CANADA: THE FIRST 10 DAYS OF MY BIG CANADIAN ADVENTURE
- coupkovasvatava
- Apr 27, 2018
- 4 min read
Well, it did not start great. Our plane from Poland was delayed and when we landed in Toronto, there was a huge snow storm. We missed our connecting flight to Calgary and spent half a day at the airport trying (like hundreds of other passengers) to get a new flight and our luggage. Instead of flying to Calgary at 11 at night, we got on the plane at 8 am. And the bag eventually arrived as well – four days later. I didn´t mind really because I got to get heaps of new clothes including a super cool dinosaur jacket and awesome winter boots for big girls. But mum spent a lot of time on the phone and was pretty annoyed by the situation I think.
We spent a night at my first ever AirBnb and then we moved to uncle Filip´s house. When we arrived, he was not at home, but uncle Manuel was not bad either. But he worked a lot and I didn´t see him much. Uncle Filip helped us a lot, especially with buying a car (he even negotiated a discount for us!). He also took us for our first Canadian hikes.
You should know that in spite of the fact it is the second half of April, there is still a lot of snow in the Rockies. The Rockies are huge mountains, most of them are protected by two national parks on the border of Alberta and British Columbia provinces. Snow is nice of course and it makes otherwise grey rocks look much more interesting, but it also means hiking is quite challenging.
My first hike was up the Barrier Lookout (1 995 metres above sea level) in Kananaskis Country, which is only an hour drive west from Calgary. It was four of us – mum, uncle Filip, his friend Renča and I – and it was pretty nice. We walked in the snow and on 10 km we gained (and lost) 1 220 metres. The views were beautiful but it was also quite windy and cold. I got a piece of chocolate but could not even eat it because my hands changed to ice and I could not move them for a bit.
The second hike was much warmer. The popular Ha Ling Peak was closed due to an avalanche danger so we climber Mount Lady MacDonald near Canmore instead. Well, we did not get to the very top as it is a huge mountain (2 646 metres above sea level) but when we reached the so called helipad, we were pretty close (2 377 m). The 3 km walk with the elevation change of 900 metres was pretty steep and the upper part was snowy and icy so mum had to carry me all the way up. I think I am getting quite heavy now because in the middle she gave up and passed me to uncle Filip who had to carry me the rest of the way. I liked it because I could drink from his camelback. The views on the top were amazing but then it was getting late (it took us 2,5 hours to get up) and we had to go down.
Except for hiking I went to the Calgary ZOO. It is a small, but a nice one. They have a tiger that they train and also cougars and bears. Those I did not see because I was tired and went for a nap. On either of our hikes we did not meet any of them but mum says it is just a matter of time. Fortunately we have got bear spray and we are ready to use it.
In the centre of Calgary on the Bow River there is a small island called Prince´s Island. There was a good playground and we had a picnic as well because it was very sunny and warm.
I also have a new car. Well, I have two. The first is big and only mum can drive it. The back rows of seats can be folded down and hid in the floor so there is a lot of space. I do not know what for we need so much space but mum says I will see pretty soon. The second car I can drive but I do not know how to do it yet. We were trying very hard to get me the one I used to have in Czech but it seems that they do not make them in Canada. After long days of “caa caa” hunting mum gave up and got me – a tricycle! It has two pedals and I have no idea what they are for. When I realized my new “caa caa” does not work, I threw a tantrum, but mum says I will figure it out and will not want to get down from it. I am not that sure.
This morning mum packed all our things, we did a big shopping, said bye to uncle Filip and left Calgary. I do not think we are coming back, finally we set off and started to travel. Today we crossed the border of the Banff National Park, where we will spend the next few days. Stay tuned.
Your Annie
Some facts When: 14. - 16. 4. 2018 Where: Brno - Prague (Czech Republic) – Warsaw (Poland) – Toronto – Calgary (Canada) How: train + plane How long: 2 hr. 30 min. + 1 hr. 20 min. + 9 hr. + 3 hr. 30 min. = 16 hr. 20 min. How far: 220 + 517 + 6 940 + 2 709 = 10 386 km
