Most things in Calgary are connected by +15s - walkways that join almost every downtown building to every other one, the idea being that you can get around comfortably in the depths of winter, much harsher here than on our side of the Rockies. And what better way to utilise all this indoor space than fill it with shops?
The centrepiece of this warm retail therapy is the CORE, right in the heart of dowtown, and at the top are the Devonian Gardens: a huge glass-ceilinged space full of tropical plants, fountains surrounded by barriers at perfect trippable heights for toddlers, and even a grand piano for public use. And shops, of course. Pete, unsurprisingly, ran around like a mad thing, constantly disappointed that daddy did not let him dive into pools and flowerbeds.
But the highlight of the day came in the evening, with a family reunion. It turns out that my Godfather's half-sister Suzanne, who he'd never met until a few years ago, lives in Calgary! My Godfather is the son of my Grandma's cousin, Suzanne's father, which means that Suzanne's great-grandparents are my great-great-grandparents, which I think makes her my second-cousin-once-removed. As Hannah sagely pointed out: when you're Welsh it doesn't matter how you're family, it just matters that you're family.
After exchanging emails and photos we successfully identified each other in the lobby of our hotel and went out for a delicious Thai meal. Most of the dinner involved untangling the family connections and working out who Suzanne had met and when. When the surnames involved are all Price, Edwards and Davies it becomes easier to identify which farm they lived on rather than who they were. Amazingly, things became clearer the more wine we drank.
Pete couldn't believe he was allowed to be up and eating yellow curry well past his bedtime, and we waved Suzanne goodbye after making plans to meet up again half-way between Vancouver and Calgary which just happens to be wine country. It's wonderful to have family a little closer than the UK. Maybe I'll apply for citizenship on the basis of this, and see how respectful the Canadian government is of Welsh genealogy...
One of the famous +15s.
A map of Canada, including the legendary giant beaver that roams the far north-east.
At the playground in the mall, where Pete picks only the most dangerous and age-inappropriate structures.
Inside the Devonian Gardens.
Happy families!
