Vancouver - Final Thoughts

So final thoughts on the trip -- Vancouver has a lot to offer, world class eats, beautiful weather for the summer (harder and harder to find these days with all the global warming...), short nonstop flights from the Bay Area, and a weaker Canadian dollar that allows everything to be discounted just a little. Will we come back? For a standalone trip probably not. But if we do another Alaska cruise someday I will definitely consider leaving from Vancouver so we can add a few days pre trip touring. We would also come back for skiing to check out Whistler. 

1. Length - I think for a general first time visitor, probably minimum of 3 days. Most people wouldn't need the two extra days in Richmond for all the food and you could skip the shows and suspension bridge outings. I would do one day sea to sky drive, second day checking out Chinatown/Gastown and then Granville Island, third day downtown, Stanley bike ride, and then stake out a sunset spot on one of the beaches. 

2. Weather - like Alaska, ideal for summers. Based on the reactions I got from locals when I said that we weren't expecting so much rain, it seems rain showers are not uncommon throughout the summer so should be something to plan around (had I realized this sooner, we would have had more rainy day friendly activities on deck to swap around when needed). 

3. Location - Staying in a hotel that is walkable to sights was way more appreciated than I had been expecting, so highly recommend staying in that Robson/Burrard/downtown area. Lots of other options besides Sutton Place too. When the itinerary is full of food stops, being forced to get in a good number of steps at least helps us clear up the necessary stomach space. We probably averaged over 12K steps each day. Our single under 11K day was the biking day. 

4. Traveling with Teenagers - it was hard to avoid some amount of complaining in terms of long walks. But my kids luckily are very food motivated. Though if Tokyo was when the twins moved into preteen stage from child stage, Vancouver is when they firmly established themselves as teenagers. The amount of interest in shopping (for honestly almost anything) and browsing makeup aisles (even when they aren't allowed to wear anything except a light lip gloss) was concerningly high. They also became more attached to their phones (which still have no SIM cards, so they're more like mini tablets) but we are trying our best to hold firm to the time limits. They are way more visually creative than me; some of the shorts they create are actually pretty impressive. I'm looking forward to seeing R's vlog of the trip!

5. Cost - Vancouver was cheaper than the Bay Area but certainly still more expensive than Asia. Ubers felt very cheap because distances were fairly short (thus why we often ended up walking anyhow). But the lower cost meant we often justified splurge meals - so our overall cost of the trip still ended up fairly high (but still cheaper than Asia due to flights - Vancouver was probably $400 round trip, and that was high season). 

6. Money - we used phone tap to pay almost everywhere. The only times we needed something else were the bike rental (needed a physical card for the deposit), shopping in Richmond (some stalls were cash or Canadian debit only) and fruit vendors at Granville (wanted a quarter for a sample). Always remember to pick local Canadian currency if asked! I saw the numbers they were offering as exchange rates and they were a LOT worse than if you just let your own credit card company do the exchange. 

7. Pacing  - I thought our pacing for each day was pretty good, with essentially a later morning wakeup for the crew (so I could blog and research things before everyone else woke up), a lunch plan, an afternoon plan, and a dinner plan for each day -- the only day that felt a little empty was the Chinatown walk but had the Chinese garden been open (biggest regret of the trip! Can't believe I didn't realize it would be closed on Tuesdays) would have been fine. If we had an extra day, probably would have checked out Whistler. If we had one day less, probably would have dropped Antigone and maybe phnom pehn. 

8. Things that ended up being not as impressive (but glad we still did them so would know): Capilano suspension bridge (nice, but not worth the high cost), live crab dinner (delicious, but not worth the high cost), first izakaya in Richmond (note: stick to Chinese food in Richmond 😆), Granville Island (picturesque, but our family just isn't that into the Ferry Building/Chelsea Market/Faneuil Hall type thing). 

9. Favorite things for the trip? For Vancouver we had to make a new rule and separate out food from experiences (otherwise all of our top 3s would just be food 😆). 

