During a two-week trip, we visited four sites located in the beautiful Canadian province of Alberta:
- Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks: Enormous glaciers, jagged peaks, gemstone-colored lakes, bountiful wildflowers and endearing wildlife highlight these glorious parks.
- Dinosaur Provincial Park: Seeing an entire 75-million-year-old dinosaur skeleton exactly where archaologists unearthed it is just one of the impressive features of this site. The badlands' weird landscape, a riverside habitat that sustains scores of bird species and fossils galore add to its appeal.
- Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump National Historic Site: Built into the ridge which served as a buffalo jump for at least 5,000 years, the museum beautifully features the legends, practices and lifeways of the Blackfoot. Drumming, dancing and other special summer programs enrich the experience.
- Waterton Glacier International Peace Park: Snaggle-toothed peaks, alpine lakes, red rock canyons, Indian lore and an unusual diversity of flora draw visitors to the Canadian portion of this natural site.
In the United States, we visited Monticello and the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Together, Thomas Jefferson's stately home and the school he designed and founded form a World Heritage Site. While visiting Taos Pueblo in the state of New Mexico, we attended one of the colorful dance ceremonies open to the public.
Over the coming months, we'll post photo-illustrated articles about each of these wonderful sites. We look forward to sharing their unique qualities with you.
