EXPLORE WHERE YOU ARE: CALGARY

What to do in Calgary? Well there are many things to do in this fine city, but I’m more of an urban explorer myself…so while most guides about Calgary include a trip to the mountains or some sort of hiking adventure, we’re going to keep it pretty close to the concrete jungle.

Ollia’s Macaron Classes
Everyone loves a macaron…but do you know how to make them? I don’t. I feel like I would fail if I tried, but one can always learn. Ollia’s on 17th Ave has classes you can take to learn how. Do it with others, or book a private class with a group of your friends…and come out with some tasty treats.

Afternoon Tea
Sometimes we just want to wear cute hats, drink some tea and act British…oh and have those cute little finger sandwiches – all of which you can do (hat not required) at the Fairmont Palliser downtown during afternoon tea. Class.

By Bike
You can have an outdoor adventure…in the concrete jungle. Since bike riding has become somewhat of a hip urban activity, it seemed appropriate for this list. Now, with the launch of Calgary’s new cycle track you can get around the city and see those ‘attractions’ by bike. Local blogger Mike Morrison recently created a handy map for you to use while you explore ‘Calgary by Bike’. Click here.

Karaoke
Maybe you go all time, or maybe you’ve never gone at all, but karaoke is a must. Ducky’s Pub is Calgary’s self proclaimed “Home of Karaoke”; Galaxy Karaoke and Sole Karaoke have the best private rooms in town (for those afraid of singing to the general public) and Nanta Karaoke has a mixture of both.

Locked Room
This activity is really popular in Japan and is advertised as a way to get people who play video games off the couch and into a real game. But I like to think of it as a problem solvers dream activity. As you see in the video above…Conan does a terrible job at getting out of the room, but you can do it. You get locked in a room with some friends and you have to solve puzzles to get out. It’s not as claustrophobic as it sounds, it’s super fun!

There are “Escape Rooms” all across Canada (with a bulk in Richmond, BC and in the GTA). The one in Calgary is very fun and the engineers who created the experiences really go all out.

Olive Oil Tasting
We’ve all gone wine tasting, but what about olive oil tasting? If you’ve never done it, it is not as weird as it sounds. There are so many different flavours and infusions of olive oils that you can try – you must do a tasting at one point in your life. In Calgary the Blue Door Oil and Vinegar has a sampling area. Yum. Special shout out to Olive This and More in Nanaimo, BC for introducing me to my olive oil tasting obsession.

Cibo patio on 17th Ave.

Patios
Patio season IS upon us, but do you know all of the good spots? Generally when patio season arrives people go out with a goal of landing on a specific patio. Usually what happens is you arrive much too late and the patio is packed. You failed. So you drive or walk around looking for available space on all the other patios you can see and, of course, they are full too. You need to hit up those patios that are not visible from the street – the hidden treasures of patio season. For Calgary my choices would be Cibo (17th Ave), Oak Tree Tavern (Kensington), Posto (8th Street) Murrieta’s (Stephen Ave.). OK fine, that last one is visible from the street, but it’s on the second floor…so missed by people only scanning for open seats at eye level!

Browse Shopping
Let’s not say window shopping in Calgary, because 8 months of the year that’s not really possible, but what about browse shopping. When you want to just take a look around at some interesting things, browse shopping is where it’s at. Here are some little spots in the city where you can find some neat items.

• Steeling Home (17th Ave) A fun little store with everything from flasks to rugs.
• A Vintage Affair (11th Ave) the items those ladies are able to find are so fun. If you need to dress up for a 30’s party, this is the place to go.
• Reid’s Stationary (17th Ave) The stationary is in the back, the front of the store is where all the good stuff is, including horse masks and novelty items.
• Livingstone and Cavell Extraordinary Toys (Kensington) If you need to be nostalgic for the toys of old, this is the place to go. Nothing digital about them, just plain old fun.
• PAWsitively Natural (Mission) this is a pet store…nothing amazing to browse at, but I did go in there and see a giant hog walking around like it owned the place. So that was fun.
• Eye Candy (17th Ave) One of the best selection of specs in town. Try them all on, channel your inner librarian.
• Dragon City Mall (DT China Town) Just go there, everyone go to Dragon City Mall. You have absolutely no idea what you will find, but it will be awesome.

Are you a creature of habit? I am. I do the same things over and over because I like what I know and I like to be comfortable. By the way, I am not 80, I’m 29. So really, I should be still in the discovery phase of my life. If you are like me and just need a little inspiration – we’ve created the EXPLORE WHERE YOU ARE series to give you some ideas of things to do in your city. Would you like to write about your’s? Drop us a line at jes@25ave.com