Katherine in Canada

Three year Reunion!

2009-11-13T09:18:00.002-07:00

Recently Kathy was able to visit England again to catch up with old friends. Of course this meant a return to the library (for the first time in 3 years) where it was fun to meet and catch up with each other. We both still agreed it was a fantastic experience and enjoy staying in touch with each other and our libraries.

Conclusions, questions and so forth...

2008-07-07T02:24:00.012-06:00

It's 2 years since I began my exchange and I still get lots of questions from people about the whole experience. It's great because I never get tired of telling people about it. I would also still encourage others to go ahead wholeheartedly with similar opportunities.

I've been able to answer questions from many other people considering an exchange - and thought it was about time I put some of these on the blog to help others. Information is also contained in my exchange reports (see link on right).

If you have any further questions, please do contact me.

How did it happen? - We had both previously signed up to LIBEX http://www.cilip.org.uk/jobscareers/libex/and Kathy contacted me through the database. After this initial email contact we organised the exchange. It worked because we both were employed in similar roles in College libraries and we both wanted an exchange for 4 months.

Length of time - 4 months. Any shorter & I wouldn't have been able to fully contribute to the Library in Canada, any longer would have made a huge impact on my Library. Ideally I would recommend 4-6 months.

Accommodation - With us both having families at home we couldn't exchange housing. I was able to stay in student accommodation at the College (paying rent with my visa card since I had no Canadian bank account). I assisted Kathy in finding a room to rent in a nearby house (once again paying just one rent which included all bills - electricity, water, etc).

Money - myself and Kathy remained on our home payrolls and were paid as usual. This meant that our different salaries could be accounted for and there was no loss of benefits, etc. I do not think HR would've agreed to the exchange otherwise. HR treated us as though we were 'visiting lecturers,' this meant we did not need to consider/invite other applications for the 'post.' If I was ill and had a day off work I had to email my HR at home so it could be marked off on my records as usual.

Visas - since we were not paid in our host countries this was not a problem. For easiness, I got a young persons visa through BUNAC - although this was probably overkill.

Insurance - through BUNAC I had gap year insurance for the whole time I was away, covering my holiday before and after the exchange. I did have to go to see a doctor once and, on advice from my colleagues, went to a drop in medical centre. I had to pay for this, but the amount was so little it didn't go over my insurance excess.

Timing - couldn't have been more perfect for me! I left in June and had holidays prior to the beginning of my exchange, this enabled me to make the most of being somewhere new and get over any jetlage / culture shock. I had July and Aug to get used to the library during the quieter summer months & enjoyed working summer hours with a long weekend each fortnight. By Sept I was fully prepared to contribute to the team during the hectic enrolment & induction weeks. During Oct I got the experience of working a more 'ordinary' few weeks. I also got to experience summer, 'fall' and the snow so got to see Lethbridge in all occasions. I also had a week after the exchange for more holidays, packing up and goodbyes to everyone.

Recommendations to others - · Be honest – give each other a clear and accurate picture of what is expected.
· Get the support of all relevant managers and support staff.
· Get family and co-workers involved in welcoming exchange partner.
· Prepare step-by-step guides of all duties.
· Prepare weekly lists of duties that must be performed / completed.
· Determine an action plan that may be put in place if either partner is unhappy or in case of emergency.

Back to Work

2006-11-14T19:04:00.001-07:00

Well it was back to work and back to normal yesterday. I was welcomed back with banners, balloons and chocolates (they know me well) which was especially nice. It's strange as in many ways I feel like I've been away for ages, but in others it's as though I've never been away.
There are several new faces around and it'll take me a while to catch up on everything, but so far it has all gone smoothly. I'm happy to be back, but I'll miss Lethbridge too.
Even now I'm back I have no regrets about the whole experience whatsoever. I've seen that my work colleagues did a lot of extra work to make up for my absence and I'm truly grateful for that, but they also enjoyed sharing the experience with me and having a new person to work with and learn from.
The only question remaining is ... where next????

Last few days in Canada

2006-11-11T14:52:00.000-07:00

It took a long time, 3 suitcases and backpack to pack up all my stuff in Lethbridge, but I managed and finally left on Tuesday 7th November. I was very sad to leave but have many happy memories to bring home with me.
We hired a car for our last 2 days and drove up to Banff where (thanks to a buy one night get one free offer) we stayed in style at the Fairmont Banff Springs. It was a lovely hotel and made extra special by the great staff there who didn't complain about the fact we had 4 suitcases and 2 heavy bags for only 2 people who were staying 2 nights and happily unloaded the car and took them up to the room for us.
The hotel had Christmas decorations up which were especially pretty and we enjoyed the outdoor pool which was fortunately heated as we were swimming while we it was snowing!
It was Rachel's first trip to Banff and it all seemed to different to me compared to the summer, but I think it looked prettier in the snow.
The first picture is Rachel and I at Lake Louise and the second is me at the top of Sulphur Mountain, overlooking Banff townsite.
As they say, all good things must come to end and all too soon it was Thursday and D-(departure) day. It was only a short drive to the airport and after a few delays we were on our way. Sadly we couldn't sneak past the staff with our overweight luggage; Rachel had to unpack a few things and wear them and my bags were 17lb overweight so I had to pay $70 excess baggage fees (don't worry I still love Canadians, but maybe not Air Canada).
I arrived at Heathrow on Friday 10th November and shortly after landing was sick - hopefully that isn't a sign of things to come now I'm back home!!!!!

