Monniblog

If you already follow Ruth’s blog, you’ll know that she recently went on vacation and ended up in my neck of the woods. Well that opportunity couldn’t pass us by without meeting up for some knitting, chatting, and sight-seeing. Ruth got into town on Sunday night (exhausted I’m sure) and I had emailed some of my knitter friends to meetup at a local tea shop for knitting on Tuesday evening.

Unfortunately a number of people couldn’t make it due to illness and/or other obligations, but we still had a lovely time!

Here is Julia and Marianne (who met for the first time, but I knew each individually).

And here is Ruth and myself.

I found this teacup in an antiques store earlier this week. I know Ruth uses and collects them so I got it for her as a Vancouver souvenir. My sister told me “Royal Albert” is one I want to look for. This particular pattern is called Lavender Rose (odd since it’s quite pink), but it was one of the nicest teacup-and-saucer sets that I found in the store.

On Wednesday I met Ruth and her husband again for lunch at the Top of Vancouver revolving restaurant. Fortunately it was a bright and sunny day, with gorgeous views all-around. The day before had been “mix of sun and clouds” and had predicted Wednesday to be “mostly cloudly”. Vancouver weather (surprisingly) cooperated for Ruth’s entire trip!

The big white dome is BC Place Stadium. It’s a football field for the BC Lions (not football as in soccer, but like quarterbacks and whatnot) and it is also used as a convention centre. This weekend there is a Home & Garden show inside BC Place. The smaller cementy-stadium to the left of BC Place is GM Place. That’s used for big concerts like when Madonna came, as well as for sporting events such as hockey, basketball (when we had a team), etc.

This is a shot of Stanley Park. In the distance you can almost make out the Lions Gate Bridge (it’s green). The houses in the background are West Vancouver (not Vancouver’s west side… actually a city in it’s own right).

This is commonly called “Five Sails”, but its real name is the Vancouver Convention and Exhibition Centre. Huge shows are put on here because the area underneath the five sails can be sectioned off into different sized rooms. It is being renovated for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. To give you a persepctive, the project I worked on in November, Circle Craft Christmas Market, had over 150 exhibitors and artisans; they rented out the Convention Centre and only required one sail worth of floorspace. It’s absolutely huge.

I like the shadow of Harbour Centre (where we were at the Top of Vancouver revolving restaurant).

This shot is of the area that I work in. I’m in the orange and yellow building on the left — The Dominion Building from 1911. The park across the street is Victory Square and part of a war memorial to all our veterans. The copper towered building in the back is the old Vancouver Sun (newspaper) tower. It’s sort of a landmark now even though The Vancouver Sun isn’t in that building anymore.

Ruth and her hubby just as our lunches arrive!

The three of us at the restaurant (photography taken by our waiter who I swear I know from somewhere!)

And Ruth gave me a lovely gift packed full of goodies! I’ve got hot cocoa and peppermint stir sticks, a tea filter, Murchie’s Afternoon Blend tea (which used to be called the Empress Blend for the Empress Hotel high tea in Victoria), and in front a tea flower and a mini sock with a sock-blocker keychain! (Chan — Henry usually needs to inspect anything I take a photo of, similar to Sissy & Gretchen “helping” you. Fortunately a cat is easier to push away then your two excited pups I’m sure!)

Afterwards, I took Ruth and Jim on a “driving tour” of some of Vancouver outside of the downtown core. They were staying at the very posh Sutton Place Hotel in the heart of downtown; it makes for great walking around to see the central sites, but you don’t get a sense of the rest of Vancouver (besides which, there is no LYS!)

I’ll annotate our tour with old photographs… just for those who are living vicariously through Ruth & her husband’s visit to Vancouver. I drove them down to English Bay, showing them Davie Street (promimently gay district with a great night life and very welcoming for all) & the West End along the way.

Then we went across the Burrard Street Bridge. I love the artitecture of the Burrard Street Bridge but the view of the Strait of Georgia inlet (when driving) are better from the other bridges (Granville Street or Cambie Street).

We stopped in Kitsilano (and area of Vancouver) and one of our many many beaches.

Then I drove up into West Point Grey (almost to the University of British Columbia) to stop at Urban Yarns on 10th Avenue. The best part? Urban Yarns had extended their sale so Ruth got a couple good deals on yarn and the chance to admire the colours of Lorna’s Laces which her closer-LYS doesn’t carry. And then, as I mentioned already, I tried darjeeling tea at T Room Bakery & Kitchenware (4445 W.10th Ave)— which I totally have to go back to now!