July 06 was our first full day in Calgary. We planned for this stop really just to experience the Stampede.
Luckily it was by and large a dry day. After a brief stop at the Stampede information desk in our hotel lobby, we set out to walk to the Stampede Park at about 10:30am.
I would have to say that the downtown skyline was not paricularly attactive, and perhaps because of that, the Calgary Tower, which was right across street with our hotel, the downtown Marriott, was pretty standing out.
It was a very short walk there, probably ten minutes. The park opened at 11am.
It was like a giant state fair to me. The usual fair food was everywhere - deep fried Oreos, chips, buttered corn on cob, corn dogs etc..Interestingly, funnel cakes were a rare sight. I was able to spot only one while we were ready to leave the park.
My hu*****and and I each got a Greek wrap with lamb, and it was incredibly delicious!
My daughter opted for a buttered corn on cob, and her brother a dozen mini donuts.
We went to the super dog show at noon that lasted about 30 minutes.
After the show, we started towards the Grandstands for the Rodeo Show. This would actually be the first time for all of us to experience a rodeo show live.
A motorcycle stunt show opened the rodeo.
Interestingly, most of the cowboys and cowgirls were our fellow country men, and only a few Canadians.
After the show, we started on our way out of the park, and that's when I spotted the only cart that's selling funnel cakes, my all time favorite. Had to have one :-).
It started raining, and we decided to take the train back to the hotel. It was a short train ride. We had to walk another couple of blocks to get back to the hotel. For some reasons, both kids refused to put on their jackets and instead wanted to share an umbrella.
Looking at the two of them holding each other tight under the umbrella, I only hoped that they would have their backs for each other all through lives.
The sun peeked out a couple of hours later, so we went out to seek our dinner. It turned out to be a short walk to the Chinatown. We had dinner at a small restaurant featuring Sichuan cuisine.
We strolled back to our hotel after dinner. My son insisted on carrying my bag for me:-).
The Stampede, the Tower and this sculpture would be what I remember about Calgary.
Tomorrow we would be flying home, and this would conclude our first trip to Canada.
- The Canadian Rockies-Day Nine
