At the end of our Alaskan Cruise Spectacular we had a stop in Vancouver, most of the passengers exited the vessel and about 1,000 more came on board to take the trip down to Long Beach. We decided to explore the city since most of us had never been there. Since we didn’t have a lot of time, we took the City Sights Hop on Hop Off bus tour.

It was air-conditioned, not that important in 55 degree weather mind you but the luxury coaches were prompt, spacious and very informative. We hopped off first at the Granville Island. Very Similar to the Farmers’ Markets in Los Angeles, and had we been hungry it would have been a more appreciated stop but after just eating our 2^nd breakfast on the cruise food was the last thing we wanted. Additionally they had Kaboodles, the worlds’ coolest toy store, two levels where child and adult can explore and play. I wish we had more time to explore that part of the market but we were on a schedule so I jotted that down as a destination that needs to be re-visited when we return. Back on the bus we hit Stanley Park (Dedicated by Frederick Stanley, who the Stanley Cup is named after), with spectacular views of the Lionsgate Bridge and a world renowned rose garden (which was not in bloom when we visited) we stopped to take some pics, get stalked by raccoons (seriously Canadian raccoons have NO FEAR) and partake in some world famous ice cream (which was absolutely delicious by the way).

Our next stop was Gastown, known for it’s quaint appeal, souvenir haven and the only Steam powered clock in North America. The clock was absolutely beautiful, just a 5 min walk from our hop on hop off bus stop we waited for the hour to come by (6 minutes) to see the steam clock spectacular music show, alas 20 minutes later we realized that not only is the clock broken but we got there at 12:54 and it said 11:50 (shows how observant we are and how frequently we use analogue clocks).

I got my customary Canadian track jacket and we looked at the 2010 Olympic swag, amazing the exact jacket I purchased for a mere $40, was $90 with the Olympic rings embroidered on it. Oh well, with the time wasted on the not-quite-as-amazing-as-we-though clock it was time to head back to our ship (and we were hungry and couldn’t justify spending money on food when a FREE buffet was awaiting us on the ship) so back to Port we headed. I think Vancouver is absolutely gorgeous and can’t wait to go back! It’s very similar to NYC but NO smog, it’s amazing. So we are planning our next excursion to Vancouver and see what we missed and check if the clock is fixed

Click on any of the pictures to go to the gallery

Note: Try to avoid the streets between China Town and Gastown….loop around in a big circle or just wait for the hop on hop off bus to come get you.  It is a very short walk but…..not for the timid or weak of heart… or kids!!!