Monday, January 21, 2013

Anniversary Getaway in Vancity

Matt and I planned a weekend getaway to Vancouver to celebrate our 4th anniversary.  We caught a short flight after work on Friday night to Vancouver.  The views of the sunset over the mountains were gorgeous!
We arrived in Vancouver around dinnertime and we quickly checked into our hotel, Moda, which is a small, boutique-style hotel in downtown.  It's actually a really old building with 100-year-old hardwood floors in the rooms and the original elevator that still works.  It was really nice.  That night, we had a reservation at a fancy restaurant called Cioppino's to celebrate our anniversary.  We had the burrata and roasted vegetables to start and then some cream of Jerusalem artichoke soup with white truffles, gnocchi, and spit-roasted veal chop (I told you, very fancy!).  The dinner was AMAZING.  After dinner, we walked around a little and then headed to our hotel for the night.

The next morning, we decided to grab brunch at The Templeton, an old school diner-style restaurant located a few blocks from our hotel.  The walk there was a bit foggy and overcast but it gave the city a neat look.  The restaurant was very tiny but really delicious.
After breakfast, we planned to head to Capilano Suspension Bridge Park for some sightseeing.  It was a bit of a hike: a long walk to Waterfront Station, a "seabus" ride to North Vancouver, and about a 20 minute bus ride up to the park, but it was well worth it.  By the time we reached the park, the sun had peaked its way through the clouds.  First, we checked out the suspension bridge.  It was so neat - it was originally built in 1889 and it stretches 450 feet across and 230 feet above the Capilano River.  It was really beautiful to see the scenery but the bridge itself was a bit shaky and bouncy to walk on.
After the Suspension Bridge, we checked out the Treetops Adventure.  The Treetops Adventure consists of 7 suspension bridges through the evergreens about 100 feet above the forest floor.
The trees in the park were gigantic.  They were so amazing to see.  We even saw one tree that was 1300 years old.
The last part of the park that we explored was the Cliff Walk.  The Cliff Walk is made up of suspended walkways that jut out from the granite cliff.  The walkways were super skinny and open on the sides, so you can see almost straight down beneath you.
Next, headed back to the city for a late lunch.  We ate at Steam Works Brew Pub.  While at lunch, we heard our waiter talking to another customer about the Lululemon Warehouse sale going on this weekend.  Lululemon is a really trendy brand of yoga and workout clothing that is super popular in Canada right now.  So, I was excited to hear about a sale, since it's normally pretty expensive.  Matt and I decided to check it out.  We had to wait in a line to get in and check our coats and bags at the door.  It was a bit of zoo inside but we ended up finding some good deals!

After our shopping spree, we grabbed a light dinner at the Alibi Room.  The restaurant was in an old warehouse-type of building and had a really neat vibe inside.  After dinner, we grabbed a cab to the Sutton Place Hotel that we heard had an amazing chocolate buffet!  It was a really ritzy hotel and the chocolate buffet was delicious.  Afterward, Matt and I were ready to head back out our hotel to fall into a chocolate coma for the night.
The next day, we checked out of our hotel, grabbed a quick breakfast and then headed to the Vancouver Aquarium.  Although swarming with little kids, we had a great time checking out all of the exhibits.  We especially liked seeing the beluga whales and the 4D movie on the Salmon Run.  I also really liked when we walked through the Rain Forest Exhibit and a butterfly landed on Matt's head.
After the aquarium, we grabbed lunch at the Yaletown Brew Pub and watched some football before we had to head to the airport for our flight back to Calgary.

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