Day 10 - It's pronounced "MinNEY-wonkah"

We started today off (relatively) early, driving up to Banff for breakfast. Except all the breakfast places seemed to be either shut, or full (full because the other places were shut, no doubt), so we eventually settled into this little toastie place that did toast and toasties. I dunno what they did to Sandra's cup of tea, it was quite unspeakable.

We then walked around Banff for a bit, it's nice enough but a lot of gift shops as you would expect. You know you're in serious bear country, all the bins are bear-proof (by dint of having handles that are too small for a bear's hands to operate). Then we drove to Lake Minnewanka and bought tickets for the 1.5 hour lake cruise. It was a pretty good cruise, entertaining and informative, though I thought it was a tad overpriced. At one point one of the passengers reckoned he'd seen a bear ("What colour?" "Brown!"... I could almost hear the "shyeah, right" in the guide's voice). It turned out to be a wooden outside toilet (for the record, they estimate there are only about 700 brown (grizzly) bears in the whole of Alberta).

After the lake cruise we drove back into Banff, searching for two things: firstly the hideous "merman" that Jeff and I had discovered on the internet at some point last year, and secondly the famous Fairmont Banff Springs hotel. We found them both, and the hotel was the more attractive.

We then drove around the Lake Minnewanka loop, which had some excellent scenery and we also saw a deer.

Then it was back to the hotel early to get ready for another of the events I'd booked us into, the "Oh Canada, eh?" show. Billed as "delightfully cheesy", it featured 6 main entertainers who also helped woop up the crowd as well as serve the 5 course meal. Walking down to the place where the event was held, I could tell that Sandra was getting nervous. I asked her why. "They'll pick on me, they always pick on me at these kind of things." I assured her that she wouldn't be picked on, that there was going to be a room full of people, and there was no way she was going to be singled out.

There was a room full of people.

She was singled out.

I would have taken a picture of it, but I was too busy crying with laughter at her predicament. The poor girl. This bloke singer, posing as a fisherman, was singing about girls he'd left behind or something. Straight out into the audience, wandering through the tables, Sandra was the first person he zoomed in on. It was hilarious, she was bright red.

Oh how we laughed about it. Afterwards, at least. We both agreed it made a very special night that little bit more special. I can't recommend that show enough. Yes it's cheesy, but the food's okay, and what a brilliant night's entertainment. We chatted it up with a couple from Whitecourt (we'll be driving through there next week), and three people from Edmonton. And none of them said "eh?" the whole night.

On the way back to the hotel I spotted a house for sale... I wonder how much?

Tomorrow, the famous Lake Louise...