Adios Alberta

June 23, 2010

LAST CHANCE SALOON in Drumheller was said to be haunted, so naturally John, Nick, Andrea, and I checked it out and ended up having a drink and staying the night. In reality, the only thing that was haunted was possibly the owners and some of the locals - with thoughts of oil and money. Nevertheless, it was a jolly ol' time with quarter gallons of beer in a mason jar for only $5. Another M.E.C. stop in Calgary helped to complete my provincial patch collection. We were lucky enough to spend the night with my Uncle Joey and cousins. They put us up in their trailer and we fell asleep watching Fargo.

- The only way to deal with an unfree world is to become so absolutely free that your very existence is an act of rebellion -
Albert Camus

- Many a boomerang does not return but chooses freedom instead -

 

Central in Canada

June 16, 2010

Three provinces later...

Winnipeg was small but had some hidden hotspots for the modern day hippy. A great M.E.C. took care of some outdoor needs and sent us in the direction of the 'Exchange District', where we found some great spaces to eat, relax, listen, and dessert! We camped in Foam Lake the next night, with a slogan like "Best place in the WORLD to live" who wouldn't?

The prairies were typically flat, but atypically green and lush! There was a 360° view of the horizon, and the purity of hues - yellow from the hay bales, blue from the water where it's been flooded, and green from the manicured grass - was my favourite part of central Canada. In Saskatoon we stayed with Andrea's oldest brother Paul, perused the Mendel Art Gallery, and cuddled up in an independent theatre to watch The Trotsky (starring the city we left, Montreal). Now we are in Alberta camping in the Dinosaur Provincial Park, where the most dinasaur fossils have been found in almost all the world! We enjoyed an educational bus trip around the park with a theatrical tour guide named Kate. We found actual dinosaur fossils, touched rock imprints of dinosaur skin, and saw a petrified log: a process of mineralization where all the molecules in the tree turn into rock. Our next stop is Drumheller, and then onto Calgary. Alberta and BC will have our most attention, but the other parts have captured our hearts as well.

- I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. They are so unlike your Christ -

Ghandi

Out of Ontario

June 20, 2010

Since Martin and Sue's cottage, we've camped at Berret River on the beach, swam in Lake Superior, slept near some falls in Thunder Bay, and tried to fix some car troubles in Dryden (coincidentally, the town two friends that I met in Mexico are from). Now Canada is beginning to "come together". To pass time in the car we've picked up some decks of Trivial Pursuit, attempted to recall all 50 States of the U.S.A., and listened to many old and new albums.

P.S. Today we met 4 boys traveling from Victoria, B.C. to Halifax on a four person tandem bicycle. They started on May 5th and expect to be out east by July 25th. They are on their 6th set of tires. Our encounter just proves the inevitable: however crazy you think what you are doing is, there is always someone doing something crazier.


- Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back -

- If you think education is expensive, try ignorance -