Food Top 3:

Baba: 1) Duck at Chang An, 2) Dinesty wontons, 3) crab fried rice at Dynasty

Mama: 1) Peking Duck at Chang An, 2) salty egg yolk soft shell crab at Chef Tony's, 3) fatty tuna sashimi and nigiri at Miku. 

L: 1) 皮蛋瘦肉粥 (preserved duck egg congee) at Chef Tony's in Richmond, 2) XLB at Dinesty, 3) crab fried rice at Dynasty.

R: 1) Dinesty pork soup dumplings, 2) the congee at Chef Tony, 3) Chocolate XLB at DTF

Experience Top 3:

R: 1) Play that Goes Wrong, 2) waterfall hikes, 3) Chinatown/Gastown walking tour (slight cheat because it was mostly food 😆)

L: 1) Play that Goes Wrong, 2) Capilano suspension bridge, 3) biking Stanley (even with her fall!)

Mama: 1) Sea to Sky Highway, 2) biking the seawall, 3) Sunset Beach sunset

Baba: 1) Train wreck hike, 2) sunset at Sunset Beach, and 3) Brandywine Falls. 

Alright, with that, Vancouver trip complete. See you all in a few months for NYC/Boston!

Vancouver - Day 8: Kirin, Outlets & Departure

Last day -- better make it count! Not sure if this is normal in Canada but we actually had a noon checkout for the hotel, now that makes their 4pm check in time more reasonable. Baba was very happy because today is a work day for him so he was able to take a bunch of meetings from the quiet of the hotel room. That did mean he missed out on our last dim sum meal of the trip though: Kirin! It was a real tough choice between Kirin and Dinesty for the final lunch but since we just had XLB at DTF yesterday, we opted for classic dim sum. 

Since Baba wasn't with us, we stuck to the standards that we knew we could finish on our own. I'm letting the twins rate this time, so there might be some grade inflation. Cha Siu Bao: 4 stars.

Shrimp dumplings: 3.5 stars. (I thought they were not as good as Deluxe but better than Chef Tony).

Beancurd roll, I didn't order this anywhere else. Pretty par for the course though, nothing special. 3.25. 

XLB - this was an interesting one, it tasted more like a normal homemade steamed pork bun than a soup dumpling. 3.75. 

Preserved duck egg and pork congee -- there was no way this would live up to Chef Tony's version but the twins still enjoyed it. I liked how they served it with a side of preserved radishes. The pork was also like huge portions of rib meat instead of the little tiny slivers. Because the congee flavoring just wasn't quite there, only a 3.75.

Egg tarts -- L gives them a 4. They were FRESH out the oven, like the egg wasn't set yet at all, almost still runny, super hot. I was impressed that they really made everything from scratch. I have to imagine all the Bay Area shops just keep a bunch on the ready instead of cooking each to order. The rating is only from L because she ate all 3 of them. I thought she'd save one at least for Baba but nope!

R and I opted for these black sesame mochi balls instead for our dessert. I can never resist black sesame. So good! 3.75 because it was a little too sweet overall, but won't lie, I'd probably order them again. 😆 

Two thumbs up for the meal from these critics. 

We walked back to our hotel and packed up the bags to check out. Sutton Place is a place I would stay again. The rooms were decently sized (really appreciated the extra foot or so of window ledge, helped a lot with storage), the beds were fairly comfortable, the location was unbearable, the staff was generally friendly, the pool could have been a little larger perhaps, but the lounge area was nice. If we come again, we would consider revisiting, (especially with the great deal we got)!

Where were we going to spend 5 hours before our flight? Well I heard that there was an outlet mall right next to the airport...and that it offered free luggage storage, free wifi, and a free train ride to the airport. Sold! Our friends from earlier in the trip stopped by to hang for a bit too -- they clued us in to the free Lindt chocolate samples. 😊 

Which also happened to be next door to a boba shop. One last boba! Actually it was a mango sago (a drink I can actually appreciate). 

Before we knew it, time had come for us to head to the airport. I had intended to try our Canada Rail at some point during the trip so glad this let me check off that box!

