Day 3: Stanley Park (aka: $50 in parking)

This morning Tonya and I ate another pathetic breakfast at our hotel, but this time we didn't have to fight for a table. Yipee.

We drove into Vancouver early so that we could snag some spots on the Prince of Whales day tour. A ticket includes a meandering trip through known whale hangouts before letting us off on Victoria island for a few hours. In the evening, the boat left from the rear of Butchart Gardens--the price of which was also included in the ticket. So Tonya and I parked the Kia that wished it was a REAL car in the garage of the Shangri-La hotel for a ridiculous sum of $23. We walked a block to wait in front of Starbucks, where the group was supposed to meet before boarding the boat. We each got a drink and settled in to wait.

As time got closer and no one was showing up, we became worried. Finally a young woman wearing a 'Prince of Whales' jacket showed up, but when we asked her about the trip, she told us it'd been canceled because of a mechanical failure. A little taken aback, Tonya and I decided that since we were in the city, we'd make this the day we explored Stanley Park and the aquarium, and try the boat again tomorrow (after calling first).

Our feet were dragging as we headed back to the car. But then Tonya pointed out the small rectangular sign with a fat pink arrow--a filming sign! The arrows could be spotted anywhere in Vancouver, and they were directions for film crews but sometimes said the name of the TV show/movie it was. So for the next half hour, Tonya and I staked out an old stone pub and watched as props were taken inside. When we finally got up the courage to ask someone (and also our butts got too cold sitting on the stone bench), the young security guard told us it was for a new legal drama set to air next year, called Facing Kate.

Eh.

After a bitter parting with twenty three of my hard-earned American dollars, we re-parked at the aquarium and paid another ridiculous fee of $15, then dodged the photographer taking 'souvenir' pictures as you entered the building, then paid even more for admission, where I was guilted into donating $2 to save a deformed baby seal.

The aquarium was teeming with brats, and it wasn't really worth the struggle to get up to the fish tanks. I'd seen the same in other aquariums. But what DID set it apart was their captive Pacific white-sided dolphins and beluga whales. Down at the dolphin tank, I witnessed a touching moment between one of the dolphins and a young boy:




Outside, Tonya and I watched the Beluga show, which really turned out to be an informational program while the whales did mediocre tricks like waving and calling. Still beautiful animals, though.



After an over-priced lunch, we decided to leave the place to the brats and venture out into Stanley park. The plan was to rent some bicycles and ride around--supposedly the only way to really discover the enormous park. So we started walking, and walking, and walking...

By the time we found an information booth with a map, we were a good twenty minutes from the aquarium. Then we learned that the bike rental place isn't in the park at all, BECAUSE THAT REALLY MAKES SENSE. And on top of that, there was a path that led us straight back to the car and it was only a five minute walk. *headdesk*



We moved the car AGAIN, and after a fifteen minute detour through Vancouver's labyrinth of unmarked and one-way streets, we finally made it to the bike shop--where yes, we paid another $10 for parking.

Have I mentioned that Vancouver is the most frustrating city on the face of the planet?

Anyway, inside the bike shop, we were made to decide on which type of bikes we wanted. I took a guess and got a ten-speed. They took a copy of my credit card as collateral (because I look like a bicycle thief) and waited outside for the valets to bring our bikes to us. Neither Tonya nor I have been on a bike in YEARS, and I was a little self-conscious about mounting up, so we walked the bikes across the MAJOR INTERSECTION and into Stanley Park.



The push off was a little wobbly and I didn't reach very high speeds, but soon enough (after an ice cream and potty break) I was keeping pace with the rest of the pack as we rode the ocean wall around the park. The path is only one way, but the real danger is not crashing into the small children who--for whatever reason--screech to a halt in the middle of the three feet wide path. Brats.



The scenery was beautiful and the cool ocean air will lift anyone's spirits. It smelled of salt and fish and reminded me of Australia. Seagulls wheeled over the beaches and noble pines and maples shaded the path. The circuit around the park took about half an hour, and then we spent the next two riding up and down every gravel path intersecting the park's center. We saw a few natives: a black ferret, some cute striped squirrels, a very bold family of raccoons, and a flock of ducks. The bike was really growing on me and I felt like I could ride the trails forever. But as the sun started to sink, the air became chilly. One last trip around the ocean wall, and then we pedaled back to the rental shop. I am now convinced that I need a bike.




After such a great workout, we ate dinner at an odd little ethnic diner--what we thought was Italian but looked more Greek on the menu. I felt a little out of place, but the food was decent enough.