Soggy in Seattle

2006-11-05T14:42:00.000-07:00

I was lucky enough to be able to take almost 2 weeks holiday after finishing at LCC before I had to return to Burton. My friend Rachel was able to join me so I went to pick her up in Calgary on Nov. 1st. It was quite a shock to Rachel as it was freezing (about -10c) in Calgary that night!
Making the most of the fact it is only an hour and a half's flight from Calgary, we went to Seattle for 2 nights.
It was a bit of a culture shock there for me as it was just like home - rained all the time, more trees and no prairies! It didn't stop raining at all for the whole time we were there, but we had a great time anyway (even with reduced visibility from the Space Needle). We especially enjoyed the Pike Place market and had plenty of hot chocolates - even visiting the first ever Starbucks. The picture on the right is me and Rachel (the name of the pig - honest).
All in all a fantastic time and it had warmed up by the time we returned so no worries over starting the car up in Calgary. Sadly, we both came back without umbrellas, the weather was so bad they both broke!

Halloween in the Library

2006-10-31T12:59:00.000-07:00

Well it's my last day here at LCC!
I just can't believe how quickly the time has gone, but that's always the way when you're having a great time.
The exchange has been everything I wanted it to be and more and it'll be interesting to go back to my own College to see what has changed and also what I want to change in light of my experiences here.
It's fun that it's Halloween on my last day here as there's a slightly different atmosphere at the College. Lots of people arrived in costume this morning (eveyone dresses up here, it's really different to England and all the kids go to school in costumes and have a fun day with different activities and movies, etc). The nursery children came round trick or treating and sang Halloween songs - they looked adorable as little ghosts, witches, fairies and even Wonderwoman!
All of the library staff are in their pyjamas, you can see me modelling mine by the book display. I have several layers of clothes on as it's freezing (literally) outside. The snow-scene picture is from the window of my office. I wanted to see Lethbridge in the snow, but it's so cold I'm bored of it now!
For my final day, the library staff treated me to pizza which we had delivered in. I also got an LCC t-shirt and have been stuffing myself with Halloween goodies. Everyone here has made this experience extra special and I'll be sorry to leave as I'll miss them all.

The Wedding

2006-10-30T17:15:00.000-07:00

The Wedding day itself was really relaxed. It was at 2pm & we had the whole morning to get ready so even Megan didn't start until about 10am.
The weather was perfect - quite a change for me with it being about 23c that day (especially compared to the -11c and several inches of snow that greeted me in Calgary on my return home yesterday).
Megan & Tyler were married in the Las Vegas temple of our church which is a beautiful building at the foot of the mountains on the edge of the city. It's really modern looking and very different to the Cardston one. The photos are in the grounds which are lovely with the palm trees and cacti. Tyler's Grandad was able to perform the ceremony which was extra special.
Afterwards was the Hawaiian themed reception (they're heading there on their honeymoon). The food was all delicious and, unlike many wedding cakes, this one was very popular being all chocolate with raspberries and raspberry and chocolate filling on the inside. As you can see, the bride & groom really enjoyed it!

Viva Las Vegas!

2006-10-30T12:18:00.000-07:00

Making the most of it being only a 3 hour flight from Calgary to Vegas, I was able to attend the wedding of Megan & Tyler (Megan & I went to University together when she was an exchange student for a year and have been close friends ever since).
Having worked extra hours for all the evening events at the Library, I was able to go out there Friday morning and go to the bachelorette party (or hen night as us English folks say) which Megan had delayed so we could all go.
However, to start the day off well, Megan picked me up at the airport and we went straight to the Ethel M factory for a chocolate fix - these are great, my second favourite American chocolates after Ghirardelli. We're demonstrating their new line in the top picture!
For the evening we went to the Rio which is just off the Strip (middle picture). It's a really fun hotel with a carnival atmosphere. The last part of the night was spent at the Voodoo lounge right at the top of the Rio (very high) which gives amazing views across the whole of the Strip. The dancefloor is on a series of outside patios on different levels from the very top and down the side of the Rio so it's quite an experience!
If you think my jewellery looks interesting in the 3rd picture, it's because I got it from the people in the carnival who throw down dice beads! You can just about make them out in the middle picture on the steamboat, flying horse and balloon that are dangling from the ceiling.
Megan is wearing a veil (of course) and a t-shirt with sweets pinned to it that could be exchanged for dollar bills to wish her well on her wedding - she made $17 and probably caused at least one divorce as all the guys were telling her not to go through with it ... in front of their wives!!!!

Golf in the Library

2006-10-25T16:51:00.000-06:00

Based on the library Murder Mysteries that we did at the beginning of term, the latest orientation we tried was for the Professional Golf Management students - so of course we adapted it to a golf tournament!
Students proceeded through 9 holes:
4 library-related questions,
4 putting holes (see pictures) and
a refreshment hole (pizza & bottled water).
In order to protect the library from damage, the students were 'handicapped' by having to use foam balls and a variety of 'golf clubs' that included a hockey stick, yardstick and wooden spoons.

It made a nice change from the regular tours and we all had fun constructing the course from old library books, various folders, bins and crowd-control poles.
The students all appeared to have a great time and were forced into learning some library skills - as well as hopefully gaining a more positive view of the library!

Streatside

2006-10-23T08:15:00.000-06:00

Two nights, two meals out - I was doing very well last Thursday & Friday!
Thursday was the long-service awards at the College. I think it's a really nice idea to celebrate in this way. It was held in the College's restaurant and consisted of a presentation of the awards followed by a buffet prepared by the catering students. About 300 people attended and awards were presented for 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and even 35 years of service!
The second was on Friday night when the library staff treated me to supper at the Streatside Eatery in downtown Lethbridge. It was fun as most of the library staff + significant others were able to come - apparently I should list that as one of my achievements while I've been here.
The food there was really good (I really have to go on a diet when I come home) and the dessert was especially good. In the picture you can see me witha huge slab of Turtles cheesecake, something that definitely needs exporting to England! I couldn't finish it all so had it boxed and enjoyed it for breakfast on Saturday (as I said, I really need to diet when I come home)!