Our flight was delayed (again!) so we ended up hanging out at the airport lounge for longer than anticipated. Luckily it actually had some decent food. The mashed potatoes, tomato soup, garlic bread, tiramisu, and spinach and mushroom rigatoni were all hits. Here's R with I think her third or fourth buffet plate. 

After a couple more delays (thankfully not too long), the flight took off and was largely uneventful. I watched the new Michael Jackson movie this time...I had been expecting a chronicle of his entire life so it felt very unsatisfying. Got home to a very friendly cat who was eager for more human attention. 🐈 🐈 

Good night for now -- will do one last "final thoughts" post on the trip tomorrow! 

Vancouver - Day 7: Din Tai Fung, Granville, Stanley & Miku

Today is our last full day in Vancouver and due to some of the rain delay scheduling changes, it was a PACKED schedule. It also happens to be Baba's birthday! At his request, the day would start with Starbucks (free birthday drink!) and soup dumplings. 

To illustrate the impact of a chai latte, consider exhibit A: Baba before Starbucks. 

And...15 min later, exhibit B: Baba after Starbucks.

As for his second request, soup dumplings, we headed for what many consider the king of XLB: DTF. Well, short stop outside because they don't allow outside beverages. Quick chug of the pink drinks!

We proceeded to order all of our favorites. First up: the sesame noodles. Presentation amazing and flavor not bad either...but I think we've gotten used to the Dough Zone flavors more. 3.25 stars. 

Next up, pork wontons in red oil sauce - this is my personal favorite in the soup dumpling repertoire - DTF's version had the most pronounced shrimp presence I would say, but the sauce isn't as strong as DZ. Consensus: 4 stars for the wontons.

Next up, main event: pork XLB. They were more intricate perhaps...but the flavor was similar to Dinesty for us. R still prefers DZ. We decided to give these 4.25 stars. 

Last of the standards, cucumber salad -- 3 stars for the DTF version. Again, not enough flavor. DZ the clear winner for this dish for our family. 

But the surprise star were the chocolate XLB! DZ definitely needs to pick up this item.

I wasn't expecting to like it that much but it's reminded me of a nutella crepe. Very nice as a meal closer! 4 stars. 

After eating, we caught a Lyft over to Granville Island because we had tickets today for a performance of The Play that Goes Wrong at the theatre on Granville. Everyone recommended Granville Island so we came early to check out what all the fuss is about. Such a beautiful day. Vancouver was trying to make up for the rainy gray days!

First stop, Kids Market. L is a bit too tall for the kids entrance now!

They thought it would be too childish...until they find all the Miffy, Jellycat stuffies, and Calico Critters. Each generation has their own Cabbage Patch Kids and beanie babies! 

We considered heading here for Boba and Tofu souvenirs...but figured the organic treats might spoil faster.

Over to the Public Market! We got a bunch of random local nut, cookie, cake samples. Also very nice fruit. I can see why locals would come here for weekly fruit stock up. 

The entire harbor area was very bustling with lots of tourists sitting, watching the boats and ferries come and go, and eating their snacks from the market. 

Soon it was time to get to the theatre for the show! The twins were much more excited about this one compared to Antigone. Apparently this play has made the influencer rounds more than Sophocles. 

 

I am not a huge fan of slapstick and physical comedy (people running into walls, being punched in the face, etc - was particularly NOT into the subplot involving the only two female characters beating each other up to fight for a role in the play) but there were some verbal and plotline jokes which still got me laughing. Watching the set fall apart was also entertaining. Compare this closing set to the previous preshow shot!

We also headed over to Net Loft where R picked up a few small items from Paper Ya. It was cute - I would have bought some of the books but they were SO expensive! I need to build some shopping days into our Japan trip next spring! This was a cool sculpture, IMO, wooden carved captain posing with a real ship metal propeller.  

There were SO many boats. I have no idea how they all make a livelihood if they are all commercial getups so I have to assume many are weekender personal leisure boats.

 

We never actually made it to the famous Lee's Donuts (no one was feeling fried pastries after all the XLB), so snapped this photo of the line from the taxi as were driving away. 

