Canada

[Angie Parkes]

Freshstarz, you started out here in the west? Whereabouts? When did you leave? I'm in Calgary.

My experiences in Montreal, the last one was about 25 years ago, were always the same. I was always welcomed warmly and people were very tolerant of my French, which varies between nonexistent and abysmal, depending upon the circumstances.

[freshstarz]

Hi Angie... from Vancouver area most recently. And yes - they do tolerate my French as well. They mainly care that you make an attempt and try. How's Calgary? Haven,t been there for YEARS

[Angie Parkes]

Calgary's booming again. After the boom of the late 70s went bust in the 80s, a new bumper sticker replaced the one about letting eastern folks freeze in the dark. This one read, "Dear Lord, please let there be another boom and I promise I won't p*ss it all away this time."

With oil hovering at $50 a barrel, this is a happening kind of place. The population is just shy of a million and continuing to grow very quickly. The city is quite cosmopolitan now, thanks to head offices moving from Toronto and Montreal, as well as to vibrant immigrant communities. The downside is that if the oil money doesn't trickle down to you, you're up the creek because the boom is raising prices for food, shelter, and gas. There are more poor and homeless people than ever.

The culture scene is starting to heat up -- there are rival jazz festivals, for example, and the Honens piano competition and the international organ competition are gaining prestige. Dance and theatre are very big (well, by Calgary standards, anyway), particularly avant garde stuff.

There are some pretty nice sporting venues around town, too. The winter sport training facilities are world class, as is Spruce Meadows, the equestrian facility.

Of course, the cowboy stuff is as big as ever. Calgary isn't Montreal, of course, but it isn't Cowtown anymore, either.

[DavidS]

Angie - how well developed are the public transport systems in & around Calgary?

[Angie Parkes]

I think it's pretty decent considering that the city is over 700 sq. km. I went to the transit web site and found this: "Today's transit fleet is made up of 315 regular buses, 367 low floor buses, 92 community shuttle buses, and 116 light rail vehicles." Low floor buses run on routes where there are lots of senior citizens using the transit so they don't have to climb stairs to get on the bus. We have three rail lines in the city, one going south, one going northwest, and one going northeast.

The transit system covers a 160 routes over a total of 4500 km.

Around Calgary it's mostly ranch country, so not much by way of public transit.

[Marye]

Angie... what's the cost for taking a bus? Is it done by "zone"? In Toronto a ticket to ride is the same regardless of where you get on.

[freshstarz]

Angie, sounds like Calgary is up and coming. Who knows what will happen, what role oil will play and its effects on the rest of the eastern cities. I chose Montreal for its ridiculously low cost of living (rent here is (in my eyes) still unbelievable)... Plus it's a big city that doesn't seem to give a shit that it's a big city... I was surprised when I got here and, despite having a metro population of about 3.5 million, the downtown itself was not riddled with skyscrapers... Anyway - glad to hear Calgary is bustling. I know Alberta will come out ahead with its oil somehow in the near or hopeful future. Cheers for Western Canada

[freshstarz]

Angie, sounds like Calgary is up and coming. Who knows what will happen, what role oil will play and its effects on the rest of the eastern cities. I chose Montreal for its ridiculously low cost of living (rent here is (in my eyes) still unbelievable)... Plus it's a big city that doesn't seem to give a shit that it's a big city... I was surprised when I got here and, despite having a metro population of about 3.5 million, the downtown itself was not riddled with skyscrapers... Anyway - glad to hear Calgary is bustling. I know Alberta will come out ahead with its oil somehow in the near or hopeful future. Cheers for Western Canada

[Marye]

freshstarz... wait... Western Canada has Stephen Harper.... I shudder.. don't you Angie? :p

[OperaTenor]

Okay, I'll play. Who's Stephen Harper? Is he a Canadian neocon?

[Haggis@wk]

He's the leader of the Conservative party in Canada. he's the one who has been pushing Martin on the finacial scandal that has embroiled the liberal party and could well become the next Prime Minister of Canada.

[OperaTenor]

A scandal can become PM in Canada?

:p

[Marye]

Could well become the next PM of Canada

Nah.... He lacks personality and Harper is really a "Reformer" (Christian Right). Two parties joined to become the new Conservatives because Reform couldn't get a seat in the House of Commons east of Alberta and the Conservatives couldn't get a seat west of Ontario. Ontario would have to vote Conservative to even give Harper a chance to be PM. Last time Ontario did that Mulroney became Prime Minister and we are still living that one down. Canadians coast to coast actively HATE Brian Mulroney. It is a unifying thing.

[BigJon@Work]

Originally posted by Marye:
Canadians coast to coast actively HATE Brian Mulroney. It is a unifying thing.

Other than being a bit thick, what was wrong with him?

BigJon

[treebeau]

Off topic, but sort of not off topic.

How about that Miss Canada, winning Miss Universe ??

She's gorgeous, as were most of the others.

Regards,
Tim B.

[Marye]

Brian Mulroney brought us the Free Trade Agreement and the Goods and Services Tax. The unifying tax of 8% on everything and that is on top of Provincial tax. Alberta, being oil rich does not have a provincial tax... The point of the GST was to pay down the mother of all deficits. But it didn't... it increased. All it did was take more money from our pockets. I am taxed 15% on everything I buy. 8% thanks to Mulroney.

Brian Mulroney gave all his friends "patronage appointments". When you are the outgoing PM it is then you make sure all your friends go to the Senate. A useless body of government that serves no purpose but to skim money off the top. You can be a senator, live in Florida, go to the Senate once a year and make a lovely pot of money by doing NOTHING... and our tax dollars pay for this. Canadians hate the senate, yet we cannot get rid of it.

BM made sure government contracts went to Quebec, his home province by removing a number from Western Canada. He attempted to repatriate the Constitution and in doing so (he was trying to bring Quebec into the fold and there was nothing wrong with that)he alienate all the rest of the provinces (and our aboriginal people) and thus new political parties sprang up, namely: the Reform Party in Western Canada and the Separatist Party Bloc Quebecois.

AND>>>> he snuggled up to Reagan >>> he looked a right idiot when he did that "When Irish Eyes were smiling" sing along ... Canadians cringed at how stupid he looked. He sucked up to the U.S. in general. We really hate that.

[Marye]

Originally posted by treebeau:
Off topic, but sort of not off topic.

How about that Miss Canada, winning Miss Universe ??

She's gorgeous, as were most of the others.

Regards,
Tim B.

Ah.. well, Miss Universe you say. T'is a proud proud moment then.

[OperaTenor]

Wow, I thought I was kidding when I made the Canadian neocon comment.

Guess it's not a uniquely U.S. disease.....

[Marye]

Originally posted by OperaTenor:
Wow, I thought I was kidding when I made the Canadian neocon comment.

Guess it's not a uniquely U.S. disease.....

Nope..

[Angie Parkes]

Originally posted by Marye:
Angie... what's the cost for taking a bus? Is it done by "zone"? In Toronto a ticket to ride is the same regardless of where you get on.

Calgary transit is one fare whether you're going down the block or across the city. Currently, it's $2 (Cdn, of course), $17.50 for a book of 10 tickets (adult fares; kids ride cheaper). Because I work in a post-secondary I get to take advantage of a great deal, 4 months unlimited use for $72. But seniors get an even better deal: $35 for a year.