My new colleague at Western Standard, Jonathan Bradley, who is from Toronto, recently wrote an article about a visit he paid to Edmonton and his thoughts of how it compared to Calgary..I must say he didn’t get positive vibes about going to Edmonton from his new workmates..As Jonathan wrote: “The Western Standard’s team loves to insult Edmonton, describing it as a dumpy city. I was confused about these comments, as I enjoyed my time in the city.”.He listed five things about Edmonton that he found weren’t ‘lousy’:.5: Admission to the Edmonton Valley Zoo is cheaper than the Calgary Zoo..4: Funny drug addicts. Jonathan said he enjoyed laughing at Edmonton’s drug addicts, because they were crazy, whereas “Calgary’s drug addicts are tame, walking around stoned out of their minds without bothering people.”.3: Calmer atmosphere. Edmontonians are more relaxed. Calgarians are hustling to be successful..2: Green onion cakes, Edmonton’s signature dish since 2015, apparently. Jonathan decries Calgary for not having a renowned pastry dish..1: West Edmonton Mall. Jonathan says he was ‘obsessed’ with West Edmonton Mall from a very young age, adding he hasn’t explored Calgary malls much, but he finds them not as exciting as the ones in Toronto..As a newcomer to Alberta, his observations have some merit, but as a born and raised Calgarian, I shall respond to some of his findings..OK, full disclosure on the born in Calgary claim: I was born in Red Deer and came to Calgary at the insistence of my parents. I was 11 months old at the time and was given little choice..Since then, I have spent most of my life in Calgary, with the exception of one-and-a-half years in each of Regina and Edmonton..So, I have experienced Edmonton first hand and I can state with authority the rivalry started in Edmonton, as Edmontonians looked with envy at Calgary. .It occurred me when I first heard Edmontonians say “are you going up to Calgary this weekend?”.A look at a map will show you Calgary is not ‘up’ from Edmonton..Perhaps a psychological thing, as Edmontonians ‘look up’ to Calgary..Sure, some of the differences between the two cities could be psychological, but the rivalry really began when Alberta became a province..Edmonton was named the capital of Alberta, while Calgary became the energy capital of Canada..The best thing to ever happen to Calgary was Edmonton becoming a government town..A room full of bureaucrats trying to peel political documents from provincial politicians’ fingers is no match for a group of people getting the most out of the province’s resources..Calgary has always attracted younger, better talent, with a gung-ho, get-'er-done attitude..I imagine somewhere in Edmonton, someone reading this is thinking ‘Yeah what about all the Stanley Cups the Oilers won? How about all the Grey Cups the Eskimos won?’.As a Calgarian, I can say I’m very happy for you and your teams. You needed something to lift your spirits..Calgary has one of the best-known festivals in the world, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, which attracts visitors from around the world..Edmonton has a festival that attracts visitors from all over central Alberta..As to Jonathan’s things that make Edmonton ‘not lousy’, at the Edmonton Zoo, he liked the tigers and zebras and elephants. Oh my! .As for drug addicts, they are no joke in either city..People in Edmonton are more relaxed, with thousands of high paying union jobs giving them little to worry about..Calgarians, for the better part, need to hustle to secure their futures. It’s the nature of the jobs that are created here..I’ve never heard of green onion cakes, but Calgary does have a signature pastry – the cheese buns at the Glamorgan Bakery..And, speaking of ‘signature’, the Caesar, now enjoyed world-wide, was invented in Calgary..Jonathan says he’s ‘obsessed’ with West Edmonton Mall and malls in Calgary don’t measure up..That’s true..What is also true is Calgarians are obsessed by other things, such as having Canmore, Banff and the Rocky Mountains half an hour away..Chinooks in the winter..An airport that's in the city, not 30 kms away..And I’m sure there are some things that can’t be written here..Jonathan writes: “I cannot understand why people hate Edmonton.”.It’s not hate..It’s a healthy rivalry, that in each city, in different ways, has made Calgary a better place to be, a Calgarian would say..Jonathan also writes he intends to visit Edmonton again, to see some other attractions and is asking if there are other suggestions for what to do in Edmonton..Yes, I suggest you don’t forget to leave and come back to Calgary..Jonathan, if I may speak directly to you, this is not an admonition..Consider it a history lesson of yet another tale of two cities.
