This is a really nice city – sort of Seattle with a different attitude. I walked and walked today trying to see places I missed last trip here.
First stop – Granville Island. And yes, we visited the market a few years ago, but a public market is one of my favorite things! Filled with flowers, fruit, local honey, local crafts and local people, our early-morning visit was great. Particularly entranced by the broom store. Who knew that could be a thing? Alf took a ferry to the skytrain and enjoyed riding around and looking at everything while I continued to explore the market and before taking the 1-minute “AquaBus” across the inlet and then walking through the city back to our hotel.
I followed a sushi lunch with a visit to the Vancouver Art Gallery, which is large and mostly special exhibits. Giacometti was the subject of one and his sculptures were glorious. There were also a few Emily Carr paintings on display which was terrific (she is a very well know painter here in the northwest – sort of Georgia O’Keefe-ish).
Dodging bicycles and many many skateboards I headed for Stanley Park, a huge urban green area. Actually, the walk itself was fascinating – passing the cannabis shops, the muji store (I think this is sort of a Japanese organizer store – or maybe ikea – they had everything but it seemed like the packaging was the interesting part – clearly I was missing something), innumerably Starbucks, very tony apartments with fountains and gardeners, dim sum and ramen shops with long lines, homeless people sleeping on the sidewalks, a great many eyeglasses shops (why?). Stanley Park itself is huge and we’ve explored the interior previously so as the weather became a little less inviting I walked around the Secret Lagoon, saw turtles swimming, enjoyed the flowers and headed back.
Dinner at Hawksworth was fantastic! Thinly sliced scallop with grape and lovage, duck breast with rhubarb jam and fava beans, veal tenderloin with mushrooms made many ways – all of it simply beautiful and delicious.
Tired tonight – packing and off to the ship in the morning.
journeys 