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Edmonton sits on the North Saskatchewan River in the middle of Alberta, a city that has grown from a fur-trade outpost into the provincial capital and a genuine gateway to the Canadian north. The river valley that cuts through the urban fabric is one of the longest stretches of connected parkland in any North American city, and it shapes the character of the place in ways that no single landmark quite could. Edmontonians measure their city partly by that green corridor, and partly by the particular quality of light that arrives in summer, when the days stretch well past ten o'clock at night and the whole city seems to tilt towards the outdoors.

The downtown core and the neighbourhood of Oliver sit on the high banks above the river, while Whyte Avenue in Old Strathcona, to the south, functions as the city's cultural and social spine. Old Strathcona was a separate municipality before amalgamation in 1912, and it retains a distinct grain: older brick buildings, independent theatres, bookshops, and a farmers' market that has been running for decades. The Garneau neighbourhood, adjacent to the University of Alberta campus, adds an academic texture to the south side, and the Glenora and Riverdale areas closer to the valley floor offer a quieter, residential counterpoint.