# Winter in Edmonton



## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Newfangled, from SSP, took these pictures on his walk home. The temperature has recently shot up after a snowy deep-freeze the last two weeks, resulting in some melting but plenty of white. The snow on the streets is really dirty because we don't use salt up here. Salt doesn't work this far north.























































I know - no more pictures of 112th. But this needs to be documented as a warning to future generations:


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## Svartmetall (Aug 5, 2007)

Can't be much fun to drive in that snow...

Great shots though.


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## M_K_O (Jul 22, 2007)

Fantastic! i love the snow! but where I live, the nature doesn´t give me this present every year 

Great thread!


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## ailiton (Apr 26, 2003)

I lived here for 7 months, and it was the most miserable 7 months in my life.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

ailiton said:


> I lived here for 7 months, and it was the most miserable 7 months in my life.


How so?

Mind you, I've lived in the region for 20 years.


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## Coneslammer (Jun 26, 2006)

Jesus Christ that looks cold!

I don't think I would be able to stand it


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## juniorzzi (Dec 25, 2006)

OMG!
Thats a lot of snow!!
I love it!


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## Max Power (Nov 3, 2006)

Xelebes said:


> How so?
> 
> Mind you, I've lived in the region for 20 years.


Probably the seven months of winter, lol. jks.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Max Power said:


> Probably the seven months of winter, lol. jks.


It only lasts from Mid-October to Mid-April. I think that's only 6 months.


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## Taller Better (Aug 27, 2005)

Xelebes, thanks for finding these shots for us! We don't see enough of Edmonton! kay:


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## MNiemann (Sep 5, 2007)

Edmonton just...intrigues me in so many ways. It just blows my mind that a city outside of Siberia can be so big and so far north and so cold. I totally want to move there one day.


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## KidGibNick (Feb 27, 2005)

I don't live there, but have been there many times...granted, it's incredibly cold in the winter, but so is Minneapolis, MN or Denver, CO.
It gets nice an warm here in the summer, like 30 C or 86 F.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

MNiemann said:


> Edmonton just...intrigues me in so many ways. It just blows my mind that a city outside of Siberia can be so big and so far north and so cold. I totally want to move there one day.


Oddly enough, this far north is not as cold as other places that are farther south. I mean, Edmonton is not as cold as Saskatoon, Regina or Winnipeg and could in fact fight with Minneapolis in terms of how cold it is. Due to Edmonton being slightly dryer, we can face bigger temperature swings and experience severe temperatures on occasion.


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## WinoSoul (Sep 14, 2005)

Nice!!!


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

This is a picture of a bunch of construction in the west end of the Oliver neighbourhood - Edmonton's densest neighbourhood. Photo was taken by noodle from C2E (or noodlenoodle from SSP.)


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## xxDxx (Jan 29, 2008)

So cold...but looks like a quiet city though.


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## RETROMANIA (Dec 9, 2006)

I woudn't be able to live in a place like that, so is Chicago, Detroit, Buffalo...etc


Xelebes said:


> It only lasts from Mid-October to Mid-April. I think that's only 6 months.


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## joga (Oct 26, 2007)

Beautiful...so freezing...

I have to go on the Alps to see similar landscapes hno:... 

Love snow


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## northern italian (Sep 12, 2002)

joga said:


> Beautiful...so freezing...
> 
> I have to go on the Alps to see similar landscapes hno:...
> 
> Love snow


Uh ?

Milan is normally quite cold and snowy in winter too; obviously I'm talking about a normal winter, not sh*ts like the last twos.

Ok, not cold like Edmonton, but some of our snowfalls are nearly unknow in there (like 50 cm of snow in 24 hours or so).


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

A shot taken by noodle, this time in the East Jasper neighbourhood. A grimier neighbourhood that is slowly seeing revitalisation.


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## Locust (Apr 29, 2005)

I visited Edmonton few weeks ago... During my stay, the temperature dropped to something like -30 Celcius (like -30 Fahrenheit!)... The coldest weather I ever experienced in my whole life!!!.... Walking 2 minutes outdoors between the parking and the building was almost a near death experience.

Were it not for the oil, this place is UNFIT for human life...


