We only have a few more days here. I was looking out at the bay and mountains and lit-up boats and skyline from Kitsilano “Kits” Beach just after sunset last night and thought how much I’ll miss this beautiful city. Here’s a recap of the last week:
On Saturday, June 28, the kids walked to Rogers Arena downtown (and took a taxi home) and saw Queen + Adam Lambert in concert. I had a ticket but hadn’t slept well the night before and didn’t want to go. I told Laurel she could give my ticket to somebody near the arena. She tried, but a man insisted on paying her $10. He then immediately sold the ticket to someone else who filmed the whole concert on his phone. The kids really liked the concert although Laurel said Adam Lambert doesn’t have nearly the vocal range of Freddie Mercury.

Tuesday was Canada Day. There were fireworks downtown but they weren’t visible from where we are. We walked to Granville Island (It’s really a peninsula; we didn’t walk on water.) and the kids had ice cream.

View from our bench on Granville Island

We saw Bard on the Beach’s production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream on Wednesday, July 2. I loved it. It was a punk/steampunk rendition and was really funny. Laurel and I agreed that if we had read this REALLY long play instead, we would not have enjoyed it.

On Friday, the Fourth of July, we took many forms of transit to Lynn Canyon Park in North Vancouver. We didn’t have much time there since it took so long to get there, but it’s really beautiful.

Today we walked to Hudson’s Bay department store downtown to buy the kids some cruise-appropriate clothing. I had looked at Royal Caribbean’s website to determine whether there’s still a dress code for cruises and found out there is and it’s enforced (for dinner in the main dining room). We had been to Hudson’s Bay a few weeks ago but didn’t have to spend as much time in there then. Today…oh my. That place is HUGE. Counting the basement and sub-basement, there are eight floors. The store is an old, beautiful building and takes up nearly a whole city block. So finding our way inside was challenging, especially since half the escalators are blocked off during their remodeling, and their elevators are slow and packed with people and strollers. I think all eight floors have ladies clothing, and yet they don’t sell any ladies belts. (I asked.) There are no children’s belts either. The men’s belts are too big for Charlie, but luckily the “Topshop” department in the basement which has nothing to do with tops but does sell junior-size clothes had exactly one belt that fit the boy. And despite all that ladies clothing, Laurel ended up buying two pairs of dress pants in the boys department where the price was 1/4 what it was in the ladies department. Just figuring out how to get to the restroom (washroom – I have to keep correcting myself.) in that store is a big deal. The ladies rooms are on the third and fifth floors, the men’s on the sixth. How to get up to those floors? Along which wall are the washrooms? Where’s a sales clerk to ask? So blah blah blah. I couldn’t wait to get out of there.

Here are some photos from June:

Our taxi driver pulled over in a parking lot near the Sea to Sky Highway on the way home Whistler on June 8, so we could take some pictures. We climbed some stairs to go out on this ledge and get some good scenery shots. Laurel is trying to cover up the rusty railing.

The basement dryer wasn’t working for several days so we had to get creative with drying methods in the apartment.

The Burrard Street Bridge that we walk on to get downtown.

Vanier Park, near Kits Beach

Jericho Beach is a couple miles from our apartment and is in the midst of some pricey real estate. Lululemon yoga wear founder Chip Wilson’s $54 million concrete house is the most expensive home in British Columbia. I couldn’t take a picture of it because it’s surrounded by a high, concrete wall.

Charlie encountered yet another friendly cat. This one wanted its belly rubbed.