The Pictures Paint a Way Better Picture than What My Vocab. Could: Up in the Mountains

30 Dec 2010, Tunnel Mountain - Elevation: 1,690m/5543ft.


The breathtaking view near the mid-point mark of the hike up Tunnel Mt.


The West view from the top of the mountain.


A close up bird's eye view of Banff town, where're Santa and his elves?


The East view at the top and the scarcity of daylight - It's only a little past noon at this point in time and we're beginning to loose the sun.

Banff Discovery - The Road Names

So it seems that bears are extremely fond of leftovers in the garbage and will congregate around dumpsters as soon as they spot an opportunity to. I was impressed when Jae Yong told me that the town had installed bear proof dumpsters at every corner of the neighborhood for people to rid their trash in. With so many of these bear proof bins around, I hope to spot a bear soon (from a safe distance, that is).

While I was navigating my directions with the help of the town map, I noticed that with the exception to Banff Ave., all of the other roads are named after animals. Apparently, the pioneers here were the Native Indians, mainly composed of the Crees, Kootenays and the Blackfoot tribes. They were here long before the Common Era. Then came the European explorers, adventurers and hunters in the 1700s. When the town was built in the late 1800s to realize the tourism potential that the land, the hotspring and the Canadian Pacific Railway have to offer, the choice for the road names depicted the dwellers’ appreciation for the wildlife.

*Note that 'Wolverine' here refers to an animal from the weasel family instead of Logan from the X-men... Other than the above, we've also got Lynx St., Squirrel St., Elk St., Rabbit St., Cougar St., Fox St., Antelope St., Hawk Ave. and Eagle Cr..

Today, the employee demographic of Banff's tourism industry are largely comprised of tourists who are riding on a holiday and work visa, earning wages at enterprises such as the ski resorts, hotels, snow gear rental stores, coffee shops and more.

Banff Upper Hotsprings

Banff Upper Hot Springs, 28 Dec, 2010.
Location - Banff Upper Hot Springs
Admission fee - $7.00
Coin locker - 1 Loonie
Swimsuit and towel rental cost extra, but we brought our own ; )

T’s time to squeeze myself into the swimsuit again. A dread, but the hot spring calls for it.

I couldn’t help but to feel extra body cautious this time round. I’m pretty sure that it is because of the 2.8 lbs that I’ve gained over the Christmas weekend with a thousand gratitude to Monica’s irresistible cooking and the constant holiday feasting.~The honey & spice coated-roasted pecans are so good!~ Else wise, the hot spring experience was a darn pamper!

The spring wasn't as impressive as the Hokaido ones featured in travel magazines that are frequented by the mountain monkeys. However, imagine your body steeped in a pool filled with 39 degrees Celsius warm, mineral rich water in the midst of the Northern cold while the clouds roll and the snowflakes melt, literally, inches above you. The steam from the spring killed the snowflakes. Furthermore, you have the the picturesque view of the Rockies across the street to indulge in all day long. I can't complain. Finally, top it off with Timmy’s hot chocolate and an old classic donut after the near 3 hours dip.

~So Revitalizing~.

Location: Banff, AB | Length of Stay: 10 days

Not at the Rockies yet - the view from the plane hours away from AB, Dec 27

The Great Canadian Rockies is an excellent hotspot for winter sports: alpine skiing, snowboarding, stuff that gives you the adrenaline rush and makes you look cool...you name it buddy. I have zero athletism and detest pretty much everything that has to do with the body in regards to physical workout, eye-muscle coordination, balance and speed; especially speed.

What on earth am I doing here?

(1) I’m visiting a roommate cum friend of mine, Jae Yong, whom with her boyfriend, In Sung, had graciously offered me accommodation during my 10 days stay here. Hence, it’d be nice to catch up with her and finally meet her better half as I’ve heard lots about him.
(2) Attempt to bond with the North and her majestic winter. (Disclaimer to Self: You've never quite gotten used to the cold in Toronto even after having lived there for 6 years. What awaits you in Banff?)
(3) When I’ve reached the point where all else that could have been done had been done, I might attempt skiing depending on my gust-O meter reading.

After (with this I also meant ‘if’) I've tried skiing, survived it and have grown bored by the 7th day - which I doubt I will - I’m sure that there must a sufficient pool of hot, international athletes with exotic accents hanging abouts and around town after coming back from hitting the slopes, ever-ready to feed the eyes of any agreeable married and unmarried lady. I’m also sure that I don’t have to wait until the seventh day to do that.

Mini Chapter with the Customer: Christmas Special

A customer arrived at the Box Office with a pre-adolescent child 8 minutes after the show-time...

Me: May I have your last name please?
Customer: Smith. [Her real name is not used]
[I started searching for her tickets in the 'S' compartment in the ticket box]
Me: And your first name?
Customer: Jane.
[Weird...No tickets under that name.]
Me: Might the tickets be purchased under a name of a friend or family member ?
Customer: What! You can't find them! Shit! I'm going to be late because you are f*cking disorganized!
[She pounded her purse on the counter surface.]
Me: (Wh-at? I'm pretty sure that you arrived late to begin with...)May I have a look at the credit card the you've purchased the tickets with.
[She tossed me her card which my supervisor grabbed to run a credit card search in our ticketing system (to locate her transaction) while I search the Master List for her name...which I still could not locate; all the while, the constant execration and purse pounding did not tire her. The computer was taking a while to run the credit card search so I wrote her a pass for emergency seats under the best judgement that it's unlikely for further ticket sales to take place at that point since the show has already started and that we could also hunt her down during the intermission if we could not locate her purchase, which would mean that she did not buy any tickets.

Turns out, she did bought the tickets and they were purchased online. Unfortunately, she inverted her fist and last name when checking out her basket items. Consequently, we had her tickets printed and filed in the 'J' compartment under the name of Smith Jane.

I don't know if customers are aware of the intensity of their abusiveness could send the customer service person, who is helping them, further into panic mood, which hinders our ability to think clearly and problem solve. In all seriousness, it has always been our preeminent pursuit to strive to be calm, level headed and collected.

That being said, I'll keep in mind for the future to search under the customer's first name when I couldn't find their tickets under their last name. Lesson learned.]