By Andres Salazar

Art installation by Alberta artist Jill Stanton, in the Lethbridge Downtown bus terminal. Photo by Andres Salazar.

Moving from one city to another is never a particularly trouble-free task. Deciding what to bring from your old life to the next chapter is already easier said than done, but other parts like getting to know new people and finding a community to join are even harder. Though, as painful as the process can be, if approached the right way, the move can actually start to feel like the beginning of an ambitious new adventure.

Lethbridge is an odd place to move to. Seemingly a city of contrast, Lethbridge feels simultaneously like a tiny village and a growing center of local culture and new business ventures. Describing the city is a difficult task, because it honestly just seems like a mish-mash of new and old places, artifacts, and perspectives that all crash into each other in ways you probably didn’t expect. But, while describing the city is hard at times, there are a handful of core elements that can help you get a better understanding of the city coming in. Lethbridge is a hard place to pin down, but for those new to the city, here’s what you need to know:

Quiet doesn’t mean boring

Spend enough time in Lethbridge, and you’ll likely come across a number of people who claim that the city is boring and lacking any sort of exciting local happenings. In complete fairness, it’s not too difficult to understand why this is a common opinion; most stores downtown close at six, there’s really only one major shopping mall, and aside from the university and some grocery stores, the west side is basically a huge residential area. This makes the city look real quiet, because whereas Calgary’s downtown is packed to the brim with people on a Friday night, Lethbridge’s downtown core is mostly empty by eight.

Though, it’s important not to mistake quiet for boring, as Lethbridge has everything you need to stay entertained. Local bars, pubs and restaurants are well-known for their weekly events, like Pop’s Taphouse’s Trivia Nights, the dance party nights at Theoretically Brewing and Hudson’s, and the Telegraph Taphouse even has regular chill DJ nights on Tuesdays. If drinking isn’t quite your thing, the city is packed with different local leagues for all sorts of sports and games, with everything from hockey, futsal, axe throwing, and the Pokémon TCG having their own thriving local leagues. Or, if you just want to go clubbing, Lethbridge has you covered with a number of dedicated nightclubs and businesses with party nights. The point is that while the city seems quiet, it still has tons going on.

Local art scenes are thriving

One of the city’s strengths is its art scene. Lethbridge is the home to tons of local artists, many of which have their pieces displayed at the Southern Alberta Art Gallery (SAAG), CASA, and Legend Art Gallery. Even if you can’t make it to one of the many galleries in our city, simply taking a walk through downtown or Henderson Lake will expose you to massive paintings on the sides of buildings and along sidewalks. All of this paints an image of how the city not only acknowledges its artists, but celebrates them as well.

If performance arts are more your thing, you’re also in luck, as Lethbridge has countless bands of all sorts of genres. Places like The Owl and the Slice are the home for music groups and solo performers of all genres. Walk into any of these places on almost any given weekend and you’ll find heavy metal one day, and folk music the other. On the other theatre side of things, there are a number of groups that perform classic, contemporary and musical theatre pieces at places like the Yates, CASA, or even some downtown church venues. What this means is that during almost anytime in the year, there’s probably a show somewhere in town to watch.

Our local businesses are incredible

Perhaps the best part about Lethbridge is the sheer quantity of locally-grown businesses that are essential to the city. Taking a walk through downtown will expose you to all sorts of goods: mountains of vintage books, weird candies and soft drinks brought from all over the world, shops specializing in trading card games and collectibles, and even homegrown yoga studios with their own locally-made clothing brands. The point is that despite our city center not being that large, it’s dense with interesting experiences. This doesn’t apply uniquely to our downtown businesses; the excitement is found all over the city. If going shopping isn’t quite your thing, there’s everything from VR racing leagues to indoor golf and even random things like competitive axe-throwing scattered across the city.

What’s even better about our local businesses is their impact on our city’s culture. Lethbridge residents can generally pick out one or two establishments they have a deep connection to. Many of our city’s businesses are passionate about the community, posting often on their social media pages and participating in city-wide events like Foodie Fest. This makes residents look at them less as a money-building venture and more as the economic contribution from the same people who share our streets.

Lethbridge is odd, but it has a unique spirit

Writing an article about Lethbridge somehow becomes a lot more difficult than one would initially imagine. There’s so much to say, but finding the right words to use is eerily difficult. On one hand, it’s very easy to understand what people don’t like about Lethbridge, but on the other, the same things that people call “problems” are actually what helps give the city some extra personality. These are only a handful of things that you need to know to get connected with this windy town, and while moving to a new place is never easy, there’s something about Lethbridge that always keeps it feeling familiar, yet so exciting.