Vancouver, Part II

Vancouver isn’t a huge city, but I have put in more than six miles a day checking out all the sites.  Not only is walking a new city great exercise, it’s one of my favorite things to do.

Before we get too far afield from trains, I wanted to share this photo of the locomotive CPR engine 374 that on May 23, 1887 pulled the first transcontinental passenger train into Vancouver station, thus linking the Atlantic and Pacific coasts of Canada for the first time. The Rocky Mountaineer traveled the same route thru the west as this first train did 138 years ago.

Today, Vancouver is defined as much by water transport as it is by rail or car. We saw seaplanes, cargo ships, cruise ships, sailboats and this pirate boat.

We loved this tiny water taxi that ferried us around False Creek.

One of our favorite stops was Granville Island where we perused the fresh food market.

Granville Island Broom Co. makes all its brooms by hand. They carry every kind of broom except the Nimbus 2000.

Fresh pasta… good prep for our Italy trip. 😉

Speaking of food, Hannah and I ended our weeklong tour with an amazing dinner at Michelin-recognized Pidgin in Gastown. Above is the famous steam-powered Gastown clock. 

Rice noodle salad with an onsen egg.

Skewered eggplant with tamarind glaze.

Sunday took me to Stanley Park, where I found myself walking alongside a bunch of people walking to raise money for Parkinson’s research. 

Here is the link

If you  would like to join me and the other walkers to support the cause. 

The land that is Stanley Park is the former home of First Nations people. The totem poles honor their stories.

Western red cedar.

This bronze statue honors the link between a local indigenous family and their Portuguese grandfather who immigrated to Vancouver in 1860.

That about wraps up the first leg of my Canada journey. Time for Hannah to return to work, and for me to meet John and head over to Victoria. 

Vancouver, Part I

Settled into Vancouver, we are back to putting in the miles au pied. 

I began the day with the usual oat milk latte and a pastry, and then Hannah and I walked to the port, where we saw the structure that held the Olympic flame lit by the torch carried all the way from Greece for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games (below).

Also at the port by the conference center is a giant Shamu.

Seaplanes land and take off in the harbor.

After the harbor visit, we met up with two tour guides from Vancouver Foodie Tours who guided us around downtown to sample a variety of Asian cuisines. We had shumai, pork buns and palm-wrapped rice treats at Kirin Chinese restaurant.

We visited a Japanese convenience store for a yuzu cone, ate Korean barbecue with all the trimmings and finished up with a fresh mango dessert. We also watched a robot make an iced latte at Muji.

The robot is named Jasper.

In this super multicultural city, I definitely wanted to see some indigenous art so I went to Bill Reid gallery of northwestern coastal art.

Hoping to see more art and eat more fun foods in the coming days in western Canada. 🇨🇦👍😀

Rocky Mountaineer, Day 2

We continued our westward journey today, amassing a longer list of wildlife spotted, as well as more interesting insights into BC. This morning began with the sighting of two different clusters of big horn sheep, as well as a single large black bear high on a hillside to far afield for photos, but nonetheless impressive. Later, we saw two bald eagles perched in a tree, some ospreys and geese flying over water, and lots more water fowl.

The most interesting natural phenomenon of the day was the confluence of the Thompson and Fraser rivers. Because of their routes thru different terrain, the Thompson appears aqua blue and the Fraser appears grayish white. When they meet, the waters take several minutes to blend together so they look like this:

We also passed by a variety of colorful rock striations. The reddish and green colors come from copper, and the darker color from iron. These minerals, as well as gold, all are mined in BC.

Old bridges and remnants of the railway dotted the route.

And before we knew it, we had arrived in Vancouver… and onto the final leg of our Canada adventure. Stay tuned for more news from the great white north tomorrow!

All Aboard!

This morning, we boarded the famous Rocky Mountaineer train for a two-day journey from Banff to Vancouver.  This  route retraces the historic Canadian Pacific Railway that joined eastern Canada with British Columbia for the first time in 1885.

 Day 1 of our journey took us through two and a half subdivisions of the rail system, covering 391 miles. We followed seven different rivers, passed through two spiral tunnels, crossed the Continental Divide, traversed three National parks and changed time zones.

Our seats upstairs in the domed car gave us great views. Service on board is excellent, too, with a robust staff, meals cooked to order in an onboard galley, and hosts who shared stories and history about the railroad and the region.

Can you tell we love traveling together?

People everywhere loved to wave to the train as it passes through their communities.

We passed by some railroad museums along the way. Eventually the mountains turned to farmland, so we also saw cows, sheep, loons, herons, Canadian geese and deer.

Shuswap Lake.

Tonight we sleep in Kamloops before setting out again at 7 am for the final leg of the journey. 

We are eager to see what lies ahead. Are you?

Glacial Waters: Lake Louise, Moraine Lake, Bow River and other glacial meltiness

There is a Passover song called Dayenu, which refers to all that God gave us and how even the least of it would have been enough, and yet, God gave us more.  Religion aside, I cannot think of a better word for the bounty of beauty that Nature gave Hannah and me over the past two days.

We walked the path along the Bow River from town to our hotel, passing art installations in the trees, but nothing could take my eyes from the river.

Walking 20,000 steps makes for tired feet.

Time to rest our feet in the icy cold water.

Sun hitting Mount Rundle late in the day.

Moraine Lake from the top of the Rockpile hike. Perfect.

Moraine Lake 

Glacial water flows into the lake from the Wenkchemna Glacier. A moraine is a ridge of glacial debris that acts as a natural dam, thus forming the lake.

At Lake Louise, you can clearly see the glacial ice, even at the end of summer.

Cold water feels so good on tired toes.

Savor the view.

Savor the joy.