Day 189 Calgary Event Day.

 Strategizing in the lobby of the hotel. Day 189 of the relay was an event day. Some of the events team and other relay staff attended school events, while a few of us were rostered to gather information on accessability of businesses and facilities for the Global Accessability Map, a new initiative introduced by the Rick Hansen Foundation last fall.

A few of the relay crew were G.A.M. (Global Accessability Map) ing in Calgary, so a group of us decided to head to Canmore, Alberta,  just over an hour west of Calgary. We will not be passing through Canmore on the relay, so we thought it was good chance to check it out. We passed the Canada Olympic Park just west of Calgary, home of the 1988 Winter Olympics.

What's that I see, for the relay crew that are from B.C., a familiar site, the Rocky Mountains!

Pat was the captain of the ship (shuttle bus) today.

Wow, breathtaking!

It is hard to tell from the picture, but in the middle of all the beauty, they have decided to plunk down a casino right on the Trans-Canada. Oy Vey!

This is close to the entrance to Exshaw. I remember this little town from the relay, with the back-drop of the rockies, it was very picturesque .

Except for this cement plant just east of town. Limestone is mined just behind the plant.

For late February, there is not a lot of snow in the area, or on the peaks.

Canmore has about 12,000 people. Originally a coal mining town, it depends on tourism and the ski industry. It boasts the  Canmore Nordic Centre, a legacy from the 1988 Olympics.

Wow, the entrance to Canmore.

A shot of the the three sisters. (faith, charity, and hope)

Downtown,

The buildings in town follow along the same building patterns, looking like a ski village.

Including the Canadian Tire store.

It was a beautiful day to walk around downtown, the temperature was around freezing (mild compared to what we have seen lately)

I think it's a match, Pat! (and that's all it took to make the door open!)

grin and bear it!

We went into a brew pub for lunch, there was an old church outside the window in the forefront of the rockies.

We got the sampler tray, which included lite, dark, stouts, reds, and even a rasberry ale.

One of the more eye appealing lunches I have had, the ginger beef melt with snow peas, and a house salad with raspberry vinegerette dressing. I would definately go back, and the accessability is alright as well!

A bronze statue to commemorate the miners of yesteryear

Wowsers, this kind of marketing makes me want to get my dabber and rush over!

If you can't read the sign, it says this bench is reserved for the comfort of our seniors, well I hate to admit we are all pretty close!

Please feel free to add your own caption!

We stopped at the local McDonald's to grab a coffee (after all, they are a relay sponsor), and Pat treated us to the newest baked pie, the oreo! Well it certainly was tasty, but 3 days later, the sugar high is still lingering.

Heading back into Calgary for one more night. We did manage to combine a little sight-seeing with our gathering of information for the Global Accessability Map, all in all, a good day!