Well that’s the Canadian leg of my tour over and done with and I’ve got some fantastic memories to take with me. Before leaving Vancouver I managed to resist the lure of a new Apple Store opening and took a trip up Grouse Mountain with a couple of friends for the views, wolves, grizzly bears and the bird and lumberjack shows. We were also graced with a fly pass by a wild bald headed eagle. The next day I went up Cypress mountain to help a friend move equipment into storage now the ski season is over and sneak a peak at the Olympic mogul and aerials slopes.
This afternoon I stopped for some Bulgarian fillos for lunch before picking up a rental car at Vancouver airport. Susan at Budget was a great help and managed to swings so that I didn’t have to switch cars in Seattle and she also upgraded me to a larger car for free. Now, I haven’t driven for several years and I did feel a little nervous before I set off. Call it irresponsible or stupid if you will - at the same time I find it somewhat worrisome that I can legally get behind the wheel without having to sit a refresher course or something.
Once I was underway all my nerves disappeared and I made it down to Seattle with no major incidents barring a little piece of advice from the border official after waiting for an hour. Driving an automatic is undoubtably a help and I’m also in no rush so I can take my time and travel when it’s quieter.
Here are a few more things that I’ve picked up:
- Canadians can’t merge
- The speed limit in Canada is too low
- Don’t padlock your luggage when driving over the border
I spent yesterday afternoon strutting around downtown Vancouver to reacquaint myself with the city and take in the recent developments. I had almost forgotten about the courtesy that drivers show pedestrians over here. If you even vaguely look like you could be thinking about the possibility of maybe crossing the road then the traffic will stop.
I strolled around Canada Place for a while looking at the adjacent building work going on for the 2010 Winter Olympic main media centre and the float planes coming in and going back out again. Someone told me the other week that there were in fact only two seasons in Canada: winter and construction and this seems to be holding true. It was at this point that I was strafed by a squadron of seagulls and decided to call it a day.
This afternoon I hired a bicycle with the plan to go around Stanley Park but I got a little carried away and ended up passing through False Creek, Chinatown and Gastown before going back along the waterfront to Stanley Park and the aquarium. I’m not sure exactly how I feel about aquariums and zoos - I think that I probably fall on the ‘for’ side of the fence. The downside of captivity of wild animals is balanced against the fund raising, preservation and breeding programmes that are in place these days.
Isn’t technology wonderful? I was worried about missing the Champions League final and probably would have had to change my flight had Liverpool beaten Chelsea in the semi but it turns out that I needn’t have worried. WestJet had ESPN available on their seat-back screens so I managed to catch the game at 40,000 feet. Annoyingly we landed 30 minutes ahead of schedule so I missed a large chunk of the second half but I made it through baggage reclaim in plenty time to take up a seat at the bar for extra time and the ensuing penalties.
I have to say that I’m glad Manchester United won. I only actually dislike them now compared with hating Chelsea with a passion and I think that it was somehow a fitting victory 50 years on from the Munich disaster. Bobby Charlton showed so much decorum when Platini tried to give him a winners medal and you have to admire the sportsman in Paul Scholes who went straight to console the opposition.
I had another celebratory pint with the Liverpool supporting barman and then made my way into Vancouver on the Airporter bus trying to spot anything that looked vaguely familiar but a lot has changed in the six years since I last visited the city.
I’m unsure as to what a weekend in Toronto is actually like as it seems that everybody leaves when Friday comes around. Last weekend was spent watching a friend win his first two races of the Ontario Formula Ford Challenge season at Mosport raceway and this weekend I had the pleasure and distinct privilege of being introduced to “Cottage Country” for the Victoria Day holiday. The landscape around Georgian Bay is simply stunning.
Continue reading ‘Good times!’
One thing that is most noticeable here in Canada is the amount of trust that is involved in everyday life. An excellent case-in-point is the City Café Bakery in Kitchener where you are trusted to total your own bill and pay on your way out.
I’m so unused to this honour system way of thinking that I stood for a full uneasy 30 seconds waiting for a ticket at the subway station the other day before remembering that no ticket is actually issued and then walking through the turnstile with mumbled apologies.
You’d think that there would be an abundance of free (a.k.a. “unsecured”) Wifi with all of this trust. You’d be wrong. Coming from New York where freely available wireless access is legion (by design or otherwise) to Toronto where everything is nailed down tight is proving to be a tad annoying.
Despite the minor hassle of being sent back to security when I tried to board the plane at Newark the flight was fairly uneventful. I couldn’t quite make out Niagara Falls on approach to Toronto but hopefully I’ll get to see them up close next week sometime.
I had a wander around downtown yesterday and today to try and get my bearings. Toronto seems like it will be a nice place once it’s finished. Everywhere I look there seems to be a building site. Maybe this is the start of a push to halt the current decline of tourism and tourist satisfaction with Toronto.
