By Saul Schwartz
At the end of our Viking Cruise in Vancouver, my wife Fern and I decided to stay for an additional two days to explore the city. We had never been there before. Set against coastal mountains and an inland sea, Vancouver is a beautiful city. We were impressed with the greenery and the city’s green belt of local parks. The weather was great in late June, so we spent much of our time outside.
My wife and I arrived in Vancouver at the Canada Place Cruise Ship Terminal. The terminal is very conveniently located adjacent to downtown Vancouver. The terminal building is a city landmark with its large white sails crowning the complex.
We stayed for two nights at the Sheraton Wall Center in the heart of downtown. From that location, it is easy to walk to central Vancouver attractions or to take public transportation outside of the downtown. The hotel rooms were large and very comfortable. An extensive fitness center was on-site. One morning we had a nice breakfast at the hotel.
On the first day we oriented ourselves through a bus tour that made three stops and drove by other sites. On the second day, we walked around on our own to local activities.
The highlight for us on both days was time spent within Stanley Park. With over 1000 acres, Stanley Park is the largest urban park in Canada. It is designed on the model of New York’s Central Park. The park entrance was about a fifteen-minute walk from our hotel. This park has been voted as the city’s top attraction on various travel websites.
Walking paths provided us with great scenes of the downtown and harbor areas. The separate paths for walking and jogging kept us safely away from the designated bike paths. We used the paths which follow the sea wall. The 5.5-mile-long sea wall circles the park.
One highlight of the park is the collection of native American/First Nations totem poles at Brockton Point, in the eastern portion. The Northwest Coast totem poles have narrative descriptions which explain the stories told in each totem pole. The park contains several restaurants, including the Tea House, and a former lighthouse near Brockton’s Point. The small red and white lighthouse is just off the seawall path. There is no fee to enter Stanley Park.
We had lunch on Granville Island on our first day in Vancouver. The island is the centerpiece of Falls Creek. Even on a weekday, the island was lively with several outdoor singers. We really enjoyed our lunch at Tap & Barrel – Bridges. This restaurant had wonderful salad and bowl offerings, as part of an extensive menu. Even the indoor seating allowed us a view of Falls Creek. The large restaurant had plenty of outdoor seating under umbrellas, with water views.
Granville Island contains a very large covered public market, featuring all types of food offerings. We wandered around checking out the market. For our dessert, we purchased one of the many great-looking vegan offerings at Laurelle’s Bakery and Deli. The colorful public market offers plenty of produce, baked goods and flowers.
This island was transformed in the 1970s from industrial uses to the beautiful destination it is today. There are stores for shopping and entertainment venues.
We spent some time in Queen Elizabeth Park, south of downtown core at Cambie and 33rd Streets. This park features the highest points in Vancouver, offering great views of the downtown skyline. It is often the site of weddings. Within its 130 acres, the park contains colorful gardens on landscaped hills, with bridges and stone pavers. In late June, we saw flowers in a wide variety of colors, including red, pink, green, blue, white, brown, orange, and yellow. Native and exotic trees are featured, along with shrubs and floral displays. Although we did not go there, we saw that the park contained a restaurant with a great view called Seasons in the Park and a floral conservancy. Although the park’s fountains were not currently on, the Henry Moore sculpture “Knife Edge Two Piece” stood out by the fountains.
This park, on Little Mountain, is a former quarry. The park was dedicated to the mother of Queen Elizabeth II. Completed in 1960s, further improvements were made thereafter. There is no fee to enter this park.
We considered spending time at the Vancouver Art Gallery, but decided against it when the staff informed us that the permanent collection was currently not on view. Instead, the gallery was highlighting two temporary exhibits. Located on Georgia Street, off Robson Square, the former courthouse has a beautiful neo-classical design by British Architect Francis Rattenbury. The building has Greek/Roman columns in the front and a dome. Outside the gallery, a Chinese Canadian festival was well-attended on the Square, with music, dance, food, and crafts.
Robson Square is one of Vancouver’s landmarks, as a public plaza. The square is a place to go for special events, street food and watching people stroll by.
Instead of touring the gallery, we walked down Georgia Street to Library Square. The nine-floor Vancouver Library has unusual classical architecture, looking much like the Coliseum of ancient Rome. The building is a brown stone with loads of windows. Admission to view the library’s exhibitions is free. The ninth floor contains lovely outdoor gardens and features great views of the downtown area towards the Cruise Terminal. At this time, the flowers were purple, white, and green.
On the second day, we had lunch at Freshii, a fast-casual restaurant on Georgia Avenue. The salads were very tasty. Fern and I enjoyed the outside seating, where we people-watched on a sunny day. The menu included a large amount of vegan-friendly and vegetarian options.
Every time we go to Canada, we make a stop at the fast-food chain Tim Horton’s, famous for its coffee. Unfortunately, the downtown location we chose was very run down and seemed to attract local homeless both inside and outside. A young man was sitting outside doing drugs, looking spaced out. As much as we enjoyed walking around downtown, it was sad to see so many individuals living on these streets.
We supplemented our meals by food purchases at IGA. The IGA supermarkets had a decent offering of food items, but food prices seemed high in Vancouver, even in these basic food markets.
We left Vancouver after a thirty-minute ride from downtown to the Vancouver International Airport. Two days allowed us to get a pretty good feel for the vibrant downtown attractions. The downtown is active both day and night, with a hip vibe.
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