Travel Day to Vancouver
Travel Day to Vancouver
Travel day of our 12 day trip to Vancouver and Whistler, Canada. We’re going to spend three full days in Vancouver and head up to the Whistler ski resort for some mountain air. Rumor has it that Vancouver has the best Chinese cuisine in northern America, so we’re going to check it out, followed by a few days of hiking to work off the weight gained.
Although it’s a weekday noon flight, there is a surprisingly long line at the security check point. Dulles Airport is really inefficient when it comes to basic airport services. Only a handful of scanners are opened and the lines zig zag layers deep. After complaining to the supervisor a couple of times and going through the pad down search, we finally clear security 30 minutes later. The folks working there are trying to be courteous and professional, but the whole operation is just under staff, an end result of budget cuts. By the time we grab a quick lunch at Chipotle and arrive at the gate, there is only 1 minute to spare - the agent at the gate makes sure we register how late we are.
Getting on a Canada Air Jazz Prop in Seattle
The itinerary calls for a transfer in Seattle. It’s a 30 person prop so the quarter is tight. Fortunately, the flying time is short (40 minutes) and the lower flying altitude means better photo opportunity. An afternoon thunderstorm in Vancouver pushes the take off time back a little, giving us some time to get some coffee and tea. By the way, a quick travel tip for the frugal tea drinker, instead of buying tea from Starbuck, you can buy a cup of hot water and bring your own favorite tea bag. We usually buy a cup of tall Americano and the extra cup of hot water often comes free of charge.
Climbing above Seattle
The Canada Air Jazz flight attendant is very friendly, constantly pointing out different photo ops and encourage us to move around the cabin to look at the scenery.
Islands around Vancouver
By the time we arrive at L’Hermitage, a small boutique hotel in the center of Vancouver, it is already 6PM local time. The sky is still bright, sun sets quite late this far north. The hotel is really nice and quiet, overseeing the famous Vancouver Public Library (more on that later).
L’Hermitage Hotel
There is still time for a quick dinner. The neighborhood happens to be a popular Japanese and Asian fast food area. There is a place called Japadog, serving hot dogs with Japanese influenced toppings: Teriyaki sauce, seaweed, soy sauce, but no mustard nor relish.
Japanese and Asian Fast Food
The Japadog seems to be quite popular with the Japanese. However, hot dog of any kind is not really a suitable dinner meal, so we decide to eat at a place called Ebi Ten instead.
Ebi Ten Japanese Fast Food
Ebi Ten is a very small establishment. The kitchen alone takes up half the store. The place is designed to get you in and out quick, definitely not a place to linger and ponder about the meaning of life. We try out their popular spicy chicken bowl and the pork katsu (fried pork) with curry beef bowl. Both are quite acceptable and are great alternative to the western burger joints.
Pork Katsu with (sweet) Curry Beef
Not So Spicy Chicken Bowl
Thursday, July 7, 2011