First Stamp

It's official - I have gotten my first stamp in my new passport. This summer, with little time left for a vacation, rather than head abroad, we decided to head to Canada. Thanks to the generosity of Cat and Barry, Danny and I were able to afford a last minute getaway to Vancouver and Whistler for five days, arriving back home late Tuesday night. As I went back to work officially, full-time today, I'd say we successfully maximized every last moment of summer vacation.

Though the weatherman threatened to rain on our parade, you'll see in the photos that most days ended up quite nice. We were able to appreciate the beauty of the sea and the mountains in the lush green spaces of British Columbia.

Cat and Barry escorted us up to Lynn Canyon, where we crossed the suspension bridge and hiked through some of the gorges.

Interestingly, we happened upon a search and rescue mission - not something that happens every day! Apparently, some teenagers were jumping off the rocks (I should tell you that swimming is discouraged at Lynn Canyon since people die there every year,) and one of them jumped with his arms out to his sides, like in a T. The water pressure dislocated his shoulders, leaving him trapped in the water. His two friends jumped in after him and all three of them needed extracting. It was quite an event.

Not every day was madness and chaos though. We spent some time just walking and relaxing on the beach,

enjoying views of the city,

and visiting some of the Olympic venues.

the Olympic torch

the bobsled and luge run

the Olympic rings at Whistler

We also made friends with the Inukshuk, who Danny has affectionately named Nanook.

One of our days, we took a Harbor Cruise up Indian Arm. We got to see fjords, and pulled right up into Silver Falls.

On our last day, we headed about two hours north up to Whistler Mountain. Here we enjoyed some outdoor adventures like horseback riding and zip-lining. The zips were approximately 200m above the treetops, the longest was 2200m long, and we reached speeds of about 30mph. The final zip was a freestyle and our guides taught me how to flip upside down. It was quite a trip!

This was, as all my trips tend to be, also a foodie vacation. Unfortunately, we did a terrible job photographing the food. I can tell you that we ate at an incredible Japanese Fusion restaurant in Kitsilano. Hands down the best Japanese food I've ever had. We had lots of fresh seafood, including my first experience with raw oysters! And we tried Tim Hortons for the first time. (I loved the honey-dipped, but the majority of flavors don't compare to Dunkin Donuts for me.)

I did manage to grab a photo of another first - a japadog. Yes, it's a Japanese hotdog cart. Mine had seaweed and mayo, as well as some special sauce on it. It was actually really tasty, even though I know you're thinking that it both looks and sounds gross. They've been featured on the Food Network and I have to suggest you try them if you have the chance.