Day 16
What a day!
We began the day taking the free shuttle from Canada Place to Capilano Rainforest, huge Douglas Firs and Red Cedars, Totems, Raptor Centre, Treetop walk, Cliff walk, and the infamous Suspension Bridge .. The whole area is breathtaking .. The original suspension bridge, was made of hemp rope and cedar planks, was built in 1889 (same year as the Eiffel Tower). Todays version is built with steel cables and wooden planks.
The suspension bridge is 137 m long and rises 70 m above the Capilano River below. It is definitely a balance struggle to cross the bridge as it sways from the weight of the hundreds doing the crossings
On the Treetop Walk, Douglas Firs stretch 30 m from the forest floor and multiple types of vegetation grow throughout. Numerous spiders, slugs, squirrels, birds, and more call Capilano home. The Cliff Walk goes through the rainforest vegetation on a suspended walkway jutting out from a granite cliff face.
During our walk, after taking some pics with his Leica, Todd went to put the lens cap back on, but it slipped from his hand. He tried to catch it with his foot before it slipped through the slot at the bottom of the railing onto the forest floor below, but down it fell. We could see it below, and Todd began to assess the logistics of hopping the fence to retrieve it….. Dont even think about it!!! was my response ..
For lunch we ate across the street from the Capilano park at The Bridge House Restaurant good choice. We split the Spinach Salad (baby spinach leaves, goat cheese, toasted almonds, sundried cranberries, shredded carrots, and roasted beets with white balsamic and honey vinaigrette) and the Chicken Wrap with Yam Fries delicious lunch!
Upon returning home and relieving our feet of the hikers to put on sandals, we walked to the Gastown area.
This area is a fun older part of the city unique stores and multiple restaurants in an area with cobblestone walkways, a steam-powered clock, and architecture dating to when Gastown was Vancouvers first downtown area developed in the late 1860s. We stopped at Steamworks Brewery Restaurant for Todd to sample some local beer (I stuck to wine .).
To take advantage of the $25 food/beverage credit per night that we received booking with our Visa, we enjoyed people-watching in the lounge of the Fairmount. I ordered a chocolate martini and Todd ordered a traditional martini. The lounge was busy with all kinds of interesting people ..
Japadog was the choice for dinner…hotdogs with a Japanese twist. We had seen Japadog featured on Anthony Bourdain and Eat St. Todd had the Okonomi a juicy Kurobuta sausage topped with bonito flakes. I ordered the Terimayo with teriyaki sauce, mayo and seaweed. As far as hotdogs go, these dogs were unique and definitely worth a try (I know, Betsy and my mother would think otherwise
.).
Vancouver is an amazing city….multiple ethnic food choices, friendly people, a good transit system, a mix of old and new architecture, forested area, city-life, and ocean, rich and poor (never in 24 hours have we seen so many BMWs, Mercedes, Lamborghinis, Maseratis, Porsches, and Rolls Royces and on the opposite end of the spectrum – street people begging for money and going through the garbage). All in all, we can see why Vancouver is one of the best cities in which to retire.
Three days was not near enough time to explore the city. We missed so much , and will need to return some day ..
