Back Where I Started

Ah, home! For our first day back, Andy brought a typical Thai breakfast from the soi: batongko (in the bag) and salapao (on the plate)--both of them variations on fried bread--moo ping (barbecued pork on a skewer), and khao neo (sticky rice).

To those of you who have been following my blog: it's been a real pleasure! I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. I'm going to be taking a break now for my travels are over--for the time being. It's time to rest, recuperate, and ponder the meaning of life. Or at least, take a nap.

Last Day in Calgary

Milestones, Stephens Avenue Mall, Downtown Calgary

Jo Anne and I had lunch downtown with Ardis. We shared a salad and pasta. It was a fine day in Stephens Avenue Mall, a walking street in downtown Calgary.

Calgary Tower

Calgary's iconic downtown landmark is 191 meters or 627 feet tall, according to Wikipedia. It was opened to the public in 1968. It is located at Ninth Avenue South and Centre Street.

Priority Pass Airport Lounge, Vancouver, Canada

Congee in the lounge is a harbinger of familiar foods to come. The very next day, Jo Anne, Andy and I were on our way home. First stop: Vancouver, then Narita, and finally, Bangkok.

YVR

Jets on the tarmac in the background

In the picture, Andy and I are checking e-mail using free Wi-Fi at the airport. It was the last time we could stretch our legs and enjoy freedom of movement. For the next 15 hours I was crammed into Jo Anne's carry on. I spent the entire trip with my knees in my face! That's economy for you.

Home at last. It feels good to stretch out again!

Day at the Calgary Stampede

Dalhousie LRT Station, NW Calgary

By 7:30 a.m. Jo Anne, Tsa Poh, Andy, and Tik joined me on the LRT (Light Rapid Transit) train to the Stampede Park. It was Senior's Day and Tsa Poh wanted to get there early.

Tik was visiting from Vancouver and this was his first Stampede as well as his first visit to Calgary. There's so much to talk about. Andy had not seen Tik in the 3 months since he left Bangkok and emigrated to Canada.

Victoria Station, Stampede Park

When we arrived a watery sun came out. We hoped it would not rain today.

I got their autographs and my picture taken with these guys. They are four of the outriders that we will see later today at the chuckwagon races.

Go Superdogs! They are so well trained (mostly). If only Gigi could see them!

Tsa Poh and I are waiting for the Superdogs to come out.

"Two whip-cracking sheilas from Oz"

Superdog!

The Rodeo

"O Canada"

This is the start of one of the chuckwagon races. There are four wagons in each heat. Each wagon is pulled by four horses and driven by one driver. Each wagon is accompanied by four outriders. One holds the team's head, the other three behind have to hold onto a barrel and a couple of sticks as well as control their mounts. As soon as the klaxon blares, the outriders at back throw the equipment into the chuckwagon then all outriders have to mount up and race like mad to stay within the prescribed distance from their chuckwagon. Meanwhile, the drivers must guide their teams in a figure eight around the white barrels in the picture then take off down the oval and come back round to the finish line. This sport is not without accidents. While we were watching, one of the horses collapsed just as it got to the home stretch.

Blue Calgary evening. It promised clear skies and no rain for the Grandstand Show.

"The Big Show"

"Big Show" was the theme of the Grandstand Show. Each year it seems the organizers try to put on an extravaganza to outdo the extravaganza in previous years. It always includes elaborate costumes, music, dancing, and of course, fabulous fireworks. This year, inspiration came from Cirque du Soleil so the show included acrobats and tumblers and a daredevil motorcycle team.

Stampede Breakfast

Caffe Beano @ 17 Avenue SW

A Stampede breakfast is traditional during Stampede week, the annual Calgary rodeo that is held in early July. Visitors are treated to a free pancake breakfast and country-western music at venues all over town. According to stampede lore (http://www.stampedecaravan.com/history.html) a chuckwagon driver named Jack Morton started the breakfast tradition. Now there are stampede breakfasts all over the city, sponsored by churches, clubs, companies, eateries, and even neighborhoods. They engender goodwill and not a little advertising. However, not all stampede breakfasts are created equal, apparently. Connoisseurs know where GOOD free stampede breakfasts are. The Caffe Beano one came with Ardis' recommendation.

It's cold and rainy today. A cup of Earl Grey tea hits the spot

Not even rain dampens a stampede celebration! And the band played on

Sweethearts

That's the stampede spirit!

The breakfast queue

Caffe Beano's cheerful departure from artery clogging pancakes and bacon smothered in maple syrup: whole wheat strata casserole, fruit salad, and stewed apples with granola and a sliver of cheese

You wouldn't forget your best friend, now, would you?

Yee-haw

Biking in Fish Creek Park on the Fourth of July

The weather on this Fourth of July was cool, overcast, and threatening with rain. Jo Anne, Andy, AJ and I met Ardis, Jo Anne's sister, at her house in Southwest Calgary. We borrowed two bikes from Ardis who also rented one for Jo Anne. Here is AJ trying out his bike in the alley behind Ardis' house. AJ hadn't ridden a bike since he was six, and Jo Anne and Andy hadn't been bike-riding in years either. They say you never forget how to ride a bike, but Jo Anne had a lot of trouble mounting hers. She could only mount the bike from the left side!

On a pedestrian bridge over Fish Creek. The day was cool and overcast. A few raindrops fell as we set out. Jo Anne didn't want to get off the bike because then she would have to mount it all over again.

Fish Creek.
According to Wikipedia, the Park is as wide as Calgary. As the city has grown, the park is now completely surrounded by the city and its suburbs.

Fish Creek Park is an urban park...

...But you would never know it. The sun came out and the rain clouds went away.

We stopped at Annie's Bakery for lunch

Annie's Bakery and Cafe

The menu

The view from Annie's porch

Egg Money (Don and Shirley Begg, 2002) is a sculpture dedicated to pioneer women

This is the view from the road at the top of the ridge. That's Annie's at the bottom.

The river bottoms

Chilling on a park bench

The vista on a summer's afternoon

Another view of the Creek. You can just make out the houses of suburbia on the ridge opposite

Nature's treasures

Koko's New Friend

I'm not coming out. No how. No way.

Someone here wants to meet you.

There's somebody hiding behind that silver box...

Don't mind him. He's shy.

Lions aren't shy.

You're not a lion!

Not a lion? You sure?