GlobalFest 2011:Calgary explodes with light and color on Canada Night!

By Joanne Cook

August 23, 2011

I took a good friend (Angele) and my 4-year old son (Ben) to watch the fireworks competition – better know as GlobalFest. GlobalFest has competing countries setting off firework displays, all choreographed to music and song. Each night, a different country competes. We were there on Canada Night!

It has been quite a few years since the last time I went and oh my, it’s changed! It was less about the fireworks and more about the evening itself. There were vendors and booths lined up as far as you could see.  We heard fiddles and bagpipes and country twang (not all at once mind you!) There were stages with performers, dancers and singers and all sorts of exotic and lovely people dressed in their countries’ traditional clothing.

There was a market and a specialty food area filled with a great array of foreign and local cuisine.  For little ones specifically, there was a Kid Zone filled with bouncy castles and balloon artists. There were also a couple playgrounds and (before it got too crowded) lots of space to run around and just be a kid!

The entire evening was an event! And we didn’t even see half of it.

My 4-year old would have been thrilled with the “school-bus ride” alone. As parking is sparse in the immediate area, you are bused in to the event site and my son thought that was amazing! He loved the various mascots walking around, the Kid Zone and of course, the ice cream. I simply loved the people watching. It was awesome!

Once we claimed our plot of land by laying out our blanket, we settled in for the show. The fireworks were phenomenal. These weren’t your everyday run-of-the-mill fireworks. They were spectacular! They exploded and lit-up the sky in perfect sync with the music. And being Canada Night, one display was executed to Justin Bieber and I love me some Biebs (I often think I am still a 13-year old girl!)

My only regret was not having enough time. Had I known all there was to see and do I would have headed down earlier in the evening. But it definitely made for a memorable and unique evening out in Calgary. One, I hope will be a Cook Family Tradition in the years to come.