Rainbow Crossroads, Calgary

Our final morning in Canada and with a late flight four of us decided to head into downtown Calgary for a quick sight see.  We had only just got out of the taxi at the Calgary Tower when we came across this rainbow crossway at the start of the pedestrian area, Stephen Avenue. The street was named after George Stephen, the first president of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The Avenue contains a high concentration of registered historic buildings and the street itself was declared a Canadian historic site in 2002.

We spent about 3 hours touring the area up to the Bow River and can thoroughly recommend the experience  We even took advantage of the overhead covered walkways from time to time.  Then it was back to the hotel and transfer to the airport.  A very civilised experience with just 6 international flights during our time there.  Plenty of room to sit and chat before the interminable flight back to the UK.

I've had a fantastic time in Canada.  Obviously the highlight is the scenery but it wouldn't have been the same without the company of the group of fellow travellers on the trip.  This is my third such trip and on every occasion the people met have been the difference between a good and fantastic trip.  I count good friends amongst the people I have met for the first time on these holidays.  There's no getting away from the challenges of the trip; you do spend a fair amount of time getting in (and out) of the bus as you travel around, on some occasions several times in a day for the different photo stops. The majority of the party was also struck down with colds at one time or another (luckily not me). But that would be taking away the delight of seeing such fantastic views, you just can't experience these things in the UK.  I have a wanderlust and as I get older I don't want that to diminish, so here's looking forward to the next opportunity.