DAY 2: Wednesday 14th April 2010 - EDMONTON (Darryl)
Well we all slept heavily and I woke about 7am, down to breakfast around 9am-sh and we feasted on all the free food to fill up for the day (bagels, English muffins and Grape jelly was a hit). We intended on visiting West Ed Mall today, but after trying to arrange a bus and finding we needed exact change (still finding the coins pretty odd – no 50 cent, but 25cents, the 5cent is larger and the 10cent tiny!) we also realized we would be better off sorting out some other critical things first. So we spent most of the day in the nearby City Centre Mall which was about 4 floors and we didn’t get around it all (and thats the small one!). It was still chilly outside today with the sun straining through the light clouds, but I found it too hot inside the mall and had to strip off my jersey and jacket to cool off.
The boys were taken with these large gas fires with what looked like ice cubes piled around the flames.
The Dollarama shop was a hit, and it was interesting to wander around the food hall to compare prices and check out the different types of kai on offer. Taco Bell looks great and cheap too, and the Stromboli at some Italian place looks too good to pass up (later). We settled for muffins, coffee and slushies.
I spent some time around 3 phone/internet shops (Bell, Fido, Telus) sorting out our communications and found that they don’t do pre-paid cell phone sim cards (for Sarahs phone) so we may have to just buy a cell phone instead, and found an internet key for mobile broadband on the laptop for $75.
Lachie and I went out again before dinner to pickup a nice bottle of Canadian wine (Chenin Blanc from the Okanagan district) to go with our Salmon and vegetables for dinner. The wine shop owner was impressed with NZ wines, and reckons they send most of the Canadian winemakers there for training!
Our impressions of Edmonton so far:
The colours of most buildings are quite drab (mainly brown)and industrial looking, and the paths etc are very dusty although well swept. I wonder if this is a product of heavy snow and constant application of grit to the roads? In saying that it seems quite busy and I am enjoying strolling around finding different things down each road, as most shops are evenly spread out. Lachie and I visited the underground light rail and found it to be a haven for a few homeless people, we have also been approached by a few down & out folk on the street asking for money.
I am enjoying the temperature, as its nice getting into jeans, jackets, jerseys again – but the temp is around -2 to +5 degrees and I just can’t comprehend what it would be like in winter at -30!!!
Most people seem quite friendly, and the accent is more American than I was expecting. I am finding that I have to put more effort into speaking more clearly and slowing it down (ie lose the Kiwi twang and my mumble!), so some of the locals can understand.
DAY 3: Thursday 15th April 2010 - EDMONTON
After breakfast, Callum and I nipped down to the Bell shop in City centre mall and sorted out our internet mobile USB stick, and a pre-paid SIM card for Sarah’s cellphone. Still having a bit of trouble with my accent (didn’t realize it was that different?) but one of the shop assistants knew 'Flight of the Conchords' well - so she understood.
After we tested both of those it was on the bus and off to West Edmonton Mall. The ride there gave us some insight into life in the local suburbs. Houses varied between rough little boxes and more luxurious large stately homes. Still dry, brown , drab & dusty – but the evergreen Fir trees provide a bit of colour.
The mall was really interesting. I don’t usually enjoy shopping malls as they are typically just more of the same old shops. Not here, there was:
- Avenues of pubs, restaurants and lots of neon (including a Hooters bar),
- Galaxy Land with roller coasters, rides, games, etc and we had a cartoon caricature done of the boys.
- Waterfalls, fountains, bronze statues – including a lifesize? Whale,
- A massive water fun park, with a wave machine, water slides, bungy, deck chairs & a beach!
- A Pirate ship, with waterways, submarine rides, performing seals etc
- The Wild West Gun shop was a hit with the boys, as well as having lots of real weaponry (Glocks, 44 magnums, revolvers, machine guns, etc ) they had a target range where you could fire off a few rounds (10 shots for $33).
We hit it off with a storekeeper in Supply Sergeant (ex-army clothing and supplies) and we gave the other Aussie assistant a hard time! Callum spent his money on a Top Gun style bomber jacket, and Kelsey got an army tee shirt.
We also stocked up on some more Edmonton tee shirts and a fleece top for Lachie.
Lunch today was mainly Tacos and Burritos, and Sarah and I shared our first Stromboli, while Kelsey held out for a burger and fries.
Its taking a while getting used to the longer days here, (it gets dark after 9pm)and it caught us out today. We were so busy finding our way around this place that we hadn’t noticed the time getting away on us. We were all getting pretty weary and finally got back on the bus after 8pm. The ride back was more of an eye opener for the kids, as an old fart yelled at Lachie to give up his seat, and a drunken bum hassled the driver for most of the trip back.
I cooked up a basic feed of sausages, carrots, cauliflower, potatoes and bread while Sarah caught up on the clothes washing and the kids wrote in their journals. Packing our bags up ready for an early start tomorrow, it’s another late night but so far all is well.
