Take it from a Canadian ex-pat, summer in Alberta is the best

Well summer has come and gone and we slide into autumn before the long winter. If you live in Alberta, or even Canada in generally, you’ve probably had a pretty good summer. It’s that time of year where the sun shines (consistently) on at least some places of the world. After spending 22 happy summers in Alberta before moving to the endless gray skies of northeast England, I can say Alberta really is the place to be in the summer.

Stampede
Or at a pinch K-Days in Edmonton or in absolute true desperation, Westerner Days in Red Deer. However, both of these will always pale in comparison to the glory that is the Calgary Stampede. While you fall into one of two camps, a) so glad it’s over for this year or b) counting down til next year (tickets go on sale in October!), you can’t deny that Stampede is a defining event of any summer. The midway, the midway food, Coca Cola stage, Superdogs, the Stampede breakfasts, the agriculture barns, the rodeo and grandstand show…I could go on but I know I don’t need to. One of my British coworkers once asked me what a corn dog was, so you can see what I’m dealing with here.

Slurpees and Iced Capps
Summer is not complete without both a Slurpee and an Iced Capp. There is nothing like either one of these on a warm summer’s day. I have dreams about both of these at night, me running through a field, Slurpee in one hand, Iced Capp in another. I do my best frolicking on an over-caffeinated, sugar high. My current reality is an old ice cream truck that rolls through the neighborhood playing Greensleeves through a loud speaker, because that’s what really gets the kids going these days.

Thunderstorms
I know what you’re thinking – thunderstorms are awful, my dog/cat/ferret and hate them and I hate them too. You know what else scares your dog/cat/ferret? You complaining about thunderstorms! Thunderstorms are nature’s raves. And I miss them. I realize they are not exclusive to Alberta but it does have awe-inspiring thunderstorms. So next time there’s a thunderstorm, take some pictures for me. Or run around with an umbrella. Your choice.

Camping
Camping in the UK tends to be limited to driving your motor home or camper to an open field with no trees where you can see every other camper and parking up. Welcome to camping in the UK. I want nothing more than to be able to drive for a couple hours, passing only a handful of cars on the highway and arrive at a campground where I’m surrounded by trees that actually smell like pine and the sound of birds that aren’t pigeons and seagulls. It’s a lot to ask for over here.

Consistently Good Weather
I will give you this because after 8 months of winter, Alberta has earned a good summer. However, I will always long for the days that you don’t have to plan everything around rainy days and can expect to have barbeques, walks in the park and camping trips without fear of Mother Nature’s retribution. When my parents visited the UK for the first time in June one year it rained every day for two weeks. They then took their broken sanity and went back to Canada to recover.

Surely there must be some reason to enjoy summer in England? I could tell you but it would make you too jealous. Oh alright, it’s the fact that you can go to mainland Europe every year and not go bankrupt. Now look back on all these things when you’re complaining about the snow next month and smile.