Discussions

Well I just got back from a little foray down to California and then up to Vancouver Island. I thought I'd throw out a few random observations that came about from the trip.  
 
- We are very lucky to have one of the best movie multiplexes out there for a city anywhere near our size. Nanaimo is 2x Brandon in population but the Capitol leaves both of their complexes in the dust.  
 
- This one isn't a big surprise, but the pace of driving is quite different. Even the Kelownas of the world seem to have at least one main street through their middle that has a fairly consistent fast flow to it. Lucky for us though Brandon's a reasonable enough size that it still doesn't take very long at all to get from corner to corner. All of the upgrades going on on 18th St North should improve things that much more.  
 
- The mountain scenery is very cool, but man is it nice when you hit prairie and you can just hit the cruise control and glide! Its great that Saskatchewan is twinning what's left of the single-lane Trans Canada, but man are there some awful stretches of neglected roads while they work on the new stuff.  
 
- We are lucky to have the pace of life (and time!) we have here. San Francisco is very nice, but the majority of people we ran into seemed like they were on fast-forward. I guess a by-product of spending an hour out of your day waiting to get onto a toll bridge (Golden Gate bridge is very cool though! The toll lady saw 'eBrandon' on the side of my car and asked if my name was Brandon).  
 
- Arnold, please make the signs to your Capitol bldg a bit easier to follow (okay, not really Brandon-related)  
 
- Most BC towns/cities 5000 people and up have a nice little thing going on newspaper-wise. A company has started up free daily newspapers in most of those markets. They'll have a page or two of local snippets and then publish syndicated news from other BC papers as well as the international wire. For those who like to sit down and read a thick paper for an hour or two, it isn't going to do much for you... but for someone like a tourist who wants to keep in the loop locally they're great.  
 
- Lots of transplanted Manitobans in BC excited/not shy to chat about Brandon. One lady from Carman went as far as to ring out doorbell and welcome us, another on Vancouver Island born in Brandon us recognized the 'Brandon' on my car and struck up a nice conversation. The next time anyone's in the Okanagan, make sure you mention to the lady that runs one of the major fruit stands off the hiway that you're from Manitoba... you'll walk out very rich on cherries!  
 
- It'll be interesting to see how the Renaissance Station project turns out when its finished. With the crazy condo boom out West, there are a lot of really nice looking complexes that can be a big addition to a city aesthetically. From the sounds of the promotion, they're aiming for a very 'big city' look to this one.  
 
It would be interesting to hear other peoples' observations from their holidays as summer winds down.