Every morning we wake up in the back of a van. Every day we brush our teeth in a parking lot or the side of a road and find the nearest bathroom to pee. Passers by stare at these haggard kids climbing out of a bug splattered Westfalia, but we don’t mind. In fact, it has come to feel very normal. Leaving Alberta, we knew we had several thousand kilometers ahead where it was just us, the van and the road – and we were ready for it.
When we entered the prairies we were skeptical of what we would find. We had heard many a comment about how we would become sick of the flatness, the ongoing highways of nothing to look at, and the bugs that would eat us to death. We were told that we would find nothing to do and might as well just drive right through it. In reality we did find something to do, and that something was relax.
There is something extremely calming about driving down a highway without being bombarded by roadside signs, streams of other vehicles, or highrise buildings that obscure your view of the landscape. When we were driving with the windows down blaring the music in order to hear over the roaring wind, wearing hardly anything more than a bathing suit and hanging our feet out the window, we found the purest form of summer. It was exactly what both of us were looking for.
Saskatoon was spent walking the scenic paths by the river and drinking beer on a bustling rooftop patio. We loved the quaint and cultural feel of the town and how beautiful the town was, filled with parks, riverside beaches and boutique-lined streets. The summer heat wave had hit us at this point, making sleeping in the van so difficult. We would wake up at 6 in the morning unable to breath because our van works as a greenhouse in the morning sun. We would be forced to get up and get going just to avoid having to stay inside the van. Weather of 35+ was the norm, with humidity making it feel 45 degrees! For all of you using Fahrenheit this is between 95 and 115 so hot, hot, HOT!! As we hit Winnipeg we did the thing we had been putting off all this time and got a hotel room. The air-conditioning, comfortable bed, endless showers and free wi-fi were worth every penny. After we had cooled down we explored the downtown core and found that it was as historic and confusing as we have heard. Unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to head over to Grand Beach because the heat wave had made it unbearable to be out in direct sunlight for more than 20 minutes.
Our time in the prairies was great, but it was those drives to and from that really gave them a place in our memories. Sometimes you just can't beat the simplicity of a long unknown road with a good road trip partner.
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