Vancouver

Dan and I set off at 7AM yesterday morning. It makes no sense to me how we would arrive in Vancouver after a 2.5 hour flight at 4PM. I'll tell you where all those hours went- customs. I don't know if their French heritage has something to with it,or what, but it took FOREVER to get through customs only for them to ask if we had any nuts or farm animals on our person. After declaring that we did not, in fact, have either of those things, they let us grab out suitcases and leave.

Last night we wandered around Gastown too hungry to make any decisions about where to eat. We ended up at the Spaghetti Factory before I realized that is the only restaurant I've been to in Vancouver. We settled in for some mediocre spaghetti and then headed back to the hotel for some much needed R&R. We went back to gastown to do some site seeing- here's the steam clock for you, Dad.

We also made sure to try to fit in and not look like tourists.

Dan's First Sushi

Today was the day we've all been waiting for. Except Dan, that is. He tried sushi for the first time. Rather, he tried sushi without cooked fish for the first time. I can't say it was a smashing success, but it wasn't a disaster (and believe me, it could have been). So far I haven't seen any allergic reactions, so I think we're in the clear.

Next, we went into town to find where Dan was going to be presenting. Not too shabby right?

Not that this isn't terribly exciting, but since I'm not invited to the show, I was glad to find some other things to do nearby. Right next store is the Olympic Torch and...

 Canadian Lego Land. Dan wanted to play Jenga, but I told him no.

Since we are in Vancouver for Dan's conference, we got to stay in the Four Seasons, Downtown Vancouver. No joke, our room is bigger than our apartment. We have the most amazing views of the city from two sides (awesome corner room!) and especially of the London Dollar- the only thing keeping Dan sane- providing him with Oatmeal, V8, and assorted other food products, because as nice as the hotel is, we're not spending $34 for some cantaloupe and bacon (although I want that bacon...). 

Dan and I ventured into the Canadian wilderness to walk along the 450 foot swinging Capilano Suspension Bridge. We walked across the entire 450 feet of swinging bridge crammed with people all desperately trying to take pictures. The bridge is 230 feet above the Capilano River.

We measured ourselves against the fine birds of the area... I believe I have the same wingspan as a Great Horned Owl and Dan as a Canada Goose.

We wandered through the woods on more hanging bridges all connected by huge trees and platforms. Very Swiss Family Robinson. After an exciting day traveling around the hanging bridges, we went into Stanley Park. We sat under heat lamps on the deck of a sea food restaurant and watched float planes take off and land in the bay to celebrate our 2 year anniversary. 

Dan partaking in some local art...

While wandering around Stanley Park, we stopped and watched some fisherman getting their fish ready for the market.

At the end of our tour we come to the Totem Poles. On my last trip to Vancouver we didn't make it this far into the park. Even though we'd been walking all day and it was raining quite a bit, it was definitely worth it to see these. 

Today Dan has his presentation so I'm flying solo on my tour of Vancouver. First stop- a beautiful church near our hotel. It has a low, mossy roof and looks extremely out of place in this modern, glass city.

Next stop, the harbor. This looks straight out of a movie...

And since Dan is taking FOREVER to finish at his seminar, I figured it was a great time to hang out on the pier and get all artsy.

Vancouver is such a beautiful city, and such a nice relief from the sweltering hot in Colorado. Gotta love wearing sweaters and jeans and July!