There are not many places in the world where you can walk outside and see cherry blossoms blooming and just behind them see snow capped mountains. That is what everyday has been like here. Vancouver is a very "green" city in all aspects of the word. There is green all over the city and it's beautiful, but it is also environmentally friendly green. They pride themselves in this fact. You are required to recycle and certain items are not allowed in the trash. They prefer that you don't use plastic bags at the grocery (or any store), so you better bring your own or you will be charged per bag. If you buy something that is in a can or glass or plastic bottle, you are charged an extra fee and tax on it. So, I have noticed that things, like spices, are typically bought in little bags instead of containers.
We have filled this last week full. We have been exploring and learning our new city, and we have had fun finding things. We have gone to many of the "main attractions" for the city including Lonsdale Quay, the totem poles at Stanley Park, Granville Island, and some other places. The picture above is a view of Vancouver as we were crossing the inlet to Lonsdale Quay (pronounced "key"). Don't mess that one up or they will definitely know you are a tourist! :)
Here we are riding the seabus over to the Quay. It only takes about 10 minutes to cross the inlet and we had some pretty good views in the process.
We are still trying to find out the best places to shop for food. We have found a store called Zellers that reminds me of a Target. It seems to be the closest and the cheapest for many things. The kids are becoming quite the experts in public transit. I took just Katherine out the other night for a quick trip to the store and she looks at me and says, "Are we going to get on the 130 bus?" I couldn't believe she got the bus number right.
The kids were quite fascinated at the ability to buy an octopus in the market. I must say, I have never seen this either. Any takers?
We went to Granville Island which is a nice little market by the water. There are little shops around, a market for fresh foods of all sorts, and this little open area (where the birds gather) and entertainers perform hoping to get some spare change. The view is nice just about everywhere in the city, but here you had the water filled with boats, the city, and the mountains all together.
Mmmm. This made our mouths water when we saw this little display. We might have to make a trip back for a little splurge. We let the kids get a cookie while we were there, but that was all for this trip.
Since we have been here, we have heard just about every language. I thought it was funny because Benjamin just seemed to fit right in to the poster. We have talked to MANY people since we have been here. I always like to ask, "Are you from Vancouver?" I have yet to get a single person to respond, "Yes." We have met people from Hungary, Palestine, Iran, China, Korea, Japan, England, Australia, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam, and one lady (now that I think about it) that was from Surrey (a suburb of Vancouver). I suppose that is supposed to mean something to me, but she was very clear to me that she was not from Vancouver. I'm sure there are other countries, but those are the ones I can put faces to right now.
There was a fallen tree at Stanley Park, so I took advantage of the photo op. This park was the busiest out of all the parks we visited. People here were riding bikes, walking, rollerblading, etc. This is the place where we found the totem poles.
This is also Stanley Park. I guess it really reminded me of what I always picture how Central Park in New York would be. Maybe it's just me. I did like all the artists paintings.
I took this picture for Regan. This is not the only wild animal we have seen here. Yesterday, we saw a coyote running across someone's lawn. I guess they adapt to big city living, too. We watched this racoon climb right next to a person on a bench. The lady on the bench didn't even seem to notice. I don't think I would have let it get that close, but then again, it probably didn't want to get that close to us either with all our kids :)
Ok, this sign just made me laugh. This is the building that we had church in on Sunday. I really don't think you would see this sign back in Tennessee! Again, just made me laugh.
We walked up to Queen Elizabeth park. It was the most beautiful park I have been to. Even on a "cloudy/not so clear" day, it was breath-taking. This picture doesn't show it, but you could see the entire city and all the mountains from here.
Two of my girls posing at this same park. They have decided to "surprise us" in the mornings by getting themselves dressed before breakfast. It's been kinda nice and they haven't picked out anything yet that I just couldn't live with.
Here's a cute one of Lauren. She still isn't walking yet, but if you ask her to sneeze, she will pretend to. She just smiles and waves at everyone who gets on the bus. She's a good little baby.
And finally, this has been the favorite toy of the week. The kids have really loved having all their toys back. We have enjoyed watching them play with them again. Please, keep remembering us as everone continues to adjust to new surroundings.
