Mom and Pop Meyer Visit (July 2012)

*Guest-blogger, Matt Meyer *

It all started on the final day of my annual pilgrimage back to Indiana for the Indy 500. As we were packing up and getting ready to head for the airport, my mom was looking online and found some decently-priced flights to Calgary at the end of July. We quickly checked our calendars and it seemed like a perfect time to come visit Canada, so they pulled the trigger and bought the tickets right then.

A couple weeks passed, then Katie and I realized we overlooked her trip to Puerto Rico for Jaclyn's Bachelorette (or, as they say in Canada, Stagette) Party. The dates lined up almost exactly, leaving only 1 night for Katie to be here while they visited. So it was up to me to be the tour guide and cram as much as I could in to the 6 days they would be here.

On Thursday night, I picked Mom and Dad up at the Calgary Airport and drove them back to our house. It was already pretty late by then, so we stayed up for a little bit, gave them the house tour, and called it a night.

Mom and Pop Meyer at YYC.

On Friday, we decided to walk around the city - down by the river and through the core. Mom was amazed at all the flowers that were around town.

One of the flower displays around the city.

Mom loved the Canadian money!

Street-art?

That evening, we were scheduled to go out to eat at Mercato, but when the cab arrived, Penny snuck out the front door. Pandemonium ensued, as Dad and I chased after her down the street. We even asked the cab driver to help, but he wanted no part of it. He saw Penny running toward him, and he jumped back in the cab. Penny finally calmed down and gave up the chase. By this time, the original cab had left and so we had to call another one and hope Mercato did not give our reservation away. We had a nice dinner with plenty of food - mussels, steak, pasta, and wine. After dinner we headed to Wurst for a couple of drinks, then headed home.

Mercato for Mom's Birthday Dinner.

The next day, we took a little longer to get up and going, but after a while, we were ready to go again. Today was going to be another Canada-first for my Dad and I - our first CFL game. It was the Calgary Stampeders versus the British Columbia Lions. The stadium is shaped like a U and when we entered, we were not sure which way to turn - but if we went the wrong way - we would be screwed and would have have to walk all the way around the stadium to the correct side. As you could have guessed, we took a 'Meyer Shortcut' and ended up at the wrong side of the stadium. The game was interesting to say the least, but it seemed more like a high school or small college game rather than a professional football game. Calgary was getting blown out, so Dad and I decided to leave a bit early and head back home where Mom was working and dog-sitting.

Calgary Stampeders vs BC Lions.

On Sunday, we just relaxed around the house and went to to Wild Rose for a couple drinks. We had to take it easy because we would be heading to Banff and Lake Louise in the morning.

Safety first! Had to go home to let Penny out and returned on my bike.

Monday morning, I woke up early and got Penny to take her to Dogaholics so she could hang out there while we stayed overnight in the Canadian Rockies. We headed to Banff and Mom and Dad were in awe of the mountains as we made the 90 minute trip to Banff. Once there, we stopped in town for lunch at the Banff Brewery. After a quick bite, we went to go check in to our hotel - the Rimrock. I got lost again (sound familiar?) and we ended up at the swankiest hotel in the area - the Fairmont. Think of a castle in the middle of the mountains. After using the GPS, we were able to finally get to the Rimrock to check-in. After a little down-time we took the bus back in to town to walk around the shops and grab some dinner.

Dad and I on the balcony of the lobby of the Rimrock Hotel.

Mom insisted I try this on, haha!

Tuesday morning, we got up and drove 45 minutes NW to another Canada-first - to see the famous Lake Louise. When we arrived, the crowds were pretty crazy. We walked around the lake, took some pictures, then headed back to Calgary. Once we got back, I had to go pick up Penny, then go pick up Katie later that night. 

Dad and I at Lake Louise.

Mom and Dad on the shore of Lake Louise.

Katie was able to visit for a little bit that night, but everyone was exhausted from traveling, so we headed to bed relatively early.

Wednesday morning, Katie had to go in to the office, so I got up and dropped her off, and came back to the house to spend the last couple hours with the parents before they headed back to the States. A last lunch at Fergus and Bix, then it was time to head to the airport to see them off.

All-in-all, it was a great visit. I was so glad my parents were able to make it up here. Next time, I hope that the whole family can make it up together.