| My husband and I try to go skiing for a week at | | | | skiing.....Two outstanding attractions are the historic |
| least once a year and so far we've been to about | | | | Fairmont Banff Springs Hotel and the Fairmont |
| 15 different ski resorts on the east coast, | | | | Chateau Lake Louise and I had an opportunity to |
| anywhere from Ontario to Quebec, New | | | | explore both these magnificent structures in detail. |
| Hampshire, Vermont and Maine. But we had never | | | | Canada's history is inextricably intertwined with |
| been out west in the Rockies. Well, it was time to | | | | the history of the railroads. The Canadian Pacific |
| change that..... | | | | Railroad played a key role in opening up the west |
| So we planned a trip to the Canadian Rockies, | | | | and these castle-like railway hotels figured |
| and for both of us it was the first time for us to | | | | prominently in Canada's development of the West |
| see this majestic mountain range. Just after we | | | | Coast. |
| landed on March 4, 2006 we started off with a | | | | Last Friday a wonderful adventure provided the |
| whirlwind four-hour tour of Calgary to get a | | | | highlight of my trip: I went dogsledding with |
| sneak peak at Canada's Heart of the New West. | | | | Snowy Owl Adventures on a crisp crystal-blue |
| Our extremely knowledgeable tour guide took us | | | | winter day, high in the mountains above the town |
| to the Calgary Tower, Fort Calgary and past the | | | | of Canmore.Our adventure was almost over, but |
| Stampede Grounds and Calgary's Saddledome. Of | | | | I had one more chance for exploration: on |
| course Canada Olympic Park was one of the main | | | | Saturday I took the gondola up to Sulphur |
| attractions on this tour. | | | | Mountain from where I got a perfect 360 degree |
| The same evening we enjoyed a wonderful | | | | panoramic view of Banff and the surrounding |
| Italian feast at Il Giardino on 4th Street and we | | | | mountain ranges. I checked out the Cosmic Ray |
| had a chance to get to know one of Calgary's | | | | Station and after a brief forest hike past the |
| most successful entrepreneurs. We enjoyed the | | | | Banff Springs Hotel, I visited the Banff Park |
| wonderful hospitality of Deirdre and Henry Brost | | | | Museum, one of Canada's oldest natural history |
| at the historic Twin Gables Bed & Breakfast and | | | | museums. |
| got a huge surprise at breakfast when we | | | | Our Alberta explorations were rapidly coming to |
| realized we were enjoying our morning meal with | | | | an end, and just before we headed to the airport |
| two big celebrities (you'll have to read the article | | | | we went on one final walk through Calgary and |
| to find out which famous people shared the B&B | | | | explored the famous +15 walkway system that |
| with us....).After breakfast we walked all the way | | | | keeps Calgary visitors sheltered from the harsh |
| from the Twin Gables to downtown from where | | | | winter air. We also explored a beautiful tropical |
| I took the C-Train to get to the Kensington area, | | | | hideaway called Devonian Gardens....Along the way |
| one of Calgary's main restaurant and shopping | | | | we got to explore some great skiing, magnificent |
| areas. I had a brief lunch at a Vietnamese | | | | mountain scenery and historic buildings, the |
| restaurant called Indochine Bistro where I found | | | | exuberance of a dog-sledding team raring to go |
| out that the young owner had originally come to | | | | and the outstanding hospitality of the people of |
| Canada as a refugee from Vietnam. What an | | | | Alberta. We'll be back.....Susanne Pacher is the |
| amazing success story: from Vietnamese boat | | | | publisher of a website called Travel and |
| person to successful Calgary restauranteur.... | | | | Transitions ( Travel and Transitions deals with |
| Then it was time to head west on the | | | | unconventional travel and is chock full of advice, |
| Transcanada Highway to our destination for the | | | | tips, real life travel experiences, interviews with |
| next week: Banff, a picturesque town nestled | | | | travellers and travel experts, insights and |
| inside the famous Banff National Park, also a | | | | reflections, cross-cultural issues, contests and |
| UNESCO World Heritage Site. Of course we went | | | | many other features. You will also find stories |
| skiing and we had a chance to check out 3 major | | | | about life and the transitions that we face as we |
| ski resorts: perfectly groomed Norquay, high | | | | go through our own personal life-long |
| altitude Sunshine Village - located on the | | | | journeys.Submit your own travel stories in our |
| Continental Divide, and the unbelievably huge and | | | | first travel story contest ( and have a chance to |
| scenic ski area of Lake Louise. Well, there is | | | | win an amazing adventure cruise on the Amazon |
| definitely something to be said for West Coast | | | | River."Life is a Journey Explore New Horizons". |