Being an avid bibliophile I am always attracted to libraries, due to both their beauty and the incredible amount of books that they hold. When we lived in Vancouver we used the library as a place to print off important documents and kill time between moving air bnbs, however we were not allowed to take out any books as we were not residents. However the library in Vancouver is a beautiful building that we both have a great deal of affection for.
Moving to Calgary we were slightly disappointed when we went to the library for the first time. Despite the library allowing us to take books out, the building itself was tired and old and quite ugly to look at. Unknown to us this was because the City of Calgary was almost finished building their brand new library right next to their City Hall.
The new Calgary Public Library opened on the first of November and had an open day on Saturday the 3rd of November. Jess had to work but I had the day off and decided to go and have a look. When I arrived at the library the line snaked down the block and around the corner but luckily moved quickly and within 15 minutes I was through the doors. The bottom floor consists of the holds section where people can pick up books they have reserved online and the kids section of the library which is a truly amazing place. As well as having a plentiful amount of kids books, it also consisted of a playcentre for the kids to play at and a café for the parents to sit around and have a coffee whilst their children played.
Up on the second level was the main thrust of the fiction section and the teen section which included multiple large screen televisions and video game consoles for the older kids to be entertained with. The top floor of the library consisted of more books and meeting rooms and my favourite place in the whole library, the Reading Room which was a beautifully lit room filled with tables and chairs to sit around and read. I'm sure I could have spend plenty of time in this room with a good book and never notice the passing of time.
Out the front of the library was a little café called Luke's which served mostly coffee and cakes and a selection of donuts which Jess and I partook of a few days later when we came back so that Jess could explore the library. All in all it was a great day out and I would highly recommend it as a place to go and visit when in Calgary.
Comments