The lay of the land.
Calgary
Calgary sits in the eastern foothills of the Rocky Mountains, where the Bow and Elbow rivers meet. The City is divided into four quadrants: Southwest, southeast, northwest and northeast. All avenues run in an east/west direction and all streets run in a north/south direction.
Edmonton
Edmonton is divided by the North Saskatchewan River. Most of the streets and avenues are numbered. Numbered avenues run east/west, with the numbers going up as you go north. Numbered streets run north/south, with the numbers going up as you go west.