Two Weeks Left :-(

2006-10-17T16:00:00.000-06:00

How has the time gone by so quickly? I can't believe I've only got two more weeks left at LCC!What do I think I have gained from my time here in Lethbridge? (Some thoughts so far):

New colleagues – I’ve enjoyed being part of the team here at the Buchanan Library. My colleagues at Burton are fantastic & I don’t want our team there to change, but it has been great for me to work with a new set of people with different ideas & experiences to learn from and with. Hopefully we'll remain in contact on my return home.
New friends – who wouldn’t want more friends? I've met lots of new people & had lots of fun, it'll just be a challenge to stay in touch with everyone.
New skills – working in a new library gave me new responsibilities from those at home and I’ll be able to apply the things that I’ve learnt & achieved there to my ‘old’ job.
Confidence building - both personally & professionally this has been a great experience. Discovering that I do have the ability to bring my skills to a new job in a new country and enjoying living in a completely new place is certainly an achievement. I even count figuring out how to use the laundry with top-loading washing machines as a new skill these days!
Cross-cultural growth – people from Canada aren’t all that different, but there are cultural differences to those at home and overcoming these has better equipped me to work with a wide variety of people at home. [Sorry to the girls who research I possibly spoiled with my lack of views on Japanese immigrants – “What Japanese immigrants?” - The Nikka Yuko Gardens here should’ve given me a clue].
Networking & publicity – this has provided many opportunities for myself professionally as well as for the College to use as publicity.
Assessment of “my” library – it’ll be very interesting to see changes Kathy has made and the suggestions she has for improvement.
Travel opportunities – what more can I say!!! [See further into the blog if you really need more details].

Cardston

2006-10-11T16:13:00.000-06:00

Cardston is a small town located south of Lethbridge, it takes just less than an hour to drive there. It's very small (as in really small - there doesn't seem to be a Tim Hortons if that's an indication for you) but interesting because of the temple there.
Cardston was founded by Mormon pioneers and one of the first things they did was build the temple (building began in 1913). The temple is right in the centre of the town and the rest of the town was built around it. It's impressive simply because it's just impossible to miss it - it's really big and up on a hill so when approaching Cardston from the highway it looks very picturesque with the Rockies in the background.
Being a church member, it's interesting for me to be close to somewhere with so much history and I also enjoy the fact that there are lots of members here in Lethbridge which made it easier for me to meet lots of new people.
The pictures show the temple during the day and how it's lit up at night (left) as well as the main entrance (right).

"Fall"

2006-10-06T11:56:00.000-06:00

Just thought I'd post some pictures so everyone at home can see how pretty the campus is looking now it's Autumn - or Fall as they insist on calling it here. This week has seen a change in the weather from quite gloomy to sunshine just in time for the holiday weekend [another month = another public holiday, this time it's Thanksgiving].
The top picture is the view I have of the College from my front door (going back to commuting to work is going to be a killer for me).
The bottom picture is the back of the residences and beginning of the coulees - these haven't changed at all over the seasons, the yellow grass was the same throughout the summer as well!

Dinosaur Provincial Park

2006-09-28T16:09:00.000-06:00

On the way back from Drumheller we stopped off at Dinosaur Provinicial Park near Brooks. Although it's name makes it sound like some kind of theme park, it's actually a really nice area which has been well looked after and left to be as natural as possible. Although it's huge, there is only one public loop road you can drive around & clearly marked trails - no exploring on your own!
Many dinosaur bones and fossils have been found here - especially the 'Albertosaurus' (it's real I haven't made it up) which is very much in evidence in this part of Alberta. Most of the exhibits in Drumheller originated here. Once again it was a lovely sunny day so we could enjoy the trails and the unique landscape (left). A lot of the ground is clay so it would be pretty horrible on rainy day!

Old Bones & Fossils...

2006-09-26T08:50:00.000-06:00

... no I'm not referring to my parents visiting! In actual fact we went on a trip to Drumheller - dinosaur capital of Canada. Drumheller is the site of the Royal Tyrrell Museum (right) where you can learn all the things you ever wanted to know about dinosaurs, paleontology [all I could think of was Ross from 'Friends'] and the formation of the earth, glaciers, various ages and so forth. In fact the museum was so huge it took us 3-4 hours to get round it.
Drumheller itself is basically full of hotels where people stay when coming to the museum. The tourist centre also boasts the 'World's Largest Dinosaur' (left) which we climbed up and into its jaws.
The surrounding area is known as the 'Badlands', so named because they were bad or difficult lands for explorers to cross. They were like nothing I've ever seen before. The different rock formations are why the bones and fossils are preserved well in the area. We drove along the dinosaur trail to Little Church - seating 6 at a time - and then past Horsethief Canyon (me & Dad are stood in front of it on the right).
We were really lucky as the weather changed for the better and it was hot and sunny!

Driving in Lethbridge

2006-09-21T15:37:00.000-06:00

I've found driving over here not bad at all. Kathy & Don have allowed me the use of their Jeep (pictured right) to get around in. It's a bit different to my Rover 25! I already knew how to drive an automatic & survived last summer driving on the right-hand side in the south of France, but was still a bit nervous driving in a new country.
However, over here the roads are really wide and there's plenty of big parking spaces (I had been concerned about learning to park a huge car) so I'm enjoying getting out & about. Lethbridge is mostly mapped out on a grid system so the roads are also very straight and handily labelled 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc starting in the centre of town. North, south and west Lethbridge are labelled as such and all avenues go horizontally and streets go vertically. Therefore I know that 10th Ave S. is the 10th road running west-east from the centre of town.
The only things I still find tricky are the lack of road markings for stop signs and school & playground zones. I don't think they're as obvious as they should be. What I do like is the cute school buses (pictured right at an event at the College) - just like in the movies!