My new colleague at Western Standard, Jonathan Bradley, who is from Toronto, recently wrote an article about a visit he paid to Edmonton and his thoughts of how it compared to Calgary..I must say he didn’t get positive vibes about going to Edmonton from his new workmates..As Jonathan wrote: “The Western Standard’s team loves to insult Edmonton, describing it as a dumpy city. I was confused about these comments, as I enjoyed my time in the city.”.He listed five things about Edmonton that he found weren’t ‘lousy’:.5: Admission to the Edmonton Valley Zoo is cheaper than the Calgary Zoo..4: Funny drug addicts. Jonathan said he enjoyed laughing at Edmonton’s drug addicts, because they were crazy, whereas “Calgary’s drug addicts are tame, walking around stoned out of their minds without bothering people.”.3: Calmer atmosphere. Edmontonians are more relaxed. Calgarians are hustling to be successful..2: Green onion cakes, Edmonton’s signature dish since 2015, apparently. Jonathan decries Calgary for not having a renowned pastry dish..1: West Edmonton Mall. Jonathan says he was ‘obsessed’ with West Edmonton Mall from a very young age, adding he hasn’t explored Calgary malls much, but he finds them not as exciting as the ones in Toronto..As a newcomer to Alberta, his observations have some merit, but as a born and raised Calgarian, I shall respond to some of his findings..OK, full disclosure on the born in Calgary claim: I was born in Red Deer and came to Calgary at the insistence of my parents. I was 11 months old at the time and was given little choice..Since then, I have spent most of my life in Calgary, with the exception of one-and-a-half years in each of Regina and Edmonton..So, I have experienced Edmonton first hand and I can state with authority the rivalry started in Edmonton, as Edmontonians looked with envy at Calgary. .It occurred me when I first heard Edmontonians say “are you going up to Calgary this weekend?”.A look at a map will show you Calgary is not ‘up’ from Edmonton..Perhaps a psychological thing, as Edmontonians ‘look up’ to Calgary..Sure, some of the differences between the two cities could be psychological, but the rivalry really began when Alberta became a province..Edmonton was named the capital of Alberta, while Calgary became the energy capital of Canada..The best thing to ever happen to Calgary was Edmonton becoming a government town..A room full of bureaucrats trying to peel political documents from provincial politicians’ fingers is no match for a group of people getting the most out of the province’s resources..Calgary has always attracted younger, better talent, with a gung-ho, get-'er-done attitude..I imagine somewhere in Edmonton, someone reading this is thinking ‘Yeah what about all the Stanley Cups the Oilers won? How about all the Grey Cups the Eskimos won?’.As a Calgarian, I can say I’m very happy for you and your teams. You needed something to lift your spirits..Calgary has one of the best-known festivals in the world, the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede, which attracts visitors from around the world..Edmonton has a festival that attracts visitors from all over central Alberta..As to Jonathan’s things that make Edmonton ‘not lousy’, at the Edmonton Zoo, he liked the tigers and zebras and elephants. Oh my! .As for drug addicts, they are no joke in either city..People in Edmonton are more relaxed, with thousands of high paying union jobs giving them little to worry about..Calgarians, for the better part, need to hustle to secure their futures. It’s the nature of the jobs that are created here..I’ve never heard of green onion cakes, but Calgary does have a signature pastry – the cheese buns at the Glamorgan Bakery..And, speaking of ‘signature’, the Caesar, now enjoyed world-wide, was invented in Calgary..Jonathan says he’s ‘obsessed’ with West Edmonton Mall and malls in Calgary don’t measure up..That’s true..What is also true is Calgarians are obsessed by other things, such as having Canmore, Banff and the Rocky Mountains half an hour away..Chinooks in the winter..An airport that's in the city, not 30 kms away..And I’m sure there are some things that can’t be written here..Jonathan writes: “I cannot understand why people hate Edmonton.”.It’s not hate..It’s a healthy rivalry, that in each city, in different ways, has made Calgary a better place to be, a Calgarian would say..Jonathan also writes he intends to visit Edmonton again, to see some other attractions and is asking if there are other suggestions for what to do in Edmonton..Yes, I suggest you don’t forget to leave and come back to Calgary..Jonathan, if I may speak directly to you, this is not an admonition..Consider it a history lesson of yet another tale of two cities.
