A quick Vancouver – Detroit update August 2, 2010
Posted by freda in Vancouver.1 comment so far
Hello everyone, and Happy Summer!
I arrived in Vancouver on July 4th – and that’s a story unto itself. I was supposed to leave Shanghai on July 3rd. Mr. Shi drove me to the airport and we both cried and hugged goodbye. I checked in and then went to the lounge. Close to boarding time I went to the gate only to hear an announcement saying our flight was delayed by 3 hours. Shanghai had been experiencing a big thunder-lightning-downpour storm and the incoming flight had been re-routed to Seoul. A pain in the butt, but mother nature rules. A woman came over and sat down beside me and said, “tell me your life story; we have time.” We had just begun sharing stories when another announcement said our flight was cancelled and was rescheduled for the next morning at 10 a.m. So, we all had to file back through customs to have our leaving-the-country stamp cancelled; then those of us who lived in Shanghai had to line up and give our contact information in case anything changed overnight (I was quite disconcerted when my contact info was written down on a piece of paper, rather than in a computer!), and then we had to retrieve our luggage. Those who didn’t live in Shanghai would be put up in a hotel; a few of us went home. I had called Mr. Shi and said, “I have a problem, my flight is cancelled, can you come back and take my home?” to which he replied, “No problem madame.” He was quite happy to see me again (!) and we made jokes about how quickly six weeks go by, and how much I love Shanghai I can’t leave, etc. Back to the apartment. Luckily for me, Sharon and Fred were home and didn’t have plans for the night. We ordered in and watched a movie. The next morning I did it all over again – complete with tears and hugs from Mr. Shi! This time, however, we took off, delayed by only one hour.
The weather in Vancouver has been absolutely spectacular since I arrived. Clear blue sunny skies and temperatures between 20 and 30 – I love it! I thought I’d show you a little of my Vancouver walking route since I have done that for Shanghai… It’s a much quieter walk here in Vancouver. We live on West 4th Ave, which is rather busy, being a bus route, and lined with apartment complexes and shops, so I walk one block over on 3rd, which is a tree-lined street of houses and amazing gardens….
the street as seen from where I start the walk
gardens spill out onto the sidewalk
every garden different
bird houses here, though I've never seen birds
every garden beautiful
I think this is my favourite - like an english garden, overflowing
some are more green with trees and shrubs rather than flowers
After several blocks, I finally get to the beach….
Jericho beach
fabulous city skyline
And after walking along the beach for awhile, I make my way home…
our condo complex - ours in on the top floor
when I climb the stairs, this is our balcony that I see when I get to the top
And this is the view from our balcony at sunset…
just another gorgeous night in paradise!
Don was here with us for the first week of July and we saw the whole family over various lunches and dinners. Then Don went back to Detroit and I spent the 2nd week visiting friends. The boys and I went to the Vancouver Folk Festival on Friday the 16th…
"festival seating" on the grass around the bandstand
Lucas (slightly sunburned) and Nico listening to the music
Friday’s event started at 5:00, featured six acts, including Calexico (the band I wanted to hear), and finished at 11:oo, with a lantern parade through the crowds as we listened to the last act….
the parade of lanterns
amazingly creative lanterns
Saturday morning I left for my “look-see” week in Detroit. We spent all day Sunday looking at houses and apartments. Sunday evening we sat with a bottle of wine and narrowed the list down to our top three choices. On Monday evening we went back to look at the top three and made our decision. On Tuesday we learned our rental agreement had been accepted. We will be living in a cute little home in downtown Birmingham. It’s about a 1/2 hour drive for Don to get to work, maybe less, and we can walk to the library, restaurants and little shops, which is a bonus. We’re really happy with the place. Though it’s a bit smaller than we’ve had in the past, there are still two guest bedrooms (so reservations are being taken at the latest edition of the Johnson Resort), and a finished basement for storing what doesn’t otherwise fit. My only worry is if my wonderful shoe cabinet will fit at the front entrance – I’m inclined to think it won’t. Ah well, there’s always the next home. (Which we all know, there will be. 🙂 )
our new home
I spent the rest of the week visiting friends. My good friend Barb picked me up on Tuesday and I went to her place in Windsor for two nights. It was great to catch up, hang out by her pool all day Wednesday, reading, sunning, swimming – I hadn’t done that since Florida. Don and I had dinner with a few different friends, including Gene and Angela, whom we’ve known since Don first started with GM in engineering, back in 1980. They have just recently moved back to Detroit after four years in Australia, so it was really great to catch up with them. And I played mahjong with some of my Shanghai friends who summer in Detroit, which was lots of fun. All in all it was a really good week. I even did a little shopping at the amazing Somerset Mall – but, yikes, there’s no bargaining and I’m not used to those prices!
I got back to Vancouver last Sunday and spent the week with the boys and visiting friends, and now here I am with my suitcase packed again. In just an hour I will be heading out the door to fly to Venice, Italy, where I will be for a week with my mother and sister to celebrate my sister’s 50th birthday. We’re all pretty excited about the trip. Stay tuned for stories and pictures from Venice. Until then,
stay cool.
freda's world adventures 