The flight from Vancouver to Calgary with Air Canada was on an A320 Airbus (plane on right of image at Gate C33), but with a screen, power socket and USD port in the back of each seat. Headphones were available but at a cost of $3 and you were encouraged to keep them and re-use them on other flights. Taxiing out I saw my first two Canadian birds; a swallow (looked like our Welcome Swallow) and a rook or crow, both on the airport grasslands. We took off to the west using the Left runway (Right was being used for arrivals) and headed out towards Vancouver Island before turning 180 deg (but staying outside of USA airspace) and headed east, with a slow drift to the north (Calgary is 52deg N while Vancouver is just above the 49th parallel). A great view of the coastal mountains and then the southern Canadian Rockies (still a lot of snow), before striking a little cloud and turbulence as we came off the mountains onto the plains. Skirting Calgary to the south we then turned north and had a great view of the city as we came into land.
It all felt very familiar, the view below us and I realised that Google Earth had made me too aware of what Calgary was like. I could see the twin bridges area, where CP Rail cross the Bow River as the railroad heads west out of Calgary, the large track of park and small river that stretches many kilometers across the southern boundary of the city, Ogden shops (saw my first CP locos, including a couple moving), Alyth rail yards (also CP) and the city and parklands. We landed early (20 minutes early after leaving Vancouver 5 minutes early), and exited the plane and waited for our baggage. Naushad and Rozi arrived and we headed off to Falconridge, just a few km east of the airport.
It all felt very familiar, the view below us and I realised that Google Earth had made me too aware of what Calgary was like. I could see the twin bridges area, where CP Rail cross the Bow River as the railroad heads west out of Calgary, the large track of park and small river that stretches many kilometers across the southern boundary of the city, Ogden shops (saw my first CP locos, including a couple moving), Alyth rail yards (also CP) and the city and parklands. We landed early (20 minutes early after leaving Vancouver 5 minutes early), and exited the plane and waited for our baggage. Naushad and Rozi arrived and we headed off to Falconridge, just a few km east of the airport.
Arriving, we met the three boys (Rizwan, Shiraz and Zaheer) and had a look around the house and yard. Dinner (rice, dhal, chicken and prawn curry) was followed by a bit of unpacking, and sitting around talking to midnight, before having a shower and heading to bed.
Apart from a few short naps on the plane we had been up 36 hours.
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