Father Christmas?

Working Wednesday #8

I met this gentleman at a track meet a week or so ago. He runs an ice-cream and coffee concession van which was serving great coffee at 8.00 a.m. on a chilly morning.
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He told me that his family have been in the business for years but then confessed that this was only his summer job since he and his wife are actually Mr. And Mrs. Christmas! He swore me to secrecy so I'm not going to tell anyone....ooops!

Rainy days II

Rainy Days I

June is the rainy month in Calgary. We often get hot days get hot days followed by those beautiful slate grey, darkening skies. Towering thunderheads build...then comes the rain. But after the rain the streets look beautiful in the evening light...and we get stunning rainbows too!

Street Art Sunday - Prairie chicken

Street Art Sunday #8

This is a shot looking up through the gleaming steel belly (or ribs I suppose) of the University of Calgary's most famous sculpture : The Prairie Chicken. I think the artist was a guy named George Norris but not much more information was available.

Banff Bankhead Station

This is another shot taken on my weekend in Banff.
I loved the vivid colours of the old Bankhead Station opposite the youth hostel on Tunnel Mountain. There are no trains here nowadays, not even a railtrack.
Banff is like that...lots of mysterious references to railways...but no sign of an actual train! Just their haunting hoots echoing down the valley.
Even Tunnel Mountain doesn't have a tunnel! Apparently, when they originally built the railway they were going to put a tunnel through this tiny hill in the middle of Banff...but they somehow never quite got around to it. So Tunnel Mountain doesn't have a tunnnel and it isn't even a moutain! But the name stuck!

Chinook

Calgary is famous for it's Chinooks.

"What's a Chinook?" I hear you say.

Well these clouds are part of a Chinook arch. The Chinook is a warm wind that blows into Southern Alberta (most frequently in the coldest months) and causes rapid and dramatic rises in temperature. In winter it can melt a foot of snow in a matter of hours. After you've lived in the city for a while, you get to recognise the arch of clouds that forms in the sky...like this one that I took on Saturday. People who suffer from migraines often get very severe migraines when a Chinook blows in because of the associated pressure changes.

Wine not?

So another post from the Farmers Market...or rather from a wine store opposite the market based in what looked like an old aircraft hangar. This place was cool...lots of interesting wines from around the world AND they have a very civillised wine tasting table too. Hmmmh! I think I'll have to go back there when I have more time to browse.
There's also a micro-brewery in the other half of the hangar which wasn't open so early in the morning but also looks well worth a visit.
Wine not?!

Working Wednesday - Pies Galore!

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Working Wednesday #7
I was at the Calgary Farmers Market in time for breakfast. All the produce there is wonderful and it was hard to chose just one thing to eat but I bought a Jamaican Spicy Beef pie from this stall. These young people were all delightfully cheerful for such an early hour. They told me that the market gets extremely busy all day and this first half hour is their only relatively quiet moment. I wasn't surprised that they get busy...the pies were delicious!

What shall I buy?

This shot was taken at the Calgary Farmers Market in the northwest of the city. Situated in the old Curry Barracks the market is open on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and offers a tempting array of fresh food as well as great meat and fish and many crafts. It's a fun place to grab a coffee and watch the world go past and ponder what to buy.

Feet

So we finally have sunny weather here and this weekend I went to a track meet to watch a friend compete in the long jump event...and I spotted these flip-flop clad feet measuring the jumps. My young friend didn't do so well...it was her high school graduation this week and she was very tired! but it was a nice day and sunny enough to wear flip-flops...so I'm not complaining.

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