Vancouver in less than 48 hours

In hindsight, we should’ve given ourselves more than a day and a half to explore the largest city in British Columbia, but Jay and I made the best of our time and covered a lot of ground — all by foot! Join me for a walking tour of this gorgeous city…

We got into the city late afternoon after our ski trip at Whistler.

After finding and settling into a our hotel, we immediately set out to find food. The twinkle lights and cobblestone streets of Gastown drew us in.

The Gastown steam clock even whistles! It’s powered by steam from the city’s downtown centralized heating system. At right is a statue of “Gassy” Jack Deighton, a steamboat captain who arrived in 1867 and opened the area’s first saloon.

Funny how we go to Vancouver to end up eating at a Carolina barbecue place. No regrets though, this place was delicious. (Insider tip: order the jalapeno pork sausage smokie and a side of their hush puppies with honey bourbon dip!)

Canada Place, home to Vancouver’s convention centre, that also acts as a cruise ship terminal.

There were float planes everywhere. Stanley Park is in the distance above and you can even make out Lions Gate Bridge beyond the park.

Boat houses, people. How fabulous are these?!

We walked along Vancouver Harbour and over to Stanley Park and the Burrard Inlet. Above at left is the Brockton Point Lighthouse and at right is the park’s collection of totem poles.

The views from Stanley Park are amazing. The park is 1,001 acres and has walking and bike trails throughout.

Deep in the park are rain forests containing red cedars, hemlocks and Douglas firs. It was so very peaceful here.

English Bay Beach

The view from Granville Street Bridge. Burrard Street Bridge in the distance.

A bird’s-eye view of our lunch time spot: the Granville Island Public Market.

 Feed me now! Thai noodle salad and risotto cake from Laurelle’s Fine Foods.

Did you think we would leave without getting dessert?! Cheesecake, cream puff sundae and a side of French macarons. We may have gone a little overboard.

After leaving Granville and making the long walk back to our hotel, we re-energized with one of the best mochas I’ve had, courtesy of Caffé Artigiano.

After we booked Vancouver, I have to tell you that I was most excited about visiting its Chinatown, the largest in Canada. After having been there, I have to say that the streets were disturbingly quiet and a little scary, but it didn’t stop us from having one of our favorite meals.

Above at left, the Sam Kee building is the shallowest commercial building in the world, according to the Guinness Book of Records. At right was our dinner stop.

 Phnom Penh specializes in Cambodian/Vietnamese food. Highly recommend anything fried on the menu, haha. We got the spicy spare ribs and fried rice; so good!

One last photo of Canada Place lit up at night to round out our tour. Vancouver, I hope one day we’ll meet again!