This has been a long and discouraging week for me. I took the GRE after months of studying and unfortunately I did not receive the results I was hoping for. I needed something to focus on instead of my grades, so I decided to plan a weekend getaway to Vancouver. One of the best things about living in the Pacific Northwest is how close we are to Canada. With just a quick 2 hour drive, we can be in the Great White North. Austin and I visited Vancouver during our honeymoon, so we were excited to get back to the beautiful city we fondly remembered. On Saturday we packed our car, grabbed our passports, and headed for the border. My anxiety starts kicking in about 30 minutes before the border crossing, but it was a quick and easy stop before we were in Canada. Our first priority was to find a Tim Hortons for breakfast. We made a leisurely break in Surrey and enjoy one of our favorite Canadian treats- Tim Bits.
Yes these are just doughnut holes and I am sure Dunkin' Donuts or Krispie Kreme each make a delicious variety, but for some reason Canadian doughnut holes in a shop owned by a former hockey star just taste better. After wiping the doughnut glaze off our fingers and finishing our last sips of coffee, we drove the remaining 45 minutes to Vancouver.
Our first stop in the city was to the Tickets Tonight booth in the Tourism Center. If you are looking to book a cheap tour or show this is the place to go. We purchased half-price tickets to a comedy show for later that night. With our evening plans in place we were ready to enjoy our afternoon exploring Vancouver. The forecast showed rain all weekend, but luckily it was very light for the start of our afternoon. We decided to do a self-guided walking tour of Gastown before grabbing lunch. I always love taking walking tours when I am on a trip because they are the perfect way to learn about the history and significance of different areas in a city. I recommend visiting the Frommer's website before your next trip to find a fun self-guided walking tour. This is the tour we followed in Vancouver.
I choose this tour because it took us around the Gastown area, a quaint neighborhood I remember strolling through on our honeymoon. It was nice to reminisce about that trip while walking along the brick lined streets past ornate lamp posts and the famous steam clock.
The tour also took us into Chinatown, which was an area we had not explored before.
The highlight of our time in Chinatown was the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Park. This was a peaceful Chinese garden that included a walking path and areas to sit, reflect, and relax.
When we finished the tour we were ready for lunch, so we headed to Nandos. This might not be everyone's pick on a trip to such a gastronomically renowned city, but Austin and I seek out this South African chain any chance we get. I was first introduced to the casual rotisserie restaurant while studying abroad in London, and ever since it has been a fun place to eat and remember my time in England. There are only a few Nandos in the States, so it is always a treat when we travel and have the opportunity to enjoy the delicious peri peri chicken (and of course the incredible perinaise sauce).
After lunch we checked into our Air B&B in North Vancouver and refreshed before heading to Granville Island. It was raining harder at this point, but with the indoor public market, this is a great place to escape the elements. We wandered around the market and a few nearby shops before heading back to Gastown to grab a drink.
While there are plenty of places to nosh in Gastown, I can highly recommended 131 Water. With reasonably priced drinks, appetizers, and a wall of board games, this was the perfect place to spend a few hours on a rainy Saturday night. We found a table by the window so we could enjoy the twinkle lights in the tree lined-streets of Gastown.
After playing Trivial Pursuit and enjoying a couple of delicious cocktails, we walked to Chinatown for some ramen. We happened to find The Ramen Butcher and shared a delicious meal of gyoza and chicken ramen.
Since our comedy show was not until 11:15pm, we still had some time before we needed to head to the theater. We continued eating our way through Vancouver by visiting Off The Grid Waffles for dessert. This is a cafe that specializes in waffle pizzas and waffle milkshakes.
Every table had Jenga blocks and we enjoyed playing a few games while sipping on our brownie waffle shake. We then made our way back to Granville Island for the OkTinder improv show at Vancouver's Theater Sports. This provided some great laughs and was a fun way to end our day in Vancouver.
We had originally planned to leave Vancouver early Sunday morning so we could hike in the North Cascades before heading home. However, I am still learning that the weather in the PNW is nothing like the weather I am used to in Tennessee. After checking the weather forecast and realizing that it was snowing on the trail, we decided to stay in Vancouver for the day. Since we were unable to hike, we decided to go for a run along the Stanley Park Seawall. We were treated to a crisp, sunny autumn morning as we began our run.
Luckily the rain held off, and we enjoyed a wonderful 6-mile run past beaches and gorgeous autumn trees. We even saw a few sea lions in the water! Stanley Park is one of my favorite spots in Vancouver. There views are incredible and there are numerous paths that wind through the park. On our honeymoon we rented bikes to ride along the Seawall which is another great way to experience the park.
After our run we were ready for breakfast so we headed to 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters. When we arrived the line was out the door and I completely understand why. In addition to delicious coffee they serve a tempting assortment of doughnuts and pastries. We visited the Main Street location which had a covered outdoor patio and a window into the kitchen where you can watch the doughnuts being made. We found a table in the patio and had a relaxed morning sipping delicious coffee and sampling their unique Sourdoughnut. As we were finishing our treats we were already planning our next trip to Vancouver just to come back to 49th Parallel.
Vancouver was the perfect weekend getaway from Seattle. I know we will be back but I am also excited to visit other areas of Canada soon. Victoria is currently at the top of my list since it is also close to Seattle and it would be a new place to explore! If you have any recommendations for weekend trips from Seattle or places in BC to visit let me know in the comments below!
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