Now that our very-busy-first-weeks-of-summer are behind us, I have time to blog about our trip to Vancouver, Canada. We had been to the city of Victoria which is on the island of Vancouver a few years ago, but this trip was to the city of Vancouver, which is on the mainland of Canada in the province of British Columbia. The 68 degree weather was a wonderful break from the heat of Houston, and visiting another country that doesn't feel that different from your own is an easy way to take an "international" vacation.
We spent 3 full days in Vancouver, with 2 travel days on either end. Here's a look at the first part of our trip in the city.
Flying in and out of Vancouver is breathtaking. Coming in, we saw all the islands surrounding the coastline of Washington and Canada. Leaving, we saw the mountains, including Mount Rainier. I was so grateful for smooth flights with no delays. I have been hearing about so many delays and cancellations!
We landed and picked up a rental car. We stayed at the Sheraton Wall Center, which has a central downtown location. I picked this hotel because they had a 2 bedroom set up that was less expensive that booking 2 hotel rooms. It was a great room layout!
After we set down our luggage, we walked a few blocks to Sunset Beach...for the sunset.
We just barely made it! The sun sets late so far north...around 9:30pm. We were on Texas time, so it felt like 11:30pm. But we were still going strong.
On the walk back to the hotel, we stopped for a late dinner at a restaurant called Maxine's. Vancouver is an expensive city, but the US dollar was strong so it didn't feel too painful. This was a really delicious dinner.
The next morning we headed over to Granville Island for the Public Market. This market was very much like the one in Seattle, except without the fish being thrown around. It was a cloudy morning, which gave it an appropriate Pacific NW vibe.
We grabbed some breakfast at Lee's Donuts. I'm glad we were there somewhat early since the line started getting long after we got them. After this, we walked around looking at all the food...cheeses, pastries, meats and more.
Jack bought a belt at this Western store.
After the Public Market, we drove over to Stanley Park. This is a huge green space along the coastline filled with walk/bike paths, flower gardens, an aquarium and views of the city and countryside. We had lunch out on the patio at the Stanley Park Brewpub. It had turned into a beautiful day!
After lunch, we took a walk around the rhododendron gardens. They were really beautiful and lush!
We had to recreate a picture from our time in England.
2013
I think the kids took this picture and the next one of each other. They did a good job capturing natural poses!
After a walk around the rhododendrons, we hopped back in the car to drive a circle around the park. One negative aspect about the park was that you had to pay for parking everywhere! Later we figured out that we could have paid for parking one time for several hours, and it would have been good anywhere in the park.
Vancouver is a big cruise ship port, and you might be able to see the ships and terminal in the picture above.
We went back to the hotel and took a break. Then we walked over to see the Gastown Steamclock. This original part of the city has lots of restaurants. To be honest, ALL of the guidebooks say to go see the Steamclock. When I saw it, I thought is that it? But we checked that off the list and then had dinner at a place called Black Frog Eatery.
On the walk home, we passed the big Nordstrom store that is closing. Sad to see this staple of the west coast closing, as it is in many downtown locations. We felt safe in Vancouver, but it is clear that the city's drug policies are encouraging drug use on the street. I had never seen someone smoking a crack pipe on a city street, but now I have. So one day in the city was enough for me. Time to head out of town for some fresh air on the next day!
From there, we headed back to the hotel and fell into bed! More to come tomorrow.
I'm excited to read about your trip as Vancouver is on my bucket list. So glad your travels went smoothly and good to know that information about visiting the city.
ReplyDeleteVancouver looks absolutely stunning! Aside from the drugs in the streets, of course. Haha. Wow. I had no clue that you could smoke crack in the street there. Or anywhere for that matter. That is just mindblowing.
ReplyDeleteGreat post. Yes, the drug use in the cities on the west coast and the resultant homelessness is very distressing, I did not know that it was evident in Vancouver. It's heart-breaking to see in Seattle and San Francisco. I'm glad your vacation included time outside the city which I can wait to read all about.
ReplyDeleteThat should say, cannot wait to read all about!
DeleteI really liked Vancouver when I was there. I think Portland is similar with the drug laws. Dave said he saw people doing drugs on the street.
ReplyDeleteTanya, I've never been been to Vancouver but would like to visit there sometime. Thanks for sharing the photos and I'm looking forward to hearing about the rest of your trip.
ReplyDeleteI've never been to Vancouver but it sounds like you found lots to see.
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