Hostile Makeover

2006-09-15T09:34:00.000-06:00

Last night we had the first "Murder Mystery" for this term in the Library. This one was for the Fashion Design Students and was given the title "Hostile Makeover." The idea behind the evening is to introduce the students to various concepts of the library while they search for clues as to whodunnit. It was very successful in providing students with both library & information as well as teamworking skills.
The evening began with the class registering and being divided into teams. In the picture on the left you can see myself & Fiona with the students. We entered all of their names into a draw barrel for prizes at the end of the evening (the winning team also all got HMV gift vouchers). The students then went to the refreshment table where they mingled until they heard the scream - an up until now hidden talent of one of the instructors!
Following the scream they moved towards the silent area where they found a body (top right) and a number of suspicious looking characters. If you think Fiona looks a bit flamboyantly dressed for the library it's in actual fact her alter-ego "Babs Bling," accessories instructor. In the 2nd picture on the left you can see Wendy, Fiona & myself rehearsing lines - well they are, I appear to be doing my hair!
After the scene was set the students set off and followed clues through a darkened book collection (flashlights were provided) until they finally discovered it was Babs Bling, in the library, with a poison dart!!!

Survived the 1st week of term!

2006-09-08T16:13:00.000-06:00

All the students arrived on Tuesday... and the pace of the library changed from what I'd been used to over the summer!!!!
It's actually not much different from Burton College and I enjoy it. It's exciting when all these people are starting new chapters in their lives.
Kathy will recognise the widescreen tv in the picture. It finally got mounted on the wall (where the cabinet used to be) at the entrance to the library and we all think it looks great. The cabinet below is the book return.
A powerpoint presentation plays continually, advertising different aspects of the library to students: opening hours, ID cards, Murder Mystery Evenings, Term Paper Clinics, Computers and so on. I think one would also look good in the library at Burton, I could just picture it on the wall behind the library staff...

Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump

2006-09-05T16:38:00.000-06:00

This weekend we went to Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump which is just less than an hour from Lethbridge. This was the site of one of many 'Buffalo Jumps' which were the main way to hunt bison - or buffalo - for many of the native tribes as far back as 5000 years ago and lasting until the 19th century.
This particular buffalo jump gets its name from the story that a young man wanted to watch the hunt from the unique viewpoint of under the cliff itself. As he stood underneath he saw the buffalo cascading past him like a waterfall. Unfortunately, it was an especially successful hunt that time and the carcasses mounted up towards him until eventually he was trapped. As the hunters made their way through the many buffalo later, the young man was discovered with his head smashed in under the weight!
I was able to view for myself the famous cliff from where the buffalo were driven to their deaths (see picture on right) but was a little disappointed that it seemed so small. However, I found out that it was only that small because years of buffalo bones, etc had become part of the earth over the centuries.
The interpretive centre attached to the site was really interesting as it told all the stories connected to the hunt and the rituals and symbolism involved. I also ate Buffalo Burger at the cafe!!!
The centre is also unique in that it is built into the side of the cliff so you can't see it from the road, or even the car park. It is in the picture behind me, if you look really carefully you can just make out parts of the building that stick out.

New Stuff

2006-08-25T16:13:00.000-06:00

To get the new academic year off to a good start, we've got some new stuff in the Library. I'm sure Kathy will be pleased that the new security gate has now been installed and the chairs that she ordered have been delivered. [Non-library types might not be so interested, but take it from me: it's reasonably exciting for us].
We all agree that the entrance looks much better now - much more welcoming to the students.
Some people like the chairs better than others, we've decided that size of person is a definite comfort factor!

New Staff Orientation

2006-08-23T13:58:00.000-06:00

Yesterday I took part in the new staff orientation here at the College. It was interesting as I got to meet staff from a variety of departments here (some I had already met, some were new to me) and get even more of a feel for the organisation of the College.
In the picture on the left, the new staff are in the boardroom being introduced to the Presidents and Deans and on the right is a picture of me on the tour of all the departments here. If you look carefully you can see that we are all carrying the same bag - one of the "presents" that we received on the tour (I also got some pens, a notepad and a LCC pin).

Icefields

2006-08-16T09:49:00.000-06:00

After stopping off at the Lake Louise gondola, we went along the Icefields Parkway to the Columbia Icefields. The parkway itself was interesting as you could spot glaciers on top of the mountains. At the Coumbia Icefields there is a visitor centre and there you can buy tickets to go out onto the Athabasca Glacier (that the big one you can see in the picture on the left). It used to reach along to the road, but global warming means it shrinks a bit each year.
It's not safe to just wander out there so you go out in the special buses with the big huge wheels. You can see Laura & me standing next to our bus in the picture - I'm 5"8 so you can get an idea of the size. It meant that we felt perfectly safe and hardly felt any bumps as we travelled along the glacier.
Once you get right out onto the glacier there is a safe place where you can get out and walk around. That's fun as you get to see more clearly some of the smaller glaciers like the one behind Sarah & me in the picture.
It's just like walking on compacted icy snow, but is strange when you've also been informed that the ice you're standing on is a deep as the height of the Empire State Building! There are also lots of little streams running along so we all got to taste glacial water (I didn't think it was good). You can spot a stream just behind me & Laura in the last picture. We were lucky as it was very cold out there, but the sun came out which made it less chilly and the pictures look great!

