It's Kerri's birthday today and, on her request, we went on a sticky beak mission to Edmonton.
The "Big Attraction" (and I use the term fairly loosely) is the West Edmonton Mall. There isn't that much else other than work and loads of service industries for the Petro-chem industry. I actually saw the assembly yard where some of the pipe rack modules for the project I'm working on now are being built.
This photo above is taken from the University looking across the river at Parliament house & the Downtown area.
The West Edmonton Mall
The West Edmonton Mall isn't your typical mall. Aside from being huge, it has a whole bunch of attractions/amusements to keep, particularly kids occupied. The following blog entries will fill in the dots.
Kerri was very excited to go & have a look, but by the time we had spent 2 half days in the place we had both decided it was all to much. It's too hard to shop because there are too many shops to be able to make any decisions.
You would think it was every girl's dream, but not for my one. It was cool to have seen it, but the chances of a return visit are very slim. The boring as bat shit, 3 hour drive each way from Calgary is enough to put you off the whole idea period.
The West Edmonton Mall has a real water theme to it. I guess it all helps in a city in the middle of the Alberta Prairie.
Notice the Submarine in the bottom right of shot.
Here we have a Grey Whale made out of solid bronze. You can actually sit in its mouth.
What would a mall be without a Mini Golf Course?
Notice the Victorian style facades on the shop fronts.
There is a semi-impressive array of water slides.
Right next to the water slides is a wave pool & it's all under cover.
The only downside was the heavy aroma of chlorine trapped inside the dome.
No indoor place in Canada is complete without an Ice Rink.
It was funny watching tiny kids with all the right intentions, trying to learn how to skate. The little girls in their pretty little dresses trying to ice dance & the little boys in hockey helmets, pads & gloves. They all kept falling over, but it didn't phase them for a second.
A big section of the mall is an amusement park. It had a bunch of usual rides of sideshow alley at the royal show back in Oz, but mainly geared for the younger population. There were a couple of exceptions including this Roller Coaster. It was pretty full on. It was all made a bit more exciting being inside a building. Consequently everything is very close & gives the sensation of speed a whole new edge.
The Mall even has a seal show! (Look at the centre of shot for the seal's head & neck sticking out of the back of the elevated ship.
We had a bit of a look around Edmonton but didn't find much of interest other than Parliament House. We won't be rushing back to Edmonton.
