Vancouver

Jay, poor guy, had to go to work the next morning. And I had to hit the road so I could get to Vancouver to pick up Emily. So we were up early and Jay whipped up some eggs and oatmeal. Incredibly, since he's returned to the states, Jay has commuted around Seattle on his bike and via public transportation! His job is located just a little ways to the east, so I gave him a lift. We stopped for a cup o' joe at a coffee shack near his house.

Conrad took a pretty good hit to his windshield on the way to the office. A large rock put a quarter-sized ding in it. I expect the ding to crack further before I have time to get it repaired (maybe in Anchorage.) The drive north on Interstate 5 was smooth although I was getting a little nervous about the time; I wasn't sure how long the border crossing would take. Fortunately, the Canadian customs/immigration officers took about 45 minutes of my time. They were very suspicious of me, especially after I told them about my occupation. They asked how much money I was carrying and how much I had in my bank account among other personal questions!

I stopped in a hotel parking lot just outside the Vancouver International airport for a few minutes to carve a place in the back seat of the car for Emily to stash all of her stuff and then made my way to the airport. The airport was clean, modern, and efficient. I watched all of the foreigners in the international terminal while waiting for Emily to collect her bag and clear customs. It was great to see her. We quickly cleared out of the airport and made our way to downtown Vancouver in search of lunch, which turned out to be scrumptious sandwiches at Cafe Artigiano. I was looking forward to checking into the Vancouver Marriott Pinnacle Hotel (brought to us by Aunt Randi and Uncle Fredy's frequent flier miles - Thanks Randi and Fredy!) We had a couple of hours to kill before check-in, so we set off on foot towards the waterfront, then west towards the Gastown district, named for 'Gassy' Jack Deighton who established a saloon near the waterfront in 1867 - and apparently talked a lot. We headed west again towards Chinatown, the third-largest in North America, behind San Francisco and New York. We stopped in a cafe where Emily introduced me to bubble tea, a fruity drink with "bubbles" of gelatinous tapioca beads at the bottom (delish!) We perused the shops of Asian imports, then returned in the direction of the hotel. The Marriot was fabulous. Our 25th-floor waterfront-facing view included a glimpse of the downtown area as well as the seaport and Stanley Park. Because we had both spent most of the day traveling, we took another walk along the waterfront and into Stanley Park, Vancouver's answer to New York City's Central Park and named after the same Stanley whose name adorns the NHL's coveted prize trophy. After a stop back at the hotel for showers, we set off in search of supper which we found at The Lennox Pub along Granville Avenue. The pub served Leffe (my favorite) and Hoegaarden beers. The heavenly beer made me forget what I had for dinner. We returned to the hotel for complimentary wine and Haagen Daz ice cream before bed. Does life get any better?