Long-weekend in Vancouver

This past weekend, Mallar and I drove up to Vancouver, Canada. It was my first time really seeing the city, my previous experience with Vancouver being confined to the airport. In Denmark, a lot of the people we met seemed to associate Canada with Vancouver and it was funny explaining to them that 1) yes, I was Canadian but no, I had never been to that city and 2) that Vancouver was just about as far from Montreal as Denmark was from Montreal.
So finally, the Montrealer visits the West Coast and tries to unpack some of her East Coast prejudices about the "tree-hugging potheads" of B.C. ; )


We were a little unlucky with the weather but still took advantage of the access to nature right in the middle of the city. On our first day, we rented bikes and toured Stanley Park, stopping to check out the awesome totem poles, and eat a few cherries (fresh from the Okanagan Valley) at Third Beach. We met up with our friend Adjmal (who had been working there for the summer) and Mallar's long-time friend, Andrea (who has lived in Vancouver for 8 years).


We also went to the food market at Granville Island to buy some fresh salmon. Granville Island used to be an industrial manufacturing area but is now a major tourist destination with shops, art and craft studios, a marina, theatre, etc. We didn't stay long because of our bike rentals but I think Mallar and I would definitely return to explore some of the pottery shops.

We also rendez-voused with my aunt Cathy and uncle Dan on the trip as they were in town visiting the same weekend. They were staying in a condo right in the heart of the city and close to their son, Thomas. I was very happy to see my cousin Thomas (it had been almost 5 years) and meet his fiancée and her two daughters for the first time.

I didn't run into all that many scruffy tree-huggers in the end. In the city, we encountered mostly intense designer fitness yuppies. By this I mean, 20, 30 and 40 something cyclists and joggers in very spiffy workout gear. I was actually kind of relieved to return to the more unkempt city of Seattle. It's a little weird to feel under-dressed next to people in their workout clothes.