EDMONTON - CANADA |
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Edmonton, a
Canadian city, is the capital of the province of Alberta.
Miscellaneous facts
Edmonton is on the site of Edmonton House, an important 19th century trading
post, and is also the site of West Edmonton Mall, the world's largest mall.
The University of Alberta, Grant MacEwan Community College, Concordia
University College, and Northern Alberta Institute of Technology are in the
city.
Edmonton is served by Edmonton International Airport. Air passenger service
from the Municipal Airport downtown was consolidated to the International
Airport in 1996 and now is mostly used for charter planes and flight
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Edmonton boasts the longest stretch of urban parkland in North America, the
North Saskatchewan River Valley. Every year it hosts the largest alternative
arts festival in North America, the Edmonton International Fringe Festival.
It also hosts Jazz City International Music Festival annually during the
month of June as well as the Klondike Days Festival, as well as the Edmonton
Folk Music Festival in early August. The Klondike Festival was originally an
annual fair which eventually adopted a 'gold rush' theme. Attendance can
exceed 750,000 over a week long period and activities include chuckwagon
races, carnival rides and fairways, tradeshows and daily fireworks. Other
festivals and events include the International Street Performers Festival,
the Folk Festival, Heritage Days and the Dragon Boat Festival.
At 670 km˛, Edmonton is one of the largest cities in North America, by area
— larger in area than Chicago, Philadelphia and Detroit. Consequently,
Edmonton also has the one of the lowest population densities in North
America — about 67 times less than New York. It is an official sister city
of Nashville, Tennessee, which is similar in having a large area but
relatively low population density.
Edmonton is host to two Canadian Junior Football teams: The Edmonton Huskies
and The Edmonton Wildcats.
Edmonton is at the heart of a metropolitan area that includes a number of
towns and cities either adjacent to Edmonton's city limits, or within a few
kilometres of it. These communities include Sherwood Park, St. Albert, Fort
Saskatchewan, Leduc, Nisku, and Beaumont, among others.
Professional sports teams
Edmonton Oilers, National Hockey League; Rexall Place
Edmonton Roadrunners, American Hockey League; Rexall Place
Edmonton Eskimos, Canadian Football League; Commonwealth Stadium
Edmonton Aviators, A-League Soccer
The Edmonton Eskimos hold the North American pro sports record for most
consecutive playoff appearances (32 consecutive seasons, as of 2003).
The city had a minor-league baseball team in the Class AAA Pacific Coast
League, the Edmonton Trappers, until the end of the 2004 season. The team
moved to the Austin, Texas suburb of Round Rock, becoming the Round Rock
Express. |
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