Basketball, Beverages and Banff National Park

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Aside from a tornado of work and studying, Dan and I have managed to be some what social. We joined our Canadian buddies for a university Basketball game. We did the usual 21 year old thing, had a few drinks and arrived feeling giddy but excited. I have only ever been to one basketball game before and this was something entirely different. The atmosphere was electric and the audience were sat on the edge of their seats, chewing their nails, shouting their support, and chattering away about upcoming events and the antics they got up to the night before.

Canadians have a very raw but very honorable sense of community and they strive to be glued together as much as possible which is something I only have admiration for. I am studying a class called 'Introduction to Canadian Planning' and we have been drilled into about how the zoning of North America's settlements have been extremely detrimental to their social activities, bonds and structure. They strive to have a layout similar to Europe's with a lot of focus on 'walk-able cities' and 'bump zones' which I have found extremely sad. Sad in the sense that they're desperate to right the past's wrong, and as hard as they may try they don't seem to be able to.

I have also noticed that much of the infrastructure of Canada is 'new'. There is no character in many of the buildings; no stories to read within their walls; no difference from one home to the next and this has slowly been building up to me dreadfully missing home, missing the ability to walk to a shop for a pint of milk instead of driving; missing the fact I am always within walking distance of a good 'olde English pub'. Something I had taken for granted before.

However I had the absolute pleasure of going to Dan and mine's mutual friend's house for Thanks Giving. We were in Calgary in a community that appeared very newly built called Lake Chaparral. The community itself was much of what we had already seen in Canada, however this time, there were shops and a pub within walking distance, proving that the need for a walk-able community was being built upon. Our friends home was incredible and her parents were the most kind, generous and thoughtful people I have ever had the pleasure of meeting. They were extremely curious about English culture and it's way of life and we spent much of our time describing what our home was like.
We arrived on the Friday and spent the evening becoming familiar with our surroundings, but by the Saturday, after eating a delicious crepe breakfast, Jack and I found ourselves on another adventure, only this time to Banff National Park.

Where to start with Banff. I find myself in awe with the mountains, and after our trip to Waterton National Park, within the horizon we could see the mountains, so gracefully, drawing closer in the distance and I knew from that moment that I would love every second we spent there; and boy did I.
We started our day by driving up a mountain towards Johnston's Creek, after a half an hour or so drive we had the misfortune of it being closed. So instead we went to a secluded 'pond' (more like a lake in English standards) and we gazed upon the beauty in front of us.
As I mentioned before, our friends parents were extremely generous, but this generosity was only amplified when we went to the Gondola and they paid for us to travel up the mountain. At $40 ahead it was an expensive trip but when we reached the summit, despite it being a windy, cold and rainy day, the view was spectacular. We also managed to get to the highest Star Bucks in Canada which is quite an accomplishment if I do say so myself.

After our summit, we then ventured to Banff Springs Hotel to witness how the rich live. After watching a beauty walk down the grand-staircase in a dress that my bank account could only ever dream of paying for, I got a small taste of what real wealth felt like. The building itself I found very oppressive, dark and some what squashed (the ceilings are very low, the corridors very narrow) but when people are paying over $399 a night there, there must be a grander appeal than what we saw.

We then drove to Banff town center which I can only describe as an utterly awe-inspiring place. The town itself is incredibly beautiful, purely picturesque and to be honest, I find words difficult to describe such a place. I recommend it to anyone who is after a dose of Canadian culture and tradition. We also found beavertails, which are a sweet pastry, and with my sister's husbands recommendation they were on my bucket-list before I left. They are delicious. Messy but delicious.

The next day was Thanks Giving and we went to a place called Saskatoon Farm which again was fantastic. We were treated to 'breakfast' (if you call what I chose breakfast-a burger) and we wandered around the many shops that it held. Again, a must go-to place.

We arrived on the Friday and by the Monday we headed home. Like many things in Canada, the journey to and from was very simple, there was little to no traffic, unlike the English roads, and we left feeling utterly spoilt, slightly fatter and ue

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