Showing posts with label Canada. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Canada. Show all posts

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

Colorado Avalanche vs. Toronto Maple Leafs

Last spring, when I heard that Air Canada was coming to the Salt Lake City airport, I got really excited!  That meant that I could fly directly from SLC to Toronto for a reasonable price.  I knew that I wanted to plan a trip because I hadn't been to my hometown since 2005!  I've always wanted to see my favorite hockey team, the Colorado Avalanche, play a road game so I thought it would be epic to see them play the Maple Leafs in the Air Canada Centre!  I mentioned it to my Dad and we eagerly awaited the release of the 2016-2017 hockey schedule to see when the two teams would be playing.  When we learned that they would be playing on a weekend, it seemed feasible.  We bought our tickets about a month ago and I flew to Toronto last weekend for an amazing trip (My Dad got there a week earlier).  I can't tell you how amazing it was to be back home for a few days!  My Dad picked me up at the airport and took me visiting people who have known me my whole life and love me.  Brian, my Dad's best friend from childhood, and his wife took us to dinner and we didn't stop talking or laughing.  I got to visit all of my favorite spots, including a quick trip to Niagara Falls to see them illuminated with colored lights, several trips to Tim Hortons for donuts, a visit to my grandparents' graves, and a visit to the locks on the St. Lawrence Seaway (a big cargo ship had just entered a lock when we got there and I got to see it go through).  Sunday night was the game and it was absolutely thrilling to be in the ACC!  I loved all of the Stanley Cup banners!  It was fun to cheer for the road team, especially in a place that loves their team as much as Leafs fans do!  I did, however, see quite a few people in Avalanche jerseys and we would high five each other in solidarity!  My Dad's friend Brian, despite the fact that he lives there, had never been to a game before so we got him a ticket.  He took me to my first Blue Jays game back in the day so I thought it was fun that I got to take him to his first Maple Leafs game!  I asked him who he was going to cheer for and he emphatically said, "Toronto!"  Although, I did catch him cheering for the Avs so maybe I converted him!  It was a great game!  Colorado scored two really pretty power play goals and, after the second one in the third period, the usher in my section came and told me that I was being too loud!  The Avs got two penalties in quick succession late in the third so the Leafs pulled their goalie and scored.  The guy sitting next to me gave me a hard time throughout the whole game so when he started cheering like a crazy man after the goal, I told him that the only way the Leafs could score was when they had a six on three advantage!  The Avs scored an empty net goal in the last few minutes to win 3-1!  It was a once-in-a-lifetime experience and having the Avalanche win was like icing on the cake!
It was so much fun to watch my Dad and Brian interact with each other!  They were like two teenage boys!  I think it is amazing that they have been such good friends for so long!
This was definitely a bucket list game for both me and my Dad and I am so glad that we got to do it!

Note:  I have always considered myself to be Canadian and it was very emotional for me to be back home.  While my life is in SLC and it would be difficult for me to pull up stakes and move back, I have to admit that I shed a tear when I boarded the plane to leave!

Tuesday, July 1, 2014

O Canada

Today is Canada Day!  While Canada is no longer my home, it is definitely my native land.  I have actually lived more years in the United States than I did in Canada and I am very grateful for all of the opportunities that I have had as an American citizen, but I am very proud of the fact that I am Canadian!  Canada is the land that I love!
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