Most travelers from the United States know that cruises from Vancouver, Canada can be found heading to and from Alaska from the port.

We like to watch the ships come and go.

Vancouver is the leading port in Canada.

Summer is an excellent time to visit Vancouver. A good chance you will have drier weather.  Most of the year, like Seattle, it rains.  We came across this rock where someone wrote about the rains in Vancouver.

For a number of years, there has been summer forest fires. There is no doubt that this phenomenon puts a “smokey” cloud in the atmosphere. 

The point of embarkation for ships is “Canada Place.”  The “White Sails” is a give-away. 

The large complex comprises not only cruising facilities, but also the Pan Pacific Vancouver Hotel to name a few of the popular businesses.

Our last visit was in 2017, the 150^th Birthday of Canada.

 

Looking down in the water, we found someone’s suitcase that did not make embarkation.

There are a number of artistic statues nearby

It is easy to see the Float Planes landing and taking off from the port area. Most of these planes are heading to Vancouver Island.

Next door is a popular convention Center.  The Anime Revolution was having a large meeting when we were in town in 2017.  

 Close by is one of my favorite skyscrapers. Built in 1930, the Marine Building was the largest structure in the city until 1939.

 

The “Art Deco” architecture makes it stand out.  We love the various sculpture ornaments that decorate it like the “Zeppelin.”  

The foyer area of the Marine Building is quite unique and artistic.

It is at Canada Place where one can get the free bus to take you over the river to walk over the “Capilano Suspension Bridge.” Originally built in 1889, this bridge is over 470 feet long and 230 feet above a canon river. Over a million people walk over this bridge yearly.

Kathie tried to walk-over, but came back.

We did walk around the “cliff walk.” 

In the summer, a free bus runs also to Grouse Mountain.  We had to use public transportation in 2002.  The peak is over 4000 feet high and it serves as an Alpine ski area during winter.  When the sky is clear, there are magnificent views of the city of Vancouver.

A short walk from Canada Place is “Gastown.”  It was the original settlement of Vancouver back in 1867.  A picture in front of “Gassy” Jack, who ran a saloon, is a popular spot for a picture.

Across the street is a popular Gastown steam clock and is propelled: yes, by steam.  It goes off every 15 minutes with a larger toot on the hour. It is one of those places you have to see for yourself.

We liked how some of the buildings in Vancouver incorporated trees.

A number of buildings dated back to the 1930s:

And some of the buildings had artistic drawings on them.

In 2002, we came across this unusual car.  The cars did change by 2017:

From downtown, one can take a bus to the highly rated Museum of Anthropology. There are a number of interesting collections and exhibitions.  Part of your ticket price is the option to take a guided tour.

 

One of our favorite pieces in the museum is the wood sculpture by Bill Reid known as “The Raven and the First Man.” The artwork is quite impressive.

Being in Canada, obviously there are totem poles.  The largest totem pole in Canada, however, is in Victoria. 

Walking the opposite way from Gastown is the 1000-acre Stanley Park.  Kathie and I love walking around the 7-mile trail that borders Burrard Inlet and English Bay.  Pedestrians and bicyclists each have their own designated paths.

We quickly came to the statue of British Columbia’s Greatest Athlete from 1871-1971, Harry Winston Jerome.  In 1966, he ran the hundred-yard dash in 9.1 seconds.  The man next to the statue, not too fast.

Along the way is the statue of a “Girl in the Wetsuit” created in 1972. 

“The Girl in the Wetsuit” is extremely similar to Copenhagen’s Mermaid which we saw in 2019.

 

The Lions Gate Bridge is 364 feet high.  Every cruise ship can easily travel under this bridge without a problem.

The bridge is actually close to 5000 feet in length.  It is one of the ways to get from Vancouver over to North Vancouver and on the way to the Whistler ski area, home to the 2010 Winter Olympics.  Whistler is only about an hour and a half away by car.

It is easy to recognize “Siwash Rock.”

