Calgary, Banff, and Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada

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There are 10 Provinces and 3 Territories located in Canada. Alberta is one of the most scenic places on earth. Calgary is a beautiful city, and although our country is feeling the crunch of this depression or recession, whatever you wish to call it, Canada is not. It is booming here and the building going on here is phenomenal. The city has quadrupled in size since we were here 20 years ago. Calgary is the second largest city in Canada, second only to Montreal. We stayed in a beautiful spot here right on the beautiful rushing Bow River. We visited downtown and enjoyed dining in a wonderful Italian market and restaurant. The downton area has many places to sit quietly, dine and watch the scenery. We met up with the rest of our group here.

Banff, is a beautiful city. It is still the quaint ski village I remember from 25 years ago. Banff National Park is the oldest park in the country of Canada. Banff is also the highest town in elevation in Canada. It 's beauty far surpasses anything we have seen before. We visited an Irish Pub, had dinner at the Bison Restaurant downtown and our last night we all had dinner together at the Pavillion. A nice fire afterward and we were ready to head for Lake Louise the next morning.%

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Photos

Downtown Banff
What a beautiful little mountain town.

Beautiful Lake Louise
Notice the Victoria Glacier behind the lake.

The Fairmont Hotel
This beautiful Old Hotel was built in the late 1800's and early 1900's. This Grand Ole Hotel with its many shops and restaurants is home to Lakeshore Trail, horseback riding, canoe rentals, and tea houses. In the winter, there is ice skating and sleigh rides as well as skiing, ice walking and helicopter rides to glaciers. There are 4 mountain faces with a total of 13 lifts for skiers.

The Group
The group at Lake Louise

Dinner in the Pavilion
A great meal and good times were had by all.