About Me

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I live on the ocean, write women's fiction, love to read so much that it's an addiction rather than a hobby (I read an average of a book a day). I live on the wet west coast so it's a good thing that I like to walk in the rain.

Monday, June 14, 2010

One sunny Saturday











One sunny Saturday is all we've had in the past six or eight weeks, so I took advantage of it last weekend and walked all along the shores of False Creek - called false for a reason. It's really not a creek at all (though it may have been at one time) but an inlet from English Bay and the Pacific Ocean through the heart of the newest part of downtown Vancouver - Yaletown which was built en masse after Expo 84 - and a relatively new development on the south side of the inlet called Fairview Slopes.

We walked from our place on the northern shore of the entrance to False Creek right around to Granville Island and then took a ferry back across to the foot of our street. We even had lunch outside at Bridges, though the last half hour was getting a little cool and we made it home with only the first few raindrops hitting us.

This is the view once we hit the corner to turn back to the west on southern half of the creek.


I don't have kids but I still love Science World, especially the huge and surprisingly lovely sound sculpture right outside the front door. It fascinates me and I can get stuck there for an hour, just watching the balls drop and create all kinds of lovely music. It's hypnotic.

But there's a lot more to Science World than the sound sculpture. It's home to all kinds of scientific experiments which are a whole lot of fun - for adults as well as kids. There's also - at the top of the ball - an IMAX theatre where they're always showing great movies. Definitely worth a visit.

The two photos at the top of the page are views across False Creek to the north. The greenery is a part of Granville Island (also incorrectly named as it's not really an island but an isthmus) and the towers are part of Yaletown, with the Granville and Burrard Street bridges spanning False Creek.

It's a terrific walk - a couple of hours, I'd guess - and there's a whole lot to see.

There are the amazing grounds and buildings that make up the Olympic Athletes' Village - gorgeous and are now up for sale at huge prices. There are lovely lounging chairs big enough for three or four people, benches, a beautiful span bridge for pedestrians, all kinds of interesting sculptures, including a huge - and when I say huge, I mean 20 or 30 feet tall - bird right in front of the Village.

A pond full of geese and ducks and seagulls. Keep your eyes out for the best friends at the dog park - a tiny long-legged dog who spends most of his time chasing a swallow. The swallow allows him to get so close - one big jump close - and then flies up a few feet and the game begins again. It's definitely entertaining though it's clear from the start that the dog will never ever catch the swallow.

There are restaurants and bars and several marinas filled with all kinds of boats. There are bikers and roller bladers and every type of person imaginable, especially, as you can guess, on the first sunny Saturday in weeks.

As you head closer to Granville Island, you begin to see the houseboats on the far side of the Island, the hotels and restaurants and bars that help make the Island so vibrant, the Granville Island Brewing Company where you can sit and test several of the beers made right there, as well as take a tour of the brewery. There is one of my favorite places in the world - the Granville Island Market. And on a Saturday like this one, it's noisy and cheerful, full of colors and aromas and people. Everything to keep you entertained for hours.

And then, at the end, there's a short ferry ride across False Creek and we're home.

What do you do on a sunny Saturday?

Kate





















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