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Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 6 - continued Not too long after we arrived, there was an owl talk. In case it wasn’t obvious from all the seagull, pigeon, or goose pictures I add to my reviews, I love birds. Absolutely love them, especially their little feetsies. So yeah, I loved the owl talk. Then, we got a seat for the lumberjack show. As I believe is tradition for those shows, it was full of cheesy jokes and puns. It was pretty funny. Then, my friends left to take a chair lift to the Peak of Vancouver. That’s definitely not wheelchair-accessible, so I headed to the bear enclosure to meet their two rescue grizzlies: Grinder and Coola.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 6 - continued There is a small gap and a 1 or 2 inches step to get in or out of the cable car, but I’m assuming the person manning the station could help if needed. It’s a fun ride up the mountain if you’re not afraid of heights or swinging cable cars. If you are, then it’s probably not. Either way, the view is great! I was pleasantly surprise to find some paved roads on top of the mountain; it made rolling around so much easier. When there wasn’t pavement, it was packed gravel so pretty easy to roll on.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 6 - continued The 236 bus going to Grouse Mountain was already waiting right outside the SeaBus exit. It’s approximately 25 minutes from North Vancouver to Grouse Mountain. Despite taking three different modes of transportation to get there, I found it was a very easy process. Grouse Mountain was the last stop on the 236 route and it dropped us off right outside the ticket office. There are stairs to the ticket office, but you can go around the building and enter through the gift shop. There are still stairs in the gift shop, but one of the ticket people can go up there and sell you tickets. If you need to go, there is an accessible restroom outside the gift shop. There are also stairs to get to the cable cars entrance, so you will need to go around through the parking lot. Just follow the signs for the accessible entrance.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 6 We were all up bright and early on that day, because we had something really fun planned: we were going to Grouse Mountain! I took the SkyTrain from my hotel to the Waterfront Station where I met up with my friends. Then, we hopped together on the SeaBus and headed to North Vancouver.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 5 - continued We had dinner plans in the English Bay area with the same friends from the night before. Because we were heading uphill, we took a bus that dropped us off close to the laughing statues I had seen the day before. We played the game where we have to pick a statue and mimic its position, which resulted in very flattering portraits. Then, we found a bench on the beach from which we could watch the sunset. It was a perfectly lovely end to the day Once the sun had set, we went to dinner at The Three Brits. I wasn’t very good about taking pictures that day, so I have nothing from dinner. The food was nothing to write home about, but the location was ideal and we had a fun evening.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 5 - continued Eventually, we picked a random street and headed towards downtown. We ended up in Coal Harbour, which I hadn’t seen yet. It was a very pleasant and flat area, an excellent spot for a walk. From the waterside promenade, we could see that there were three or four cruise ships docked at Canada Place, so we headed that way to investigate, enjoying the art along the way.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 5 We got a pretty late start that morning to do some laundry. I hadn’t been away for that long, but I wanted to have a clean start for the cruise. Luckily for me, the YWCA Hotel where I’m staying has coin-operated laundry rooms. It’s 2$ each for washing and drying. You can buy detergent from the lobby vending machines, but I had brought some pods with me. One of them may or may not have exploded in my toiletries bag… When we met up at my friends’ hotel, it was past noon. We didn’t have any plans, so we decided to let the day guide us. Because their hotel is so close to Davie Street, that’s where we started. Perhaps the mothership, La belle patate, was calling me.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 4 - continued After that, I decided to head back to my hotel and make sure there weren’t any injuries I couldn’t feel and needed to take care of. My left arm was still very sore, but it was downhill all the way to my hotel, so I knew I could do it. I grabbed a pumpkin spice latté and a cinnamon mochi donut on the way; it would have been rude not to while I was passing in front of the store. Once at the hotel, I confirmed that other than a scraped knee and some bruises my body was fine. I took something for the arm pain and decided to hop into bed and rest before dinner. Two of the friends I was going to sail on the Radiance with were arriving in Vancouver that day and we were meeting up for dinner at the White Spot restaurant attached to their hotel. Another two cruising friends we had been on the Navigator with back in 2018 and who live in Vancouver were also joining us for dinner. I had my first cocktail of the trip, can you believe it? For dinner, I had the pierogi with bacon and cheese sauce. It was alright; the highlight of the meal was the company. We ended up chatting for so long that it was past midnight when I made it back to my hotel and crashed.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 4 - continued I decided to stop close to Davie Street where some men were having a hilariously good time. By then, I was feeling pretty pleased with myself for having just done 10K like it was nothing. I was feeling fabulous, my shoulders were absolutely fine, too. I was riding that roller’s high. And then one of my front wheels got stuck in something and I was catapulted out of my wheelchair and into the street. Thankfully, there were some people around who quickly helped me get back in my wheelchair, but wow what a way to take me down a peg. My left arm was hurting pretty badly and my phone screen was cracked, but otherwise I felt ok. Because I had just exercised (kinda), I had to refuel and I had the perfect spot in mind for that. Since my arrival in Vancouver, I had done three guided tours and all three tour guides when they learned I was visiting from Quebec told me I had to visit this place: La belle patate on Davie Street. The place looked like someone had set off a Quebec bomb in it. It was full of Montreal Canadiens memorabilia and straight away I could hear a couple of people having a very French Canadien conversation in it. Most of their menu featured poutines with all sorts of garnish, but I ordered a small regular one and picked a good spot from which I could people watch. The poutine was excellent. The fries were on the thick side, which I appreciate in a poutine. The cheese curds could have been more squeaky, but they didn’t melt when in contact with the gravy so all was good there. The gravy, though. It was thick, tasty, and I’m afraid to say superior to the gravy of my favourite poutine place from home. I would have licked the container clean. If you’re in Vancouver and looking to try an authentic poutine, La belle patate has got you covered.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 4 This was supposed to be the worst day of my stay weather-wise so there was some uncertainty. I wanted to see Stanley Park, but I wasn’t really interested in doing the whole Seawall walkway if it was pouring rain. As a backup, I was thinking of visiting the Aquarium. Since the aquarium opened at 10:00, I decided to get a slightly later start, take a bus to the park and see what the weather would look like. Sky was dripping a little while I was at the bus stop, but it looked absolutely lovely once I arrived and it was supposed to stay that way for a few hours so I decided to hit the walkway. Flat. Blissfully flat. Flat, even pavement as far as my eyes could see. The scenery was beautiful, too. It took me approximately two hours to do the whole 10K walkway, but I was stopping often to take pictures.

