Alone Looking at The Mountain

by Li Po

All the birds have flown up and gone;
A lonely cloud floats leisurely by.
We never tire of looking at each other -
Only the mountain and I.

This past weekend we drove to Banff (about five hours from Edmonton) for the annual group art show at Canada House Gallery, in which Rob had several pieces. It's still exciting to drive into the park and glimpse those mountains - my heart always glows. We've been lucky enough to make it to the mountains once a year at least, and I keep waiting for it to be dull, or no big deal, but it's always a thrill. We never tire of them. Their sturdiness, their steadiness, their holiness.

We hung out with artists, met friends from Calgary, and just really soaked in the beauty of the place. We went for lovely walks both mornings we were there. The first morning we just sauntered around Banff, which was decked out for Christmas. I love the candy stores there. And I adore the pink bike in front of Banff Sweet Shoppe. 

We walked down some side streets and admired the houses, and checked out some of the historical ones.

Everything looks beautiful with the mountains as a backdrop.

I think the above photo of the tree growing out of a stone fence might be my favourite photo of the trip. There's something it has to teach me...

On the way out of town, the day we drove home, we took a quick run up to Lake Minnewanka, which was basically made for postcard shots.

We also indulged in taking a bunch of photos of each other which you can see on my Instagram, and on Rob's. The party after the art show was a good one. Haven't stayed up that late in years.....kind of hilarious. It's going to take me at least a week to recover!

2016