Lake Louise (Sat 12th - weather improving)

2006-08-15T08:56:00.000-06:00

On the way to the Icefields we stopped off at Lake Louise. Well actually we didn't make it to Lake Louise itself, or the townsite but we went up on the gondola on the opposite mountain. It was fun as you had the choice of the enclosed cable car or the ski-lift so we went up in the open ski-lift. The first picture is taken on the way back down. You can see the gondola and also Lake Louise at the foot of the mountains - it really was a fantastic view!
The second picture is Sarah, me & Laura at the top. Lake Louise is directly behind where I'm standing so you can't see it. We were fortunate as the weather was clear while we were up at the top and only started raining when we were almost at the bottom - so we didn't get too wet.
At the top of the mountain there was an interpretive centre which had displays on the wildlife in the area. This was supposedly my best chance of seeing a grizzly bear, but for some reason they weren't hanging around underneath the gondola for the tourists to spot (very inconsiderate I think)! I did see a couple of cute ground squirrels and just as we were leaving 2 deer came running out of some bushes across the top of the mountain - well I think that's what they were, 2 deer-like creatures with big antlers anyway (you can figure out for youselves from the final picture). They were chasing each other around, but I don't think they were fighting and they looked quite impressive so that almost made up for not seeing a bear. [Laura and Sarah saw one in Waterton so I think it's about time I spotted one too].

Banff (Fri 11th) - Rainclouds, hotsprings & the spa

2006-08-14T13:47:00.000-06:00

As I mentioned, the weather in Banff was not great on the Friday. We didn't see the tops of the mountains very much as it rained on and off all day. The picture of me & Laura on the bridge is during one of the brighter spots in the day - you can see the top of the mountain!
Sadly, we'd all been expecting better weather so I ended up wearing the same pair of jeans all weekend and Sarah had to buy gloves!
However, we happily spent the morning looking round the many giftshops in the townsite before walking up to the Cave & Basin which is the sight of the original hot springs in Banff. It was interesting to find out how tourism developed after the discovery of the hot springs and the building of the railway for tourists to get into the Rockies. I also like how a lot of effort is being made to ensure the National Parks are protected for everyone to continue enjoying them.
After visiting the original hot springs, we went to the new man-made ones. If you look closely you can spot me in the centre of the pool. By this time the weather had got worse again and it rained for half the time we were in there (note the lifeguard with red jumper, hiking boots and raincoat with hood up at the back of the picture). The rain was almost quite refreshing as the pool was 40c. After half an hour in there we went upstairs to the spa for massages and for a whole hour did not care what the weather (or even the scenery) was like at all!

Road Trip

2006-08-14T11:37:00.000-06:00

With Laura & Sarah both visiting we had to do something exciting at the weekend, so we went to Banff. Fortunately I had a flex-day last Friday so we could set off on Thursday 10th after I finished work.
As usual it was sunny and clear in Lethbridge, but as we headed towards Calgary the skies darkened, it rained and there was lightning every minute coming in great forks towards the earth. All 3 of us agreed we'd never seen anything like it before! When we stopped for a break at A&W the power cut out momentarily, but everything was restored seconds later.
There's so much on our Banff trip that I'm splitting it into sections. The pictures here are all taken from the car (it took 4 hours to get there so I spent a lot of time taking pictures from the car). The first is just outside Banff National Park as we were approaching Canmore. This was the best weather we had experienced outside Lethbridge - the skies here had cleared dramatically!
The weather on Friday was not great either, but the mountains looked great as wisps of cloud caught in them. You'll see in later postings that it didn't spoil anything for us. Saturday & Sunday were much brighter as you can see from the other "road" pictures. The middle picture is one of the many lakes on the Icefields Parkway heading from Lake Louise to the Columbia Icefields. The second is going back in the opposite direction.
Despite all the 'promising' warnings to watch out for wildlife, I still didn't get to see any bears on the trip!

Writing On Stone

2006-08-08T14:29:00.000-06:00

Writing on Stone is a provincial park south east of Lethbridge, not far from the border of Montana. We went there yesterday (Mon 7th) as it's [another] public holiday in Canada. It's very unusual as it has lots of rock art and carvings. At one time it was inhabited by the Blackfoot people who would come on "vision quests" after fasting for several days. The site also has lots of hoodoos which are the strange rock formations you can see in the pictures. It looked like something out of Star Wars/Trek to me!
It was really, really hot out there and we made the mistake of going along the hoodoo trail to see the rock art during the hottest part of the day (around 4pm). The guide at the interpretive centre was obviously at bit worried that we weren't put off that the temperature along the trail was around 40c and loaned us hats! Rattlesnakes were another warning as one had recently bitten someone's pet dog who had sniffed down its hole. The guide also pointed out the tap so we could stock up on water. Sadly we wished we had listened to her and gone along later as we felt like we were doing our own vision quest as we were all feeling faint and sick in the heat (closest I've ever been to proper sunstroke, oops).
But we made it back again and the Milk River was beckoning - it was lovely and cool, but not cold like at Waterton. We all jumped in fully clothed and quite happily swam around in there for at least an hour. It was 6pm when we finally got out, but it was still so hot that we dried off quickly.

