Serena’s Travels

Vancouver, Vancouver, Vancouver! What an incredible place. It is a city that’s close to my heart ever since I spent a year there studying and taking the gondola up Grouse Mountain a few times a week as a volunteer ski patroller. Ah the memories.

If you’re headed to see the doubles luge, the curling, the figure skating, or other Olympic excitements, there are also some city highlights that you shouldn’t miss.

In Vancouver’s downtown, shop local on Robson Street, get caught up in the crowds on Burrard (after Georgia Street head southwest to Howe Street to see the Vancouver Art Gallery and the big main library), and after a tasty visit to the cafes of Yaletown and the purveyors on Granville Island, make sure not to miss the wonders of North Van. It’s an easy hop, skip, and jump on the Seabus from downtown to Lonsdale Quay (pronounced Key, always). Explore the the quay’s food court, bead store, and organic food merchants, then grab a bus to either Edgemont Village and the Capillano Suspension Bridge, or better yet, the all around less-known Lynn Valley, which most visitors won’t know about – there’s a rather epic suspension bridge there too.

Edgemont Village is at the foot of Grouse Mountain, and there’s a cozy, neighborhood attractions there, like the coffee shop I used to frequent, Delaney’s.

If you opt instead for the “North Van less traveled,” Lynn Valley Canyon Park is just as spectacular in terms of natural beauty, plus there’s an ecology center at the entrance of the park. I used to run down the mulchy trails to where the creek came through the canyon and hop from rock to rock on sunny days. I highly recommend it, especially if you need a break from cheering on your favorite world class athletes.

Happy Travels to the Vancouver Olympics!

Tags: BC, Explore, Family Travel, Neighborhoods, Olympics, Travel Tips, Vancouver, Weekend

This entry was posted on Thursday, February 18th, 2010 at 12:44 pm and is filed under GR Recommends.... You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.