Fall is my favorite time of the year. I am always amazed at all the brilliant colors of the fall foliage and I am glad we get to enjoy much of it in the Pacific Northwest.
At the Issaquah Salmon Hatchery
Downtown Issaquah
Anthea excitedly picking the best shaped leaves for keepsake..
The day before my parents returned to Singapore, we took them to a pumpkin farm 20 minutes from our place. It was quite a new experience for them. Next time, we need to remember to bring gloves. Those little hairs on the stalk can be quite prickly! We each took some time to pick one out. Its hard to decide – you always seem to find a rounder/bigger/more orange one 2 feet away and before you know it, you’ve wondered far into the farm.
For their (farewell) dinner, we had a little of everyone’s favorite - fillet mignon (daddy’s fav), large prawns and King crab legs (mommy’s), corn on cob and small grilled peppers (Will’s). Daddy & Mommy also haven’t had pizza during their 2 months visit so we baked one up for good measure!
On our last day of vacation in Whistler, we took a gondola ride spanning the distance between Whistler and Blackcomb Mountains. This engineering marvel breaks three world records being “the longest unsupported span of over 3 kilometres, (the) highest lift of its kind at 436 metres above the valley floor (and also the) longest continuous lift system on the globe!”
We started our day by making breakfast at our suite for everyone – simple eggs and sausages with toast. We then took a small hike around the beautiful Lost Lake which was within walking distance from our hotel. After lunch, we went on the other major highlight of our trip - zip lining! It was a 2.5 hr tour of 5 zip lines, starting with a baby one to warm up and progressing to the longest and fastest above 2000 feet (!) and ended with one where all of us (except Mommy who has high blood pressure) zip lined upside down! It was fun!
For dinner, we celebrated Oktoberfest at a local Bavarian restaurant. There was some yummy bratwurst, delicious beer, amazing desert and some really colorful singing and dancing.
We checked out of the Listel hotel in downtown Vancouver and headed up north to Whistler. The drive from Vancouver to Whistler on Highway 99, aptly dubbed “Sea to Sky Highway” was absolutely gorgeous but unfortunately we didn’t get a chance to snap any photos. When we arrived at Whistler 2 hours later, we checked into the Hilton, courtesy of Marlene’s friend and family discount and got a free upgrade to a junior suite. Cool! After lunch, Daddy and Will played tennis while mommy and I hit the shops in the village. In the evening, we had dinner at a popular restaurant called Bearfoot Bistro. They were running a surf and turf special and it was indeed yummy. Our fingers were itching from several days without playing mahjong. Desperate, we set up a makeshift table and got to play a few rounds! :)
Visited Lynn Canyon in the morning and explored Granville island (and its public market) in the afternoon…
From our Listel hotel in downtown Vancouver, we took a short walk to Stanley Park bright and early so Will and Daddy could play a game of tennis while Mommy and I explored. We then had lunch at our favorite Taiwanese restaurant (beef noodles!) before heading over to the VanDusen Botanical garden in the vicinity. The VanDusen garden is really quite beautiful and we had a most wonderful elderly gentleman as our volunteer tour guide. We then did a little shopping at Yaohan (haven’t seen one of these since I was little in Singapore) in the Richmond district before dinner at a supposedly well rated Japanese restaurant conveniently located right across from our hotel.