Frank Slide

2006-08-08T11:39:00.000-06:00

No, not the name of a person here. In 1903 there was a disaster in the town of Frank (west of Lethbridge, along the Crowsnest Trail, almost on the border with BC) when a chunk of Turtle Mountain suddenly collapsed and covered part of the town. There had been no warnings and about 70 people were killed. There were even miners underneath at the time but fortunately they survived, being able to dig their way out of the mine.
We visited on Saturday (5th Aug). As you can see from the picture, it's still obvious where the mountain collapsed and the "slide." What I was unprepared for was the remaining rocks which cover an area up to 3km. Some of the rocks were estimated to crash down on the town at a speed of around 120kmph. Rocks of all sizes and shapes spread out in a zone from the bottom of the mountain and it looked like the surface of the moon.

Calgary

2006-08-08T10:29:00.000-06:00

I arrived in Calgary to find flooding and hailstones so thick it looked like snow on the ground - a little different to what I've been used to in Lethbridge! Sarah thought I had just been lying about the good weather here. It improved slightly the next day and was quite nice in the morning, however we didn't get to appreciate that as we were shopping at the Chinook Mall.
In the afternoon we went to Heritage Park which was really good. It's a reconstructed town with buildings that have been moved from various places in Canada so that there's a bank, post office, school, newspaper printers, bakery (the cinnamon rolls were great), sweetshop, blacksmiths, gas station, railway station, police station, etc, etc. Sadly as soon as we arrived it started to rain and I was only wearing sandals. We went for a ride on the steam train there and it cleared up so we were able to appreciate the whole park better. Note that in the picture I am leaning on the umbrella which Kathy left in her car (thankyou very much).
They also had an 'intepretive programme' running throughout the day telling the story of a robbery from outside the post office, the mounties catching the thieves and finally a court trial outside the town hall (see picture). The actors were really funny so that was a highlight.

Evacuation

2006-08-03T09:40:00.000-06:00

Just to prove that August in Colleges is always the same ... yesterday some of the construction workers hit a corroded gas line and it leaked into the College. They were actually very good in getting everyone out as we could all smell it in the Library and weren't sure what was happening! The buildings were closed for almost 2 hours so we were forced to take an extended lunch break (a sacrifice I know). Unfortunately, only one of us in the library had evacuated with a purse, but she was feeling generous so we headed out for chinese food. If you're really interested, you can read about it in the Lethbridge Herald http://www.lethbridgeherald.com/article_3591.php Just to add to the excitement, I also got to see some Canadian Firemen!
The picture is the back of my residence, the 2 windows on the bottom right are my bedrooms. Fortunately no gas leaked in there, but sadly I don't have hot water until Saturday. Luckily I'm off to Calgary tonight to meet Sarah.

Don't know how I'll ship this home...

2006-08-02T09:14:00.000-06:00

This weekend I went hunting & shot my first bear! The guys at the College were so proud of me that they've stuffed it and mounted it in a case. I think it'll look great as a trophy in the living room at home!

Ok, that's a lie (fooled you?)

Actually this weekend was spent shopping, doing laundry and a visit to the Helen Schuler Coulee Centre (no bears but plenty of gophers).
This is a Kodiak bear which is the College mascot. This guy lives in the Physical Education building. (Please ignore the bad photography and the flash, couldn't get it any better). I think he's quite impressive - you certainly don't find anything like this at Burton!!!

Whitewater Rafting

2006-07-24T09:00:00.000-06:00

On Saturday my Church had a ward trip - rafting - at Kimball which is just south of Cardston so about an hour south of Lethbridge. I'd never been before so was very excited! There were about 6 rafts in total, with 6-10 of us in each raft and some people were kayaking as well. You can see me at the beginning of the trip looking nice and dry - that didn't last very long at all. The river we went down was quite tame so we didn't have any problems other than getting stuck on a huge rock at the beginning and all having to go to the front of the raft and jump up & down to get off it! We also jumped out and swam in some of the places along the river and were able to body surf one of the rapids which was fun. It was really hot that day so it was good to keep cool in the water. We were on the river for about 2 hours and the time went by really fast as we were having such a good time. At the end we also had a barbecue with hotdogs while we all dried out in the sunshine.

Library Breakfast

2006-07-21T16:07:00.000-06:00

I finally met all of the library staff yesterday when we had a "North American" style breakfast all together. There are more library staff than at Burton College, but the Library is also responsible for the Computer Commons which is similar to the rest of the LRC in Burton. The main difference is that here they have librarians, reference, circulation and shelving staff and also student proctors in the commons who support the use of IT there - I'll be especially interested to see how they work as that's a new idea to me.
It was really good to meet all the staff, some are term-time only so I won't meet them again until the end of August. Our breakfast consisted of bacon, sausages, pancakes, maple syrup (for the 1st time whilst I've been in Canada), Rogers Golden Syrup (local stuff), peaches, blueberries, jam, cream and orange & apple juice - yum, yum!

Tim Hortons

2006-07-19T15:43:00.000-06:00

Tim Hortons is a Canadian Fast Food Outlet. Set up as serving just coffee & donuts (though there's a few other things on the menu - the hot chocolate is good & I think it may do some sandwiches, etc) the menu isn't as expansive as other fast food places, but it's good. It's the one "Canadian" experience everyone has told me to go for and it's really, really popular here - I've seen about 5 in Lethbridge. They have a wide variety of donuts and you can always pretend you're being good by having just "Timbits" which are small donut pieces - a bit like donut profiteroles - which come in lots of different flavours. The nearest Tims is a 10-15 minute walk from my flat so I can convince myself that I've walked off all the fat they contain. Won't make the mistake of buying a box of 10 again on the basis that I'll have just a few each day though, they taste far too good for that!!!

