In less than three weeks I will be in Jordan again. That will provide lots of interesting material for new blog posts. Hopefully I can do that material justice, but in any case, until then I will have to make do with a few of the more interesting photos from our recent trip to Vancouver. I’ll start with another photo from our hike to Crystal Falls. Simple,but somehow intriguing.
As we were packing for Vancouver the weather forecast showed rain for the full week. Compared to the snow in Ottawa, rain sounded pretty decent, so we were only a little disappointed. The light drizzle on our hike to Crystal Falls the first day turned to steady rain by evening, which was not a great sign. But by morning the forecast improved somewhat – “clear today but rain tomorrow”. And that was pretty much the story for the rest of the week. Clear today but rain tomorrow. Until our last day, when the rain finally arrived. Fortunately, the only thing on the agenda was a trip to the airport for our flight home, where we were greeted by this…
A late March snowstorm may bring a smile to a snowman’s face, but it certainly didn’t bring one to mine. It’s hard to believe that only a few days ago we were sitting on the deck enjoying a glass of wine.
I work with technology in my day job, but it’s also a bit of a hobby. I enjoy helping people with their computer “challenges”, so it isn’t unusual to be asked for tech support. That was the case on our visit to Vancouver, where I was greeted with a number of misbehaving computers ready to be beaten into submission. As I say, I actually enjoy the challenge so I really didn’t expect anything in return. After all, we were already being treated to wonderful meals, free accommodation, and stunning scenery.
One of my other hobbies is craft beer. I don’t brew it, but I enjoy sampling it. Vancouver has a very active brewing scene so our final afternoon was devoted to checking out a few local microbreweries. To thank me for the tech support, Ger offered to be the designated driver for the outing, and paid for our drinks. Unnecessary, but much appreciated. Joan and I decided on an area with a concentration of microbreweries and, as it happens, interesting architecture.
To be completely honest, the interesting architecture was an unexpected bonus. Our real motivation was interesting beer, and we found plenty of that to sample while Ger and Jan went shopping. It was a win-win.
Everything was within easy walking distance. In fact, it probably would have been better if we’d had to walk a little farther between stops. And in addition to an intriguing selection of locally brewed beer, the tasting rooms also had many interesting details.
Then it was back for another meeting of The Other Champagne Club, followed by homemade pizza with an authentic wood-fired taste.
I’ve been posting so much about the lovely nature trails around Vancouver that I may have given the wrong impression. Vancouver is a city – a very wonderful city. It just happens to have equally wonderful nature areas very nearby. But make no mistake. It definitely is a city.
Don’t get me wrong here. I love hikes and flowers and trees, but these are not the essence of travel as I see it. The critical ingredients for any successful journey are food and drink. Come to think of it, these are pretty much the key ingredients for life in general. In recognition of this, day three was devoted to food.
We visited Granville Island, which is one of the artsy/foodie/trendy areas of Vancouver, but without the gentrification that can take the interesting edge off an area.
We had lunch at Go Fish, which could best be described as a food truck without wheels. I highly recommend you try it.
But go early, and don’t go on the weekend. On a Tuesday in March we still had a half hour wait for our lunch. But what a lunch. I had an Oyster Po’ Boy that was to die for.
Then it was off to the market to stock up on the ingredients for the evening meal. Chocolate was not the only thing we bought, but it was an important consideration.
The title for this post comes from an amazing truffled Brie we had for an appetizer, and the main course was Joan’s homemade Paella with a lovely 2009 Rioja. This is pretty much our idea of the perfect trip – spending your days planning for an evening eating wonderful food with friends.
Yummy.
Our second day in Vancouver we decided to take it easy, and headed into the Fraser valley to visit some of the local wineries and enjoy the spring flowers. The mix of sun and cloud was perfect for driving, walking around the grounds, sampling the local wines, and generally enjoying the warmth.
The heather was in full bloom, and of course there were a number of fruit trees covered in blossoms.
The Forsythia is also in full bloom.
I’ll close with a picture from our hike up to Crystal Falls on our first day. The flowers are not nearly as abundant in the forest, but they are every bit as beautiful in their own way.
Our first day in Vancouver was cool and overcast with light drizzle. It was wonderful. At home it’s cold and snowing. We hiked along a forest trail up to Crystal Falls, enjoying the fresh air and amazing scenery. The moss hanging from the trees gave it an almost otherworldly air.
At the end of the hike we were rewarded with a view of the falls.
If you are ever in the area and looking for a nice little outing, I highly recommend it.
The fresh air and exercise was exactly what we needed to work up an appetite for a meeting of The Other Champagne Club followed by an evening of wonderful food.
Any idea what this might be? Cotton batting? Styrofoam? Without context, it’s difficult to say.
As it happens, this is a swimming pool. Yesterday. Needless to say, no one seemed all that enthusiastic about actually swimming.
The good news is that today the weather finally (F-I-N-A-L-L-Y) turned, and it was above freezing. All the way up to 8 C (mid 40’s F). Not enough to melt the pool quite yet, but enough that people were barely able to contain their glee. I didn’t actually see anyone out in shorts and a t-shirt, but give it a few more degrees and you can count on it. Everything is relative.
I’ll close with another mystery photo. Any idea what this might be?
This is sort of a pool. It’s a picture of Lake Ontario, covered in ice, taken from 20,000 ft. Context is everything…
In the fall they lower the water level in the Rideau canal and let the surface freeze. Once it gets cold enough, and the ice is thick enough, they sweep the ice and flood the surface most every night. As you skate, you have a clear view of the limestone blocks used to build the canal. The skating season varies, but this year has smashed all previous records. As of today, the canal has been open for skating 58 days in a row, and the season isn’t over yet.
I went out again yesterday, and skated the full 7.8 km, and then back again to my starting point. It was only a few degrees below freezing, but the ice was still surprisingly fast. Especially for the end of the first week of March.
One of the things I like about skating the canal is that it gives you a different view of the city.
I’m looking forward to a view with leaves on the trees.
I took this picture last night. That’s right – March 5th, with Christmas lights still up and a thick coat of snow on the ground.
Clearly someone was trying to look on the humorous side of it all…
It didn’t work.
I am so over winter.
On our last visit to Vancouver we went for a walk along the seawall around Stanley Park. It is wonderful to take a leisurely stroll along the water’s edge in the bright sunshine – especially if there is still snow on the ground at home. We had noticed stones precariously balanced, one on top of the other, seeming to defy gravity. It was very cool, but not half as cool as when we later saw the “artist” at work on another creation.
We probably watched for the better part of half an hour as he worked to fully understand a single stone, testing the balance in different orientations until he found the perfect position. It became apparent there was more to this than meets the eye. I rather suspect these seemingly fragile creations are a lot sturdier than they appear. I was reminded of my visit to Jordan. The stacked columns at Jerash consist of free standing stones that you can actually see sway in the breeze, and yet they have survived two millennia of conquest, earthquakes, and neglect. I’m not suggesting these will last anywhere near that long, but you get my point.
I’m looking forward to our upcoming visit.
If It Was Today... 