Take off, you hoser!!

Back after a much-needed vacation, or "holidays" as they say in Canada. We just got back from a week in the Canadian Rockies for the highly anticipated Hertz-Screpnek wedding in Canmore, AB. Many more thoughts to come on this week of good times, but here's a few quick highlights.....

First of all, not sure if you knew this or not, but the Canadian Rockies really need to be seen to believe. Someone told us that the Colorado or Wyoming Rockies are beautiful, but the Canadian Rockies are majestic. I think that sums it up. Every new direction you looked driving up the highway towards the Columbia Ice Fields, you couldn't help but say, "Gooooo!"(For you Canucks, that's a good thing.), or "Oh, Duuuude...".

((Also, for clarification, is use of the term "Canuck" a bad slang term for Canadians? Clarification, please. For now, I'll keep using it.))

Canadians. Beautiful people. I say that first because here's where I get into discussion of a stereotype perpetuated for almost 25 years by the immortal Bob & Doug Mackenzie. I figured that I'd hear a few "eh!?"s from time to time. Well, it's everywhere. That's no stereotype that we arrogant Americans are blowing out of proportion. It didn't matter who you talked to, you were going to hear it. And after a week of being there, it's nearly impossible to catch yourself not saying it, as well, eh?. I'm sure it will go away soon. Here's me and Dave, a brother of the bride. How about that for some Canada hospitality, eh?

There's a lot of beer to be had in Canada, and I did my best to get my money's worth. Funny thing about the Canadian Government, though. As stereotypes go for Canada, beer & smokes are right up there. Now, these two items are the most heavily taxed comsumer goods in the country. A 15-pack of Canada's unofficial official beer, Molson Canadian (roughly $15 in the states), cost me $26. A pack of smokes costs around $12 (more on that in another blog post). While the tobacco tax seemed to cut down on the number of smokers I observed, there was no shortage of beer drinkers. And that comforted me.

There was plenty of Hertz-Jones Family debauchery throughout the week, with more writing and incriminating photos to come. Needless to say, it was rewarding to know that we were passing on many Malvern traditions to our friends in Canada. Granted, it didn't seem that we were teaching them anything about drinking that they hadn't done or thought of already. Except for Jenga.

Finally, weddings in the mountains, as you might expect, are pretty much the most romantic thing I can think of. We were fortunate and honored to be a part of it. Congrats once again to Kent and Jodi!

Much more to come....