It felt like forever before Matt and Tom came out of the incoming passenger corridor at the airport, but finally, after a lengthy wait at immigration, their exhausted faces came into view, and what a welcome sight it was. London is eight hours behind Vancouver, so their arrival time was, well you can do the math. 8:30PST. Oh the sweet energy of youth!
Our first order of business the following morning was a trip to Urban Fare, the closest grocery store. Thinking it would be nice to walk along the seawall to get there,
I was surprised to find patches of ice along the way. Tom put on his coaching hat, guiding me to avoid my slipping and breaking something. Not to mention spoiling their visit! Bruce had a meeting at the office in the morning, so once our shopping was complete, we walked over to meet him there. It was nice for them to meet some of the women Bruce works with as well as seeing where Bruce spends most of his days. We must have eaten somewhere, however, that memory already escapes me! Good grief it is a good thing I have a blog to remind me of my days!
Although they showed no signs of jet lag, I thought a low key day was best, and we had just the activity planned to accomplish that mission. Bruce, along with his whole department, went last week for a Christmas event, to an attraction I'd often seen but never visited, Fly Over Canada. He came back full of enthusiasm, saying it was super cool and he wanted to go again once the lads arrived. And so we did, but first we took a big step, going to the office where I now have a BC resident card which will be helpful in setting up a bank account, as well as possibly getting a library card. Bruce's mission was to obtain a valid driver's license, however, he was unsuccessful but now knows what documentation he needs to make it happen. From there we walked to the Christmas market for a look see.
Did I mention it was cold? Well, I should have! Hard to believe how good they look after their long flight!
Canada Place is just down the street from the market and when we arrived the light was just magical.
On the left is the West part of the Convention Center and the trees in the distance are Stanley Park. The year is nearly up for the big Canada 150, their nationwide anniversary celebration. I'm wondering how many people have been photographed in front of this lighted sign because every time I've ever been here, someone is having an Instagram moment.
It makes me wonder if they will just leave it there. I suppose time will tell. Fly Over Canada is way at the end of the promenade which is lined with decorated trees and lights.
You won't be surprised to learn that at this time of year, the attraction makes the most of Christmas, theming it like you are riding with Santa in his sleigh over the length and breadth of Canada, a country full of scenic vistas.
Here's a little video of what it is like although I did not watch it beforehand and had no idea what to expect. In an overused word, our reaction was, AWESOME! When Bruce is enthusiastic about something it generally proves to be worth every penny and it most certainly was that. My only disappointment was that the end of Canada Place, where there are some large light displays, was closed due to ice. I sure won't be writing about that next year at this time will I?
From there we walked home along Burrard Street, stopping for an early dinner at Joey at One Bentall Center where the food was great, as was the view through the window at one of my favorite water features in the city, especially at night when it is lit with ever changing colors.
Letting the open crosswalks be our guide as to a route home, we found ourselves walking by the very busy skating rink with real snow remaining on parts of the roof.
Day one in the books.
I went out before sunrise Thursday morning to take a few photos of the lit boats from ground level,
and what was left from the snow in the park. Plus, I always want to remember the lit Christmas tree that has brightened these dark nights.
Thursday we went to the mall, after collecting Bruce at the office. We rode the Skytrain out to Metrotown in Burnaby where we shopped at Uniqlo for additional warm undergarments for me and Tom bought a sweater. The food court was a mad house, filled with Christmas shoppers. Although we forgot to watch it, a newsman interviewed Bruce for television!! Of course they may not have used "his" segment, but maybe they did? Tom had fun at a store that sells what look like giant filled bags, but in reality turn into comfortable places to lounge.
Christmas movies!! When we are not out and about they are running full time here. At this point we have watched so many that we know all the phrases the characters will speak and, of course, there is the "kiss", solving all problems!
Emily, from the office, wrote up a list of vegan restaurants for Matt to try, so while we went to the Earls Christmas party at the nearby location, they went for vegan Mexican on Davie Street. We walked to the party and had a marvelous time. Every single one of these folks have been so nice to me! I was asked to take the design and construction group photo, and did what I could with my limited skills in that realm.
For the record, I wore neither heels nor a black dress, instead opting to go for comfort by wearing those goldish shoes I bought during our first week here. Bundling up for the walk home we arrived around midnight, far too late for this old gal especially because we had a grand adventure slated for day three.
I'll get to that in another post, but let's just say that it was just as grand as we were hoping for.
Here's hoping everyone had a lovely Christmas!
yours truly,
Gail
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