Posts from the Road…
May 9, 2001 – Vancouver, BC, Canada
We are alive and well in the Great White North. Ship docked this morning without incident. We feel very sorry for the crew. This morning, 1600 passengers and their luggage disembarked between 8 and 10am. Starting at 11am, 1600 new passengers began boarding.
My parents have joined us for this part of the trip: Vancouver to St. Paul. Nice to see a familiar face – and have some help with our increasing set of luggage and gifts.
Weather has been great: sunny and clear. The rain that was predicted did not materialize. Perfect for viewing the flowers in bloom in Stanley Park.
Learned a couple interesting facts about Canadian history. There seems to be some latent hostility towards the United States after being “duped” into switching to the metric system. There was some agreement between the Canadian government and the Carter administration that said Canada would switch to the metric system in the late 1970’s and the US would switch the next year. Canada is still waiting for the US to convert.
Tomorrow, we head for Seattle to catch our train across the Northwest. With any luck, it will be similarly without incident.
May 9, 2001 (Day 63): Vancouver, BC, Canada – 10pm
Morale: good.
Health: good. Still tired. I do not know what it is but being tired seems to be a constant. I never achieved the discipline for taking a nap in the afternoon, which definitely contributes to this weariness.
So begins the next major phase of the trip. There is a massive inertia factor to overcome – not to mention huge bags of stuff to haul. Having been aboard nearly three weeks, we built habits and routines on the small floating town that we need to break.
And also the goodbyes. We bid farewell to our Maltese Grandparents, George and Amy. George gave us his card, which was nice of him. Nice card too, almost like a credit card. We warned them that we would look them up when we got to Malta and they did not seem to flinch.
Also goodbyes to the crew folk that became part of our temporary family; Ana at the pizzeria (our home away from the dining room) and Shelly at the Pursers Office. Shelly thanked us for being polite when we came down to check out account. I blushed at the compliment and then reflected on what it said about our fellow passengers. She commented on how many people are nasty. It is funny to think that little things like “please” and “thank you” would make one stand out.
I hoped that this time on the ship would clear my mind, help me to order things from the previous portions of the trip. The ship added its own mental pollution. Hours became unexpectedly filled. Clutter was added to clutter. Images and feelings from the whole trip became jumbled together from this portion of the trip as we sat in our floating American hotel watching the world change outside our window. Those that are following our trip from the postings on the website perhaps have a better perspective on our trip than I feel I have right now. I can only hope that, when I re-read this journal, some of that lost clarity will be recaptured.
Spent much of our last day at sea packing. To streamline the departure process, passengers were encouraged to pack up all but what they can carry by hand. The rest of the bags were transported to the ship terminal where it can be picked up before going through Customs. It allowed another opportunity to see how others packed for this cruise. I think both of our bags could have fit into some of the steamer trunks we saw.
As it was, the crew did a good job of getting people off their ship and reunited with their luggage. Some people got uptight because they felt they should not have to wait in line like everyone else. There was a lot of that attitude on this cruise. But they managed to keep their anger confined to a volley of words and not of canes. Since we were not partaking of any tours and did not have a flight to catch, we were relegated to the later groups.
There was an ancient couple departing up the gangway with us. We both felt they were likely to expire from the exertion. Anna ended up helping with both of their pieces of luggage while I helped by not helping. Upon reflection, Anna was certain they packed nothing heavier than cotton balls.
In the gallery, we picked up our bags. Breezing through customs, we were greeted by the smiling faces of my parents. It was very good to see them. Since it was tough to know exactly when we would be disembarking, they brought sufficient material to keep themselves entertained.
Vancouver is lovely – sunny, clear and very, very green. In Stanley Park, a vibrant sea of flowers was in bloom. Snow still clings to the summit of some of the mountains. It was definitely springtime. Considering the amount of rain common in this climate, we were trebly blessed with sunshine to be able to appreciate its benefits.
This area is considered a temperate rain forest. During the summer months, each day there is a 10 percent chance of rain. On the months surrounding summer, that rises to 30 percent. Then, between November and March, each day the chance of rain is 80 percent. Curiously, in the areas across the bay, the likelihood of rain increases threefold. Personally, I think living somewhere with a 240 percent chance of rain each day would, frankly, suck.
The only cloud over the city was the current transit strike. We are traveling primarily by foot or cab so the main impact to us was increased demand for cabs. Most interesting is the impact on the city’s light rail system, the Sky Rail. The trains are computer-operated and only half of the ticket selling / ticket taking equation are on strike so the Sky Rail is still functioning.
We took a bus tour to get our bearings and get a taste of the city. It is always funny what you learn. More accurately, it is funny what I choose to remember from it. The driver indicated a naval gun at the mouth of the harbor that had been only fired once in wartime. During the Second World War, the shelling of a nearby lighthouse by Japanese submarines had put everyone on guard. One evening, an unidentified ship was seen in the harbor. The decision was made to fire a warning shot at what turned out to be a fishing boat. The trajectory was such that the cannon ball went over the heads of the shocked crew of the fishing boat and skipped like a rock off of the water an into the side of an American freighter, which subsequently sank. Curiously, the weapon had been placed there by the British to defend against an American invasion.
The Gas Town area of the city was “founded” by a Brit with a dream and one impressive piece of capital. “Gassy” Jack’s most valuable possession was a barrel of whiskey so he built his business plan around it. He offered drinks to all those who would help construct his pub. His was the first tavern completed in less than 24 hours. Suffice to say, the original building is not still standing. The area has been reconstructed with brick buildings and pavement evoking the late 19th Century. It is a very pedestrian friendly area and, judging by the number of signs in shop windows advertising the sale of Cuban cigars, attractive to tourists from the South.
While in Chinatown – the second largest Chinatown in North America after San Francisco, we were told – we hunted desperately for Mongolian Hot Pot. While unsuccessful, we were advised that it is more of a winter dish. So we went back to the hotel, re-grouped, and went out for Greek. Judging by the number of people standing in line waiting to get in, we made a good choice. The line was equally long when we departed. My mother won by having the best meal: a chicken and artichoke dish wrapped in a filo pastry shell.
Over dinner we subjected my parents to our stories from the road. It had not gone unnoticed that we happened to be in China when the US spy plane was forced down. My mother said she commented to her co-workers that Anna and I cannot seem to travel anywhere without a war breaking out. Glad this one only rose to the level of “international incident.”
Vancouver has been added to the increasingly long list of places that I must return to visit. While it is a big city complete with the types of problems a big city will face, the climate is wonderful, the scenery inspiring and the coffee bars and sushi shops plentiful. Alas we are on the road again tomorrow to begin our train ride to Minnesota.
Excerpts from Anna’s journal included
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