Waterton Pt 2

2006-07-17T17:13:00.000-06:00

(SEE BELOW FOR PART 1)
The hike was really interesting as we learnt all about the area, the nature (I ate wild huckleberries - never knew they existed before) and how Canada & the US work together to preserve the site. We also heard how they've worked together on some pretty dramatic rescues in the area.
As you can see on the left, the border is clearly marked with both the commemorative pillar and the cutting through the trees which goes right across the park - you couldn't miss it. Fortunately, since we were only going along the lake then straight back into Canada, there was no passport control in the middle of the woods - so didn't need my passport & visa! Once we arrived at Goat Haunt we took the ferry back along the lake. The suspension bridge I am crossing in the photo above was at the end of the hike, where the stream feeds into the lake - you could only cross it one person at a time.
Once we arrived at Goat Haunt it was a 35 minute journey in the ferry back up the lake. We started the hike at 10am & arrived at Waterton Townsite at 6pm; mildly sunburnt - but no blisters, very tired, but very happy as it had been a really good day out. I slept extremely well on Saturday night!!!!

Waterton

2006-07-17T16:32:00.000-06:00

On Saturday I went to Waterton Lakes National Park which is 81 miles south from Lethbridge. The park borders with Glacier National Park in Montana and together form the Waterton-Glacier International Peace Park and was the first Peace Park - there are now many more across borders around the world. As you can see from the photos, the park is really beautiful. The mountains are part of the Rockies and still have snow on top of some while the lakes are crystal clear and freezing cold (after walking I dipped my toes in but couldn't stand it for too long).
We went on a hike organised jointly with a Canadian and an American guide (I'm pictured with them below). The hike goes all the way along Upper Waterton Lake, starting just by the Waterton townsite, and finishing in Goat Haunt, Montana. It was an all day hike (hence the need to be paddling in the lake at the end of it - tired feet) and it was 14km long. Fortunately since it was along the lakeshore it was flat.
I was especially glad to be going on a guided hike after the welcome talk included the fact that both guides carried bear spray - pepper spray for bears! Apparently they can target a bear from 20 feet away. However, they also added that if a bear was in the vicinity just to stay close to them while they decided what we should do (they didn't say what this could be other than get off the trail, I was hoping this wasn't code for "decide who to feed to the bear first"). However, I didn't see any bears in the end.

Bites Update

2006-07-10T16:58:00.000-06:00

This was the bites when they were pretty bad and driving me crazy. You might not think it's so bad but I never get allergic reactions or any bites at all usually so it was bad for me! However, I can now report that the Canadian mosquitoes must have moved on to new blood as there were no new bites this weekend. My work colleagues have also introduced my to Benadryl so the swelling went down when I started taking it and hasn't bothered me since - just a couple of red spots now!

Around Lethbridge

2006-07-10T16:25:00.000-06:00

This Saturday, Fiona took me out to Broxburn Farm for lunch. It's just outside of Lethbridge in the countryside. It was really nice as they grow all their own vegetables and bake their own bread and our lunches were excellent. It was quite busy there so everyone else obviously agrees with me! The countryside around Lethbridge is very flat and seems to go on forever. The farms are huge and there are a lot of Dutch farmers over here - and lots are still moving out. They even have their own Dutch school. I guess they have all the irrigation techniques from the same landscape in Holland. The picture is from opposite the cafe, you can just about see me by the wagon and hopefully get an idea of the surrounding area. [Note also the lovely blue skies I've been enjoying here].

After lunch we went to the Galt Museum in Lethbridge which has displays on Southern Alberta. I found out all about the Prairies and the Chinook Winds, the Blood Tribe who are native to Alberta, the Cowboys, the Lethbridge Herald and saw all sorts of other exhibits. The museum is located overlooking the high-level railway bridge across the Oldman River and the Coulees so it has some pretty spectacular views. In the picture you can just about make out a train coming across the bridge (to the right of my head). The museum has a good gift shop as well, in the picture you can see me holding on to my shopping!

Finally that day I had my first ever Dairy Queen and I can report back that it certainly won't be my last!!!

More of where I'm living

2006-07-06T08:51:00.000-06:00

Have been mostly hiding indoors during the evenings this week in an (unsuccessful) attempt to avoid the mosquitoes - they're not bad, but I never usually get bitten so they're particularly annoying. However, one thing everyone tells me about Southern Alberta is that they enjoy their food, and I'm certainly enjoying it with them so have been trying to walk some of it off and the College campus is really big so it's a great place to do that.
The picture is of the front of the College and this is the main drive leading up to it. If you look closely you can see LCC spelt out in the flowers. All of the lawns and flower beds are really well kept and watered on an automatic hose system each day (I have to be careful walking to my flat as the water sprays all over).
The second picture is the local wildlife - it's pretty cute but apparently a bit of nuisance. I think I scared it as it stayed dead still while I approached and took the picture (either that or it likes having its picture taken - I think it might even be posing a little bit)!

Where I'm living

2006-07-04T09:49:00.000-06:00

This is me in my living room at my flat. It's actually student accommodation, but it's really nice. The flowers you can see are a welcome from my new work colleagues. The living room area has a settee, table and chairs and a kitchen area which is opposite where I'm sitting. The fridge and freezer are big so plenty of room for ice-cream (Ben & Jerrys is cheap here)!

The flat has a bathroom - with a decent shower - then my double bedroom and a single bedroom which I have set up as my TV room, I get cable TV.

To get to work it takes 2 minutes (I'm going to hate it when I go back to the 40 minute commute at home). The College campus is huge, it takes half an hour to walk round the perimeter. In fact, everything in Lethbridge is bigger than at home - it takes a bit of getting used to, but it's all good!

Canada Day

2006-07-04T09:11:00.000-06:00

On 1st July it's Canada Day so there were some events to celebrate this around Lethbridge. Fiona took me out and about to see them and the first place we went to was Fort Whoop-Up (yes that really is its name).

