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Vancouver, British Columbia

Friday, August 19th, 2011

July 23rd-July 25th

We made a quick stop at the gas station (despite the augmenting prices in the U.S., it’s still cheaper than in Canada) before we took the road for the border. After a small queue and a few questions, we passed without a problem. When we arrived at our hotel, we felt like we really had changed countries.  We were staying in an Asian suburb of Vancouver and everyone around us was speaking Chinese. We found a local noodle restaurant- the menu was in Chinese and the food was authentic. After lunch, we caught the Skytrain into downtown Vancouver.  The Skytrain is efficient and convenient and took us directly to the waterfront. Being surrounded by water and mountains gives Vancouver a unique outdoor charm. We wandered around Canada Place, which is decorated by large white sails and glass and marveled at the enormous cruise ships. Then we wandered through the historic Gastown District, with the steam powered clock. We continued up through Chinatown (the suburb where we staying actually felt more like Chinatown) and saw the Chinese style gardens. Then we wandered back towards the waterfront and found a table at a popular brewery to have a cold beer in the hot (yes, it was hot) afternoon soon. We caught the Skytrain back to our hotel where we cooked dinner (we had the luxury of a kitchenette in our room.)

The following morning (it was Sunday), we took advantage of our transport pass, and took a SeaBus from the waterfront across Vancouver Bay – where we had nice views of downtown and the port. We hopped the ferry back to town and picnicked in a park where we watched hydroplanes taking off and landing. That afternoon we decided to explore the town by bike.  Vancouver is one of the friendliest towns for bikes in the world (I’m not sure it’s true during winter.) We rented electric bikes (a small luxury that would propel us up to 30 mph) and made the tour of Stanley Park and Granville Island. We passed crowded sandy beaches with locals out enjoying the beautiful weather and waterslides filled with kids. We even saw harbor seals on the pontoons at a marina. By the time we returned the bikes to the waterfront, we were ready for an ice cream. We slowly made our way back to the hotel where we relaxed for a while, and then splurged on a sushi for dinner.

By Monday, our last day in Vancouver, the grey foggy weather had returned. We decided to explore North and West Vancouver on the other side of the harbor. Our first stop was at the Capillano Fish Hatchery, where they release salmon. Then we drove up to the Cypress Mountain ski resort- in the winter, you can drive half-an-hour to the ski slopes from town. From there, we took the scenic Marina drive through Horseshoe Bay where we watched the ferries coming and going to Victoria. Our little jaunt in Canada was almost over and it was time to take the road back to the border.

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