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## ycats (Oct 24, 2007)

Noticed a lot of construction, do construction workers still work outside there in the winter? They do in Toronto but its not nearly as cold here.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

Are these just the down and out parts of town or is a lot of Edmonton grim like this? How about some pics of some tasteful areas. This one is an absolute horror show:


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

isaidso said:


> Are these just the down and out parts of town or is a lot of Edmonton grim like this? How about some pics of some tasteful areas. This one is an absolute horror show:


The camerawork isn't that great. That's something newfangled is not known for. Newfangled isn't known for taking the best shots of Edmonton.

In this shot, you can see an older part of downtown that was built north of the legislature. Where you see the towers was once where houses used to be. The smaller downtown was burnt up in a big fire in the 1900's or so and resulted them to build everything in Brick. In true Houston fashion, they bulldozed quite a few lots as the buildings fell apart or something. Downtown is slowly growing outward into this old district. 104th Street, where that big tower under construction is one of the first streets seeing this revival. It's a narrow street. There is another couple cranes going up at 104th Street but 105th is next as the 28 story Q is going to be built. 

The shot is taken from 107th Street, right next to Norquest College. If the Province finally gives NorQuest the money to make it's big expansion, a big improvement will be had.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

ycats said:


> Noticed a lot of construction, do construction workers still work outside there in the winter? They do in Toronto but its not nearly as cold here.


When the temperature bottoms out, they get a day off from work. But like in Fort Mac, if it isn't -40 you're still working. A slight exaggeration - if in the towers the wind kicks up, they stay home if it's -20C.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Two new shots by newfangled. The air is much prettier.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Captain Chaos said:


> Do you have any pictures of Sherwood Park, Alberta. (A suburb of Edmonton, no?)
> 
> Is it a wealthy suburb or not?


I don't have any pictures off hand, but Sherwood Park is generally a bit wealthier. Not as wealthy as St. Albert though.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

These photos are taken by whyteknight from c2e on his photo tour today around the city.

His thread is here.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

Thanks Xelebes. I knew they were just a collection, but was still rather shocked by them. All cities have their good and bad, but I suppose people read about how wealthy Alberta is and expect it to look like Beverley Hills except with fir trees. Is this slowly happening? I imagine with the wealth is coming an appreciation for architecture, landscaping, sidewalks that aren't simply cement slabs, public art outside, and a general feeling of opulence to the place. Granite sidewalks? Cast iron lamp posts? Electrical wiring embedded below the street? Grand residential structures? A level of sophistication on par with a Zurich or parts of Connecticut?

Zurich looks wealthy, Edmonton doesn't. Is it because the wealth is so new?


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Boom-bust cycles take their toll. What we had in 1990 was absolute hell for the city and many things were cut back through the 90's. Right now we have this wealth - the question remains to where do we put it?


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## canucker16 (Jan 13, 2008)

Edmonton looks miserable, although i guess a lot of Canadian cities look miserable in the winter!

On the plus side i hear Whyte Ave is the best place to go out is western Canada.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

Xelebes said:


> Boom-bust cycles take their toll. What we had in 1990 was absolute hell for the city and many things were cut back through the 90's. Right now we have this wealth - the question remains to where do we put it?


I would be surprised if your boom wasn't permanent this time. With a third of the world only now beginning to industrialize, a planned tripling in oil production in Alberta, and a much more diversified economy, Alberta should boom for decades to come. Only massive mismanagement could derail it. 

Hopefully, Alberta will follow the Norweigian model. Bigger royalty payments to Alberta, massive re-investment of capital outside of Canada to prevent a spike in our dollar ever higher, and a concerted effort to develop non-oil based high value added Alberta industry. The fastest growing industries in Norway are non-energy based.

Alberta needs to make sure that Alberta cities are as beautiful as places like Beverley Hills, so people and industry will want to stay regardless of oil.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

And with such beauty, time must set in. Ever notice our distinct lack of Edwardian and Chicago style? The cities have yet to mature. The province is only beginning to set up the machines needed for diversification.


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## philadweller (Oct 30, 2003)

Oh my god. I would kill myself living there. How bleak, cold and far from the megapolis and tropics.


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## CanadianCentaur (Jun 6, 2003)

Locust said:


> I visited Edmonton few weeks ago... During my stay, the temperature dropped to something like -30 Celcius (like -30 Fahrenheit!)... The coldest weather I ever experienced in my whole life!!!.... Walking 2 minutes outdoors between the parking and the building was almost a near death experience.
> 
> Were it not for the oil, this place is UNFIT for human life...


