Wondering where I’ve been?  Well, in the past 5 months, I’ve gone through a complete change of priorities in my life, leading me to move to Jasper, Alberta.  It’s been fun running this blog, but since I have left Edmonton, this is the end.

Thanks for reading!

The past two months have been a scary time for the World economy.  Stock markets have shed 30-60% of their value at the worst of it, many parts of the globe have slipped into a recession, while media alarmists have batted around the term “Great Depression 2.0″, as if that’s supposed to make us feel better about what’s happened to our RRSP’s.

The big question is, what does this mean for Alberta, and Edmonton specifically?  First off, stop freaking out about the price of oil plummenting to $4 a barrel — the state of world oil reserves is alot more tenuous than it was back in the 80’s, as no new supergiant oil fields have been found in quite some time.  This means even as demand declines throughout the world for oil, production in many, many areas is declining …. add the fact that winter heating season is around the corner, and that OPEC is about to slash production, and I’ll think you’ll see oil hover in the 50’s for now, possibly rising over $60 by Spring.  Most oilsands projects are still profitable at this price, leaving only the more speculative projects on the shelf.

Some more links to assauge your fears:

• http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=ad8f4c12-d317-4ca7-92e1-9b03b7f23158

• http://www.edmontonsun.com/News/Edmonton/2008/11/25/7524686-sun.html

• http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=c5423e56-9772-43ef-8cce-87e60076f40d

• http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/story.html?id=b829a5bd-9184-4caa-b5cb-3b1e9dbee6b6

I’m used to seeing drainage ponds in suburban neighbourhoods … they’re nice, but they tend to get repetitive once you’ve seen a few.  Beaumaris Lake, as you will see in this tour is a pleasant exception from the norm however!

Beaumaris is bounded on the North by Beaumaris Road and 160 Ave, on the East by 97 Street, on the South by 153 Ave, and on the West by Castledowns Road. 

Welcome to Beaumaris!

On my way to Beaumaris Lake via Beaumaris Road, a nice stone fence.  Beaumaris is home to a number of upper-middle class dwellings, which made for great viewing on this chilly March evening.

Most suburbs tend to have a token park at the centre along the drainage pond … not here.  Lake Beaumaris is massive by comparison, with a beautifully treed lakeshore, and decorative boulders, as seen in the second picture above.

An ugly habit of some Edmontonians … treating the ditches of some streets/avenues (like 97th Street here) as trash receptacles, especially in the wintertime.  Would it hurt to hold onto yout trash until you get home/to work?  Keep a bag in your car for garbage, it’s not hard folks!

Beaumaris is several kilometres down the road from CFB Namao, a major Canadian military base.  Support our troops, no matter your opinion on any war!  Politicians are fair game for criticism on foreign policy, but our brave men and women fight for us and our freedom!

Another Buddhist temple being built in the Castledowns area?  If anyone doubts the multiculturalism of Alberta, Edmonton (and Fort Mac as well!) will set them straight in a heartbeat!

And our tour of Beaumaris ends at a beautifully landscaped park in the south end of the neighbourhood, as the sun sets on the second last day in March!

In the welcome back post, I mentioned showing Edmonton in its summertime glory … well, seeing how I was lagging well behind when I went away a couple months ago … I just wanted apologize for the winter-ish images you are about to see!

Seriously though, welcome to Bearspaw!

Bearspaw is bounded on the north by roughly 17/18 Ave, on the East by the QE2 Highway/Calgary Trail, on the South by Anthony Henday Drive, and on the West by Blackmud Creek Ravine.

Bearspaw is well-situated in South Edmonton, cranes towered over where Century Park will be rising over the next few years … there is also talk that the LRT will be extended from there to nearby Heritage Valley over the next decade!

Blackmud Creek Ravine seemed to be a defining feature of this neighbourhood, so I made a beeline for the west side to start off my tour.  Though I prefer city neighbourhoods to the suburbs personally, I think this beauty of a park (among other factors) would put Bearspaw on top of the list.  The peacefulness of the ravine and the wide open spaces of the park edge appealed to me greatly; the slope of the hill descending into the ravine is steep enough to provide thrills for sledders, yet gentle enough in many spots to make it friendly for the little ones!

