a train engine that was part of a memorial.  I was mostly taken in by the bird that perched on top of it. 




















Then I spotted lions in front of the Oriental Phoenix Vietnamese Restaurant. 

This momma seemed to be saying "Get out of my close up shot."  Which I guess is slightly better than what some other lion mothers I've encountered seemed to be doing. 
















After lunch, we went by car to Kensington.  This lovely area had been written up in a guide as being both hip and trendy while having a village feel (my mind immediately thought of our Whyte Ave during the day). 

Paul indulged me by going into a second hand clothing store which was having a sale.  We didn't buy anything, but between looking at vintage Vogue magazines and laughing at 70s and 80s fashions, and trying on hats, I think he had more fun than I did! 

Next, to Bernard Callebaut for some chocolates.

We headed down the main strip (Kensington Road) where there were more shops and more people, and that's when we saw the violin player.  Buskers aren't uncommon, but this man on the corner was amazing.  I could tell he knew what he was doing and Paul confirmed this by asking to stop and listen a while.  All from memory, classical* pieces flowed from the man and instrument as he swayed and nodded to passerbys. 

* Possibly even big C.

When we finally moved on (both lured into Livingstone & Cavell by their colourful window display and promise of extraordinary toys) we still had him on our minds.  Aside from his ability, there was also his age that was unusual.  I dreamed up a backstory for him (heavily inspired by one from Vincent Lam's Bloodletting and Miraculous Cures), before focusing on all the nicely made and non-electronic toys that were L&C's specialties.

On our way back to the car I turned my attention to the residential area we'd parked in.  The brightly coloured houses caught my eye in their contrast to the grey sky.  One also had a timid gnome and ferocious (?) lion cat in the front yard! 

Another's backyard was so loud I had to take a peek.  It was filled with birds and squirrels! I could see 3 bird feeders and 2 bird baths.  This was the place to be!  But not the place really for photographs because of the lighting.  Oh, well... I guess we'll just have to set up a similar critter oasis when we get back home (only half joking). 

 

We were to have dinner at Angela and Patrick's along with Jeffy.  But since we were quite a bit early, I suggested visiting Nose Hill for a walk.  It was windy and starting to get cold, but there was a strange beauty on the trail that kept us going. 

I stopped to take pictures of flowers (though there weren't that many) and Paul went on ahead to the lookout point to try and get the Calgary skyline. 













































Angela and Patrick (mostly Angela) had prepared a feast for us.  I particularly liked the homemade seaweed soup (apparently from Canadian seaweed). 

 

Afterwards, Jeffy took us over to see Jack's new (to us) house.  The grand tour showed many modern and stylish renovations, but I was mostly interested in Jeffy's contributions: An "iron" to make a classic HK egg "waffle" dish (I still remembered having it from my only visit so far) and the aquaponics system he had built and set up in the basement to grow vegetables (Jack will be surprised!).

Jeffy showed us his camera collection and he and Paul talked shop.  As always, I felt I could talk with (or listen to) Jeffy all night (Dao's been so important in his life and I wanted to know about his health... his garden...).  But, it was late.  We headed back to the hotel to rest with another full plate planned for the day. 

 

(Above: Unintentional, but perhaps the best of my self portraits.)

More photos of yesterday's adventures found here.