Flames vs Oilers ...

The Calgary Flames sing the national anthem

Last night, I was able to tick another 'must-experience' Canadian event off my mental list ... an ice hockey game.  Being a 'fake' (ie field) hockey girl, I was especially keen to see how the game worked.  It was a fairly important game for Calgary, because they still held a small chance of making the play-offs.  They were playing their arch rival, Edmonton (think Sydney-Melbourne rivalry), who were on the bottom of the ladder, therefore had nothing to lose.  Right from the start, I loved the game - all the normal hockey skills plus skating plus more physicality made it a great game to watch.  I was particularly fascinated with the number of players (22, I think) for each team and how they changed players so regularly in such an odd manner - the retiring players simply skated off the rink, while the player entering the rink climbed over the barrier.  It seemed very uncivilised, but I found it incredibly amusing to watch.  The players' time on the ice is fairly demanding, so it is easy to understand how numerous breaks are needed.  Each team also plays three games each week, which adds to the exhaustion. C is perhaps regretting taking me to a game because I've since developed a crush on Calgary's super star Jarome Iginla. The game itself was fairly one-sided, with Calgary scoring six goals to Edmonton's one, but as another Canadian 'first', it was a great game.

The play begins

Continuing play

Changing players ... note the player climbing over the barrier

A scuffle

Typical North American message during the game

The winning team celebrates

The losing team slinks off

Gumboots in fashion ...

When I first visited New York last year, I was surprised to see girls wearing fairly plain gumboots around the city.  Being a horsey, outdoorsy type of girl, I wanted a pair.  I didn't buy any that trip, but when I headed back to NYC in October with Mum, I searched for a pair, but couldn't find any I liked (well, the ones I liked, were well over $200 a pair ... a little too much for a pair of rubber boots!)  But, when I knew I was going to San Francisco, I decided to purchase a pair.  Rather than go for the highly patterned boots, I chose to stick with the traditional British Hunter brand, in particular, the Original boot, in the original army green colour.  It took some time to get used to wearing gumboots out and about in the streets with 'nice' clothes, but I love them!  I can splash about in the snow, which is rapidly turning to muddy slush and huge puddles, and then go inside with warm, dry feet!

One snowy weekend in spring ...

Welcome to spring in Canada!  Over the weekend, 20 centimetres of snow fell here in Calgary, the majority falling on Saturday.  C and I decided to have a lazy day, beginning with a French brunch in nearby Kensington, followed by making a snowman in the back garden and heading inside mid afternoon to enjoy a bottle of 1998 Verve Grand Dame and a cheese platter.  What a lovely way to spend a snowy spring day!

Heading out for brunch

Snowmen in the back garden

Champagne and cheese next to the fire

Popping the bubbles in the snow

Snow covered BBQ

Barbecuing in the snow

Grand Canyon ...

The suburbs of Las Vegas

When C invited me along on his work trip to Las Vegas, my first thought was to do a day trip out to the Grand Canyon.  After much research into the various tours on offer, I decided upon an 8 hour tour with Maverick Helicopters on their 'Canyon Dream' tour, which consisted of a flight to the Canyon's South Rim, followed by a helicopter ride into the Canyon and then a short drive into the Grand Canyon National Park where some time was allowed for exploration.  As I've often mentioned, I'm not a 'follow-the-flag' kind of person, but with limited time available, this proved to be the best option.  It's hard to describe just how mighty and magnificent the Grand Canyon is ... 365 kilometres long, maximum width of 29 kilometres and an average depth of 1.6 kilometres ... it's kind of hard to take it all in.  As was to be expected, the views from the plane and helicopter were spectacular, but it was the walking along the rim and down into the Canyon that was even more awe-inspiring.  We had an hour to explore inside the national park and I used this time to head down the Bright Angel trail towards the bottom of the Canyon.  It was here that I began to formulate a plan (to add to my 'places to go' list) to return and hike in the Grand Canyon.  Enjoy these pictures (and forgive my indulgence in sharing so many ... I had a lot of fun experimenting with my new camera!)

Views from the plane ride ... 

Views from the 30 minute helicopter ride ... 

Just to prove that I was actually at the Grand Canyon!

Views from a walk along the South Rim, near Bright Angel Lodge ... 

Bright Angel trail ... 5 hour walk to the bottom of the Canyon

Watch out for the mules!

Mules heading back to the ranch after a 2 day trip to the bottom of the Canyon

San Francisco streets ...

Beautiful corner building

With such full days at the conference, my brain was exhausted at the end of each day, so it was great to get out into the fresh air and walk around the neighbourhoods of San Francisco.  I loved puffing my way up the steep streets as I explored the huge variety of neighbourhoods.  I found the architecture of the buildings to be simply beautiful.   The bus system was also great to jump on when I got tired and it was from bus drivers and locals on the bus that I often got some 'hot tips' for places to explore, such as the quirky shoe garden at the top of Alamo Square.  Strolling and taking in the sights and atmosphere was the perfect way to end a day of learning.

A typical street

A simple, yet ornate building near Alamo Square

'The Painted Ladies' with downtown San Francisco in the background

Up close and personal with 'The Painted Ladies'

Downtown from Alamo Square

A garden of shoes

Shoe pot plants

An odd assortment of shoes

Lombard Street - one of the world's most steep and crooked streets

Cable car with Alcatraz in the background

Big building in Chinatown

A very Chinese name for a restaurant

My favourite ... the Willie 'Woo Woo' Wong Playground, with Hang Ah Tea Rooms in the background

Big names, big ideas ...

Apologies for the lack of blogging of late ... my brain has been otherwise occupied with learning at the annual ASCD conference in San Francisco.  For four very full days (8-6 each day), I listened as experts  threw around current buzz words in the world of education - digital native, 21st century skills, brain based learning, understanding by design - and discussed issues focused on life in American schools, namely budget cuts, the new Common Core initiative (national wide standards), turnaround schools (poor, under-performing schools come good), and the ever-present issue of standardised testing.  I had a strategy for this conference, after being a little disappointed with some of the presenters at last year's summer conference - I was only going to attend sessions by 'big name' presenters talking about big ideas in education.  I decided to avoid anything that promised to solve all educational problems in a certain number of steps.  I managed to achieve this and had the pleasure of listening to some very well spoken (albeit very fast) presenters who had some wonderful new ideas to contemplate.