)
Note: It's my blog and I can go out of order if I want to.
Vancouver.
Most Liveable City in the World. Economist Magazine, 2009
Best North American Island, Condé Nast Traveler, 2007
4th Best City in the World for Quality of Life. Mercer, 2009
Beautifulist (yes, it's a word) Airport in the Whole Wide World. Leigh's "I'm Back" Blog, 2009
Most Delicious Tap Water in the Universe. Leigh's "I'm Back" Blog, 2009
I'd be honored to spend the next 17,789 minutes listing award after award Vancouver has snagged so deservingly (Largest Concentration of Perfect People with Cars Worth More than the Average Home, Sweetest Pads on the Water, Buffest and Beautifulist - all awarded by me in 2009) and you would be spellbound and amazed and begging for more but take my word for it and save me the blog space, mmmkay?
I love to travel, but honestly, you got that, right? My obsession with travel, I mean? It's been a goal since childhood to see all 50 states - and I mean REALLY see ALL 50 states - before I kick the bucket (Maryland, you don't count since I only landed in your airport and Tennessee, you aren't on my list because I only drove through you for a half hour) and in the last few years my compulsion to explore the rest of the world is so consuming I'm convinced I was Christopher Columbus in a past life. So naturally, getting my hands (and feet) on Alaska, America's 49th state and my 20th, AND Canada, my 4th country, was a jump-up-and-down-like-a-lunatic kind of opportunity: not only was I embarking on a sweet adventure, I was making grand strides towards a meaningful life mission.
From the time we debarked the ship, we hit the street at a sprint. We dropped our luggage with the hotel concierge, a mile later were outfitted with helmets and mountain bikes from Spokes Bike Rentals, and we were off and pedaling our way to Stanley Park, one of the most cherished patches of green on earth (yet ANOTHER award, Vancouver). Opened in 1888, this 1000-acre wonderland is throbbing with history, thick with luscious plant life, crawling and swimming with wildlife, and peppered with diverse and wonderful two-legged creatures (you know, humans?) - biking, walking, swimming, reading, boating, laughing, painting, and exploring. The pulse of the park is invigorating!
After teaming back up with my parents (go Mom, biking ten miles!), we scored a delightful taxi ride (World's Friendliest Cab Drivers) across the Lion's Gate Bridge to the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver's oldest tourist attraction (if you don't count Stanley Park), opened in 1889. A thrilling combination of wobbly and secure, the bridge (which was originally hemp and cedar planks!) spreads 450 feet across a stunning ravine, soars 230 feet above peaceful Capilano River, and leads to a rainforest adventure on the other side. We merrily meandered through the old majestic forest growth, stopped to listen to quiet waterfalls tumble to the river below, let our eyes roam and roam and roam over Big Doug, a 350 year old Douglas Fir who witnessed 82 of his fellow trees buddies fall during Hurricane Freda in 1962 yet still stands strong. Before we knew it, we were soaring above the forest floor on the Treetops Adventure, a series of suspension bridges constructed in the treetops. Spectacular!
Yet another chatty taxi ride later (which the Park actually arranged for us! - shall we say, "World's Nicest Amusement Parks" too?) and we were able to officially check in to our hotel, The Sutton Place. After a quick dip in the pool, Sid and I were once again strolling the rolling streets of Vancouver, stopping for a delicious latte and a scan of the map, and then directing our eager feet to the waterfront where we hopped an aquabus (aka: ferry) to Granville Island in False Creek. Not knowing exactly what to expect, it's safe to say we were both flabbergasted. At everything! The homes (gorgeous highrise condominiums with fabulous plant covered terraces), the boats (i.e. yachts), the people (gorgeous, diverse), the dogs (I do admire a dog loving community!), the beaches (alive with parties and football games and guitars and picnics), the shopping and the food (our stomachs were rumbling for supper). Granville Island, not really an island at all and connected to downtown Vancouver by way of the Granville Street Bridge, is teeming with history and rebirth. An industrial area that thrived from 1917 until the 1960s, the area was on the decline in the postwar until federal government and private business joined forces in the 1970s to recycle old buildings and creat a place for it's citizens to shop, eat, catch a play and gather - and decades later they are still doing just that. After strolling through the public market, we stumbled upon the door to the jazzy Sandbar restaurant, where we snagged a patio table under the Granville Street Bridge and devoured our delicious sushi and swordfish and mouthwatering bread (best bread EVER).
After our ferry ride back to the other side, we couldn't help but close the evening and our vacation with a lovely hand-in-hand stroll down Kits Beach. A perfect closer to a perfect adventure in a perfect city. Vancouver - with your endless awards and your beaches and parks, history and people - I heart you. And I'll be back.
