Vancouver 2.0.

When you travel you meet a lot of people, new people every month, every week, every day. Some people just cross your path, some people stay for a while and eventually you lose track of each other and sometimes you meet people that you know will stay in your life, people that are worth changing your travel plans for. I was lucky enough to meet someone that fits into that last category of people and that gave me a reason to give Vancouver a second chance.

This is how I experienced Vancouver, the second time around:

Sushi and bubble tea

Starting off with a random topic but really this is one of the biggest highlights for me. Having bubble tea and sushi pretty much everywhere around you is just THE dream. Having a friend that loves it as much as you do, is the best thing ever.

Drive in Theatre

Ok ok, to all my Belgian friends: let’s be real. Drive in theaters, it’s a thing from the MOVIES, am I right? I think I’ve seen Grease like 50 times (who am I kidding, probably way more) and I always love the ‘drive in’ scene. Who knew you could actually go to one. I obviously got excited like a little kid, smuggling in snacks and watching the new MIB movie from the car!

North Vancouver - Deep Cove Kayaking

North Vancouver left me with a bitter aftertaste. I wasn’t too keen on going back to the place that killed my travel vibe and made me return to Belgium but Vancouver 2.0. was all about second chances so there we go. The good company and great choice of activity (kayaking) and food (honey doughnuts and a London fog, of course) made up for it and made sure to give me some good North Van memories as well.

Commercial drag

I didn’t need a second opinion on commercial drag. I already knew I loved it and I was just really lucky to be able to see another show while in Vancouver.

Imax theater

So in Canada they have Imax theaters at the movies. And I had never been to one, so we went to see the Lion King. The movie happened to be in 3D as well so it was pretty epic!

Shameful tiki room

This Hawaian themed bar serves the BEST cocktails and it was Waikiki Wednesday, so they had some dancers perform the night we were there.

Fort Langeley

Hanging out with a local means seeing parts of a city you wouldn't usually see as a tourist. We went to Fort Langeley where we had lunch in a 50’s dinner (felt like I was in the Grease movie again, of course).

White Rock

Another hidden gem I would have never seen as a tourist.

Escape room

One of my favorite things to do, trying to escape out of a room! We did a pirates of the Caribbean one, but didn’t get out in time.

Sunshine coast

We went to Roberts Creek and Gibsons on the sunshine coast for a night. We stayed in a really cute tiny house, went to a brewery, ate some amazing seafood and had a go at stand up paddle boarding. The perfect combination for a great weekend.

Castle fun park

Castle fun park is an indoor amusement park with arcade games, photo boots, mini golf and sports games. And yes here I am again, saying that it’s something from the movies, ‘cause it is! We played mini golf, a bunch of arcade games and DDR. I’d seen a dance revolution game before but I’d never actually played. This time I felt like I was starring in Step Up!

Wildplay

I knew from my visit on Vancouver Island that the Island and Vancouver both had a Wildplay. Wildplay is an adventure park with obstacle courses and ziplines. We had a blast balancing, swinging, zip lining and climbing.

S’mores

This is not really an activity, but this is a typical American snack made with Graham crackers, marshmallows and chocolate. I had my first one when we had a bonfire in the backyard!

Cultus lake

On my last day in Vancouver we went to get snacks and a floaty and drove to Cultus Lake. We had the best time floating around, listening to music and eating snacks on this beautiful sunny day. Couldn’t have wished for a better last day in Canada.

Apart from all of these adventures I also spend a day with Raya in the city and went to Kelowna for a couple of days. Needless to say that these 2,5 weeks changed my opinion about Vancouver drastically and gave me some amazing memories.

Paige, thank you so so much for being my host, private tour guide, adventure buddy, partner in crime (sometimes literally ;-)) and most of all FRIEND during my last weeks in Canada. I already miss us wasting our time in grocery stores, drinking bubble tea, singing our favorite songs in the car with the windows down, spending hours at Lush, eating sushi (or pizza pops ;-)), drinking Disarono and making travel plans and talking for hours through tears and laughter. I can’t wait for our next adventure together.

While I was in Vancouver I decided to change my flight from Vancouver to London instead of Montréal. I stayed a few days in London before heading back home. Only few people knew I was coming back and I had my reasons for all of that. For now, I have a job in Belgium until August 2020 and I’m looking for a new place. I don’t know if I will go back to Canada or Australia or if I will go travel again for a while… Time will tell.

This will be my last blog post but I’m sure there will be more to come…

Love,

Joke/Jay