Alberta

You’ll Never Walk Alone!

….Unless you head out for a stroll before the rest are ready to rock and roll!

I had a sunny wander around Canmore – a town full of adventure outfitters, coffee shops and book stores… my kinda town! 😊🇨🇦

All too soon it was time to join the boys and head to Banff for the eagerly anticipated first game of the season! (Using my ‘artistic license’ here with the phrase ‘eagerly awaited!’ 😉). The Canaries flew up to the Premier League at the end of the last season and today faced the Legends of the Cop… Liverpool FC – away at Anfield…

The Bow River

It’s the first time this holiday that I’ve seen Callum get a march on! He fair paced it down the Bow Valley Pathway to downtown Banff in search a pub from within wihich they could watch the game.

Walking to downtown Banff, Bow River

Tom and I were left in their distant wake and began the long promised ‘souvenir shopping trip.’

Banff has a feel reminiscent of the Cumbria’s Keswick. The English Lakes but super-sized!

Banff Avenue

As we had time on our hands, I decided to let Tom ‘lead the way’ and see how long he’d spend in each shop and how he’d choose to spend our time together…

Bad choice. Our first visit was to ‘Sleeping Buffalo’ for a solar powered key ring that flashes his name…That $6 purchase was snapped up after 30 torturous minutes of careful deliberation! As it turns out, that’s a ‘rash decision’ by Tom standards.

Our next stop was ‘Big Horn’ (😂) a 45 MINUTE browse ending in an $11 pocket knife – which I think was inspired by this morning’s Sky news article about a Vancouver man who successfully fought off a 300lb grizzly attack with nothing other than a pocket knife! I suspect his blade opens a lot quicker than Toms though – which needs a crow bar and a fair wind to open anything other than the main blade!

Finally, Duck, Duck, Moose! The shop that took the biscuit. One whole HOUR of squeezing fake bananas, fake boobies, wooden swords, sweatshirts, cuddly bears and studying moose poo! I was rapidly losing the will to live.. I took up residence on the bench outside the shop. In the end Tom purchased a Canada sweatshirt and was the proudest kid on Banff Avenue! He looks like a walking advert for the Canadian Tourist Board! I however, was ready to sell my soul to anyone who’d take it…and was desperately hoping I’d find the will to live on our way back to find the others…

Matt, Cal and Jack…had endured but enjoyed a decisive 4-1 defeat.. with the only consolation being that Norwich scored the first goal of the season… just unfortunately in the wrong net! 😱…

I thought it best not to remind them that’s it’s ‘not the the winning it’s the taking part that counts,’ and instead took them to the Bow Valley Falls so that we could pretend to be a happy family whilst staring at a powerfully spectacular waterfall!

The super smiley Japanese lady who insisted on taking way too many photos of us was the icing on the cake for camera shy Callum!

I was just grateful that Jack had already returned to the car at that point in a huff – otherwise she may have found herself learning a few new choice English words! 😂

We finished the day with dinner, darts, pool and popcorn and it will now be early nights all round in preparation for our long drive up to Jasper tomorrow!

Sleep well everyone! 😊🇨🇦

Unknown's avatar

Published by

Sacha Brakenbury

As mum to three sons (and auntie to ten!) Sacha is kept busy trying to keep the kids alive, safe, fed and watered. Having specialised in Child Psychology and Linguistics at the University of Reading, Sacha went on to complete her Postgraduate Certificate in Education before taking up her first teaching post as Head of Boys Sport and Year 6 teacher. After 6 years, Sacha was fortunate enough to awarded a travelling fellowship from the Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, enabling her to undertake an extensive research project overseas. Sacha has worked with some of the world's top professional sports and educational institutions across Canada, America, Australia and New Zealand - researching ways of engaging young people through the medium of sport and in particular how this can help to reduce drug use and gang membership. After returning to the UK Sacha became Education Director at Ipswich Town Football Club, leading in the government's 'Playing for Success' scheme. She went on to establish three highly respected Study Centres back in the East of England, each of which used sport as a means of motivating children and young people. After successfully completing her National Professional Qualification for Headship in Cambridge, Sacha went on to study for her Masters Degree in Education. With the arrival of her three sons, Sacha decided it was time to 'go it alone.' She set up her own business consultancy, supporting a range of charities and organisations across the UK. Securing funds in excess of £2 million pounds, Sacha was able to 'give wings' to a wide range of charitable causes close to her heart. She continues this today with work specifically for Child First Trust. It was her own kids that were the inspiration behind her establishing Learning Academies (www.learningacademies.co.uk) - a tutoring company that has the simple mission to motivate and encourage its students to become confident and assertive learners who are not afraid to 'take risks' and challenge themselves. As a passionate photographer, Sacha is never more at home than when she's travelling, camera in hand, boys in tow. As a qualified medic with the British Divers Marine Life Rescue, she is able to combine her love the outdoors with her passion for wild animals.

Leave a comment