There are not many places in the world where you can walk outside and see cherry blossoms blooming and just behind them see snow capped mountains. That is what everyday has been like here. Vancouver is a very "green" city in all aspects of the word. There is green all over the city and it's beautiful, but it is also environmentally friendly green. They pride themselves in this fact. You are required to recycle and certain items are not allowed in the trash. They prefer that you don't use plastic bags at the grocery (or any store), so you better bring your own or you will be charged per bag. If you buy something that is in a can or glass or plastic bottle, you are charged an extra fee and tax on it. So, I have noticed that things, like spices, are typically bought in little bags instead of containers.
We have filled this last week full. We have been exploring and learning our new city, and we have had fun finding things. We have gone to many of the "main attractions" for the city including Lonsdale Quay, the totem poles at Stanley Park, Granville Island, and some other places. The picture above is a view of Vancouver as we were crossing the inlet to Lonsdale Quay (pronounced "key"). Don't mess that one up or they will definitely know you are a tourist! :)
Here we are riding the seabus over to the Quay. It only takes about 10 minutes to cross the inlet and we had some pretty good views in the process.
We are still trying to find out the best places to shop for food. We have found a store called Zellers that reminds me of a Target. It seems to be the closest and the cheapest for many things. The kids are becoming quite the experts in public transit. I took just Katherine out the other night for a quick trip to the store and she looks at me and says, "Are we going to get on the 130 bus?" I couldn't believe she got the bus number right.
The kids were quite fascinated at the ability to buy an octopus in the market. I must say, I have never seen this either. Any takers?
We went to Granville Island which is a nice little market by the water. There are little shops around, a market for fresh foods of all sorts, and this little open area (where the birds gather) and entertainers perform hoping to get some spare change. The view is nice just about everywhere in the city, but here you had the water filled with boats, the city, and the mountains all together.
Mmmm. This made our mouths water when we saw this little display. We might have to make a trip back for a little splurge. We let the kids get a cookie while we were there, but that was all for this trip.
Since we have been here, we have heard just about every language. I thought it was funny because Benjamin just seemed to fit right in to the poster. We have talked to MANY people since we have been here. I always like to ask, "Are you from Vancouver?" I have yet to get a single person to respond, "Yes." We have met people from Hungary, Palestine, Iran, China, Korea, Japan, England, Australia, South Africa, Thailand, Vietnam, and one lady (now that I think about it) that was from Surrey (a suburb of Vancouver). I suppose that is supposed to mean something to me, but she was very clear to me that she was not from Vancouver. I'm sure there are other countries, but those are the ones I can put faces to right now.
There was a fallen tree at Stanley Park, so I took advantage of the photo op. This park was the busiest out of all the parks we visited. People here were riding bikes, walking, rollerblading, etc. This is the place where we found the totem poles.
This is also Stanley Park. I guess it really reminded me of what I always picture how Central Park in New York would be. Maybe it's just me. I did like all the artists paintings.
I took this picture for Regan. This is not the only wild animal we have seen here. Yesterday, we saw a coyote running across someone's lawn. I guess they adapt to big city living, too. We watched this racoon climb right next to a person on a bench. The lady on the bench didn't even seem to notice. I don't think I would have let it get that close, but then again, it probably didn't want to get that close to us either with all our kids :)
Ok, this sign just made me laugh. This is the building that we had church in on Sunday. I really don't think you would see this sign back in Tennessee! Again, just made me laugh.
We walked up to Queen Elizabeth park. It was the most beautiful park I have been to. Even on a "cloudy/not so clear" day, it was breath-taking. This picture doesn't show it, but you could see the entire city and all the mountains from here.
Two of my girls posing at this same park. They have decided to "surprise us" in the mornings by getting themselves dressed before breakfast. It's been kinda nice and they haven't picked out anything yet that I just couldn't live with.
Here's a cute one of Lauren. She still isn't walking yet, but if you ask her to sneeze, she will pretend to. She just smiles and waves at everyone who gets on the bus. She's a good little baby.
And finally, this has been the favorite toy of the week. The kids have really loved having all their toys back. We have enjoyed watching them play with them again. Please, keep remembering us as everone continues to adjust to new surroundings.
