venturing to vancouver

so far this year, we’ve tried to visit cities that are a little bit less predictable…i call these “hidden gem” cities which means they are great to visit, but not many people venture to them without a reason. there will always be tourist cities like new york, paris, LA, london, and even san francisco that everyone wants to visit in their lifetime, and that many travelers have visited.. (and i LOVE these cities, of course!!) but then there will be my “hidden gem” cities that people have never really considered visiting … a person may have gone for work or an event and been pleasantly surprised, but they wouldn’t just book a trip to these cities. if you’re like me and love to see ANY new place, then these posts are for you to see more about some different and more unique places to travel. if you’re not like me and you prefer to go back to your same favorite places again and again, then these trips are just to give you a taste of some different places in case you never visit :) win-win for all, right? from nantucket to new orleans to montreal to austin and many more, we’ve ventured new places this year that may seem random to some, but we’ve loved finding the gems in these places. vancouver was no exception!

we originally planned this weekend trip to seattle over chase’s best friend’s birthday since he is there in law school. but then, in true chase & emi fashion, we tacked on a trip across the canadian border and 3 cities, maybe even buying some winnipeg jets tickets and watching a game on the way. Okay, this may be more “emi fashion” than chase, but i think i’ve rubbed off on him. we just can’t help ourselves! we’re young and want to see every part of the world we can … so we pack it in. this means little sleep, lots of travel, and never coming home refreshed, but i’ll take it every single time. one day when we’re old we can have the relaxed vacations. for now, let me see it all! some highlights..

^^ a cheery welcome to the city with cherry blossoms!

after getting in late, having a lovely seafood dinner and staying at the st. regis, we woke up early stroll gastown,
the historic district of the city. you step into these red brick streets lined with old lamps and immediately sense
that you’re in the old core of town. it’s been well preserved, and now it’s a hip neighborhood with some of the
best shops + restaurants. we took an early morning stroll in the rain through gastown and i fell in love!
(and not just because it was raining…but that sure didn’t hurt. how charming is a city in the rain?)

the gastown steam clock can be seen right on water street.
it’s one of the only steam clocks left in the world!

^^ you can also visit vancouver’s chinatown right on the border of gastown.
looks like we’re bad at selfies, but good at finding chinatowns! ;)

next we crossed over to see the capilano suspension bridge. this is about a 25 minute drive from downtown,
but it’s a beautiful drive with sweeping views of the city and the area on all sides. it’s so worth it to cross
lions gate bridge and go to the capilano bridge if you have time. note that you should spend 1-2 hours there,
and it is a bit pricey to get in so you want to make it worth it! we didn’t have time for the full experience
this time, but it was awe-inspiring to see this area and we will add it to the list to do it next time!

on the way back across the bridge we took the exit so that we could explore stanley park. this is one of the
prettiest places i have ever seen. the city’s park is set on the edge of the city and surrounded by water,
so views from all sides are incredible. it’s so green and fresh and pretty! there are a lot of things to do
within this park from walking, biking, dining, beaches, lakes, an aquarium, the seawall, and more.
bring your camera! this is a MUST stop in any weather. it was my favorite part of vancouver. I really loved this place so so much. I mean I was even picturing myself living here! I even checked out a local realtor online called Eddie Yan Vancouver realtor. Of course, it was all very tenative so don’t worry about me relocating just yet! i absolutely loved that right within the city, you could enter this park and instantly feel like you’re deep in
the woods. it is an ideal city with a metropolitan feel, yet so much gorgeous nature surrounding it. ^^

we saw hints of spring despite the cloudy weather! ^^

walking the seawall is another must. i couldn’t handle the views – they looked painted!
by this time we were hungry, so we went straight to medina .. the best brunch in town!
i walked in and instantly knew this was my kind of place. after the brisk morning, i
ordered one of their signature lavender hot cocoas. yes you read that right, lavender.
it was even better than it sounds. along with this tasty drink we tried the liege waffles,
{always a favorite, and these ones had salted caramel sauce on the side soo…they win.}
we also had their avocado toast which was the freshest, best version i’ve had.

and, can’t forget our travel companion sam! so fun to have him along. ^^

i am a major fan of this cosmopolitan city nestled right in the great outdoors. it really has got
everything and i am so jealous of those who are able to call it home. sam joked about
moving here, which led to us looking for new homes in Richmond BC. we laughed it
off at the time, but i would definitely be tempted! i’m really not surprised so many people relocate here.
come to vancouver to enjoy a charming city, snow-capped mountains, waterfront forests, cityside beaches,
olympic history, and the world’s highest suspension bridge. it’s a true gem … now on to victoria!

..see our hotel stay and vancouver dinner choice here!
xo