Indian legend states that a native was turned into this 50-foot pinnacle due to being “unselfish.”  I wonder what happened to a mean native? People have been known to dive off this rock with not so happy results.

There are a number of beaches and even a very large community pool.  We found some of the locals enjoying a game of volleyball.  You have to love a community that places a premium on volleyball courts.

Stanley Park has a popular Aquarium.  We loved the jelly fish displays. 

In 2010, Vancouver still had a beluga whale exposition.

By 2017, the beluga whales were gone. The two beluga whales had died in captivity.

The company, Marineland, would later send two beluga whales from Niagara Falls to Valencia, Spain.  Ironically, I saw beluga whales while visiting Valencia.

In 2010, we had a picture taken of us along English Bay at a Inukshuk statue.  It was the symbol for Canada’s 2010 Winter Olympics.

There are plenty of places to stay in Vancouver.  On our first journey in 2002, we stayed at the comfortable Granville Island hotel.  It was really close to a number of artistic houseboats and the Market area was a short walk away.

In Charleson Park close by we came across these signs.  How simple, but so unique.

One of our favorite places to stay in Vancouver is the Blue Horizon Hotel. It is right on the main shopping street of Vancouver, Robson Street. 

The rooms are large and comfortable. 

If you can swing it, the rooms that face Robson have the best views in our opinion.

In late June of 2002, we came across “Dragon Boat Races.”  A traditional Chinese contest of 22 members racing a canoe. There can also be races between 18 people, 10 people or 8 people.  These were large Dragon Boats we saw that particular day.

In 2010, we witnessed a bicycle protest in downtown Vancouver.  A movement was formed to incorporate more bicycles in the downtown area.

Chinatown in Vancouver is the largest in Canada. 

In 2004, we did visit Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Gardens.

In 2017, we came across a street that was blocked off for “marijuana” displays.  There was a big push at that time to legalize marijuana in Vancouver.

Then, too,  in early August of 2017, we witnessed 600,000 people along the streets of downtown Vancouver celebrating the LGBT Pride Parade.  The following are pictures we took of that special day.

 

One of the areas we like the most is Granville Island.  The only remaining old time industrial company on Granville is a cement company. 

Granville Island is actually a peninsula today.  One can get to it by taking a bus, taxi or even a boat-taxi across.  Parking is limited.

We thoroughly enjoy going through the Market area.

  In one section, there are food kiosks.

One of the kiosks we enjoyed was a Vietnamese vendor.  We had the Tumeric Coconut Curry soup from Chau Veggie Express.   I placed a fried egg on my soup and the entire dish was absolutely delicious. We went back twice to have these soups.

One of my favorite donuts is from “Lee’s.” The Old Fashion Glazed is exceptional. 

 

We had to try the flight of beers at the Granville Brewery.  There were a few beers that were a bit too bitter for me.

Also on Granville is the chain restaurant called “The Keg.”  For years, I have loved their teriyaki steak. 

There is also a Keg restaurant in downtown Vancouver.  Again, I had to have the teriyaki steak.

Kathie enjoyed the sautéed mushrooms and a shrimp salad:

In Canada, one has to drink a “Caesar’s cocktail.”  It is a variation of a Bloody Mary made with Clamato, a pickled green bean and celery salt.

Greater Vancouver has a population over two million people.  The city is vibrant and has plenty of ambiance.  It is what we call a “Young People’s City.”  There is plenty of bicycling, walking and even paddle-boarding.

Tourism is not the only economy of Vancouver.  Making movies has become a major industry.  Thus, Vancouver has become known as “Hollywood North.”

At our last visit in the summer of 2017, the major picture of Deadpool Two was being filmed.  Unfortunately, in the same week of our visit a stunt woman was killed as she was riding a motorcycle that crashed into a building. The movie was filmed with the Canadian-American actor, Ryan Reynolds.

From Vancouver, one can easily drive to see where the 2010 Olympics were held in Whistler. 

Or, take the ferry from two different places and reach Vancouver Island.  Victoria is one of my all-time favorite Canadian cities.