Vancouver BC, Canada

Photo: Vancouver BC

Two weeks ago to-date, Lisa and I went on holiday to Vancouver British Columbia! After a nice short flight to Seattle, we jumped into our rented Corolla, and drove our way through the border. I've got to admit, driving on foreign soil made my palms sweat a bit - but after two days of maneuvering past blinking yellow lights, we knew that city like we'd been there for eons.

The trip started with the typical tourist attractions: the West End and the Capilano Suspension Bridge... but once we got all the nature-walking out of our system, we parked the auto and made our way to Robson Street... and what a feast we had! The highlights of our eatery-overload include CoCo Rico (panini platters!), Cin Cin (where we had a $106 schmancy dinner for deuce), and The Elbow Room (where they're known for their no-nonsense customer service). All exceptionally delish! And being that I'm very, very loyal to Starbucks, it was to no surprise that I found their espresso shoppe, Blendz, to be a bit below the bar.

Once the sun fell, it was hours of walking and observing Canadian night life. I would say that Vancouver is the perfect hybrid of all things European (Accessorize, Toni & Guy, Le Crep, etc) and all things American (they had a freakin' Red Robin for crying out loud).

I was quite impressed with the compact living arrangements and multitude of glass condos that encompassed the concrete jungle. It was very clean for such a large city. Overall, definitely a great first trip out of the country for 2007. I'll definitely be going back.