Double Take Vancouver

June 19 to 23rd

And so on to our sixth and final country, Canada.  The lovely City of Vancouver was our first stop and whilst it lived up to it's rain forest reputation with a mixture of rain, cloud and sun it is a place that should be on everyone's bucket list. Mountains form an impressive backdrop with the sea in the foreground. Vancouver makes the most of its waterfront with a seawall walk around much of the frontage. We stayed downtown, close enough to walk into town and around the seawall.This is a City with lots going on. Jazz festival, dragon boat racing, lots of live music and drama to name a few. Also has a sense of humour with some interesting pieces of public art. 

Laughing statues (in midst of a building site)

Our first full day was very wet but was considerably brightened by a visit from Maggie's cousin (yes another relative) who name is Maggie Sherlock!! Is the world ready for two we ask ourselves? Luckily the coming together of two such great forces didn't cause an earthquake and we all had a good natter.

The "other" Maggie Sherlock!

The next day brought glorious sunshine and we were able to take the ferry to Granville Island. The ferry boats are really dinky, just like the ones you get for the bath tub! Very frequent and efficient though. 

The dinky Granville Island ferry

Granville Island is a lovely little place with a fabulous market full of tempting cheeses, sea food, meats, breads, cakes and fruit and vegetables. Don't visit when you're hungry! In the streets around the market are some interesting little specialist shops where you can buy everything from fine wines to handmade hats!

Met up with Maggie and her partner Nora and some of their friends in the evening. As it as the solstice we had to celebrate and enjoyed several bottles of bubbles! 

Derek, Beverley, Maggie and Nora

Spurred on by one favourable ferry experience, we boarded a rather larger boat to go to Vancouver Island. 
 

The BC Ferry from Vancouver City to Vancouver Island.

 

View from the ferry

This is quite a trek as the ferry port is about a 40 minute drive from central Vancouver and the ferry crossing takes an hour and a half. Well worth it though as the Island is beautiful with lots to see and do. We hadn't appreciated how large the island is. England would fit into it with space left over!










Our guides for the weekend were more Sherlock cousins, June and Ian and they were generous with both their hospitality and their time. Spookily we met them exactly a year ago when they came to the UK. 

Their lovely home overlooks a pretty marina so there is always lots of activity to watch. 

View from Ian and June's balcony by day

And by night

We visited the hundred plus year old Butchart gardens. These beautiful gardens are a must see. Full of fantastic trees, flowers and shrubs many of which we grow in England as the climates are quite similar. However Butchart must have special fertilizer as most of the plants are much larger than their English counterparts.

View over the gardens

A small water feature!

Mags, Ian and June

Lots of things are reminiscent of Britain on Vancouver Island. The BC Parliament building, red double decker buses and old style British red phone boxes to name a few. Mind you they do drive on the right!

Parliament Building with horse and carriage in front

But like the City, the island has a sense of humour. On Sunday mornings the little ferry boats (they look like the Granville Island boats) do a "dance" in the main harbour to music. Great fun and it brought a smile to everyone's lips. Apparently in warmer weather the boat drivers have been known to dress up in tutus!

Vancouver island has a nice shopping centre so although it's a hike to the mainland, you wouldn't need to do the trek very often. The following picture taken at Butchart gardens summed up the Island for us.

A glimpse of paradise. The boat moorings at Butchart gardens