My chauffeur did an excellent job at getting us from Calgary to Canmore. The satnav is worth every penny as it really does take the pressure off me and means that Stuart only has to shout at the lunatic truck drivers rather than the map reader! The big concrete head in the photo is not a sculpture to honour Stuart's arrival (although there is a likeness don't you think?) but resides on the main street as the name 'Canmore' translates to "Big Head"! ...

Landed in Calgary at 8:30pm (3:30am UK time) and it is taking us a while to adjust to the time change! Staying at the Radisson for a couple of nights - we thought we would ease ourselves in gently! After demolishing a massive bowel of porridge that even Goldilocks would have struggled with, Stuart and I located the bus stop and made our way to downtown Calgary. First impressions are of a calm, quiet and very friendly City. We spent the day exploring ...

Hi - Stuart again, Karen will fill you in on Calgary and Canmore later. This note picks up where I left off a few days ago - the leaving of Calgary. Goodbye Radisson Calgary We left the hotel early on its 9 O'clock airport shuttle. Our car would not be ready until midday so we decided to have breakfast in arrivals and head off to the desk before noon in the hope of picking up the car a little ahead of time. A couple from Canberra entertained us on the s...

After months of talking, planning, researching and putting our old lives temporarily into storage (and in Dad's loft!), the day of departure has finally arrived. Awoke early with the usual feelings of worry before flying - have I packed enough; have I packed too much; will we get to the airport on time and will our bags arrive at the same time and at the same destination as us?.... To calm the nerves I went for an early morning run along Mudeford Quay, s...

As I sit gazing out at the amazing view from our balcony across Vista Heights (see picture), I thought you might be interested in how we chose the desitinations and activities for our trip. We agreed early on that we would set off in late summer 2011 but took some time to set out our itinerary. Karen had first go - after all it was her idea. The stimulus for the trip was to get a greater understanding of the culture of her students at the Business School. Eura...