Killing Time at YVR

His name's Quatchi.

He's a Sasquatch.

He has been living in the discount aisle of a drugstore in downtown Vancouver for several months now.

He's Wynn's new best friend.

And he's providing the entertainment at the airport as we get ready to head home.

The Accent is on "Eh"

Another busy day in Vancouver, starting off on a different trolley line and heading to the magnificent Stanley Park. The park is named after the same fellow that the Stanley Cup honors, it's that big a deal.

Stanley Park is to Vancouver as Central Park is to New York, except with beaches, mountains, its original plants and animals, and a lot more room.

One of Earth's most perfect spots. I shot a whole panorama from here, but we're only permitted to show you a little bit. The entire city is set out before you.

A significant chunk of the park is dedicated to teaching visitors about Native (or as they say here, Aboriginal) culture. The tribes are still a big part of local culture and their members are part of everyday society here.

Ginormous cedar trees that are hundreds of years old, and ferns as big as a sofa. The leaves on the maple trees are bigger than dinner plates.

The outer point of the park marks the deep water and passage out to the Pacific. Back toward Downtown, sheltered coves sport sandy, sunny beaches and even hardy palm trees.

We keep finding little urban treasures as we snoop around the neighborhood, like a Korean grocery store just a block from the hotel, and ample supplies everywhere of "coffee milk" just like they had in Japan. We ate dinner at a hole-in-the-wall noodle shop just under the Korean grocery, and there are at least a dozen other little cafes in a three-block stretch that we can see from our window that we'd love to try out.

Alas, our time here is drawing to a close, at least for this trip. We're already figuring out where we'd stay and what we'd see the next time we come to British Columbia - and how soon we can make it happen.

We're glad we stopped in Portland first, as the Weather Channel says it's in the mid-90s there right now. Here it's still been in the 70s with the heat due to kick in just after our airplane takes off!

11,391 Steps

Our Day, Pedometer-Measured for Accuracy ...

Walked to Canada Place to Check It Out

Had a Picnic in a Super-Huge Lawn Chair in Front

of the Olympic Torch

Hopped on a Trolley for a Kitschy Yet Informative Tour of the City

Got Off Trolley and Humored Wynn by Letting Her Play

at a Bus Stop that She Found Strangely Fascinating

Laughed at How Smug She Gets When She's Setting the Agenda

Lunched and Shopped on Granville Island.

(Crowded but Fabulous)

Got off the Trolley Again in Gastown.

Boosted Canadian Economy via T-Shirt Purchases.

Grabbed Some Dinner at Japadog.

Why Don't We Have These at Home?!

Swam in Hotel Pool

Rode to the Top of Vancouver Lookout to Take in the View

Watched Wynn Fall in Love with the Vending Machine at the Lookout

You Give it Money, and it Gives you Candy.

And Scott Did All THAT on THIS Foot.

First Photos from Canada

Mind you, I shot most of these amidst agonizing pain. The rest, the pain was only mildly dreadful.

Classic mid-50's architecture right outside our window, beautifully contrasting with the Maple Leaf.

Gastown, the founding neighborhood of the city at the bottom of the hill from here. The clock is steam-powered and performs a tune at each hour.

The gate to Chinatown, the neighborhood just south of Gastown and just east of our hotel.

Apparently, there's a terra touristica non-grata in the couple blocks between Gastown and Chinatown - where the druggies and homeless populate. Kinda like Portland, between Pioneer Courthouse Square and the Greyhound station... well, that's the easiest grade back uphill. We went through it without realizing...

After we got back to the hotel, finally got our room, and I'd had a few quality hours with the ice pack, the three of us went downstairs to look around our own block. There's an IGA supermarket on the ground floor, and a number of excellent hole-in-the-wall ethnic restaurants all within a stone's throw. Looks like we're going to have some more good eating!

Our room is equipped with a full kitchen, so we picked up some basics to make our own breakfasts. We love to snoop around grocery stores wherever we go; especially moreso when outside the country.

Hey, isn't that New Brighton's own Old Dutch Potato Chips? Why yes, they're a leading brand in Canada!

You have to appreciate the honesty of a country that tells kids and parents exactly what the deal is with their breakfast cereal. No sugar-coating the truth here; erm, well, yes, precisely. Sugar-coating it is. We Americans can't handle the historical truth of what this cereal came from and what it stood for!

And to those English-only proponents, what are you afraid of? After all, General Petraeus is in charge of the NATO brigade in Afghanistan; shouldn't the Cap'n know how to talk with our allies as well? Frankly, I think it'd be a better cereal-eating experience if it were packaged in French back in the States! C'est crounchifique!

The Walking Wounded

We arrived safely in Vancouver around lunchtime, found our way to the train, and got ourselves to our hotel. Our room wasn't ready yet, so we checked our bags and went for a stroll down to the Gastown historic district.

On the way there, Scott stepped in a hole in the sidewalk and twisted his ankle. Luckily, he didn't fall (He was carrying Wynn in the backpack.) He yelped but kept on going, and eventually we found a lovely cafe called Brioche, where he put his foot up for a bit and enjoyed a meatloaf and bacon sandwich, claiming that protein would help cure him.

We strolled around a bit more (Well, Scott hobbled, and I strolled.) We got back to the hotel, and our room still wasn't ready. They have a nice private lounge area, so we went a sat there until they could bring us our keys. Wynn danced around the lounge, Scott winced from time to time, and I sat there and wondered When will our room be ready, already?!

Finally, they came and gave us our keys. The room was worth waiting for - it's fantastic; we have a full kitchen that's much more stylish than ours at home - and our own washer and dryer. And we're next door to a really nice grocery store. All good.

Scott took off his shoe and sock, swallowed massive amounts of Advil, and put an ice pack on his ankle. It's about the size of a softball. We're hopeful that an evening of rest will fix him up, because a foot injury sure throws a wrench in the spokes of our "walk 10,000 steps a day" vacation.

There are bus and trolley tours of the city available, so we may end up doing that tomorrow. For now it's rest, ice, and cable TV.

Happy Fourth of July, everyone!

(By the way, it's 66 degrees here today and totally gorgeous.)