West Coast Quirk

As we passed another weed shop this morning after breakfast on our way to Granville Island, I was finding the west coast lifestyle noticeably different from the rest of Canada. Perhaps quirky would be a fitting description. In the Granville Island Market, I sipped  lychee bubble tea while listening to Ralph the former physics major play '40 tunes on his ukulele. I spied a skull and crossbones flag flying on a sailboat nearby in the harbour - is that even allowed? We next spotted an intriguing  poster, but sadly we didn't have time to take in a Zen workshop with Martin entitled "Rolling Down A Grassy Hill".

Rather than going Zen, we spent the afternoon with my Uncle Robert, who's been living here in West Vancouver since the '60's. When I visit Robert we always seem to walk through Stanley Park and then go for dinner at our favorite Singapore restaurant. It was a nice last evening spent with family.

By the way, here is Elizabeth showing off her muscle man moves over breakfast while feigning "Oh, is there gum on my shoe?" Maybe she's caught the west coast quirk.

Apple picking at Grandma's

What a beautiful backyard with various apple trees, flower gardens and vegetable gardens. The place requires a lot of upkeep but on a day like today it must seem worth it. Here Elizabeth is picking apples with Catheleen's help

The tide is always a consideration when doing activities along the shore. It's also just fun to pay attention to the tide tables. Catheleen and the kids went for a hike along the shore at low tide and walked for some distance while watching the fishermen bring in the crab catch. Maybe we'll get out for another walk tomorrow, around noon in concert with the low tide again.

Falls and White Rock

We started off our day with a visit to Bridal Falls.  The waterfall was nice but what I liked the most was the short hike through the forest. It's not like anywhere else I've been with its huge cedar trees covered in moss - reminds me of some kind of a cold jungle. We poked at the big slugs along the way and the kids made their way back and forth across the creek along fallen trees.

In the afternoon we headed for White Rock for lunch with relatives and some time along the ocean front- the kids made a geocache find near the beachfront, which they were quite excited about. Later we had a farewell dinner in Abbotsford with my parents. I like this picture with Catheleen and Elizabeth walking ahead while the train whizzes by along the White Rock shoreline. There's been talk for years about moving the tracks elsewhere which would be good, but for today we felt the rush of train rolling by at close quarters.

We packed in a lot of activities for one day. We're going to have to slow down the pace over the next six months.

Sibling rivalry and wine

It's been great spending some time with my extended family. They are mostly in western Canada and I don't get out here to visit as often as I should. I went for a run this morning with my sister Bonnie and her husband John - middle two in the shot below. It was good to get out to help shake off the jet lag along with a lingering cold that's finally on the wane.  We even managed to re-live some sibling rivalry over who could do the most push-ups - sadly I didn't prevail.

In the afternoon the kids went with their Grandfather for an activity while we visited a winery near Hope called Kermode Wild Berry Wines near Mission. The berries are picked by locals throughout B.C. After much taste testing we settled on the Himalayan Blackberry Merlot and a few others. Afterwards we went to the Blackberry Kitchen  in the Fraser Valley Heritage Park. A nice afternoon spent with my sisters Bonnie and Christine, John and Catheleen reminiscing and enjoying the day.