Today was not a big walking day - instead we were going to travel by cycling. We picked up some rental bikes from Spokes at Canada Place and headed out for a spin on the Stanley Seawall bike paths. The total ride should be less than one hour but we had lots of sightseeing stops planned. First stop: the totem poles. 

I thought it was cool that they invited artists to recreate historical poles from 8 different First Nations families/lineages: Musqueam, Squamish, Tsleil-Waututh, Kwakwaka'wakw (Kwakiutl), Haida, Nisga'a, Nuu-chah-nulth, and Stó:lo. My favorite was the Nisga'a Beaver Crest pole with all the animal carvings all around. 

Shot of the Vancouver skyline a little past Hallelujah Point. 

Next up: Brockton Point Lighthouse, marking the most eastern point of Stanley. The lighthouse keeper was the one historically responsible for shooting the 9 o clock gun (which still goes off every night with a blank load) to help mariners calibrate their time (though now it's just ceremonial since everyone navigates digitally). 

L posing by the girl in the wet suit sculpture (who apparently often gets mistaken for a Vancouver version of the Copenhagen Little Mermaid). 

It was a pretty crowded bike path even on a random Wednesday and we had to get off at some of the most popular stops to walk out bikes. Here's my full sun cover get up. 😆 

The weather wasn't too warm and the sea breeze was refreshing -- plus the views were unbearable, so I didn't get too much complaining. 

This is Siwash Rock. I love how the single tree up there is perched like a cocktail umbrella garnish. 

There are 3 beaches along the way too, we stopped at this one, Third Beach, so we could say the twins visited a beach in Vancouver. 

They were more into the Second Beach playground. 

Our last stop was at the Lost Lagoon...but they were more into the ducks than the lagoon. 

Another use of Add Me for a final family shot!

The entire bike ride was a little under 2 hours and very conveniently left us just a couple minutes away from our dinner reservation at Miku for Baba's birthday. The following food photos are coming in reverse order because that's how they loaded in and I'm too lazy to go back and reverse them. 😆 Happy birthday Baba! It was a very fancy restaurant so he was a little embarrassed that we still sang for him. But what's a birthday with a candle and song!

The sushi platter. So good. Everything was really good. Baba and I got the kaiseki menu so we won't be able to tell you what all of this is, but their flame seared Aburi sushi was delicious in maki roll and pressed oshi forms. The otoro in the middle was SO buttery. 4.5 stars for the sushi.

Mains included a miso sablefish. Good flavors but wouldn't repeat if a la carte. 3.5 stars. 

And a wagyu steak. I didn't care for this much. I might even dip down to 2.75 stars. 

The twins got California and Unagi-avocado-cucumber rolls. The twins aren't connoisseurs of sushi quite yet so they actually preferred the cheap low-brow sushi in Richmond to these more fancy ones. Only 3 stars from them. 

 

Here's our wagyu carpaccio. Beautiful presentation. I would say 3.25 stars. Flavors were fine but didn't amaze me. Extra bump up in stars for presentation. 

The sashimi was very good. All of them were good but again the fatty tuna was the star. So melt in your mouth. Like eating foie gras. 4.25 stars. 

Lobster gazpacho starter. I enjoyed the combination of the yuzu gelee with the lobster and the tomato gazpacho. Very complex and well matched flavors. I'd give it 3.5 stars. 

Ah this might have been my favorite item of the evening alongside the sushi - soft shell crab appetizer. So yummy. Rich, but still not heavy, mayo sauce was great pairing. 4.25 stars. L even tried some and liked it enough she got seconds. 

The big winner of the meal was the view though. They gave us a window seat with a lovely view of the water and Canada Place. Baba said it was his favorite meal of the trip! (That or the Peking Duck. Twins are a little sick of how much I am still talking about the duck but it was so good). 

We walked back to the hotel after dinner, capping off a helluva last day in Vancouver. Tomorrow, we depart for home. 😭 But it's a 7pm flight so we have time for some more eating. 😆