Continuing along the streets near the ravine’s edge, I came across many houses owned by those of great means; custom-built houses are a nice change from the usual montony of suburban housing stock; doubly so when there’s millions of $$$$ behind their construction!

It didn’t look like much on this day in Late March, but I came across a nice canal feature in the southern part of the neighbourhood … hope the mosquitoes aren’t bad in the summer though!

At the centre of Bearspaw lies the massive Tomas Opalinski Park, which contains Bearspaw Lake.  Alot of nice homes with great backyards.  As seen in the last photo, the lake seems to used for hockey in winter, but the ice seems a bit too thin to do it in Late March!

Overall, I was impressed with Bearspaw, given my bias towards city neighbourhoods.  It has great natural features, beautiful homes, proximity to everything South Edmonton has to offer, and future LRT access via Century Park (2009) and Heritage Valley (2012-2020?)  Check it out if you love suburban neighbourhoods and have a good sum of money to spend on a down payment (given the quality of the neighbourhood, and the South End’s high prices…)

After a long absence due to career-related issues, the Edmontonian At Large is back!  Apologies are in order, as this occured without notice, but the event in question re-directed my focus to other matters that took precedence, so this blog got ignored.

Having said that, I have started touring neighbourhoods again, and I will begin posting new ones this week (a benefit to my hiatus is that while we descend into winter, you will be seeing tours of Edmonton neighbourhoods that I did this Spring and Summer!)

A new approach to events guys … I’ve discontinued the weekly events listing because it just proved to be too time-consuming to sustain. 

Instead I’ve decided to highlight specific events of interest as they arise.  First up is Capital Ex.  Yes, there’s no theme (PLEASE bring back K-Days, only with a hipper edge!), but there’s tons of things that will be sure to capture your interest, from hypotist shows…

to performance art …

… and much more (Ed Fest, featuring acts such as the Trews & Tupelo Honey on Friday, and Metric & Bedouin Soundclash on Saturday, is F-R-E-E with gate admission)

Other pics from my Capital Ex outing last Saturday:

Juicy beef tenderloin from the Sip! pavillion inside the Agricom.  HIGHLY recommended!

Vintage ETS bus on display in the Argicom.

TONS of people at the Ex!  Taken after the Ed Fest show with Brent Butt (comedian of Corner Gas fame)

Great fireworks show, as viewed from the LRT platform at Northlands.  Perfect end to a perfect day!

It’s supposed to be amazing weatherwise this weekend, so get out there and celebrate our summer fair, along with the Indy and Taste of Edmonton!

This tour marked my first foray onto 118 Ave, feared by some, and loved by others.  I honestly didn’t know what to expect when I ventured over to the neighbourhood of Beacon Heights (which joins together with Beverly Heights to form downtown Beverly); while rough around the edges, the area has tons of potential!

IMPORTANT NOTE: Since I was in a major commercial area, there were many interesting things to photograph on both sides of the street, but I only photographed on the north side of 118 Ave to hold fast to a rule I made concerning these tours; everything photographed has to be within the confines of the neighbourhood in question.  So if you know of something in Beverly that I missed, it was probably on the other side of the street!

Beacon Heights is bounded on the north by 122 Ave, on the east by 34 Street, on the south by 118 Ave, and on the west by 50 Street.

The Pegasus Western Wear horse welcomes you to the neighbourhood of Beacon Heights in the fabulous town of Beverly!  NOTE: The store is closed.  I was very disappointed … oh well!

Some of the businesses along 118 Ave in Beverly, including the Take 5 coffee and doughnut shop (which suspiciously looks like a certain other doughnut shop…)

As I was walking along 118 Ave, a variety of incredible smells drifted past my nose; soon enough, I couldn’t take it anymore; I had to get some food!  I walked into the aptly named Italian Bakery, and I asked the nice lady behind the counter for a signature creation of theirs: she recommended the cannoli.  So creamy and good…

Mmmm mmmm yummy!  Don’t you want one?

Downtown Beverly, with a variety of vibrant businesses and nice streetscaping.  All it needs is a good cleaning and some people to come on over!  With the advent of the Beverly Farmer’s Market, hopefully that is beginning to change!

Another appealing feature in Beverly is the presence of public art, such as this mural on the side of the community centre.  Very nice!

