Vancouver for Visitors

Our stay here in Vancouver is two fold. Spend time with Erin in her “hood” …..and use it as a jumping off base to explore other parts of this magnificent country. We had a taste of Canada in 2012 when we explored Vancouver Island and then headed up to Whitehorse in the Yukon to see the Aurora Borealis. 

This time we plan to dive into the wilderness that is “The Great Bear Forest” in the wilds of upper British Columbia via a re-visit to Victoria on Vancouver Island ……as well as visit the wild Atlantic coast on the other side of the country. Canadians are one of the few peoples we know that have an appreciation of distance……and vastness.

But first to Vancouver. 

Our first few days at the Opus were plush and we got a feel for the city after mastering their transport system. Dead easy! Use your credit card to tap on tap off on the trains (why do we have Opal cards?) and pretty much tap for everything….simples! The only cash used so far has been tips!

Apart from immersing ourselves in the city, we were given a list by Erin of the things special to Vancouver worth seeing, and these are some we experienced in our first few days.

Much of British Columbia is rainforest……..wet, dank, dark, huge and ancient ….and there is a good example of it a short drive North of the city. 

Capilano Park is renowned for its quite long and high suspension bridge dangling over a raging torrent of a river. But it’s the windy boardwalks and tree top suspension walkways that are really “speccy”. It certainly was worth a look and, just to make it more authentic….the BC weather turned it on and the term “rainforest” was quite literal……soggy all day.

The tree top walk gave us a birds eye view of the rainforest

Quite an experience on the suspension bridge…in the wet..rocking and rolling.

Didn’t dampen our spirits though!

It’s a bit of a challenge

Saturday was a dreary day, so we explored the city a bit, the waterfront and “Gastown” and were surprised at how run down that part of the city has become. The Steam Clock was still there with tourists draped all around it and there were some touristy trinket shops, but it seemed quite different to the more vibrant and up market Yaletown. I guess that businesses that depend on tourism really suffered during Covid and it takes time to recover.

The weather improved on Sunday and so, after the marathon (yes running marathon….not us though) being run through the streets around the hotel finished, we headed off to the famous Granville Island ….on the little water taxi at the end of our street. What a great way to get around a waterfront area. WendyA couldn’t comprehend that Sydney doesn’t have such things and I agree. They would be a boon.

These little, “kids book” looking ferries ply the waterways. At another dock we picked up a couple with their three large standard poodles. No one blinked at all!

Granville Island was an old industrial site with warehouses and factories that has been re-purposed into an arts and markets precinct…and what a place it is. We were there a few hours and didn’t even lightly dent the sides. The produce hall was huge and just filled with produce stall and food stalls …. A bit like the markets in Melbourne but bigger. And the rest of the precinct is arty shops and artisan establishments plying their skills. I was really impressed with the young glass blower, Amon, but I’m not sure my photo does the situation justice. There was a broom maker next door and way too many other fascinating little establishments to mention. No way it can be done in a day and I’m sure that there will be a few excursions to Granville Island.

It was fascinating watching Amon at his craft.

On the way home in our quaint little ferry, the driver overheard us talking about the sign regarding water quality after heavy rain….”Not fit for swimming or drinking”

“Oh, it’s much, much worse than that” he said. “After any rain the old, decrepit sewerage system just can’t cope with the output from all the new condos being built and it is not good at all”.

“So I should keep my mouth tightly shut when paddling out here” Erin enquired…..”definitely” was the answer with a screwed up look on his face.🥴

We are moving from the Opus to Erin’s for a few days tomorrow before we move to our apartment at the marina, and these are some impressions of Vancouver from our first few jet-lag affected days.

It has history…but it’s modern. It’s cosmopolitan and multi cultural. It’s clean (for the most part and apart from the sewerage in False Creek). It’s very foody with a vibrant cafe/restaurant culture. It’s relaxed and has a high proportion of young people. There are lots and lots of Teslas….and e-bikes and scooters……and there are dogs with their owners everywhere….big, small, exotic, well behaved……. and very, very pampered. Canadians are polite people…except on the bike paths😂

The lifestyle in this city seems pretty damned good!

At a genuine Japanese Sushi restaurant sitting on cushions with legs dangling in the pit under the table.
The gang - Victoria, Erin, Wendy A, Mike and Wendy B.
The food was just fantastic….taste, presentation and service….bellisimo!