While we were there we found there was a ceremony taking place for new Canadians. People from all cultures were there and they were all very excited to become Canadian. It was quite informal, out in the sunshine as they pledged their allegiances. However, the parade at the beginning (top picture) with all the dignitaries was very British and they played Scotland The Brave on bagpipes as they marched in - pretty surreal!

Fort Whoop-Up is a pretty interesting place. It gets its name because traders sold illegal alcohol and stuff to the natives out of the fort so I guess they were having a lot of fun holed up there! The picture is of inside the fort where there is a bearskin covering the bed! There were lots of skins hanging up there as it gets cold in the winter.

We also went to some of the parks where they had celebrations going on ... and I'm being eaten alive by mosquitoes, I think they must like English blood! I've got some insect repellant and some horrible smelling stuff with ammonia in it to stop the itching so hopefully that'll get better!

Made it to Lethbridge!

2006-06-30T15:10:00.000-06:00

Arrived in Lethbridge yesterday afternoon on a tiny 18-seater plane (quite an experience). I had a lovely evening as I was invited to dinner by my new boss. I've already been taken shopping by Fiona and Don Lea took me on a tour of Lethbridge while I practised driving the Jeep, as well as out to lunch. So now I have my accommodation, I have transportation, I've found how to get to the Library, I'm all set ...

I had a fantastic time on my holiday in Vancouver - I would definitely recommend anyone to go there (though I admit I say that about pretty much every place I visit). On the first day I was there I visited Stanley Park (you can see me at the Totem Poles there). It's a beautiful place with a seawall walk & cycle way that goes round the edge for 10km. I started walking and the weather was so sunny & the views were so amazing I just kept going til almost the end - probably 8km - and yes I did it in my flipflops with no blisters either!!

On the second day I went round the older part of town, Gastown and to Storyeum which tells all about Vancouver's history in a pretty unique way. I also went up the Lookout tower.

On the third day I went on a trip up to Whistler, the ski resort. As you can see from the photo there is still snow at the very top of the mountains here. It took 20 mins to ride up there in the Whistler Village Gondola (which is a cable car). The journey up to Whistler on the "Sea to Sky" highway was great as well. We stoppped off at Alice Lake, Squamish, Shannon Falls and Brandywine Falls.

On my final day I went out to the Capilano Suspension Bridge in North Vancouver. The bridge was huge, but still creaked & bounced as I made my way across (you can see it in the picture behind me). The view into the Capilano valley was great and the park area had a treetops walk and exhibits about its history which were really interesting. To get to North Vancouver I had to take the Seabus which was also an experience. After all this culture I headed out to Metropolis at Metrotown for some shopping (someone tipped me off that it was the place to find Old Navy) so I spent a happy afternoon wandering around the shops there!

Overall it was really great and I'm so glad I stopped off in Vancouver on the way. It was also during a bit of a heatwave so no rain, or clouds, just sunshine so I arrived in Lethbridge a little bit tanned, adjusted to the time zone, relaxed & ready to go!!!!

Bye bye Burton

2006-06-23T03:11:00.000-06:00

My last day at Burton College passed by in a bit of blur. It was my second day attempting to show Kathy all the jobs I do - but was having trouble remembering all the jobs I do!! I think she has a feel for what goes on ... and she's agreed to come back so I'm sure she'll be just fine.

We had a small party in the library, breaking every no food & drink rule I've established. The Library & LRC staff gave me a card & presents which you can see me opening (I was very excited). I'm setting off from Heathrow tomorrow at 3.30pm for Vancouver and will make my way to Lethbridge on Thursday 29th June. Just have to pack now!!!!

In the News!

2006-06-19T10:56:00.000-06:00

We're famous! (Well almost). An article on the exchange appeared in the Burton Mail on Wednesday 14th June.

Preparation, preparation

2006-05-18T11:49:00.000-06:00

This is my workspace at Burton College. As you can see, there is no office in the Library so all staff are always visible to the students (you can see the service counter in the top left corner of the picture). This is both useful and difficult - you're available immediately during busy periods, but no other work gets done!

In preparation for Kathy Lea's arrival at the College I've been attempting to clear my desk. It's looking quite tidy at the moment! I've also been preparing a work schedule to direct what needs to be accomplished and when.
Each summer we use the time when the library is quieter or closed to make improvements to the physical layout. This year we are planning to re-arrange the reference/quiet study area (pictured) to add 2 more computers and further study space for students, as well as another staff work area. Kathy will be able to offer further advice in doing this.

Final preparations are also underway for my arrival at Lethbridge (via Vancouver). I'll be leaving England on June 24th so at least I'll see some World Cup matches first. Fortunately, I'll meet Kathy here in Burton before I leave to exchange last minute instructions and find out all the best places to visit whilst on my travels!

In the Beginning

2006-05-02T12:41:00.000-06:00

As I've already explained, from now on you can find out all about my Job Exchange to Canada.

I was really lucky because Kathy was only my second contact from the LIBEX exchange list managed by CILIP. We both work for Colleges, Burton is a Further Education College and Lethbridge a Community College, which seem to be as close a match as possible in terms of size and range of courses on offer. We were both looking for an exchange of approximately 4 months and neither of us were in a position to offer a house swap. We're also both qualified Librarians.

The exchange will officially begin on July 1st 2006 and run until October 31st 2006 - but we'll both be in our exchange countries before that time.

Between our two blogs you'll find out just how different and similar our Colleges are, what we're learning from our new jobs and what we feel we've gained from the experience.
Readers of this one will also find out if I get sick of maple syrup, how upset the Canadians get when I confuse them with people from the United States and if anyone understands my accent!!