The Big City

One of the "A-maze-ing Laughter" bronze scultures.

My hubby had a work-related conference in Vancouver. We tagged along for a portion. On our first evening, we went to White Rock beach at sunset which is a beautiful spot.

One goal that I had for this trip was to go to Queen Elizabeth Park. My parents have a photo of me there when I was a little girl. I haven't been back since so I thought it would be fun to recreate it. I had trouble finding the park since I didn't have a good map and couldn't use my phone. Once I found the park, I couldn't locate the "good" part of the park and was wondering what was up. Once we started exploring, we eventually found the Bloedel Conservatory (we didn't go in)

and the great view of downtown Vancouver.

Plus some pretty gardens.

Queen E. Park is the highest spot in Vancouver (well, other than Grouse Mt, I suppose).

My boys and I ate lunch at Save-On-Meats which is super affordable and has yummy food. The location was a bit of an adventure since it is just on the edge of East Vancouver (which has a lot of homeless, drug problems, etc). The boys called the area "Sketch Town" as in, a bit sketchy.

We stayed in a hotel with lots of character - the Sylvia Hotel in English Bay. I enjoyed the historical photos on each floor. One elevator was out so we used the stairs sometimes. In one of the photos, the hotel was the tallest in the area at a whopping 8 floors! :) Check out the cool stained glass and the ivy-covered wall.

There was no air conditioning in the room so I was thankful we weren't there on Sunday night That day the temperature was in the 90s.

These fun scultures are located in English bay.

The grass surrounding English Bay was looking a little brown since there hasn't been much rain this year.

C enjoyed collecting shells.

This is a famous giant stone cairn - the Inukshuk. It is an ancient Inuit symbol of friendship.

It was the symbol of the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver.

I did NOT enjoy driving in Vancouver. July is especially busy, parking is challenging, and the drivers aren't courteous at all. I was frequently honked at and even yelled at once, while I was parking the car. Quite a change from super polite Seattle area drivers. We had an accidental trip to West Vancouver over the Lions Gate Bridge. If you don't turn left at just the right time in downtown Vancouver, you will end up driving through Stanley Park and over the bridge without any chance to turn off.

Returning home, I survived a trip through the border, with my kids and without my husband. The border guard didn't bat an eye about that but chose instead to question that I didn't buy anything. Who can shop when you are with boys all the time! :)

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A Mini Vacation to Kick Off Summer

We met up with my parents in Vancouver this past week. They were able to get accommodation at an independent living centre similar to where they live in Victoria. We stayed in a hotel near to where they were staying. It was so much easier and cheaper for us to travel up there than to travel to Victoria. We didn't need to take a ferry AND cross a border.

The first place we went to (after picking up my parents from the Tsawwassen ferry) was the VanDusen Botanical Gardens. It is so big! 60 acres! We were thankful that they loan out wheelchairs for free. My dad pushed my mom around since it would have been too much walking for her. I was wondering how much boys would do with so much time at a garden. They LOVED the hedge maze.

I went through the maze. 

I did feel a tiny bit of panic at one point thinking I wouldn't find my way out. :)

The centre of the maze.

The boys did great during our visit since there was so much space that it seemed more like an urban hike. It is much more "wild" than the Butchart Gardens in Victoria. 

My favourite spot was the delphinium garden.

Lots of beautiful water lilies.

We went to Swiss Chalet for supper - gotta love that chicken.

The next day we headed to North Vancouver. Our first destination was Lynn Canyon. It has a large suspension bridge which is a great alternative to the Capilano Suspension Bridge which has an insane entry fee of $36 per adult and $12 per child! Entry is free to Lynn Canyon.

The bridge is a very short walk from the parking lot. After crossing the bridge, we took a short hike to the 30 foot pool.

There were other trails but since my parents were waiting back at the trailhead we only stayed a short time.

My mom really wanted to go to the Lonsdale Quay (in North Vancouver) to enjoy some fresh fruit. We had lunch there and watched a bit of World Cup on TV.

I heard about a popular gelato place with over 200 flavours so that was our next destination. La Casa Gelato is in the industrial area of east Vancouver. It was interesting seeing the unusual flavours like curry, pesto, dill pickle, and maple bacon. Both C and I had "death by mango." Yum!

Some drawbacks: no where to sit down, no restroom (that I could see) and they don't take plastic.

Next, it was time for a little rest, especially for me! I had done a lot of tricky driving in Vancouver traffic with its crazy left turns without turn lanes or advance lights. The men of the family all played mini mini putt (only 2 holes) in the courtyard of Shannon Oaks. Hockey golf was much more fun to play.

Dinner at the White Spot.

On our last night in Vancouver, we enjoyed the sunshine and drove around the shore by the University of British Columbia and found a nice beach (near Jericho Beach) to hang out for a while and soak in the gorgeous views all around us.

In the morning, we sat for an hour waiting in the line at the border.
I hopped out of the car and got some photos.

I think we did a good job of finding things that interest both eighty year olds and ten year olds. :)




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Venturing to Vancouver

View of Lion's Gate Bridge from Stanley Park

The boys had a few days off from school. I like to use these opportunities to get away, if possible. Vancouver was our destination this time. We used Priceline, as usual, and stayed downtown at a 3 1/2 star hotel for less than $80 a night. Our hotel had an art theme. These sculptures were in the lobby.

Listel Hotel lobby

We had a little trouble in the morning with finding an activity. Science World is closed on Mondays in the winter. The Capilano Suspension bridge has an outrageous entry fee - over 30 dollars for one adult. We decided to explore Granville Island. The market has so many food choices! I found it hard to make a decision.

We toured False Creek in this little boat called the Aquabus.

The captain was very knowledgeable about current and historic Vancouver so he provided good commentary.

Lifestyle of the rich and famous.

Great Blue Heron - this moves in the wind.

After our boat ride, we went to the kids section of Granville Island. We found a joke and magic store. The store's owner was demonstrating lots of pranks for C and many of them he already owns!

Our next destination was Stanley Park. The weather was great. Sunshine all afternoon. We walked a bit. A had his nose buried in a programming book so he stayed in the car. That's why he doesn't appear in the next photo.

Totem Poles at Brockton Point - BC's most visited tourist attraction.

We stopped for a bite to eat at The Teahouse in Stanley Park. My husband and I had been to it before, probably 12 or more years ago. We were surprised to find it open. The only problem was that it isn't a tea house any more, even though it is still called "The Teahouse." We were hoping for scones and other tea type food. I did have some delicious smoked salmon, though.

The view from the Teahouse can't be beat.

In the evening we walked along Robson Street. We spotted a Bentley and a Ferrari. During our time in Vancouver we watched lots of Canadian Olympic coverage on about 4 different channels. We stopped at Richmond Centre mall on our way home. I bought a Canadian toque from Roots. It looks like this:

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