We checked out of our hotel and drove the short distance to walk the grounds & lobby of the Fairmont Banff Springs hotel. History: The manager of the Canadian Pacific Railway recognized the tourism potential of the Canadian west and envisioned a succession of lavish resort hotels along the railway line through the Rocky and Selkirk Mountains. This impressive hotel, at the convergence of the Bow and Spray Rivers, was styled after a Scottish baronial castle designed by Bruce Price. Construction began in 1887 and opened June 1, 1888. It was a huge success, even during the depression, as it was a place for members of high society and heads of state to visit. However, by 1942 the effect of World War II had reached the hotel and it closed it's doors. It reopened in 1945, struggled in the 50's and 60's, and then finally found it's niche again in the 1970's as a year round destination resort.
For breakfast we stopped at Phil's Restaurant (similar to a Denny's with breakfast, lunch and dinner choices). See those round sausage looking things? They called them Chubbies on the menu. We enjoyed our breakfast but thought the Chubbies were spiced differently than US breakfast sausages, so did not care for them.
We got back on the road and headed to Calgary (1 hr 26 min) and to our favorite stop of the entire trip - Heritage Park historical village. Heritage Park is Canada's largest living history museum with more than 179 buildings and structures, a steam train, paddle wheel boat and a huge indoor museum called Gasoline Alley.
We started at Gasoline Alley. I'm not joking when I think we spent over an hour in here. We were all fascinated with something. This is one of the largest public collections of antique vehicles and oil and gas related artifacts in the world. Included interactive exhibits of the 1930s, 40s and 50s highlighting a retro drive-in theatre and a travel trailer. My favorite section in the street scene area was the Safeway store front with groceries on display, including red potatoes at 6 cents a pound.
Canada Safeway History: In 1929, when Walter J. Kraft began operating five stores in Canada, grocery stores were not the huge, diversified markets of today. In a typical grocery store of the early 1930s, which covered about 1,000 square feet, customers bought only one or two day's worth of food at a time, because blocks of ice were the standard source of refrigeration. But this would soon change. Widespread electricity brought with it the convenience of home refrigerators and freezers, enabling shoppers to stock up. The ubiquity of the automobile was also pivotal, as it allowed for the transport of larger loads. Another modern idea of selling meat, dairy, grocery and bakery items all under one roof also revolutionized the industry, causing the average size of a grocery store to grow significantly.
After thoroughly enjoying ourselves in the indoor museum, we headed outside to explore the rest of the park which was divided into these sections: Steam Train, Aboriginal Encampment, 1880's pre-railway settlement, 1860's Fur Trading Fort, Agricultural Area, 1910 Village, Railway Car Shop, Wagon Rides, SS. Moyie, Antique Midway and Natural Resource Area.
As we toured each of these areas, they had people at the displays dressed in period costumes and providing information. For instance, in the Nightingale Colony House (1909) we saw a demonstration on how to make butter and had a sample with a saltine cracker. They also had workers baking at the Livingston House (1883), Rectory (1899) and Burnside Ranch House (1904) As we arrived at the different houses, we observed (and smelled) various rhubarb recipes being created. Unfortunately they did not provide samples! But they did share the recipes for Rhubarb Compote, Rhubarb Pie, Rhubarb Crunch and Rhubarb Sauce. It was interesting to see the different methods used to bake as some houses had fire places and some had wood stoves.
For lunch we ate at the Wainwright Hotel (1907) and had a Black Angus burger (John), Bison Burger (Audrey) and a Chicken Club (Sam). Audrey said I had to post this picture, but my don't I look warm?! It was a warm summer day with some rain & humidity thrown in.
I don't think we were able to see everything and if we lived in Calgary, I'm sure we would get a season pass. Really enjoyed ourselves. Before leaving we checked out the shops near the entrance to the park. There we found an ice cream "scoop". John remembered eating ice cream like this when he was a young child visiting his relatives back in Sault Saint Marie, Ontario Canada. So we bought it.
After leaving Heritage Park we headed to the Four Points by Sheraton Hotel & Suites Calgary West. It ended up being our favorite hotel on our trip. However, this is when we discovered something else internationally. If you don't call your credit card company and give them your trip plan, they think someone has stolen your credit cards. And because we did not have international cell service, we had to stand at the check-in desk and use their phone to chat with our credit card company. All was settled soon. We relaxed for a bit and then went back out for dinner and exploring.
We often try to eat someplace that we cannot try at home. Harvey's was our dinner choice and it was a good one. Think a Subway but with burgers. They create the burger in front of you and you let them know which toppings you would like. Very fresh and very tasty. Their slogan: A Canadian burger chain recognized for its' flame grilled burgers, fresh toppings, and the ability to have your burger made the way you want it.
Saw a Safeway and had to check it out. There are 224 Safeway stores in Canada with 96 in Alberta and 75 in British Columbia. No wonder it felt like the grocery choices along our road trip were heavily Safeway oriented. I found it interesting how expensive the food seemed compared to US since the dollar was almost-par while we were travelling. I could not imaging paying $8.15 for a container of ice cream (with a sale price of $5.99). A box of cereal was $7. Found similar examples at fast food restaurants with a simple hamburger/fries/drink combo starting at $8. When we did sit down restaurants, it was more along the $20 per person range rather than the $12-15 range we found at home.