Uh, dude....-30°C is actually -22°F. 

If it weren't for all that oil, Edmonton would still have people - just not nearly as many as it does today. It probably wouldn't have been any bigger than Regina (pop. ~200,000) or even half that! For the current population of Edmonton, see my sig below. And Alberta overall might have ended up with a population even smaller than Saskatchewan's today. For comparison's sakes, way back in 1947, just when the first oil boom was beginning, Alberta and Saskatchewan had about 750,000 people each. Alberta currently has about 3.5 million, while Saskatchewan has about a million.


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## Taller Better (Aug 27, 2005)

^^ I, too, thought that -30F and -30C converged to the same temperature..


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## CanadianCentaur (Jun 6, 2003)

^^ -40 is the point where both Celsius and Fahrenheit readings meet.

Also, oil was _not_ what originally brought people to Edmonton at first. Before oil was struck big time in 1947, agriculture was the main economic force in the Edmonton area, like most of the Prairie Provinces. After all, it can still get surprisingly warm in the summer this far north.

Oil was actually first discovered in Alberta in 1914 just SW of Calgary, but there was very little oil in that part of Alberta to make it worthwhile - they were looking in the wrong places, mainly because the geology of Alberta was very poorly known at the time. It wasn't until 1947 that the first major oil strike was made in Alberta at the Leduc No. 1 well near Edmonton. Before 1947, Alberta had to import nearly all of its oil from Texas, Oklahoma and Louisiana. Alberta alone now accounts for at least 11% of overall US oil imports, and this is expected to keep rising as production from the oilsands grow.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

-40 is all I know about the Fahrenheit scale.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Photo taken by noodle.


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## CanadianCentaur (Jun 6, 2003)

^^ Ahhh, the Federal Building. Shame it's been empty 99% of the time since the early 1990s. I wouldn't mind seeing it revived into something like office space or something, provided they can get rid of the asbestos inside!



isaidso said:


> Are these just the down and out parts of town or is a lot of Edmonton grim like this? How about some pics of some tasteful areas. This one is an absolute horror show:


Horror show? This is NOTHING compared to what's on the other side of downtown east of Canada Place and 97 St!


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## philadweller (Oct 30, 2003)

I am amazed how people can tolerate cold temps. Maybe these will be the folks that one day inhabit Mars.


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## isaidso (Mar 21, 2007)

Xelebes said:


> And with such beauty, time must set in. Ever notice our distinct lack of Edwardian and Chicago style? The cities have yet to mature. The province is only beginning to set up the machines needed for diversification.


Well, you don't need to look like London or Chicago to be beautiful. Edmonton occupies distinct geography and climate that, in time, will produce a unique architecture that suits it's surroundings and has it's own elegance and beauty. Importing temperate ideas of what a city should look like is a mistake. 

Places like London had many centuries to develop, Edmonton has had just one. Who knows what that design aesthetic will evolve into, but places like Edmonton are better off developing their own.



philadweller said:


> I am amazed how people can tolerate cold temps. Maybe these will be the folks that one day inhabit Mars.


I am often amazed till I stumble on videos like the following. It's an eye opener to realize what a huge transformation many Canadian cities go through from season to season. Regardless, like cold weather or not, Alberta is a beautiful place:


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Some more pictures by Newfangled.

Some fresh warm fluffly snow falling.


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## Brisbaner21 (Jul 17, 2007)

Looks like Adelaide.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Some more pictures from the same set made by Newfangled today.



































I've never seen this one before. It looks awesome with the Iron-Age look to it. Makes me want the scaffolding to be permanent! :?


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## Shezan (Jun 21, 2007)

^^

hot chocolate all the way!


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Some more winter pics by Newfangled.


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## itom 987 (Sep 12, 2002)

Newfangled is doing an awesome job with the photos!


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

Newfangled took some more pics of the last gasps of winter as he walked with his girlfriend down MacKinnon Ravine.

