My Next 40 Years

I recently spent several days with one of my childhood friends, Lies. We stayed in really great touch until after college and then we would only sporadically meet up if she was in town visiting family. Having young kids and being a single mom on my end made visiting her really tough. The invite was always there but I never felt I had the time or money to take her up on the offer. Enter, recently unemployed, discovering the world, don’t say no to anything, Amber. Lies reached out to me when I returned from Portugal and knowing my dissatisfaction with all that is occurring in the US, offered me refuge at her home in Canada. Not a lover of extreme cold, I flew up for a long weekend instead.

I was a little nervous because Lies and I had not had a substantial conversation in probably 10 years but I knew in my heart of hearts that we would pick up exactly where we left off. It helps that our core values are very similar and we were raised in a similar, more European style than most of our peers. Additionally, our lives have followed very different yet very similar trajectories so even years later, we still have a lot in common.

First the basics – the airport reminds you where you are when you land. Apparently, this is needed because the gate crew in DC had to keep reminding travelers that Canada is indeed another country, and yes, you will need to show your passport prior to boarding. I grabbed a few dollars in cash and was surprised to see QEII still on the money, but if you dial down the cost effectiveness of changing money now, it doesn’t make much sense since there will likely be a new monarch sooner rather than later.

We didn’t “do” much the first day – grabbed lunch to start catching up, I met the kiddos, the husband, toured the house and the super cute little town of Cochrane in Alberta. Cochrane is a 40-minute drive from Calgary. I’m a little jealous that this is the view residents gets to see every day on their way home from work:

The time change was minimal, but I was exhausted that first night and went to bed at an unreasonably early hour. Both Lies and her husband Tim, travel a lot so they accepted my lame excuses and allowed me to creep off to bed.

We had planned to go to Banff on Friday but the weather was rainy and overcast – not ideal for prime Rocky Mountain viewing, so we changed direction and headed out to Drumheller and the Badlands. If you don’t know, this region of Canada is where a great deal of the dinosaurs discovered in North America were found. There was some fantastic topography on the drive to Drumheller from Cochrane and we stopped to check out the hoodoos left by melting glaciers. It was pouring rain at this point so we didn’t stay long but I can say, even in the pouring rain, the sights were amazing.

Being from DC, I have access to some of the best museums in the world, but the Royal Tyrrell Museum was far and away the best Dinosaur related museum I’ve been to. There’s something really cool about looking at ancient dino bones discovered right under your feet. We lucked out by arriving “early” as when we left the line that did not exist when we arrived, was now wrapped around the building.

We had a great time exploring the museum and it was a really nice way to get to know Lies’ kiddos in a relaxed environment. The drive home from Drumheller was no less visually fantastic than the ride out. Thinking we taking the route of a scenic driving tour advertised on a road sign, we turned down a dirt road and drove. And kept driving. As the wind picked up and the road edges became akin to quicksand due to all of the recent rain, I was reminded of how many times Lies and I had followed road signs and ended up lost in the middle of nowhere. As every adventure that started with a random road sign ended well, I trusted the process and enjoyed the views. I’ve visited very rural areas in the US but never the prairies of the Midwest, so while endless fields of corn I’ve seen, nothing is quite as magical as the prairie grass blowing in the breeze. The grass comes alive and ripples like water and the horizon is endless – going on forever.

It’s funny because while we were driving, Lies made the comment that it was like being inside of a screensaver. My first day home, I opened up my laptop and this was the randomly selected desktop image of the day:

The next morning, we loaded up the monster truck, er – Canadian family van (the largest SUV known to man), and headed off to Banff. I’m sure I properly annoyed my hosts by constantly exclaiming, “It’s just SO BEAUTIFUL”, every few minutes.

Similar to national parks in the US like Acadia and Yellowstone, Banff has fallen prey to over-tourism in recent years making a good deal of the park hard to access unless you’re willing to get in line before 4am. It’s an unfortunate situation – especially given that many choose to live near these parks in order to enjoy them year-round, but that’s an issue for another blog.

Our first stop in the park was where Tim and Lies were married. There was a wonderful view of Lake Louise and we rode the ski-lifts up to an unobstructed overlook that was breathtaking. We walked a very short distance down to a restaurant and enjoyed cocktails with the most spectacular view of the valley. Returning to the lodge, we sat out in the sun enjoying lunch while the kids played giant checkers. I was reluctant to leave the beauty around us but was assured, it was for a good reason.

Our next stop, Takakkaw Falls. The drive took us over the continental divide and while this was not my first time doing so, it’s always an incredibly cool experience. If you’re not familiar, the continental divide basically runs through the Rockies (US and Canadian) and is where, among other things, the flow of fresh water changes direction. One side of the divide runs into the Pacific Ocean while the water on the other side runs to the Atlantic Ocean. You can actually see the water change direction and is a really cool natural phenomenon to see in person.

Our journey through the park continued until we reached the most obscene switchbacks I have seen on a road in person. Enjoy the video below – full disclosure, not my video, I grabbed it from YouTube.

So, after risking life and limb on the drive there (I’m being dramatic – Tim is a fantastic driver), we reached a very overcrowded picnic area. Still not really sure what to expect, I follow the gang down a trail leading towards the base of the falls. We rounded a corner and were met with the most stunning views. We stayed for awhile walking the creek bed and feeling the icy water that was only hours old. While the falls themselves were crowded, we were able to move away from the crowds a bit and enjoy some quieter time without wandering off the path by simply taking a tougher route back to the car.

After spending the day in the park, we drove into the town of Banff for obligatory souvenir shopping and an early dinner. We had a really nice time wandering around Banff – it’s a very small, cute little town with an old west kind of vibe. Honestly, the vibe pretty much everywhere I went in Alberta was old westish which surprised me a little. I guess I was expecting more crunchy granola than old west.

Here ends my image taking – some memories are better in your head. My last day in Canada, we stayed home, but fear not, the day was NOT wasted. Lies and I took a really lovely walk around her neighborhood and were able to really catch up with each other. We’ve both experienced significant loss in the last year and this is the first time I’ve felt like I was able to really let my guard down and be weepy without feeling judgement or that I had to be strong for someone else. We were both able to just talk about where we were in the process of grief and how we were coping. And then we talked. About everything and nothing. It was a vibrant sunny day and we sat out on the back porch, watching golfers, bunnies, willing a bear or moose to walk by. We played card games and dice games with the kids, Tim made the most delicious dinner on the grill and Lies and I continued to talk. We talked way too late into the night for a worknight (kudos Lies and Tim for being troopers)!

Some things Canada reminded me of:

• You can breathe better in a vast expanse of space
• Food tastes better when it’s not processed
• The most conservative Canadian is more liberal than the most conservative US liberal
• Nice people still exist in the world
• Neighbors still look out for each other in some parts of the world
• The healthcare is not as great as I originally thought, but it’s still better than US healthcare
• I will NEVER allow 10 years to pass between visits with Lies again

I will be visiting Canada again, and soon! I have plans in the works for a long weekend this winter and will bring Nate with me. I need to see this “dry cold” for myself – apparently it’s not that bad. On the more serious side, Canada is a great option for those fleeing the US and the new fascists regime. While the cost of certain goods is substantially higher, if you’re able to land a decent paying job and have some US dollars to buy a home, you wouldn’t be in bad shape at all. The cold stops me short every time it feels like a viable option though. Only time will tell.

Next adventure: Niagara Falls.