First of two parts. 

When Mr. Everywhere the City Councilman became mayor a month ago, it figured he was not going to noticeably alter one of his favorite habits, traveling, seeing the world.

And so yesterday there was Jim Clarke, innocently strolling down a main street at mid-day when his phone rang.

“I am in Lethbridge, Canada,” he said. “That is how I am and where I am.

Mayor Clarke said he is spending several days on business in one of Culver City’s four Sister Cities.

The mayor’s mission? “I have wanted to visit all of our Sister Cities, and Lethbridge is the third one,” Mr. Clarke said.

He was invited to Uruapan, Mexico, last year. But he was blocked. “The State Dept. said it still was unsafe because of drug problems there,” he said.

“I have had an opportunity to meet with the mayor, to tour City Hall, to tour the downtown,” he said. “The American consul general for the area came down, and I had a chance to meet with him.

“In a little while, I will be going to dinner with the mayor and members of the City Council,” Mr. Clarke said.

The official portion of the mayor’s visit concludes on Saturday, after which he will join a small party traveling to the mountain resort town of Banff before flying home Sunday.

Mr. Clarke almost is basking in non-Culver City weather. “They had all kinds of rain and misery last weekend,” he said. “Today, though, it is sunny and warm. We are taking credit for that.”

(To be continued)