I'm attending a conference at the University of Calgary's McEwen Conference Center, and we had quite an unexpected surprise on Eclipse Day, with the Rothney Astrophysical Observatory hosting an eclipse-watching event in front of the School of Engineering right next door, complete with a pop-up observatory! Our conference organizers graciously rearranged the conference schedule so we could be part of this special event.
There was easily about a thousand people from all over participating in the event, with Rothney providing eclipse glasses for viewing the event while waiting in line to look through their high-powered telescopes, providing a simply amazing close-up view of the moon passng in front of the sun a quarter of a million miles away, the sun looking like a cresent moon at 11 in the morning.
While Calgary didn't experience totality, having a little over 80% obscuration, just being able to observe this celestial event 'up-close' and chat with budding astrophysicists while it was happening made for an unforgettable experience. Eclipses are truly one of those natural events that are best experienced as a group, so a very special 'thank you' goes out to everyone at the Observatory for making Eclipse Day a very special day indeed. Huzzah!