Edmonton Recreation Surprises

Saturday, November 24, 2012   Edmonton Public Library, Abbotsfield

Edmonton, my September-March, 2012-2012 home, boasts much affordable recreation.
For me, much is free, thanks to a tip from my friend Doug Schill.

Doug, alias Fred Douglas Schill, I think, gave me an application form for a City of Edmonton Leisure Access Pass.  City residents below a certain income qualify.  An Edmonton address on my local credit union statement proved my residency, my 2012 income tax assessment proved my income, and by Halloween I had the treat of a Leisure Access Pass. 

This pass entitles me to free admission in the city's numerous recreation centres, and discounts at many other local attractions.  I have tried seven recreation centres so far, fewer than half the total. 

First, Peter Hemingway Recreation Centre, about 30 blocks from where I live, has a hot tub, sauna, steam room, waterslide, and 50m pool.  I rode there on the bike from my friend Doug. 

Second, Jasper Place Recreation Centre, at 13 blocks away the closest to my place, is older, less sporty, more family-oriented, and has a steam room, big hot tub and leisure pool.  It also has one and three metre diving boards and a five-metre platform, similar to the one at the University of British Columbia outdoor pool.  During a 1994 school field trip to Vancouver, when I taught at Alkali Lake, BC, one eight-year-old pushed another off it; luckily the faller could swim.

The third, fourth, and fifth pools I visited on the same day, via buses and trains. 

Third, Commonwealth Recreation Centre, near Commonwealth Stadium, is the newest pool I visited.  It has a 50m pool, a leisure pool, a steam room, hot tub, and, like Peter Hemingway, it has racketball courts and a gym. 

Fourth, Londonderry Recreation Centre, which has two ice rinks, has a large leisure pool and hot tub. 

Fifth, Eastglen Pool, saltwater, is merely a pool, but warmer than the others. 

Sixth, Terwilligar Recreation Centre is vast, the first of two pools I visited today.  It has four rinks, two gyms, an amphitheatre, 50m and leisure pools, and a hot tub and steam room.

Seventh, the ACT Recreation Centre has a leisure pool, steam room, and hot tub. 

I type this on an internet terminal in a branch of the Edmonton Public Library, while I listen to a podcast of "Think for Yourself" on Vancouver Co-Op Radio.  My $12 library annual membership, which would have been free had I gotten the leisure pass first, is a great bargain. 

Other libraries I have visited are the Stanley A.Milner, downtown, Woodcroft near Peter Hemingway Recreation Centre, Jasper Place near the Jasper Place Recreation Centre and my winter home, Sprucewood just north of downtown, Strathcona near the  University of Alberta, Idlwylde east of the University, Capilano in the east end, Whitemud Crossing and Riverbend in the south, and Lois Hole in the southwest. 

I have attended special events in libraries. 

One Saturday night, I was in a packed auditorium in Stanley A. Milner branch, many dressed in Monty Python props, for an interactive showing of "Monty Python and the Holy Grail."  There were sword fights, helmets, stuffed rabbits, and many things Monty Python Medieval.       

One weeknight at Whitemud Crossing branch, I joined a crowd to listen to a string quartet play Hadyn, Mozart, and Beethoven concertos. 

The Alberta Advantage has led to the most unequal income distribution of any Canadian province, rents are high, there are profound social problems and infrastructure deficits, and anyone born after 1971 hasn't seen a provincial government change, anyone born since 1935 has only seen change of provincial government. 

Still, a person can find free or cheap fun in Edmonton, as I am finding during this first time living here since the spring of 1986.