Jay's weekend in Calgary - July 17th-20th

Well, I promised to write about Calgary, so I am.  It seems a little late now, with my parents already near the Alaska border, but I'll give it a shot.  So, if you are curious about the city, current life or its history, order a copy of the recent Calgary Book of Everything: Amazon.com: Calgary Book of Everything (9780973806359): Roberta McDonald It's a city of just over a million people, with a big downtown (but much of the city is subdivision-style single-family housing).  Oil and gas industries help fuel the boom, and construction is still booming the city center.  For more than one reason, Denver and Calgary are considered sister cities.  I mostly ran around on foot near downtown, but ventured out to the Wild Rose Brewery by the farmers' market, and to a fun place called the Priddis Valley Gardens, where the owner throws occasional parties. Calgarians are grounded and nice, but will still give you a good-natured hard time when given a chance (probably more so if you happen to be from Texas).  For a young person, it seems pretty accessable and interesting, but a bit expensive compared to the southern US.  July is nice, but in January I'd think twice. I stayed in the old (but trendy) Kensington neighborhood, in the 'Garden Cottage' at the  River Wynde B&B  (great place with a great owner), just a short walk across the Bow River from downtown.  Prince's Island Park sits between the river and the tall, contrasting skyline.  It was busy with families and all types on the sunny Sunday I was there.  Crews were setting up for their annual Folk Fest.  Many walkers and cyclists, with good pedestrian bridges and paths.  Free CTrain (lightrail) service on 7th Ave through downtown, buses on 6th Ave.   I had some good food (from breakfasts to burgers to sushi), and some good ales (especially the Cannery Brewing India Pale Ale and the Tree Brewing Hophead IPA, both from BC.  btw, I never found the Central City Red Racer IPA (BC) or Pump House Dementia Double IPA (SK), so if anyone has a spare bottle, let us know--my parents might still have a bottle of Odell IPA from Colorado that they can trade you :).  I liked Calgary, and I'm sure I'll go back sometime--same goes for many of the places I saw.  I was especially happy to spend that time with my mom & dad. Cheers, Jay