Shopping and Hockey - Edmonton, Alberta.

We are now down to 9 weeks left of our time here in Jasper. In a lot of ways it feels like it has gone by so very slowly, but in other ways it seems to have flown by us. I can't believe we've been here for over 6 months now. Stu and I are both looking forward to leaving, we have enjoyed so many things here in Jasper, but the time to move is fast approaching, and we are excited for the change.

In March we took a trip to Edmonton for our combined birthday present. We saved up and took a bus charter to Edmonton very early on Thursday the 12th March, arriving in Edmonton just after lunch time. We were dropped off at the West Edmonton Mall. For those of you who don't know what that is, it's quite possibly the biggest mall in North America. It is 8kms of shops, restaurants and amusement parks, (ice rink, waterpark, golf courses) and hotels in one building.

We spent Thursday perusing (read: Stu dragging my tired feet) the shops WEM has to offer. We walked around for about 5 hours and didn't even manage to cover half the mall. So we decided to pace ourselves over the following days. We spent Friday shopping in a smaller mall in downtown Edmonton, not too far from where we were staying. Then on Friday night, we went to Red Lobster. AMAZING.

We had to wait in line for 30 minutes, there was a big line and we got there just in time to avoid an hour's wait. I was so excited, they advertise Red Lobster on tv a lot in Jasper and I was dying for some good seafood. I was not disappointed! I ordered the ultimate platter which included lobster tail, crabs legs, and 2 different kinds of shrimp/prawns. mmmm...

On Saturday morning we headed back to WEM for some more shopping. Stu and I had tickets to see the Edmonton Oilers play that night, and we decided to show our support by purchasing some Oiler's shirts to wear to the game. Stu got a jersey and I got a vintage t-shirt... after about 2 days of exploring all the options for said shirts and jerseys!! We were happy to be back in civilization where they have malls at all, but the clothing choices for guys were not too exciting and Stu didn't end up finding much that he liked. I on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed shopping in "winners" which is like an op-shop for designer clothes. Everything is brand new, but the prices are slashed massively. I got one cardigan for $40 that was marked down from $180. I also found myself some very hot stilletos.

Saturday night we took the light rail train to the Edmonton Oiler's game. It took all of 10 minutes to get there, and we entered rexall place excited to watch our team play. The Oilers are a great team to watch, I have a bit of a massive crush on Dwayne Roloson, the Oiler's goalie! Stu has a man crush on Sam Gagner, and even has the shirt to prove it :oP

Stu at the train station, in his Oiler's jersey.

We watched the pre-game skate, the players warming up by shooting dozens of pucks at an empty goal while Roly the goalie stretches out and warms up. These guys are fast skaters! I even managed to get a birthday message on the big screen for Stu's birthday, which was that day.

"Happy birthday stuart."

"ILU always, Beth. x"

They played the Colorado Avalanche, and lost in overtime.

The Edmonton Oiler's pre-game skate

It was so exciting though, as they came from behind to equalize the score before going into overtime. It was disappointing that they lost, but it was such a great experience to see a game. Rexall place is the loudest stadium in the entire NHL, with the fans supposedly being the loudest out of any teams. So the atmosphere when they scored the equalizing goal was awesome.

Anyway, Sunday we dragged ourselves back to the mall, well and truly over the crowds there. On Saturday there was a cheerleading competition on, so there would have been about 20,000 people there. No thanks. We also caught the sea lion's show on Saturday. It was very cool.
We begrudgingly left Edmonton and went back to Jasper, but the countdown til our New York trip is now on!
b. x


Enjoy the pics from our Edmonton break!

Oilers score the equalizing goal

This is where our seats were for the game

The Sea Lion's show, in the middle of the West Edmonton Mall!

kisses from the sea lion

Stu in front of the giant pirate ship in the middle of the mall. Because, what mall is complete without one??

blurry, but Roly, none-the-less.

Me and Stu.
I love him!

A day in an Ice Canyon.

One of the most amazing differences between Australia and Canada would definitely be the temperatures here. I'm not a huge fan of summer, or being hot, sweaty, uncomfortable, or anything associated with temperatures over 30 degrees. So when we heard that the average temperature in Canada in winter is -7, I was happy!

There are so many amazing things that we are experiencing here because of the climate - snow, obviously, is a new exciting thing for us, and we are like little kids each morning when we wake up and look outside to see the earth covered in fresh white powder. One of the natural phenomenons that occur in Jasper are the giant canyons and valleys throughout the national park, and this week, we got the chance to go see the Maligne Canyon, and do what's called an Ice Walk through it.

The Jasper Adventure centre picked us up from our hotel and we were taken to be fitted with boots and cleats for the journey. We then drove through a valley under the Colin Ranges and eventually arrived at the Canyon, just after 2pm. At first we started to walk down a basic track, as our guide pointed out some of the features of the rock face around and below us. He talked about how most of the formations are made of limestone and another rock I can't remember the name of, and how over "billions of years" these rivers have created this incredible canyon. We came to the first foot bridge and looked down a 51 metre drop to see a waterfall, completely frozen solid.

The first part of the canyon - a frozen waterfall 50 metres down.

A friend of mine by the name of Jeff had come to visit Jasper this week, and he came with us on this walk. An avid photographer, he stopped to take many pictures... I can't wait to see how his turned out! It was a little dizzying looking down so far, even more dizzying when we saw people down the bottom looking as tiny as ants!

