Summer Blog Showcase: Entry #1

Hellooo there everryone and welcome to the first showcase piece for the Summer Blogging Competition!

As I mentioned last week, I’m going to be sharing all the entries over the next few weeks on Monday and Saturday – you’ll know it’s part of the showcase and not a normal post from me because I’ll title all entries for the competition and showcase as I’ve done for today: ‘Summer Blog Showcase: Entry #?’ There have been almost 20 entries (OMG I am so happy thanks again everyone who entered) so just to make sure I actually share them all with you before the end of the summer, I’m going to do two art entries in one, and then blog posts and creative writing will be individually shared.

Now enough of my rambling on, here is the first entry for the competition and our first showcase piece: A blog post by Winteroseca! You can check out her blog here if you don’t already follow her 🙂

As someone who has lived in 5 different countries, my pastimes have changed depending on
where I live. Most recently, I moved from California in the USA to Calgary in Alberta, Canada.

What I Did for Summer in California:
Normally, I went on a road trip with my family in the summer while I lived in California.
Additionally, I was in university, so I did summer classes to help me gain some more credits. A
road trip was a nice break at the end of my summer classes.
There are many different places to take a road trip in California. I lived in the San Francisco Bay
Area, and it was pretty easy to get to some great places to have a road trip. Places I have done
a road trip include Yosemite National Park, Mount Shasta, Lassen National Park, Oroville Dam,
Burney Falls State Park, Monterey Bay (I recommend the aquarium there), Santa Cruz and
Napa Valley to name but a few. There are state parks in these areas that I recommend checking
out too. My favourite place to drive in California is along Highway 1. It’s incredibly scenic and
relaxing as long as you can manage winding roads along the coast! Additionally, Yosemite
National Park is a great place to visit in the winter, but there are parts you cannot travel to
without chains on your tires.
Ironically, my favourite road trip was to Oregon. I went there in 2017 to see a total solar eclipse.
It was one of the most incredible things I have ever witnessed! Things are changing a little now
that I have moved to Calgary, but I intend to embrace it.

My First Summer in Calgary:
Winter came right after I moved to Calgary. Plus, COVID-19 regulations kept changing all the
time. Therefore, I didn’t get out much to see the city. Once the vaccination rate started going up
and reopening started to happen, I thought of how I could best see my beautiful city. Then, I saw a talk by the University of Calgary called Walkable City. I learned that Calgary was designed by someone who walked a lot and because of that, there are many parks and other areas to go
walking. The consensus was that you can live in Calgary all your life and still have a lot to
explore. That gave me some ideas for exploring Calgary!
I looked on the City of Calgary website and found 73 parks! Additionally, there are other green
spaces that aren’t listed on that site. When I think about how Calgary is Canada’s third-largest
city and has a population of 1.2 million people, having 73 parks is impressive! I have lived in
cities of 8 million people that don’t have nearly as many parks. So, what better way to explore a
city than to visit its parks?
In June, I started a challenge to see all 73 parks in Calgary. I will see one park every 7-10 days.
I am posting about them on my blog if you are interested in seeing what I have to say about
each park in Calgary. Right now, I am not planning road trips because I have to exchange my
driver’s license in Canada. Also, I have to learn how to drive in the sub-Arctic conditions that are present in a Canadian winter. Someday I intend to get back to road trips in both the summer and winter because I hear that Canadian wilderness is amazing at all seasons!

What did you all think of Winteroseca’s awesome post? I always find it so fun reading about other people’s experiences so thank you for sharing this post Winteroseca it sounds like you had some fantastic summer experiences! What were your thoughts?

Thank you all for reading the first piece in the Summer Competition Showcase. Don’t forget that once the showcase is over, there will be voting where you can say who had your favourite entry in each category that will help determine the winner so keep that in mind as you follow the showcase. Remember to come back on Saturday for the next showcase piece!

Lots of Love

Blondey on a Mission xxx