Fire Sky

On Friday, we bought some sleeping bags for -5C weather for our camping trip to Banff next month from Mountain Equipment Co-op. I also bought a medium sized duffle bag. We also went to Canadian Tire on Cambie. We lifted up Coleman and other brands of sleeping bags and they were heavy compared to the MEC ones we bought. A 5 pound sleeping bag!

I bought a air pump ac/dc charger. One of our battery operated one died. I am tired of buying batteries anyhow. I am researching battery rechargers and leaning towards buying one. The recharger kits seem expensive, but I realize it is an investment. The batteries say they last three times longer than regular disposable batteries and can be used up to 500 times.

After our shopping excursion, we met up with Becky and Brian and some of his friends for a drink and dinner. We walked west down Broadway, but we could not find anything. The Rugby Beach Club Grille was vetoed, which was disappointing because I was so looking forward to trying it. The Korean BBQ place had no one in it except one lonely woman. Habibi's was closed. I vetoed all-you-can-eat sushi.

So we opted for the Mongolie Grill. I like how you can pick your own meat and vegetables. You try and guess the weight of your selection; if you guess correctly, you receive your dinner for free. We got to sit outside on the patio beside two billboard signs. There was constant honking and police sirens going off at Cambie and Broadway. I wondered how much the noise level would disturb the future tenants of the four developing buildings in the area.

 

Today, I met up with Adam and Chris for a walk. We walked down Robson and then Denman to try and find sushi. But nothing was really standing out. I vetoed Dairy Queen. We tried to go to Musashi, but it was closed. We walked back to Capers. Chris suggested grabbing food for a picnic at Stanley Park. I grabbed a turkey, brie and roasted apple sandwich, Que Pasa chips, Muir Glen salsa, and sun-dried tomato hummus. Topped it off with some Boylan's cream soda.

We walked over to the seawall entrance and past some Bicenntenial art structures on West Georgia. Chris said the red structure looked like pick-up sticks. We walked along the seawall past the Vancouver Rowing Club. We walked into the park past the parking lot towards the Vancouver Aquarium. We cut through the main park area towards Lumberman's Arch. It was busy on the lawn, but not as busy as I thought it would be.

As soon as we sat down, we were surrounded by nine seagulls. Walking past Painter's Corner in the front the park, we saw a kid feeding a seagull by hand and his dad taking pictures. Tourists are so ignorant. I remember seeing a woman once feed a raccoon a banana.

Being at Lumberman's Arch reminded me of my childhood. Our dad used to take us there to play in the sand in the pool (before it was a water park it was a pool that was designed to fill up with ocean water). We used to get takeout fish and chips and feed the seagulls extra chips. Ahh, so much time has passed and the park and zoo have changed so much.

A nice way to spend a summer afternoon. We spotted an eagle flying back and forth over the sky and a giant cruise ship sailing out of Burrard Inlet. The cruise ship had eight decks. Massive--like a mobile city on the ocean.

After an hour or so, we walked back towards the entrance of the park. I picked up two discarded water bottles on the ground. I loathe litter in green spaces. How lazy can you be? If we continue to litter in our green spaces, we may be sitting in piles of garbage every time we want to go and enjoy these spaces. Leave No Trace. Pack it in, pack it out. Please, pitch in and do your part, or our city will be littered everywhere.

We detoured off the walkway to the little area where you can walk down and look at one aquarium exhibit for free. The aquarium is lovely, but expensive for $18 per person. We viewed a sea lion resting on a rock and two harbour seals swimming around. It reminded me somewhat of being at the Oregon Zoo after the Oregon Coast trip in 2004 (central to south coast).

We walked out of the park back towards West Georgia and continued along the path towards the Coal Harbour seawall. We enjoyed the view of Stanley Park and the mountains on the North Shore while walking towards the Westin Bayshore and Marina. We stopped off at the community centre for some drinks. I was surprised at how many wedding parties we saw (one taking photos, another on a boat cruise, and another holding a reception in the community centre).

We sat in front of the water park and relaxed while taking in the view. We are so lucky to have so much public access to the water and great parks all over Vancouver.

 

Said goodbye to the guys and took a packed bus home to Kitsilano. Rested and refreshed at home for a bit before going out again to meet my mate for ice cream. Paradiso Italian Gelato on Yew Street between York Avenue and Cornwall Avenue is the best I have ever been to in Vancouver. I love their vanilla and tiramisu combination. Their waffle cones are delicious and the perfect sweetness. Today, I choose tiramisu and raspberry. You can ask for a single cone split with two smaller flavours instead of one large one. A great deal and it makes it slightly easier to decide. The owner makes the gelato from scratch in the shop.

Walked towards the beach and told a nice couple where we got our ice cream (they asked so nicely!). A little girl came up to me in yellow Crocs and asked me why I was wearing to different colours of Holey Soles. She was so adorable.

Sat at the beach watching the beautiful sunset. Felt sorry for a speed boat that had engine troubles and drifted towards the beach and rocky area. The sunset was the best one I have seen this year with fiery red, orange, and yellow. I guess smog is good for something.

Listening to: Bob Marley - Everything's Gonna Be Alright