IMG]http://i173.photobucket.com/albums/w69/newfangled2001/20080412%20Mckinnon/SSL245091024x768.jpg[/IMG]


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## marrio415 (Jun 18, 2006)

spring summer autumn(fall for you guys) and winter edmonton looks a nice place to live


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## jessemh431 (Apr 5, 2007)

Yeah, I'm pretty sure after those pics of the snow falling you changed your mind about it looking like Adelaide.

Those are nice pictures, but the buildings seem almost...idk how to describe it except for Communist. Many of those brick buildings.

I have a few questions also. Why does salt not work that far north in Edmonton? What does salt do to the road? Was that Communist style architecture popular at one point in Canada or were those buildings just built quickly so that many people could start moving into Edmonton?


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

jessemh431 said:


> Yeah, I'm pretty sure after those pics of the snow falling you changed your mind about it looking like Adelaide.
> 
> Those are nice pictures, but the buildings seem almost...idk how to describe it except for Communist. Many of those brick buildings.
> 
> I have a few questions also. Why does salt not work that far north in Edmonton? What does salt do to the road? Was that Communist style architecture popular at one point in Canada or were those buildings just built quickly so that many people could start moving into Edmonton?


We call that style Toronto-school. Back in the early 50's and late 60's throught to the 70's, Edmonton was boomimg at the same time Toronto was booming. We borrowed a lot of architecture from there. It was also convenient because the design also faired well in the climate. While it may get hot in the sun, it kept warm in winters. Glass structures don't fare that well, though they do nicer in the summers.

Why doesn't salt work? Because salt doesn't work when it goes below -18C (0F) and we often get down to -30C and sometimes get down to -40C. Suffice to say, salt just doesn't work when it gets that cold. This winter we managed to get down to -44.4C with wind biting at -55C.


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## Taller Better (Aug 27, 2005)

Actually, that style had nothing to do with Toronto, per se, other than the fact that the same syle was also built there.. it was an extremely common post-war International Style of architecture, based mostly on the Bauhausian theories of architects like Le Corbusier. Virtually every city in the world that was expanding at that time built buildings in this style.. New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles, Chicago, Sydney, Melbourne.... you name it, they are all over the world in varying degrees of sophistication and success. It was intended as a modern style of housing the masses in an affordable fashion.Hope you don't mind my posting a pic in your thread, Xelebes...this is a small example of this style as built in Paris around the same time. Photo by Minato Ku:


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## jessemh431 (Apr 5, 2007)

Thanks for the info. BTW, I find the architecture there ugly as well. I think they look better when they are shorter or maybe just in a more urban environment with lots of other old buildings near it.


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## Taller Better (Aug 27, 2005)

A person can appreciate them more when they realize the huge need for cheap housing after WWII.., the world over. Le Corbusier was positively brilliant at coming up with solutions to the problem. There are beautiful examples of that style, and horrible cheap examples, too.. everywhere around the world.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

We were getting ready for spring. Then all of a sudden we got the biggest April snowstorm in 20 years. So it's still winter here - we had our hopes too high. As shown in the pictures.

Images taken by ours truly, newfangled.


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## philadweller (Oct 30, 2003)

That house is hideous. That bubble plexiglass and what an eyesore those boxes in the second floor window are. Does a slob live there? I do like the fence though...very cheery. Edmonton has some surprisingly nice old brick buildings but most of it has a Russia like aesthetic. Architecture in Canada gets really dismal the farther west one goes. I love the architecture of Eastern Canada much more. Alberta is beautiful though. Montana/Alberta mountains are just a treasure. Nature is the beauty not what man has built. Unfortunately, Vancouver got stuck with quite a bit of the concrete slab crap.


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## philadweller (Oct 30, 2003)

"Zurich looks wealthy, Edmonton doesn't. Is it because the wealth is so new?"

No, it is because Zurich was built in a time when architecture was opulent. Edmonton was thrown together hastily with ersatz materials and built during some opf the dimmest times in the history of architecture 50's 60's 70's. Maybe if the post modernist was stainless steel and glass and designed with a flair things would not be so grim. Instead concrete boxes and fake brickfronts emerged.


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## philadweller (Oct 30, 2003)

This could be an interesting building. It has kitsch value. If it were in Miami Beach it could be a boutique hotel. This is what I call Fred Flintsone architecture. Looks like it was designed by a cartoonist. In Edmonton they take buildings like this seriously. Here in the states this would be on the beach painted in flamboyant colors and pink flamingoes in the front yard. It is a humorous building that belongs at a beach resort.

