Day 7: Calgary - 0 km - 0 hrs

Seventh day was dedicated to exploring Calgary.

As you approach the Alberta capital from the North, as we did, you are welcomed with a homogeneous mass of faceless suburban homes. Calgary metro area approximately doubles Moscow's in size, while the population is only a 10th. As fast as the city is squeezed by the rapidly constructed ring road, its south suburbs sprawl into the desert even faster without any logical boundary.

Calgary hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics, putting the city on the world map. Olympic village is currently under reconstruction so it is seemingly closed off to the public. We trespass to go up the ski jumping tower (Australian family in a fire department SUV give us a bit of a scare) with great view of the city.

 Ski jumping is not for the faint-hearted.

Calgary downtown looks lonely in the surrounding flat terrain.

Calgary downtown.

Downtown is green and pleasant in the summer. Midwestern style city planning with wider downtown streets leaves ample room for sidewalks and airier feel as the buildings are spaced out. Reminded me of smaller Chicago.

Prince's Island park, opposite downtown.

Calgarians established a network of pedestrian walkays, named +15 (15 feet above street level), which connect the majority of downtown residential and commercial buildings. I imagine that the winter months are pretty ruthless, so shielded walkways are not a luxury. Although convenient, the network has recently been criticized for drawing traffic away from street businesses (hot dog stands in -25C?). Alas, the city will have to continue to live with the large temperature swings of the continental climate.

+15 walkway system entrance.

Street signals combine with street signs, making both very visible - good for navigation.

This year marks the centennial year of the Calgary Stampede. Calgarians cannot really explain why is it absolutely necessary to go. It seems to be a giant, somewhat pointless, debaucherous, drink fest laden with a little bit of Western don't-give-a-shitness and a hick-y feel. So yeah, I suppose I'd go one year :-)

Calgary Stampede entrance.

Inglewood is an up-and-coming neighbourhood (single street, 9th Ave SE, to be honest) immediately east of downtown. The street is lined with endless second-hand & antique stores, record shops, art galleries - all signs of a recently gentrifying area, which hasn't become cool enough, yet, to attract high-rise condo developments.

Fire Station turned bar.

The electrical cabinets are tastefully painted. 

Jimi Hendrix, John Lennon and Jim Morrison stare at you from the depths of an Inglewood record shop.

To conclude, Calgary needs more of this: 

1991 Nissan Figaro, one of 20000 ever produced, luring customers into Pretty Little Things, an Inglewood antiques shop. 

and less of this:

Northeast Calgary.

This can be said about most NA cities, but Calgary's suburbia, being built largely in the last ten years, just reeks of lack of any character. If I ever have to move to Alberta's capital biggest city, I won't object, but I certainly wouldn't be settling outside the 5 km radius of Prince's Island.