Vancouver

Fountain in front of Lonsdale Quay Market

 First full day in Vancouver started off with SeaBus ride to Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver.  The first picture is of the entrance to the Lonsdale Quay Market.  There are lots of great shops in the market: food shops, trinkets, even some toy shops. We, my travel buddy Kevin and I, got some apricots and apples from the fruit stand because they were both locally grown. The apple was from Okanagan... around 180 miles from the market, not bad for local.

The view from North Vancouver is rather nice even for a cloudy day.  On the first night we had walked around the convention center which is seen in the second picture on the lower left as the white sails. 

At the edge of the Quay is this look out tower.  For those of you who know me well, you would know that I would never in my right mind climb to the top of that thing... and you are still correct. I got to the top floor of the building it was attached to while Kevin climbed up more to get more pictures of the city and harbor.  Directly behind me from this picture of the lookout platforms is a large crane that blocked most of the view but with creative image selection we got some good pics.

They were setting up for a concert in the park area near the fountain as part of Summer Fest.  We didn't get to stay for the concert because were planning to go meet some friends across town and had to catch the SeaBus back. 

Fountain from above

This is a view of the fountain from where I was on the top floor of the market.  From ground level you can see details of the mosaic but from above the whole under water theme becomes more apparent. We used the fountain for a picnic bench while eating the apples and apricots and enjoying the view of the city between the crane.  It was a great way to start the day in the morning.  We saw lots of families walking about and enjoying scenery as well.

Walking along the harbor we came across various garden patches like this one on the right. Many have some historical connection in relation to unity among nations.  The plaque below the statue shows flags of both Canada and South Korea for this particular.

One of my favorite stops walking along the water has these carved Greeting Figures of the Squamish Nation.  They were at the entrance of a pavilion greeting visitors to the Trans Canada Trail.  The next few pictures show them from various angles.  Each of the carvings have a lot of great character.  The plaque on the first picture explains what each carving represents. This pavilion is located in the west of the Lonsdale Quay where we got off the SeaBus.

Black Squirrel

After leaving the Lonsdale Quay we took the SeaBus back and with a series of trains we arrived at Central Park in Burnaby, Vancouver.  This is where I saw my first black squirrel! Of course it didn't feel like posing for a picture, so you can see it running away in the picture here on the right.  I think I counted three by the time we got left the park. There were also gray squirrels at the park but those I can see any day.

Over all it was a great day in Vancouver, lots more pics that didn't make the cut but I may post them at a later time.  Next stop Seattle... Meet Me Outdoors.