Typical street scene in the residental portion of Beacon Heights.  Some in need of repair, but most are well-kept, and the canopy of trees, like other mature naighbourhoods around the city, make it a great place to be in the summer.

So long from the “red light district” of Edmonton (sorry if it’s cheesy, but I couldn’t resist!)

I’m back after a lengthy hiatus … personal matters.  Here’s what’s haqppening this weekend:

Performing Arts: Edmonton Street Performers Festival, Churchill Square, Downtown, until July 13 @ 5pm, donations suggested – See musicians, offbeat acts, and more as the Edmonton Street Performers Festival winds up this weekend.

Concert: Kid Rock, Rexall Place, July 11, 2008, 8 pm, $37 – $70: Southern-fried rocker/rapper invades E-Town Friday night.

Concert: Jimmy Eat World, Edmonton Event Centre, West Edmonton Mall,  July 11, 2008, 8 pm, $33: Pop-rock band Jimmy Eat World plays the EEC, one night only!

Concert: James Taylor, Rexall Place, July 12, 2008: The legendary James Taylor. Nuff said!

Event: Sourdough River Race, Terwillegar Park to Rafter’s Landing, River Valley, July 13, 2008:  The makeshift boat race that got cancelled last year is back!  The festivities start at 8 am in Terwillegar Park with a $2 pancake breakfast…

Concert: 50 Cent, Shaw Conference Centre, Downtown, July 13, 2008, 7pm, $60:  The contreversial yet highly popular hip-hop star 50 Cent hits the stage at the Shaw Conference Centre this Sunday!

For this tour, I travelled about as far north as you can go in Edmonton before you hit CFB Namao … the neighbourhood of Baturyn.  For a community on the outer edges of the city, it is surprisingly mature (again probably due to the military base being nearby).

Baturyn is bounded on the north by a property line (approx. 173A Avenue), on the east by 97 Street, on the south by Castledowns Rd, and on the west by 112 Street.

I started off with lunch at a neighbourhood pub (I forget the name, but that happens when you post a tour almost 4 months after it happens!) located in a strip mall at approximately Castledowns Rd and 100 Street.  Nice little spot celebrating its 1st anniversary!

Typical street shot in Baturyn.  As I said off the top, it is quite mature for a neighbourhood on the outer fringe of Edmonton, as the tall spruce trees attest!

Winter continued its fake death (remember mid-April?  I don’t want to either!), on this day, as the remains of snowmen and massive sidewalk floods abounded in the neighbourhood…

In a pattern typical of Castledowns communities, there is extensive townhouse and condo developments at the heart of Baturyn.

Finally, since the neighbourhood is close to CFB Namao, there are alot of military families living here.  This display (and many others like it) turned my thoughts to our brave men and women serving overseas.  No matter your opinion of the missions they serve, always support those protecting us in the military!

This tour was my first foray into Castledowns.  It was a chilly, windy day on Good Friday, with the temperature hanging around 5c (the windchill made it feel below freezing).  I parked at the big box shopping area called Kensington Crossing at the south end of the neighbourhood, and trekked northward…

Baranow is bounded on the north by 153 Ave, on the east by 125 St, on the south by 137 Ave, and on the west by 127 St.

A partial list of the many stores that comprise Kensington Crossing, where I parked.  As a result, this neighbourhood, while obviously car-oriented, provides many nearby services for residents.

Speaking of cars, the eternally busy 137 Ave runs along the southern boundary of Baranow…

I may be posting this on July 2, and this may be from the first day of Spring, but I had to get a maple leaf in here somewhere.  Happy Canada Day!

A few blocks north of Kensingston Crossing on 127 St, the sidewalk ends, leaving me to walk on dirt and grass.  I wasn’t kidding when I said this was a car-oriented area!

I forget the name of this school, but it is an Islamic School, and very well-designed at that!

Baranow is a relatively new area.  This condo complex was under construction, with forested areas and signs of rural habitation surrounding it…

… such as this country-ish house with an adjacent gardening business…

… but these days, suburban development is never far behind!

Further proof of this area’s multiculturalism: a Buddhist temple located near 153 Ave on 127 St!

Overall, Baranow is a new community; it is mostly under construction, but a few people live here currently that were here when this area was farmland and countryside.  Things could be enhanced by adding sidewalks along the east side of 127 St, to increase walkability.