We wanted to get up and start exploring the city (and Stanley Park) bright and early, but I couldn’t drag myself out of bed until 8am. All the cold and rain was giving me the sniffles!
Breakfast
When we finally got ready, we headed to THE breakfast spot in Vancouver. Medina. It was also very convenient because it was literally next door to our hotel. Unfortunately, there was a 1.5-hour wait. On a weekday! What?!
So, we headed to the next best place, according to Yelp, Jam Cafe. It was a bit of a walk, but we were sure it would be worth it. The line was down the street. In the pouring rain. No thanks.
We ended up going next door to Chambar and being seated right away. It was fabulous (but a bit pricey for breakfast)! I had the Bon Matin which came with sourdough toast, prosciutto, tomato, avocado, olive tapenade, boiled egg, and brie. It sounds like a lot of food, but it wasn’t much at all. It was scrumptious though, so I’m not complaining. Nisheet had 3 Belgian waffles with a milk chocolate lavender sauce, raspberry caramel sauce, and white chocolate pistachio rosewater sauce. Each was absolutely divine. Totally worth the splurge. [Meal/drinks/tax/tip = $30]
Stanley Park – Take 1
After breakfast, we headed to Stanley Park. If you don’t already know, Stanley Park is the #1 attraction in Vancouver. It’s a 1,000 acre park that is almost entirely surrounded by water and offers views of downtown Vancouver and nature. It has a trail around the perimeter, trails through the lush forest, totem poles, beaches, and even the Vancouver Aquarium. Our initial plan was to ride a bike around the perimeter, but since it was such a rainy day, we thought walking might be the better option. We grabbed our umbrellas and rain jackets and started on our way. The first mile was awesome. The view of the Vancouver skyline was great and the rain made it feel so peaceful and added an extra charm to the walk.
By the time we made it to the totem poles, we were wet and cold. The totem poles were neat to look at, but honestly I enjoyed warming up in the souvenir shop more. It was there we decided walking wasn’t the best way to explore Stanley Park on such a cold and rainy day. It was time to ditch the idea, go get our car, and drive around the park.
Yogi Korean Snack Bar
We could have taken the bus back to our car, but we decided to walk down Robson Street. This is a must! There are so many cute ethnic restaurants and shops! I wanted a hot bowl of ramen, but the ones I found on Yelp (during research before our trip) had lines out the door. So, we ended up at Yogi Korean Snack Bar (another Yelp find), and it was delicious! There wasn’t much seating, but luckily there were 2 empty seats. Perfect!
We were immediately served a cup of hot barley tea (I think) which was the perfect way to warm up our shivering hands. We ordered Raboki (rice cakes in a spicy sauce), Vegetable Kimbap (veggie rice rolls), and Tui-Kim: Ya-Chae (fried veggies). The Raboki was quite spicy in my book (not for Nisheet though), but even though my mouth was on fire, I kept eating it because it was so flavorful. The fried veggies were crispy and light and just like vegetable tempura at a Japanese restaurant. My favorite was the Vegetable Kimbap though. Veggie wrapped in rice and seaweed with an OMG good dipping sauce. The whole place is run by 2 people and you better come check this place out before it gets too popular!
[Meal/tax/tip = $14 (USD)]
Stanley Park – Take 2
After lunch, we made our way back to our car and then went back to Stanley Park for take 2. On such a chilly, rainy day, the car method was so much better. You just buy a parking ticket, and you can drive around the perimeter, stopping at all the lookouts and monuments. Sure, it isn’t as great as walking or biking, but it was much better than shivering in the cold and being drenched from the rain. Just drive slow and stop at all the pull offs and you’ll see the major attractions in the park.
Here were some of our favorite stops around Stanley Park.
A Girl in a Wet Suit Statue
This statue is easy to miss if you are zooming by in a car, and we were one of the few that actually stopped here. It is a life-size bronze statue of a girl in a wetsuit sitting on a rock in the middle of the water. It was so simple but yet so beautiful. She is so alone and so peaceful sitting there. Evidently, there was a lot of controversy when this statue was created with people believing it was a replica of Copenhagen’s The Little Mermaid, but that wasn’t the intention of the sculpture. He wasn’t aware of any other similar sculpture, wanted to do something different, and diving was becoming popular in Vancouver at the time.
RMS Empress of Japan
Right next to the Girl in a Wet Suit statue is the RMS Empress of Japan. Honestly, this is what caught our attention from the road and not the statue as it is a bright and colorful dragon figurehead. Quite a contrast to the gloomy day behind it.
The RMS Empress of Japan was a container ship built in 1891 that sailed between Canada and the Far East, and she gained the reputation of hold a speed record for 22 years. So when she retired in 1922 and later scrapped, the figurehead was saved and put on display in Stanley Park in 1927.
Lions Gate Bridge
A little while after the Empress of Japan figurehead, you drive over the Lions Gate Bridge. I know you are probably thinking, big deal… a bridge…, but it really is a sight seeing all the cars zoom directly underneath. And our timing couldn’t have been better. The sun was just setting, so the colors were magnificent, the bridge lights were shining, and you could see the car lights reflecting off the wet pavement.
Prospect Point Lookout
Right past Lions Gate Bridge and at the northern tip of Stanley Park is the Prospect Point Lookout. It offers spectacular views of the bridge as well as open waters and giant cargo ships. It is also one of the more popular lookouts as the parking lot was full even on such a dreary day. And I can see why. If you were to only make one stop in Stanley Park, it should be here. Just look at the view!
Third Beach
One of the last stops we made in Stanley Park was Second beach. I hear that in the summer, the beach is packed with people sunbathing and BBQing. Being that it was the winter season, it was deserted when we pulled into the parking lot though. By now the daylight was almost completely gone. It was still a spectacular sight though with around 10 cargo ships anchored nearby and the last colors of the day disappearing from the sky.
Olympic Cauldron
We managed to make it around Stanley Park just as it turned dark. We needed to hit the road and head back to Seattle, but we still had one more tourist attraction to see. The Olympic Park from the 2010 Winter Games. There was a Christmas market set up around the Olympic Cauldron and the whole place looked very bright and festive. The cauldron was lit up in red and green for the holiday season. I like how the cauldron is really still a part of Vancouver with all of the festivities surrounding it instead of it being forgotten in some lonely park.
Tap & Barrel
Since we had paid for street parking to see the Olympic Cauldron, we decided to make the most out of our paid time and have a drink at Tap & Barrel. It’s conveniently located right next to the park. I got the house white wine which was absolutely disgusting, but Nisheet got an excellent flight of beers from British Columbia.
[Beer flight + wine + tax/tip = $16.50 (USD)]
More Poutine – La Belle Patate
And then we couldn’t leave without having poutine one more time. We were tempted to go back to Fritz European Fry House, but we decided to try something new, so we went to La Belle Patate. They are famous for their smoked meat (brisket) on poutine, so, of course, that is what we ordered. It was delicious and a fun little place, but if I had to choose, I think Fritz was still better.
[Poutine = $8.20 (USD)]
Laudree
After dinner we needed a sweet treat. (Could you tell we were having a hard time pulling ourselves away from this fun city?) We made our final stop at Laduree and got a couple macarons for the car ride home. I got a licorice which tasted like caramel, and Nisheet got rose water. The rose macaron was phenomenal! Try it!
[2 Macarons = $5]
Even though it rained for majority of the day, we were glad that we still ended up making the most of it. Sometimes you just gotta ignore mother nature and still do the things that you planned on doing. It ended up being a jam-packed sightseeing and food filled day.
