Our plan was to take our parents to Drumheller today so on the way there we thought we'd stop at CrossIron Mills (a retail and factory outlet shopping complex) for a coffee and a bite to eat. I could have told Greg a zillion times that this was not the right thing to do with his mum in tow and yet again I was right. But we did have fun. To Helen's defense it was Frank who was the most annoying shopper today as he couldn't find the perfect pair of jeans - he's even fussier than Greg, but after an eternity in Levi's we found 2 pairs that he was happy with. We missed Drumheller because by the time we looked at all the stuff in Bass Pro Shop the day was coming to an end. We needed a good nights sleep as tomorrow was Stampede Day.
Yee Haw. It was time to kick up our heels. Having prepurchased tickets for the Chuckwagon races when we were in Australia we decided to get to the stampede around lunchtime and have a look at the rides and show pavillions. If we had to compare it to something similar at home it would be equivalent to the Sydney Royal Easter Show. I have never in my life seen so many pairs of cowboy boots, big buckles, hats and check shirts in my life. Joey and Paddy blended in very well. We had a friend from Sylvan join us - Corrine and we spent the day wandering in and out of the pavillions. It was so hot in Calgary that day and we really felt like we could be home in Australia but we coped.
The evening show that we had our tickets for was definately the highlight. Its funny when you do prebook things from home you don't know what to expect. To our surprise our seats were AMAZING!!! We were in an air-conditioned front row glassed in section overlooking the rodeo and chuckwagon circuit. We had table service for meals and alcohol and a TV at our table to watch the close up action of the Chucks. WOW we felt very spoilt. Frank told me I had done good in organising such an amazing trip so far for them (I had to put this in writing because being his daughter-in-law, he doesn't like to give me too many compliments ;)). After the chucks we enjoyed a stage performance from the Young Candians and local turned international star country singer Paul Brandt. Me not being an avid country fan still enjoyed it and thanks to Steph our exchange teacher leaving his CD in the car I knew all the words. What a fabulous day! Time to hang up our hats and hit the hay.
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