Alberta

MY CANADA, October 2008, by Jen Serdetchnaia

Alberta
Alberta Flag


“I’m an Alberta girl, tried and true. I’d say my home province is the best place I’ve ever been to, despite some of the side-effects of its growth. It is an amazing place to have grown up” says high school student Nicole.

Welcome to the province of Alberta! The province is both mountainous and flat depending on what side you enter. On the East side, Alberta shares some of the Great Plains of Saskatchewan, and on the West, the famous Rocky Mountains which stretch into B.C.

Expect the unexpected!
Although Alberta gets a lot of sun, it’s also famous for snow storms in summer and sometimes balmy weather in the winter. The joke in Calgary, whose weather is very much affected by the mountains, is ‘if you don’t like the weather, just wait an hour!’ It changes frequently.
  
Weather isn’t the only thing changing in Alberta. Nicole states: “I like how when I visit other provinces over time, they are still charmingly the same in many ways.” Quite the contrast to cities in Alberta that see constant development and construction. What does all this development mean? Expansion! Jobs! Many people have made the pilgrimage to Alberta in the last 10 years to find one. The only thing constant about Alberta is change.
  
Another high school student in Alberta, Natasha, believes it is important that Alberta doesn’t sacrifice its environment in the name of development. Alberta has had the highest increase in energy consumption in Canada in the last 20 years due to the population increase and the extraction of oil up in the Oil Sands. If you haven’t heard of this, you will. It is estimated that the second largest confirmed deposit of oil IN THE WORLD lies in Alberta, the majority of it being up North in the Oil Sands. Oil is the number one industry in the province and as pointed out by Natasha, “it is something we must manage wisely.”


Alberta Attractions


Attractions and Land  
Alberta is blessed with some of the most beautiful scenery and vast, rugged wilderness areas in Canada. Both Banff and Jasper National Parks are host to hundreds of thousands of visitors every year from all over the world. As well as many other Provincial Parks, another popular National Park in the South is Waterton. Don’t be surprised if you do get off the beaten track and see Elk, Deer, Moose, Coyote, Bear (Black, Brown and Grizzly) and if you are REALLY lucky, maybe even a cougar! People come to hike, bike, ski, see wildlife and just soak in the majestic beauty.
  
Although Calgary gets a lot of attention because of the oil companies, Edmonton is the capital of Alberta and a thriving city. Each city has an NHL and CFL franchise with long and successful histories, and both cities have their own flavour of entertainment. Calgary is well known for the ‘Calgary Stampede’ - an annual rodeo that is famous throughout the world as ‘The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth’. Edmonton has its ‘Klondike Days’ which includes music, rides, a market, stage performances and a parade: the 4th largest fair in Canada.

Seasons
With a variety of summer and winter activities Alberta gives you quite a range of temperatures. Average temps in summer are 15 to 25 degrees celsius and winter is -8 to -25 celsius... brrrrr! Of course these are just averages so come prepared for ANYTHING!
   The last thing to say about Alberta is that there really is something for everyone. I haven’t even mentioned all the festivals and activities that are available in the many friendly small-towns throughout Alberta. The outdoor playground is absolutely stunning throughout the province and if you can name a sport, some one is doing it! It’s a young and vibrant province with plenty of opportunity and lots to see and do. And no PST means you’ve got a great reason to go shopping!!

Capital: Edmonton
Motto: "Strong and free"
Flower: Wild Rose
Population: Almost 3 million
Language: English
Industry: Oil, gas, medical devices, aerospace
Climate: Sunny, cool winters, warm summers, rain shadow, Chinook winds
Geography: Rocky Mountains, prairies, dry badlands

~ Jen

*photos courtesy of Travel Alberta

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