The Queen's Rambles

We’ve been home about 48 hours, but this is the first chance I’ve had to sit down and write. We had an absolutely amazing time in Vancouver, though I don’t recommend traveling with a toddler. Actually, the travel wasn’t bad at all. It was the “enjoying time in the city with friends” that she wasn’t so keen on. Most meals were less than enjoyable, with one of us ferrying her in and out of the restaurant.

Holding still was not an option for her at any point in our trip, no matter how crowded

But Vancouver! Amazing! Beautiful! Scenic! Breezy and sunny and wonderful! And holy hell on a stick expensive! I thought we lived in a high priced market, but we have nothing on Vancouver.

We mostly did nature loving activities like Grouse Mountain, this ski resort place reached via SkyTram and Stanley Park, a big park in the city right on the water. We also walked around the city (and from one end of the island to the other. My feet hurt), rode boats, buses and skytrains, visited farmer’s markets and artisan stalls. We even went to a Caribbean festival and had the best Carne Asada I’ve ever tasted.

Erik was a very good boy for a five year old who was not the center of attention for several days in a row. Not to say he was perfect. He can annoy the heck out of anyone with his constant need to be Right. On. Top. Of. You. He found a friend in Rob, Julie’s teenage son. Erik decided that he was Short Round and Rob was Indiana Jones. The rest of us were bad guys. I think Rob mostly enjoyed having a side kick. I know I enjoyed Erik having a side kick.

Erik said his favorite part of Vancouver was Rob. He wants to move there. But Rob doesn’t live in Canada.

At one point Erik was playing in the snow and basically making a nuisance of himself with snowballs so I decided to teach him a life lesson. I threw him in the snow pile and poured a handful of snow down his back.

Moments before The Incident
Big mistake.

He totally freaked out and was very sad and angry. I believe he threatened to knock my head off. I guess the snow was pretty sharp. Whoops.

What else did we do? We ate a lot. The best meal was an Indian meal recommended by a hotel employee. It was within walking distance, so bonus! I believe it was called India Bistro.

We had some excitement after dinner. We were getting some snacks at a drugstore for the trip home. We were all standing around in the parking lot when I noticed an older lady on her hands and knees. I thought maybe she lost a contact, so I asked her if she needed help. She nodded yes. I went over there and she started having a seizure.

Thankfully Ingrid is much better in emergencies than I am. She knew what questions to ask and how to help the woman, while I just flapped my arms around. A man came up and called 911 and we waited for the paramedics to arrive. It took them a good, long 5 minutes. I hope the lady was ok in the end. We left and didn’t find out. It was pretty crazy.

We were so shook up that we totally missed a spot I was dying to try–The Dessert Heaven. We had to backtrack and found it. It was Transylvanian desserts. Honestly, I was not at all impressed. The girl working the counter was quite dour (she must not have been a real Canadian. They were all so friendly!) and the dessert had an odd taste to it. But now I can say I’ve had Transylvanian cake.

Oh, and how can I forget Erik’s other favorite activity?

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All the kids on Granville Island were catching pigeons. Yes, it made me barf. I seemed to be the only parent who had a problem with it, so I finally let Erik try. It took a long while, but he finally figured it out. I scrubbed him more than he’s ever been scrubbed in his life after this little adventure.

How can I not post this one? It is such an excellent picture of Elsa.

Plenty more pics at Flickr. I may write more later if I think of anything exciting to say. What else is there to say? We had fun!