Regina/Winnipeg equivalents

[hipster duck]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

Are they sponsored by Depends?

Once upon a time they were probably a bunch of regular guys who started a band, but they just couldn't hold it in when a big name sponsor like that came knocking on the door.

[O-tacular]

Originally Posted by hipster duck

Once upon a time they were probably a bunch of regular guys who started a band, but they just couldn't hold it in when a big name sponsor like that came knocking on the door.

[Harrison]

Originally Posted by BlackDog204

I've been to both areas, and the Ice District, although larger, looks cold and out of place. There is nothing but homeless shelters, and crime infested areas to the north and east. It almost looks like there is an invisible line, going from a massive complex to a shanty town. If that makes the Ice District "much more grandiose" I will stick with the TNS any day of the week. Edmonton, in general, is just a dirty city that has a massive inferiority complex to it's world class provincial counterpart, 3 hours south on the QE2.

It sounds like Edmonton hurt you somehow lol

[O-tacular]

Originally Posted by Harrison

It sounds like Edmonton hurt you somehow lol

Despite the fact I like to tease Edmontonians his post does sound pretty harsh.

[urbandreamer]

Edmonton did have a very dirty, edgy dangerous feel to it. Someone said Calgary is more Scottish - I think that's why I liked it better.

The Ice District is bizarre - imagine plopping those Mississauga "downtown" towers around Queen and Church Streets, then knocking down most of the historic buildings but keeping the Eaton Centre and calling that a district lol.

I was on Whyte Avenue on a Saturday night and it felt bumping, busy. Then Sunday morning I returned and realized it looks like a mixture of early 2000s Junction (Toronto), downtown Hamilton and maybe King Street Kitchener: underwhelming, grungy and kind of dangerous.

Regina felt more like a mix of 1980s downtown London (it was punk, and fairly vibrant) and today's downtown Kelowna. I liked it, but Saskatoon's layout is more interesting, like a grown up Guelph or Peterborough.

[Harrison]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

Edmonton did have a very dirty, edgy dangerous feel to it. Someone said Calgary is more Scottish - I think that's why I liked it better.

The Ice District is bizarre - imagine plopping those Mississauga "downtown" towers around Queen and Church Streets, then knocking down most of the historic buildings but keeping the Eaton Centre and calling that a district lol.

I was on Whyte Avenue on a Saturday night and it felt bumping, busy. Then Sunday morning I returned and realized it looks like a mixture of early 2000s Junction (Toronto), downtown Hamilton and maybe King Street Kitchener: underwhelming, grungy and kind of dangerous.

Regina felt more like a mix of 1980s downtown London (it was punk, and fairly vibrant) and today's downtown Kelowna. I liked it, but Saskatoon's layout is more interesting, like a grown up Guelph or Peterborough.

Regina felt alot sketchier than Edmonton when I was there last summer, but their downtown by Victoria Park (Scarth, 12 Ave, etc.) and the parks of Wascana Centre were nice.

[Boreal]

I feel like Winnipeg of 15-20 years ago could do nothing but compare itself to Calgary. In the last 10 years, Winnipeg has quit comparing itself to Calgary so much so that should it be a person it would struggle to spell Calgary. On one hand, the difficulty with proper spelling is an indictment on Winnipeg, but on the other hand, it is a city that doesn't really bother to compare itself to anything. Ever. For any reason. We even have goofy ideas in our political ranks for why certain approaches to mitigating homelessness or addiction that have worked in other jurisdictions small and large would be ineffective here. However, as frustrating as that is, the upside perhaps of having the drunksy-goggles on when looking at the rest of the world means that Winnipeg is so very Winnipeg. Its kitschy and not much like other jurisdictions. Right down to the honey dill sauce, googs and Jeanne's cake. If you know you know.

I suppose what I'm saying is that for all of Winnipeg's challenges, what it doesn't suffer is a sense of uniqueness. Some may be bothered by it, but there is in my estimation, no denying that it marches to the beat of its own drum and as such, makes it difficult to compare.

All of that said, the right answer is Milwaukee, not Minneapolis, Edmonton or Regina, if one had to choose.

[BlackDog204]

Originally Posted by Harrison

It sounds like Edmonton hurt you somehow lol

Great another Edmontonian coming in to a Winnipeg/Regina Thread to...I assume, trash Winnipeg. Well, I feel your pain. If most people in North America come away from Calgary with the impression it is a world-class city, only to leave Edmonton, with the impression that "the river valley is ok, but I wouldn't want to live here" must hurt. I would be bitter too. Can you imagine having a Mall as the biggest tourist attraction?

