Located in the foothills of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains, at the junction of the Bow and Elbow rivers (3,740 feet above sea level), this beautiful city (population just over a million) is an awesome place to live. We have more sunshine than anywhere else in Canada which we can enjoy in 8,000 hectares of parks and open spaces on a daily basis, saving the mountains (it's only an hour to Banff national park) for weekend day-trips to ski or hike or just explore.

Our climate is dry and fairly mild. Because of the nearby mountains, our weather can be a bit unpredictable, and warm Chinook winds blowing over the mountains can bring sudden rises in temperature all through the year. So, while our winters may be longer than some and we do get short spells of very cold weather, we also have warm breaks to keep us going. Calgary is the second largest centre for head offices of major corporations in Canada, and one of the fastest growing cities (in the wealthiest province) in the country. Did you know, for example, that there is more oil trapped in the "tar sands" of Alberta than there is in Saudi Arabia? Still our industries are quite diverse, and the recreational possibilities are immense.

The city itself offers a variety of opportunities for employment in areas such as energy, manufacturing, research and development, advanced technology and tourism. There is a good range of housing available, the average cost of single family dwellings as of January 2005 being CAD $265,756, and that of condos being $176,720 (with the exchange on the US dollar at about 82% currently). Good schools, medical services, libraries and shopping are available everywhere, as well as opportunities to enjoy an excellent and varied cultural life.

Following are some websites that will give you more detailed information about some important features of Calgary and nearby attractions:

Demographics: http://www.calgary.ca/cweb/communities/community.asp?UserID=2&CommunityID=203

More Demographics: The Calgary Real Estate Board: http://www.creb.com/

The Calgary Herald: http://www.canada.com/calgary/calgaryherald/index.html?rfp=dta

Alberta Government Services: http://www3.gov.ab.ca/gs/

Banff and Banff attractions: check out the live web-cam from the top of Sulphur Mountain overlooking the town of Banff: http://www.banffgondola.com/default.htm

The University of Calgary: http://www.ucalgary.ca/

An online Atlas of Canada: http://atlas.gc.ca/site/english/index.html

Air Canada: http://www.aircanada.com/en/home.html

West Jet Airlines - based in Calgary: http://www.westjet.com/home.html