The things you learn at the coffee shop

None of you will be surprised to find out that Peter and I have found a little local coffee shop close to the condo. The Citadel, more accurately a coffee shop/lounge, has both indoor and outdoor seating. Peter and I stopped the other day and had a coffee and a piece of great carrot cake at one of the outside tables. Also offered are many different soups, sandwiches, and various other sweet treats. The difference in this coffee shop and the local Starbucks is that the Citadel offers alcohol. Here you can get a "flavored" coffee, wine, or liquor. There is a concept that I could get used to. While I was waiting for my non-fat latte yesterday, the barista was making a London Fog. A London Fog is steamed milk, two shots of vanilla flavoring, and a bag of English tea. I kind of turned up my nose and she shared another drink that is not her personal favorite but is catching on called a Bambus. This drink is apparently becoming the rage all over Europe. A Bambus is equal parts of red wine and coke. Why in the world would anyone waste red wine by mixing it with coke? Wow, the things that you learn at the local coffee shop! I think I will go back for another latte today and see what else I can learn.

Canadian treats!!!

One of the things that Peter and I like to do when we travel is to find out what the locals eat. We have tried a few things from the local Farmer's Market. Raspberries, beets, spinach, apples, and rhubarb are just some of the Canadian produce that we have enjoyed. Peter was not a big fan of the beets but he did try one bite. We especially like the jams and jellies that we buy at the Farmer's Market that are made in Calgary. Some of the jams are made with honey instead of sugar. One of the jam flavors that we particularly like is saskatoon. Saskatoon is a major "city" in Sasketchwan (a neighboring province) as well as a blueberry like fruit. We have enjoyed saskatoon jam and saskatoon jam cookies. Yum!

Peace Grove

The Bow River is directly behind Peter's condo. There are miles and miles of trails along the Bow. People are always walking, jogging, and bike riding along these trails. Today is so beautiful, I could not wait to go walking. Also all along the Bow are little sanctuaries where people of all ages and nationalities read, visit, meditate, eat, drink and romance each other. The Peace Grove is one of those little sanctuaries. The carved pole, that is also located in the same area, was a gift to the citizens of Calgary from the Hungarian government and is over 100 years old.

Parade Day Prep

The Calgary Stampede is a HUGE event. I am so excited that I am here this year to be able to enjoy it and we are thrilled that Karla and Cody will join us this year as well. The city preps for this event all year long. As it draws closer, the city starts to morph into a different place. You can feel the excitement everywhere you go. The parade will be this Friday and Peter and I will be there in our reserved seats. As you can tell by the picture, bleachers are starting to be assembled all along the parade route. The sign painters have been busy for a long time welcoming all to both Calgary and the Stampede.

Fresh paint

The condo maintenance crew is always working hard on keeping everything beautiful around the grounds and the building. Late last week they painted the front entrance of the building. It did not take long for a tagger to add their own color scheme. That is just as sad to see here in Calgary as it is in Houston.

More peonies

Peter and I took a walk to the grocery store last night and found that the two peony bushes that I had been eagerly waiting to bloom, had in fact bloomed. They are beautiful as you can see. The many different flowers blooming make me want to walk to the grocery store just to see what I can find along the way.

S-Cargo or is it escargot?

Peter and I were out and about early one morning and found this really cute little car next to the condo. Peter did some research and found out that it is a right hand drive Nissan that was manufactured in Japan for just a few years, from 1989-1992. Only about 12,000 were made. It is called the S-cargo because it is a small cargo vehicle and it also looks like a snail. The design was inspired by a French Citroen 2CV. How cute is that?