So we continued on, stopping at many springs that feed the falls. These springs are nothing more than a rock with a trickle of water trailing down the mountain, but they feed much of the river system within the canyon.

We ventured further in, and I was starting to feel pretty bad.. being surrounded by all this ice and not having water was torture! Eventually we lowered ourselves into the canyon and came out on the floor - a frozen river at the entrance of the cave parts of the canyon itself. Incredible!

The frozen river at the entrance of the canyon.

Our tour guide was very precise and filled us in on every detail.. although a lot of it went over my head, lots of science talk and chemicals, blah blah.. He was a great guide, it's just that I'm not terrible interested in HOW it occurs.. I just like looking at it, and the fact that it DOES occur. God is so cool.
Further down, we were walking through ice, and the top layer melts... so your feet go through and you end up shin-deep in water and ice! It's a bit scary at first, but the guide assures us that there is over 4 feet of solid ice beneath us, and that there is no way we're going through that ice!

Stu, on the frozen river.

We continued in deeper into the canyon, where we saw some of the most amazing formations of ice. Some parts had ice that was clear like glass, and behind it you were able to see the waterfall trickling down gently, forming more and more ice. These shapes are like looking into clouds - you see so many figures and features in it. Simply amazing.

Eventually we came to a set of waterfalls.. frozen solid. I can't even explain to you how odd it is - to see waterfalls frozen as if in a second - complete with the gushing, churning, bubbling bottom part. It's just incredible.

A little blurry, but it gives you an idea of how cool the bottom of the falls are frozen!

Behind those falls are little cave like rooms.. very cool!
So we wandered throughout the canyon, taking in it's awesome majesty, and once again, being reminded of how incredible God's creation is! The patterns formed on the rocks over the years are just as beautiful.. and my favourite part of the walk would have been the high-ceiling area of rock and ice called "the cathedral"... God's own natural church! It was really just indescribable.

4 hours later, feeling very tired, a little cold and overwhelmed by the beauty of it all, we exited the canyon, and took a short-cut down the river, sliding on our bums all the way down to the exit. It was very fun! I'm glad I wore all my snow gear and had water proof boots on though! So enough from me, here are the pictures. They are the best description of what we saw!

lv beth.

Me touching a frozen waterfall.

PS.. I would like to meet the person who first decided climbing up the face of a frozen waterfall with an ice pick and rope was a "fun idea"...

Frozen formations.. I think this one looks like an angel.

At the top of the canyon

Some crazy man...

"Om nom nom nom..."

Another crazy man.

We conquered the Canyon.

Pray for Australia.

This week has been a devastating week in our nation's history. I have watched online as parts of our beautiful country have been burned to the ground. My heart so aches for those who have lost loved ones, for those who have lost everything to this disaster, and I want to do something about it. But I am here in Canada, in a snow-covered national park, well on the other side of the planet. What can I do? I feel helpless as the news unfolds, and the death toll rises, it all seems so far-removed from reality. But it is real. And it is happening in our own backyards.

I am watching with some amusement as people join facebook groups dedicated to supporting the firefighters in their vital work as these fires continue to destroy homes, families and lives. And yet, I will not join these groups... why? Because in all reality, it's trivial to me. I won't join a group that I have no intention of giving money to. But I want to do something. Something physical. Something to help. So here is my plan.

I am going to fast. I am going to pray. And I am going to do it genuinely seeking God's intervention for the lives of others in this time that has been described as "Hell on Earth". Too often we forget the power of prayer, even though it says in the bible "If my people will humble themselves and pray, turn from their sins, I will heal their land."

So here is my contribution. Prayer won't change what's already happened, but I firmly believe it will change what is to come. Prayer can change my nation.

Beth. x

Around Town

Here are some more pictures from around town.

S.

Some douche smashed this nice sculpture

Marmot Basin

Since most of you back home are in the midst of an epic heat wave, I thought i'd give you a few posts to help cool you down...

I've been lucky enough to go snowboarding 4 times and each time I get a little better. We haven't had much snow lately but we've also had some pretty warm days too. I've started doing the blue intermediate runs and hopefully I can get more comfortable at speed and work towards my goal of being able to do black runs, tricks and jumps by the end of the season.

Here are some pictures from Marmot Basin on a clear day.
S.

At the top of the Eagle Ridge chair with Jasper in the background

Probably not a good idea to go down there anytime soon... probably no birthday party or candy there...

From the top of the Eagle Express Chair, Jasper is just above the sign to the left behind the trees

This is the lower Chalet

Looking up the mountain from the lower chalet, Eagle ridge is at the top left

Supermarket Fun

Okay so, I’ve been meaning to blog about this for a while… Those that know me, know that I’m amused by simple things and I have an active imagination and can’t help but create stories and imagery at the slightest hint from things around me.

So here are some pictures of products that I find funny. Either because they make no excuses about their sugar content (see sugar crisp) or they have a funny name (see manwich), or they are just plain ridiculous (marshmallow spread – goes well with peanut butter apparently and is called a ‘fluffer nutter’, or French Toast cereal).

Enjoy,
S.

Reminds me of Billy Madison...


(Best one I could find)

Great concept for salad dressing

Wholesome

I'll take my french toast with maple syrup rather than milk thanks...

The eggs hatch whilst you eat...

Candy - what every cereal needs

Anyone for tang?

It's chlorine blue, and it's raspberry, lemon flavour... go figure!

Should probably be 10%...

Jono is a chicken... a female chicken...

So cute, so crunchy.

The famed, 'Fluffer Nutter', I will have to try this one day.