We’re home! It’s always fun to get away but good to be home again. Touristing is hard work! I’ve finally gotten caught up with the email and shipping the orders that came in while I was gone and of course unpacking and washing and putting away clothes. One interesting email alerted me to the post from Robert Kaufman Fabric Co’s Spring Market Review featuring my “Chicory” quilt that they loved at Spring Market! Thanks Ruthie!!

As promised, I will try to give you the highlights of the trip on a day to day basis.

Days One and Two:
After getting up at 2:15 to make it to the KC airport on time, that first day was a long one! We took off on United Airlines at 6:30 AM, changed planes in Denver and made it to Vancouver at 10:10 AM. Sounds good! – but there was at least a 3 hour time difference in there so it really seemed a lot later when we got there. A Princess rep was there to meet us and get us in a taxi for a long ride to the Bayshore Westin where we would spend the next few days. It was raining so we thought it might be a good day to spend the afternoon at the Aquarium.

Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Center is billed as one of North America’s biggest and best. We purchased tickets at the tours desk, got settled in to our room and went to lunch. It was two o’clock when we arrived at the aquarium only to find out that they were closing at two for a special event. Luckily we were able to re-catch the shuttle back to the Westin and make arrangements to have the dated tickets honored on the following day which was predicted to be rainy again anyway. We had hoped to spend a day at Victoria Island and the Butchart Gardens, but decided a trip to VanDusen gardens in Vancouver after the Aquarium would do as well. I was really hoping to see some blue Himalayan Poppies on this trip.

The next morning, after a ridiculously expensive breakfast at the Westin, three dollars shy of $50.00, (never mind, we are on vacation!) we set out for the aquarium again. The aquarium is not on the Westin shuttle route but nice tips work wonders and after the regular route we were taken there anyway. A bonus was that we got a tour of the city as well. We had thought that we would spend a couple of hours in the aquarium, but when we were hungry and looked at our watches it was already one o’clock! There was a lot to see with exhibits ranging from Arctic to Tropical. Fish, mammals and other sea creatures abounded.

These cool little guys bury themselves in the sand and grab little bitty things that drift close enough.

I had no idea these things were so colorful!

In addition to fish there were seals, sea lions, walruses and sea otters too.

Time flies when you are having fun and the aquarium was a really fun place to spend a rainy day. We made our way outside to find the covered lunch area next to the Beluga Whale exhibit and discovered that the rain had cleared and it was a lovely afternoon. As we ate lunch, we watched a session of whale handling where the due any day pregnant one rolled over as she had been taught so that a blood sample could be drawn from her tail. By now she has had her baby, a girl and you can watch them on belugacam.

By then it was too late to go to the VanDusen Gardens, but since we were in Stanley Park and within walking distance of the city we decided to enjoy the flowers there instead.

Rhododendrons were in bloom along with many other lovely things.

Hostas and other foliage plants were already huge and lush.

A raccoon came up and grabbed my bag, realised it didn’t smell promisingly of food, so he trundled off and couldn’t be bothered to look back for a picture.

After a bit of a rest we caught the shuttle to the Public Library which is quite impressively styled after the Coliseum in Rome and offers free computer use so I was able to clear some email and respond to the important stuff. Computer time on the ship will be quite expensive. We walked back to the hotel stopping at a restaurant called The Rooster’s Quarters that I had read a good review for in Frommer’s. It offered Quebec style cooking, sounded better than it actually was though.

A full day; tomorrow we will board the ship!

We have to get up at 2:15 in the morning to get to the airport on time tomorrow so it’s off to bed for me….. I am really hoping to clear my head and find some inspiration on this trip. It’s not likely I will find much computer time available but when I do get back home, I’ll tell you all about it!