Edmonton
It's crazy to think that we've already been gone from Newfoundland for a month. There hasn't been any homesickness yet, though Merlin was pretty mopey around our place in Edmonton, which we blamed on the heat.
The first day we arrived in Edmonton, Angela picked us up from the airport and brought us to our place at New Cambridge Lofts on Jasper Avenue. It had been pretty hot, and the apartment itself was over 25 degrees, and there wasn't any air conditioning. Thankfully our hosts very graciously bought a brand new AC unit that I installed with the help of a bit of cardboard and Angela's duct tape to seal off the window it was connected to. All in all, despite never having lived in a bachelor apartment before, it was quite a nice place to stay.
We were on the 14th floor, but despite the great view (through and around the skyscrapers), we kept the blinds drawn most of the time to try to keep the heat out of the apartment.
Botanical Weekend
Our first weekend in Edmonton, we went with Anna's cousin Angela to the Muttart Conservatory and the University of Alberta Botanical Gardens. We took a ton of pictures, and had a fabulous brunch at the cafe inside the Muttart.
The Muttart (Muh-tart) was beautiful, with so many things to look at. You could walk through the whole thing in an hour, or you could spend an entire day looking at all the plants hidden throughout the place.
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| An Elephant Foot Tree, which was super cool because it's obvious where it's name comes from! |
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| This pic we took to show Mom (Stella) just how big her plant could grow, if she wanted! |
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| Took this one for you Ashley! |
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| Everybody's favourite bugs! |
The Muttart is divided into 4 glass pyramids, and each pyramid is host to a different climate zone for the plants that grow there. The four that we saw were Arid, Temperate, Tropical, and the "Feature Pyramid" which while we were there was called a "Kaleidoscope of Colour." We found out before we left Edmonton, that for the month of July this was being changed to a Pre-historic pyramid, set in the age of the dinosaurs. Would've loved to have seen that too!
We loved some of the statues and decorations that we found through the pyramids.
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| This one looks like it belongs on Pinterest... A picture frame wall hanging planter! |
I (David) tried to take some photos of the two cousins while they weren't posing, but I could never get the camera to work fast enough. So I made them pose. :)
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Why is this my natural habitat? Because I'm standing in front of a COFFEE TREE! I need a greenhouse that will let me grow these...Botanical Gardens
We left the Muttart Conservatory after lunch, and headed to the UofA Botanical Gardens. The weather was beautiful except for one solitary dark cloud that hung over the garden. Very shortly after we entered the garden, the thunder and lightning started, and we headed for the cover of their indoor garden and butterfly pavilion.
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| We love this one, because it's in our wedding colours. |
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| The only cocoon that had hatched while we were there! |
When the rain finally let up, we headed outdoors again to the Japanese Gardens, which was absolutely gorgeous.
After we left the Japanese garden, we wandered about the rest of the place, taking in all the sights.
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| This picture has a sign (bottom centre) that says "Medicinal and Poisonous Plants." I thought it was a bit like Herbal Roulette. |
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Rhubarb! Good for the making of wine, in dad's (George Fowler) basement!Anniversary Dinner(s)
On June 22, we celebrated our anniversary outside of Newfoundland for the first time. So we picked a wonderfully romantic spot for dinner, and went to La Ronde, a revolving restaurant just a block from our apartment.
    
After we had a wonderful dinner at La Ronde, we booked a hotel room at the Union Bank Inn, which was literally across the road from our apartment. The room was amazing, and the restaurant was probably the best food we've ever eaten. If you live in Edmonton and haven't been here, you need to change that!
    Sherlock Saturday
We took a weekend to visit the Telus World of Science, where the international Sherlock Holmes exhibit was being housed. It was a great exhibit, with lots of history and interesting stories. There was even a murder mystery for us to solve, using clues at different stations throughout the exhibit.
I realize it's nerdy, but I loved this sign!
          
These pics are of props that were used in a variety of the Sherlock Holmes TV episodes and movies, including those with Robert Downey Jr, Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman.
     Jasper
The day after we did our Sherlock Holmes themed day, Angela took us to Jasper for the day. Such a beautiful park, great food, and an incredible view.
  
Given the fact that we don't have trains in Newfoundland, that's how this one got into the lineup!
   
If you look right up to the top of the mountain, you can see the Skytram that we took, way off in the distance.
  
Cables for the Skytram.
 
The Skytram! A pretty cool ride, and a great view from the top. David actually didn't know we could get out at the top...
A little reassurance before you get on the Skytram at the bottom of the mountain.
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Anna's Dooney & Burke commerical. :)
Anna & Angela's Day at the Zoo
We still have a few pictures to post of our family get-togethers, but this post has been a long time coming as it is. So we hope you've enjoyed the pictures, and we'll put up another post soon, along with our trip to Prince George, BC!