I love to travel, but honestly, you got that, right? My obsession with travel, I mean? It's been a goal since childhood to see all 50 states - and I mean REALLY see ALL 50 states - before I kick the bucket (Maryland, you don't count since I only landed in your airport and Tennessee, you aren't on my list because I only drove through you for a half hour) and in the last few years my compulsion to explore the rest of the world is so consuming I'm convinced I was Christopher Columbus in a past life. So naturally, getting my hands (and feet) on Alaska, America's 49th state and my 20th, AND Canada, my 4th country, was a jump-up-and-down-like-a-lunatic kind of opportunity: not only was I embarking on a sweet adventure, I was making grand strides towards a meaningful life mission.
From the time we debarked the ship, we hit the street at a sprint. We dropped our luggage with the hotel concierge, a mile later were outfitted with helmets and mountain bikes from Spokes Bike Rentals, and we were off and pedaling our way to Stanley Park, one of the most cherished patches of green on earth (yet ANOTHER award, Vancouver). Opened in 1888, this 1000-acre wonderland is throbbing with history, thick with luscious plant life, crawling and swimming with wildlife, and peppered with diverse and wonderful two-legged creatures (you know, humans?) - biking, walking, swimming, reading, boating, laughing, painting, and exploring. The pulse of the park is invigorating!
After teaming back up with my parents (go Mom, biking ten miles!), we scored a delightful taxi ride (World's Friendliest Cab Drivers) across the Lion's Gate Bridge to the Capilano Suspension Bridge, Vancouver's oldest tourist attraction (if you don't count Stanley Park), opened in 1889. A thrilling combination of wobbly and secure, the bridge (which was originally hemp and cedar planks!) spreads 450 feet across a stunning ravine, soars 230 feet above peaceful Capilano River, and leads to a rainforest adventure on the other side. We merrily meandered through the old majestic forest growth, stopped to listen to quiet waterfalls tumble to the river below, let our eyes roam and roam and roam over Big Doug, a 350 year old Douglas Fir who witnessed 82 of his fellow trees buddies fall during Hurricane Freda in 1962 yet still stands strong. Before we knew it, we were soaring above the forest floor on the Treetops Adventure, a series of suspension bridges constructed in the treetops. Spectacular!
Yet another chatty taxi ride later (which the Park actually arranged for us! - shall we say, "World's Nicest Amusement Parks" too?) and we were able to officially check in to our hotel, The Sutton Place. After a quick dip in the pool, Sid and I were once again strolling the rolling streets of Vancouver, stopping for a delicious latte and a scan of the map, and then directing our eager feet to the waterfront where we hopped an aquabus (aka: ferry) to Granville Island in False Creek. Not knowing exactly what to expect, it's safe to say we were both flabbergasted. At everything! The homes (gorgeous highrise condominiums with fabulous plant covered terraces), the boats (i.e. yachts), the people (gorgeous, diverse), the dogs (I do admire a dog loving community!), the beaches (alive with parties and football games and guitars and picnics), the shopping and the food (our stomachs were rumbling for supper). Granville Island, not really an island at all and connected to downtown Vancouver by way of the Granville Street Bridge, is teeming with history and rebirth. An industrial area that thrived from 1917 until the 1960s, the area was on the decline in the postwar until federal government and private business joined forces in the 1970s to recycle old buildings and creat a place for it's citizens to shop, eat, catch a play and gather - and decades later they are still doing just that. After strolling through the public market, we stumbled upon the door to the jazzy Sandbar restaurant, where we snagged a patio table under the Granville Street Bridge and devoured our delicious sushi and swordfish and mouthwatering bread (best bread EVER).
After our ferry ride back to the other side, we couldn't help but close the evening and our vacation with a lovely hand-in-hand stroll down Kits Beach. A perfect closer to a perfect adventure in a perfect city. Vancouver - with your endless awards and your beaches and parks, history and people - I heart you. And I'll be back.
)
5 comments:
I'm here to testify, brethren. Vancouver is AWESOME. Leigh-Leigh is not lying to you. Riding bikes in Stanley Park was so much fun, even though I almost crashed three times. I said "almost" - I managed to pedal out of my death wobble. Hey, no snickering. It's been YEARS since I rode a bike - and it was a big old Pee Wee Herman bike. I couldn't believe it when Sid told me I had ridden 10 miles! Go Me! Go Me! Oh yeah - back to Vancouver. The best thing of all - it was 75 degrees and the cabbie told us that was as hot as it EVER gets there. Calgon take me to Vancouver................
Hey Leigh - what is your #1 favorite city - Houston? Yeah right.
Houston is on another list entirely. I bet you can guess which one.
Nothing has topped NYC so far! Maybe London will?
omg i can't wait to go there one day!
I have found discrepancy in your awards!! Worlds friendliest taxi drivers??? What about the "death to America" guy that took us to the airport???
Sorry Vancouver Leigh Leigh and the ABCA (association for best city awards) are going to have to take that award back.....
No Vancouver was great, very European and open. I do want to make the point of saying that the city would have not been the same had I not had my most adventurous travel buddy with me!
Great Blog! Sums it up really well, can't wait to hear what you have to say about the rest of the trip.
Post a Comment