Living in a ghost town...

Off i trotted to Calgary from Edmonton. I can see what people mean about the city, the outside isn't appealing, but when you find the city centre it is completely different. With a park and a long street full of restaurants and bars with tables outside creating that city buzz that I love so much. People sitting around with friends, sipping on a glass of wine and chatting about the world, or more likely the guy they met last night or that fabulous pair of shoes they splashed out on the day before!

I can say that I saw the whole of Calgary - impressive for a day hey? Well I took a trip up to the top of the Calgary Tower which allows you to over look the whole city in a glance. It is quite amazing to see the built up city on one side and then the 1998 Olympic mountains on the other.

I had time to kill and hanging around the bus station didn't seem like the best idea, so with no idea what was going on I took a trip back to the park to discover some drama school putting on a production of 'Grease'. Yes, I admit I know every single word and was holding myself back from running onto the stage and breaking into a chorus of 'Summer Loving'. I have to say though that they cast Danny all wrong - who can live up to John Travolta in his day? No one!

After a long overnight trip I arrived in Regina. On first impressions I thought it was a nice little town, clean, relaxed and chilled out. I soon discovered that chilled out isn't how to describe it, I think the word 'dead' is more appropriate. Everything closes at around five and doesn't open until 10am to midday. It must be great to work around here, what a short working day, beats the 9:30am until 6pm I was doing. There was my trip to 'the home of the Mounties'. It took me a hour to walk there and once I was there and nicely glazed in sweat from the beating sun it was closed. So I decided to get a coffee, it was closed - are you getting the picture?

Every person I've spoken to in the hostel has asked me if I have found anything to do and my answer every time has been no, in which they respond exactly the same with a bemused look on their face. I did meet a girl my age, Anya, the day I got here and we had a couple of drinks, but unfortunately for me (not for her) so had planned her escape from ghost town and was leaving later that night.

There is the Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Being a hockey fan I thought I would check it out (and it was free). I think the description maybe wrong - it's more like bits of laminated paper stuck to the wall with a few photographs.

I did however discover a huge park today, with a massive lake and a swimming pool - I was expecting to get to the pool and find it closed, but to my surprise it was open!

Tomorrow I run as fast as I can to the bus station and go to Winnipeg for a couple of nights and then over to Thunder Bay and start my mission around the East. I can't wait as that is where I've always wanted to go. Just hoping the money holds out as it seems Greyhound (the bus company) are eating my savings!