Thanks for the kind words, everyone! I’m here, I’m alive, and I’m trying to catch up before I board the ship tomorrow. Live reviews on land are a lot harder for me than at sea where there are more down times 😂

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued After that, my plan was to take the AquaBus to the Olympic village to see the big ball up close. While I was on the AquaBus, I got the phone call that I was expecting, but also kind of dreading at the same time. It was my mother to say that my grandfather had just passed away. We fully knew (him included) that he was living his last days. He had been having a really rough time this summer and was in a lot of pain, so I feel relieved that he can finally rest. But it’s still sad anytime someone great dies and I can say without any doubt that he was not only one of the greatest grandfathers, but one of the greatest people. Feeling a bit floopy, I went to find a quiet place where I could be alone with my thoughts for a bit. Strangely, there was a kiosk selling local raspberries close to Science World. One thing my grandfather and I shared was a love of raspberries. He even used to make me jars of jam before his health started degrading. So I got myself some raspberries and found a quiet spot overlooking False Creek. I had plans to hang out in Gastown for the evening, but I wasn’t really feeling up to it, so I took the SkyTrain to my hotel instead where I purchased some cheese crackers from the vending machine and settled in for an early night.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued I stayed outside the market for a bit to finish my coffee and listen to some live music. Then, I took a stroll around Granville Island to see what it has to offer outside the market. It really is a pretty spot.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued Then, it was time to start on desserts. First, we had a lemon square from a place called… The Lemom Square. Tart, sweet, delicious…it was a hit for sure. If I get the chance to go back to Granville Island for Pad Siew, I think my dessert will be a lemon square. After that, we had chocolate from ChocolaTas. We could pick between white chocolate matcha, milk chocolate salted caramel or dark chocolate mint. I went with the mint one and didn’t regret it. You know it’s good quality chocolate when the solid chocolate casing is so incredibly fine. Reading this, are you starting to feel like we were eating for ages? Yeah, it felt like that too. After the chocolate, we had a salted caramel macaron from Le bon macaron. So good, so delicate. They have a bunch of flavours, some of which are savoury, and I wish I could have tasted one of those. The last two stops were enjoyed at the same time: coffee from JJ Bean and a honey glazed donut from Lee’s Donuts. Apparently those donuts were featured in a Netflix show and since then it’s quite common to see a huge line for that shop. I get it. The donut was excellent. And then, we were done. It was an excellent tour and while it was a bit pricey, I feel like it was worth it. We got so much food!

