Throw Back Thursday - Pacific Northwest Road Trip Part 2

I started talking about this trip last week (post 1) and it was so much fun to relive the adventures of this trip. The next leg of trip took us to Seattle, WA and Vancuver, BC. At the time, Aaron's sister, her husband and their daughter lived in Seattle, so it was great to spend time with them.

 

We drove past the Tacoma Dome

 

I was told this is the Original R.E.I.

 

My Niece, Naomi, who was 9 months at the time

 

We spent some time at  Pike Place Market

 

The original Starbucks

 

Having a local to show us around was great. Andrea took us to a few really neat spots.

 

The Troll under the Bridge

 

The Space Needle

The Puget Sound

 

Then we went over the Chittenden Locks, I didnt even know what Locks were before this trip!

 

They also have a Fish Ladder for the salmon to go throug the Locks.

 

We finished off the evening at Gasworks Park, right on the water with great views of the City.

 

After our stay in Seattle, we headed North to visit Vancouver, British Columbia

 

Of course I had to get a photo of this street!

 

We did a little exploring in the city and found a place to eat dinner. Jeff, the DareDevil, tried Poutine for the first time.

The next day we split up with Jeff and Cassie. They went to go climb Grouse Grind and took the van so that allowed Aaron and me to explore on our own through the fantasic public transporation system that Vancouver has. It was pretty neat to exlpore becase they were just months away from hosting the 2010 Winter Olympics so they were getting everything ready and in tip-top shape.

 

Riding the bus from the hotel to downtown Vancouver

I visited Vancouver with my family several years before this trip, but still had very good memories of the places to go. We walked over to Stanley Park and spent time meandering through it all.

 

Here is a picture of Lions Gate Bridge that connects the City of Vancouver with the North Shore

Then we hoped on the Skytrain and headed to the Gastown.  The Compass card is how we got around town, you can load it up with cash and then swipe to use at any public transportation spot, super easy!

 

 

 

Then we got on a Seabus to head over to the North Shore. Here is a shot looking back at Vancouver.

We visted Lonsdale Quay Market, which is home to over 80 unique shops, restuarnts and services.

 

 

 

We met up with Jeff and Cassie again to hang out on the shore and people watch.

We headed over to Granville Island to have dinner and explore a bit more before going back to the hotel.

Aaron's first time having Gellato

Vancouver seemed pretty similar to the downtown of a major city in the US, except for a few differences: the lights are much different than at home.

And they use Kilometers instead of miles.

As we drove back in to the US of A, we discussed how nice the Canadians were and how we wished we came a little closer to when the olympics would be starting.

 

On to our next adventure.... Mount St. Helens!!