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Skytrain <\/p>\n Lunch Visit <\/p>\n <\/p>\n <\/p>\n A Wonderful “Canada Day” in Vancouver Friday, July 1, 2016: Pemberton-Vancouver Awaking in our hotel in Pemberton, we showered and got ready quickly as we were supposed to return our car to Budget by 10.00 am. Bluebird Bakery was just opposite our hotel and there we picked up coffee with almond croissants and pain… <\/p>\n
\nto Canada Place:
\nSkytrain is one of the most convenient ways by which to get around Vancouver.
\nIt is new, clean, speedy and cheap. We took the Canada Line intending to get
\noff at the Waterfront stop\u2014which is Canada Place, a huge convention center–and
\nthe spot from where cruise ships take off. Well, on the train itself we got an
\nidea of the patriotic spirit of the Canadians. We have never seen more red and
\nwhite in our lives. Seas of people made their way to the spot and once we got
\nthere, we realized why. There was a stage set and live music was being offered.
\nThe Convention Center is the setting for the Citizenship Swearing Ceremony and
\nloads of people who had taken the oath earlier that morning were on the pier
\ntaking pictures, their garb sporting their patriotic enthusiasm and their faces
\npainted with Canadian flags! It was amazing. Absorbing all the energy around
\nus, to see the rainbow hues that comprise the Canadian populace today, to
\nimbibe their spirit\u2014made it simply infectious.
\nwalked to the north end of the pier intending to look at the possibility of
\ntaking in Vancouver\u2019s newest attraction, Fly
\nOver Canada<\/i>\u2014a virtual show that is 4-D (it offers movement, sights, sounds,
\nsmells) as you fly across the country from the West coast to the east for
\napproximately 25 minutes and $25. However, since the wait for the next show was
\nabout an hour, we decided to pass on it and move on. Instead, we feasted our
\neyes on a unique exhibition of Canadian war vehicles that were assembled in the
\nmain hall of the Convention Center for children to pose on. It was poignant as
\ntoday is the 100th<\/sup> the anniversary of the Battle of Beaumont-Hamel,
\none of the battles of the Somme, at which about 700 \u2018Newfies\u2019 (Newfoundlanders)
\nlost their lives. It is a Memorial Day of mourning in the province. <\/span>
\nin Chinatown:
\nthrough the use of a map that we found at the Visitors\u2019 Center, we made our way
\nto Chinatown to get away from the chaos of downtown Vancouver on their holiday.
\nAs expected Chinatown was tranquil and offered some relief. Since it was lunch
\ntime, we asked a local for a recommendation and they directed us to Our Town<\/i> which CNN\u2019s Food Critic says is
\na \u201cMust-Visit\u201d. The place was full of locals which is a safe bet that the food
\nwould be good. As most of these places are, it was a little hole in the wall
\nbut packed to the gills. As recommended by Lonely
\nPlanet<\/i>, we ordered the spicy pork steamed bun which we split\u2014very
\ndelicious\u2014followed by the Shrimp Dumplings\u2014served dim sum style, four in a
\nlittle steamer basket. They too were very good. Our main was a Shrimp Mongolian
\nHot Pot which had the most shrimp we have ever seen in a lunch order\u2014good job
\nwe shared it as we had at least a dozen large shrimp each. And because I
\nactually found it on the menu, loved it when I had last had it in Manilla in
\nthe Philippines in January and had adored it then, I ordered a Halo-Halo that
\nwe also split. You will remember that this is a very filling dessert served in a
\nglass. It is layers of sweet red azuki beans, preserved fruit such as jackfruit
\n(in this case), preserved coconut, a variety of noodles, loads of ice-cold milk
\nand a big dollop of vanilla ice-cream. Of course, Llew loved it too and we
\nrealized that we would be skipping dinner after what had been a really
\ninexpensive and most scrumptious meal.
\nto Sun Yat Sen Garden: <\/span> <\/span>
\nvisit to Chinatown by making a quick pop into Dr. Sun Yat Sen Gardens, one of
\nthe best classical Chinese gardens in North America. There usually is a steep
\nentry fee that includes a guided tour, but since it was Canada Day, there was
\nno fee and we had a lovely stroll around which brought us memories of the time
\nwe had visited this place on a previous trip to Vancouver. We were also able to
\nsee a really superb Chinese opera show in the adjoining Museum where the
\ncostumes and the makeup were simply spectacular and reminded us very much of
\nour time studying about Noh Theater when we were in Kyoto, Japan, a few years
\nago.
\nthis time, both Llew and I were showing the effects of jetlag and an overlarge
\nlunch! It was time to find the Skytrain station to take us back to the
\nWaterfront and from there on the Canada Line again to get to the Airport from
\nwhere we caught the shuttle bus to get us to our hotel. We checked in, picked
\nup our stored baggage and made our way up to our room. It was still only about
\n6 pm, so we spent the rest of the evening catching up with world news on TV and
\nwatching a couple of TV shows. It was a very relaxed evening to a rather full
\nday.
\nwas time to call it a night after checking email one last time through Wifi.
\nAnd then it was time for bed. Tomorrow, we board our cruise ship to Alaska\u2014we
\nwill make our way once more time to Canada Place. It has been a good start to
\nour travels and we are very excited.
\ntomorrow\u2026