Jasper National Park, Alberta:
The view from Jasper station in town:
Jasper was described to me by a Via attendant as a less commercialized, but equally beautiful Banff. Apparently, in order to buy land a person must be a resident for a minimum of five years. The place is run by locals, whereas Banff is allegedly run by wealthy (predominantly Chinese) business owners making big coin off its burgeoning tourist industry. I thought the place was really nice, which is to say I thought what I saw in the hour provided for me to explore was really nice. Gift shops and restaurants and a backdrop of mountains and trees. Nice.
If you ever consider taking a train trip to this part of the country, here's what I suggest you do. Do what you gotta do to get to Edmonton - fly, drive, walk, hitchhike, whatever - and take the train west from there. It's far too expensive for students or young people not of prestigious background (or not the daughter of a woman working for Via Rail for 35 years) to take the train all the way from Toronto. What I got on the train was worth approximately, wait for it, $2,806.65. Stupid, isn't it? Even my Economy seat was $1500 with return. Toronto to Winnipeg, the first half of the trip, is boring anyways. After Winnipeg, it's a mixed bag: if a flat landscape appeals to you, then good; if it sounds more boring than a bag of misshapen hammers (but it's the flaws that make them interesting...) then Edmonton and onward is probably for you. Suddenly there are deep valleys, bigger and better lakes, bear sightings, snowy mountain tops, and best of all, prairie dogs. Oh my giggly god. What is popularly known as the groundhog in Ontario is the prairie dog everywhere west of it, and they are, just, like, the greatest thing ever. We were stopped around the Manitoba-Saskatchewan boarder in the middle of grain silo territory. All of a sudden, one by one, these little gopher buddies start popping out of their holes and standing erect, arms up against their chest, their paws limp. For your enjoyment but mostly for mine, here are the STARS OF THE SHOW! Come on out you sexy dogs of the prairie!
Those salacious rodents! Seeing them was easily the highlight of my trip. Easily. Mountains, meh. Three-hundred year old trees, double meh. CUTE LITTLE ANIMALS?!? BEST. TRIP. EVER.
I've been in Vancouver for three days now so I should probably start writing about the city and conclude this malarkey about the train. The train: the slower, more expensive, and likely less comfortable (if you're in Economy) alternative to the plane. But baby, what a scene! Live music, awesome food, fantastic scenery you can't see any other way, and best of all, great conversation with people from all over. If you can do it, I highly recommend it. It's the best way to see this country. Even if you've been out west, you haven't really seen it until you've seen it from the train. See you in Vancouver!
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