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued We were a small groupe of five, but we were a fun group and for two hours we feasted on all the good things the Granville Island Market has to offer. First of all, we had the best chai I’ve ever had in my life from the Granville Island Tea Company. Apparently the secret is that the spices are cooked in butter. It certainly felt buttery and decadent and it tasted like Christmas in a cup. Then, we tried two types of sourdough bread from A Bread Affair: one with nuts and one with cranberry. They were both excellent. Then, it was cheese time with a selection of four to try from Benton Brothers. We had cheese curds, which the four Americans in our groupe had never had before. Cheese curds are so prevalent in Quebec that I tend to forget they’re not a thing everywhere. Then, we had some goat cheese mixed with blueberry jam, some smoked Gouda and an aged cheddar. All very nice, even the goat cheese, of which I’m not usually a fan. After the cheese came the charcuteries from Oyama Sausage Co. Out of the six we had to try, the standouts for me were the Black Truffle Salami (you could see actual pieces of truffles inside) and the beef that just melted in your mouth. An honourable mention to the pâté de campagne that tasted very good spread on some of my leftover nutty sourdough. The next stop was pickle chips, but I forgot to take a picture. I’m really not a fan of pickles, so I ate one just to try, but it wasn’t for me. They were a hit with the other people on the tour, though. The next course was salmon from Longliner Seafoods. The cold smoked lox was so tender it practically chewed itself while the maple candied nuggets were a sweet surprise. Both excellent. From Sen Pad Thai, we had Pad Siew. This dish was a favourite for everyone in our group. It was incredibly flavourful and the rice sheet noodles were a first for me and I loved them. Considering how easy and fun it was to get to Granville Island with the AquaBus, I may go again just to get a full portion of the Pad Siew if I get the chance.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued It was a pleasant and quick ride to Granville Island. Once there, it looked like the place was just waking up and most of the stores seemed closed, so I had a quick look around before I picked a spot and worked on my review until it was time to meet the tour guide.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 - continued Approximately 50% of their fleet consists of accessible pontoon-like boats. When the first boat that docked wasn’t one of those, the driver called their dispatch to let them know someone in a wheelchair was waiting at Yaletown and it wasn’t long at all until an accessible boat came to pick me up. The price will vary depending on where you’re going, but for Yaletown to Granville Island I paid 5.75$ Small boat above is not accessible. Pontoon boat is accessible. I didn’t have time to take a picture, but they have a ramp for wheelchair users to get on board.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 3 I had an another group tour booked for that morning, and this time it was all about food. I was supposed to meet the guide at 10:30, but I was up early and decided to make my way over to Granville Island even if the tour didn’t start for a couple of hours. It was an absolutely beautiful (but windy) morning and it seemed like everyone was out for a walk with their floofers. The easiest way to get to Granville Island from my hotel seemed to be the AquaBus. According to their website, the station closest to my hotel (Plaza of Nations) isn’t accessible, so I went to the closest one which was Yaletown.

I’ll be reporting on the internet for sure. It will be my first time on a ship with Starlink internet and I’m excited to see how well it performs.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued By the time I got to the Lonsdale Quay Market, a lot of the shops were closed. Still, I found a pie place that looked good and I got a West Coast-Style Tourtière and a Butter Tart. We’re very serious about tourtières where I’m from, so I was curious to see what it was on the West Coast. The answer is: very different, but still nice. After my meal I spent some time outside watching the Vancouver Skyline get darker as the sun was setting. The day before had been a long and tiring day, so I decided to return to my hotel and get an early night.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued It’s a pretty short and scenic ride to North Vancouver and as we got out of the station we were greeted by a dancing bear. I had a little boogie with him and then checked out the Lonsdale Quay Market.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued Once they were all gone, I made my way back to Waterfront Station and got on the ferry. It’s a pretty simple process, simply follow the signs for the SeaBus. As with most boats, there are some ramps and bumps, but nothing too steep. While there were a couple of doors with the little wheelchair dude on them, I didn’t see any wheelchair spots inside the ferry. I just parked in a spot and tried not to be in the way, which really would make a great title for my autobiography.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued I was pretty thirsty, so I stopped at a shop called Boba Run for a Vietnamese Coffee. I knew I wanted to end the day in North Vancouver, which meant I had to go to the Waterfront Station to catch a ferry. It doesn’t look too hilly, I told myself. I’ll just do it on foot. Sometimes I just never learn. I went up to Gastown, made my way through a hoard of people staring at a clock, then up up to the Waterfront Station where I saw that a Celebrity ship was docked at Canada Place. I wanted to see which ship and get some pictures, so up up up I went to Canada Place where there were actually three cruise ships docked, one of which was the Brilliance. I stayed to watch all three of them sail away because there’s just no feeling like watching those giants as they set off towards new adventures.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued Once I was done visiting the garden, I was very close to my next destination: New Town Bakery and Restaurant. The placed was pretty packed, which is usually a good sign. You can either sit down and order something to eat, or get something to go. The price will change depending on whether you get a table or not, and they don’t take credit cards (only cash or Canadian debit cards). The line moved quickly and soon I was out clutching a warm bag of steamed bun and sesame ball. I found a quiet spot close to the accessible entrance of the Chinese Garden and I devoured my bun. It was delicious and the slightly sweet sauce of the pork complimented the bun so well.

Pre-Cruise in Vancouver Day 2 - continued Then, I visited Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden. If you follow Google’s instructions, they will tell you to enter via Carrall Street. That entrance isn’t wheelchair accessible. If you have someone with you, they can get in and fetch someone who will direct you to the accessible entrance. If you’re travelling alone, head to East Pender Street and someone at the Sincere Gift shop should be able to let you in. The garden was very peaceful and beautiful. I could have parked myself there for hours to read and eat my snacks.