[BlackDog204]

Originally Posted by Boreal

I feel like Winnipeg of 15-20 years ago could do nothing but compare itself to Calgary. In the last 10 years, Winnipeg has quit comparing itself to Calgary so much so that should it be a person it would struggle to spell Calgary.

I lived in Winnipeg for most of my life, as I was born and raised there. Maybe we compared ourselves to Calgary in the 80s, but by the mid 90s, Calgary had pulled ahead of us in terms of population, job prospects, and standard of living, people in the city just accepted that Calgary had much more going for it.

From 2002-07, absolutely nobody was comparing Winnipeg to Calgary.

[BlackDog204]

Originally Posted by urbandreamer

Edmonton did have a very dirty, edgy dangerous feel to it. Someone said Calgary is more Scottish - I think that's why I liked it better.

The Ice District is bizarre - imagine plopping those Mississauga "downtown" towers around Queen and Church Streets, then knocking down most of the historic buildings but keeping the Eaton Centre and calling that a district lol.

I was on Whyte Avenue on a Saturday night and it felt bumping, busy. Then Sunday morning I returned and realized it looks like a mixture of early 2000s Junction (Toronto), downtown Hamilton and maybe King Street Kitchener: underwhelming, grungy and kind of dangerous.

Whyte Avenue is really the area of Edmonton that the city (if it were smart), would promote itself with. Not sure where you get the impression it's a dangerous area, but I love Old Strathcona, the old style pubs, the absence of massive uninviting skyscrapers, the close proximity to the U of A, and the density all make it the gem of the city.

Downtown, on the other hand, is legitimately scary once the sun sets. It shares Winnipeg's dilemma of being filled with homeless and drug addicts, once the sun sets. I've worked in that area in the daytime, and the amount of people with mental health/substance issues is troublesome. I wish the Government would build more affordable housing, so that these people have a roof over their head.

[BlackDog204]

Originally Posted by O-tacular

Despite the fact I like to tease Edmontonians his post does sound pretty harsh.

My apologies for my post being harsh. An Edmonton like UE comes into a thread, and completely derails it by trashing Winnipeg. If this was a Winnipeg vs Edmonton debate, then so be it.

My point about Edmontonians trashing Winnipeg stands. People who reside in glass homes, shouldn't be casting stones.

[MolsonExport]

Winnipeg kills Edmonton (and just about every other big Canadian city, and all the small ones) with just these two bands alone:


^enlarged because I love that album cover

[Harrison]

Originally Posted by BlackDog204

Great another Edmontonian coming in to a Winnipeg/Regina Thread to...I assume, trash Winnipeg. Well, I feel your pain. If most people in North America come away from Calgary with the impression it is a world-class city, only to leave Edmonton, with the impression that "the river valley is ok, but I wouldn't want to live here" must hurt. I would be bitter too. Can you imagine having a Mall as the biggest tourist attraction?

Your assumption is wrong, I actually am quite fond of Winnipeg - itself and Edmonton are the underdogs of Canada's big cities in my view. Winnipeg has great bones and a much better stock of heritage buildings than Edmonton, but it is a much older city so it makes sense. Both cities struggle with homelessness, though it seeems Winnipeg has it worse at the moment. I wish it would get a better transit system instead of the sad single leg of BRT, but when the locals vote to keep Portage and Main closed to pedestrians, it doesn't seem like many big ideas can go very far there unfortunately.

The First Nations, Metis and Ukrainian heritage of Winnipeg is very similar to Edmonton's as well, I may add.

[thurmas]

for sporting mascots Winnipeg has gone with dynamic duos of Buzz and Boomer whereas Regina has stuck with Gainer the Gopher who had a massive plastic surgery renewal job a few years ago that went worse than one for Kenny Rogers.

[esquire]

^ What happened to Cousin Leonard?

[thurmas]

Originally Posted by esquire

^ What happened to Cousin Leonard?

think he was hit by a lawnmower one day in balgonie

[harls]

I lived in Regina on Gordon Ave (?) can't remember, it was 22 years ago. It reminded me of living close to Pembina Hwy and the Perimeter in Winnipeg, but at a smaller scale. I was there when 9/11 happened, carpooled with a dude that lived nearby to work in his old Chevy Caprice Classic.

[esquire]

^ Now that you mention it, that area around Albert and Ring Road does have an uncanny resemblance to the area around Pembina and the Perimeter...