This is what they do to beach motels in NJ from this period.


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## Xelebes (Apr 1, 2007)

These photos were made by 240 GLT from SSP. I tend to love Edmonton's industrial architecture more than its residential architecture and he shows it well with this set as he takes some shots while he goes from his northside home to a jobsite in Leduc, going along the heavy industry east side of Edmonton, and then returns back home.

These photos were taken right before the snow started falling, so there isn't much snow to look at.

Rexall Place, current home of the Edmonton Oilers. This place might become vacant once the new arena is built. 1970's in all its glory though, big concrete box.


















A view over the Capilano Bridge










A rarer shot of Edmonton's skyline from the east.



















50th Street. This is a grimy area, but seeing quite a bit of developemt with plenty of steel framed structures being built.



















From the Anthony Henday Drive, a view of the skyline from a distance.










Powerline Heaven



















Skyline from the southeast on the Anthony Henday.










The construction of the 23rd Avenue overpass is finally under construction. To take 3 years? Dear-god.










This building is odd. You'd think with its location it'd be a hotel. For the longest time I thought it was. But no, it's apartments. That's a headscratcher. It's a landmark building, pretty or not.










Up the Gateway Boulevard










The Labatt Brewery just off of Gateway. One of my landmark industrial buildings in Edmonton.










Nice density shot near Saskatchewan Drive.










More density on Saskatchewan Drive.










The landmark Rossdale Power Plant. It's closing in a couple years, it being 100 years old. We're discussing what to do with it.










Low Level Bridge.








[/QUOTE]


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## Príncipe (Nov 11, 2006)

Wow I gotta say that I started to research information about Edmonton just yesterday . I'm planning to take part in some Exchange program in Canada and I was trying to pick a right city for that - and guess what , Edmonton is very close to become the chosen one for me ! I'm amazed by this city, it seems incredible for me that a metropolis is settled in such cold place and it has so much to offer , like the HUGE West Edmont Mall. It also caught my attention the cultural activities , i read there are a lot of festivals during the summer...Canada is a great country and to pick one city is very difficult , but I had to eliminate cities like Toronto and Vancouver - they are too global and as a Brazilian I'm aware that there's a lot of fellow Brazilians in those cities, and this is not good for someone who will go to another country intending to improve its English like me...so I decided to pick a smaller city that was not like a remote village or so and Edmonton sounds perfect for my plans ! Actually is a respectable city in North America !

But it's a shame that will still take some years for me to accomplish this dream hno: but in the meantime I will continue to follow Edmonton's development here on SSC. Thanx for the pics buddy :cheers::cheers:


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## christos-greece (Feb 19, 2008)

Very nice pics of Edmonton


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## itom 987 (Sep 12, 2002)

Hey Prîncipe,

You should check out http://www.connect2edmonton.ca/forum/ for up to date information.


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## Príncipe (Nov 11, 2006)

itom 987 said:


> Hey Prîncipe,
> 
> You should check out http://www.connect2edmonton.ca/forum/ for up to date information.


Guess what ? Like yesterday I was googgling a little bit and found out this forum about Edmonton . It's very good indeed and it's already on my Mozilla's favorite list :cheers:

Thanks for the suggestion buddy , I can't wait to spend some months in the "city of champions" .


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## Quall (Feb 15, 2006)

Looks like a big version of Sudbury.


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## JOSEVICTOR3012 (Jun 3, 2008)

OMG!! the city of my dreams....can some canadian take me to edmoton please?:lol:


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## bayviews (Mar 3, 2006)

Xelebes said:


>



Really, Edmonton & its buildings looks quite good. Remarkably so, considering that its the northermost city of a million plus population in the Western Hemisphere. 

I know about the West Edmonton Mall, China has since built bigger ones. But does the downtown have an underground pedestrian concourse systems tied in with the subway like Toronto & Montreal? 

Those types of enclosed spaces really help to make "winter cities" livable all year round.


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## Jewish (Mar 26, 2013)

I'd like to spend ALL MY LIFE in this city!!!:master::master::master:

Israel heat is KILLING me!!!!!!:bash:


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## Jewish (Mar 26, 2013)

Thank you *Xelebes* for the photos, even if u stopped to post them.


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