Vancouver

I'm pretty lucky. Last year my aunt did really well at work, so she was awarded with a trip to a conference in Vancouver for her AND a guest, and she picked me as her guest! So I spent all of last week in Canada.

We arrived Saturday afternoon, and after checking into the hotel we hit up a restaurant for Dim Sum. Then we took a nap. After the nap we walked and walked and walked, until we got to a beach on the other side of downtown, where everyone and their mother was headed to watch fireworks. We knew we'd be too tired to stay up for fireworks, however, so after some quality people-watching at a park by the water we headed back in the opposite direction of the crowds. On the way we found the perfect little Italian restaurant in a cute secluded courtyard, where we enjoyed a nice meal. Then we hit the hay.

Sunday I got up and grabbed some breakfast, then ran 7 miles along the seawall at Stanley Park. Next we went to Church downtown, then grabbed lunch just in time to catch a shuttle to Richmond (BC). That's where we got on a boat and went whale watching!

Our whale watching boat.

We were one the boat for a total of 5.5 hours. That's a long time to spend on a speed boat. For a long while all we saw were bald eagles.

Bald eagles! The only animals I saw for a long time.

It was pretty cold on the water, mostly because of the speed-boat-caused wind, but luckily they gave us stylish yellow rain suits to wear to help keep the chill off.

Lookin' good in my rain suit and cap.

Once we were really far south, I think surely in the US, we finally had a whale sighting!

That spray of water was from a whale!

Usually on these whale trips they see orcas (killer whales), but we didn't see any. Instead, we saw two humpback whales!

See the whale? Or at least the hump? It's that dark spot in front of the boat in the center at the top.

After we made it back to land we had time for a quick bite and glass of wine, then back onto the shuttle to Vancouver. There we ate some more at the hotel restaurant, and then went to bed exhausted.

Monday we got up and after breakfast headed down by the water to the airport. That's where we caught a seaplane to Victoria.

A paddle boat in Vancouver, seen from the airport.

The airport!

Our ride to Victoria.

Downtown Victoria and Stanley Park. And ships.

Me. In a seaplane.

A pretty picture.

Getting ready to land in Victoria.

Post-flight photo-op.

In Victoria we were picked up by my aunt's former bass teacher. He took us back to his place for lunch. It was very nice. Then we had about an hour left to hang out downtown, so I walked around.

Cute topiary.

To get back to Vancouver we took the ferry. That meant first taking a bus, then 1.5 hours on the ferry, then more time on the bus back to Vancouver and our hotel. We spent the ferry ride eating at the buffet.

Our ride back to Vancouver.

Tuesday morning I went for another run. Then we went to the aquarium. We walked back to the hotel from there, which was along the same seawall that I always ran along. It was so beautiful.

A view of downtown from the seawall. I ran here four times.

I'm glad they kept pedestrians and bikes separated. It could be crowded.

See the cute houseboats?

Tuesday night was the opening of her conference. There was a big banquet outside at the convention center by the water, next to the Olympic torch. Wednesday morning I went with her to the opening session, which included an award ceremony and a few talks. Not the most exciting part of the trip, but it was okay. After the talks we had sushi for lunch, then I went for a run. After that I walked around a little.

Me and a departing cruise ship.

Wednesday evening we went back to Richmond (BC) for dinner. Back on Sunday when we went whale watching my aunt had chatted with the shuttle driver. They got onto the subject of salmon, and to make a long story short, we went to their house for a salmon dinner. Kinda crazy, but the driver and his wife were very nice and the food was delicious!

Dinner.

After dinner they drove us to Granville Island for gelato. Then they drove us back to our hotel.

The nice couple who made us salmon.

Thursday I got up and took a train to a different part of town to visit a big sporting goods store. I bought a cute little backpack for hiking (plus a hydration bladder so I can use it on long runs). Then I grabbed a bite to eat and a snack for later. After taking the train back downtown I changed clothes at the hotel and packed my new backpack. Then I took a seabus and a regular bus until I arrived at Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver. That's where I proceeded to hike up the mountain, also called the "Grouse Grind."

That funny-looking boat is the seabus!

The hike is 1.8 miles, with an elevation gain of 2,800 feet. It's basically stairs the entire way up.

Nothin' but stairs.

I was already way sweaty by this point.

Halfway there!

More stairs.

Still going straight up.

At the top!

I made it up in about 70 minutes. The record is something crazy like 25 minutes (by a man; 31 by a woman).

The view from the top.

They don't let people walk down (and your knees wouldn't want you to anyway), so you have to take the tram down.

My ride back down the mountain.

By the time I got back to the hotel it was just in time to get ready for the evening's activities. Those involved drinks at my aunt's boss's suite, dinner with her peeps at that hotel's restaurant, and more drinks back in the suite. Those people sure like to party.

Friday I crawled out of bed in time for breakfast, hung out in bed a little more after that, and then managed to run 4 miles. Then my aunt and I had lunch in Chinatown and visited a Chinese garden.

Beautiful gardens and pond.

I don't think I've ever seen a real frog on a real lilly pad before.

Neat windows. Every one was different.

Idyllic Chinese garden with skyscrapers in the background. And a big bird (maybe an egret?) in the tree.

Friday evening was the closing banquet back outside (and inside) at the convention center by the water. Lots of food and live music.

Enjoying our last night.

Beautiful sunset!

Banqueting around a fun sculpture.

The night ended with a fireworks show for us over the water. Then it was time for bed so we could head to the airport at 6am the next morning for our long travel day back to Richmond (VA).

Perfect ending.

I'm ready to visit Vancouver again. It was pretty awesome.

mom time

Last weekend my mom came to see me. It was really nice to have her all to myself for a few days in Charlottesville.

Thursday she arrived around 6 and we went out to dinner and sat outside drinking cold beer. Then we watched The Descendants at my place.

Friday we slept in (which I rarely do anymore, and it was oh so nice) and then headed over to UVA. I did some work at the library and in special collections while she read. Then we met up for lunch, and then I went back to work for a while more. After that we drove to Richmond for dinner at my grandparents' house, where my aunt made paella and sangria and we ended the night with a sing-a-long at the piano.

Saturday I woke up at 4:30 to get ready to go on a group run, but it was pouring rain and I hadn't gotten enough sleep, so I went back to bed and slept until 8. Then I ran nine miles on my own, when it wasn't raining anymore. After that mom and I headed to Fishersville for the Daylilly and Wine Festival. We looked at flowers, ate lunch, tasted wine, listened to music, and had a good time. It was overcast the whole time but thankfully didn't rain, and also wasn't too hot!

Mom bought me this lovely hat at the wine festival.

Sunday I got to take mom to the church I've been attending for over a year, and then we had brunch downtown. After that we did some shopping and wore ourselves out. We ended the day with snacks and wine at my place and a viewing of Despicable Me. Oh, and she sewed a button back onto my sweater for me. (Thanks Mom!)

She left super early Monday morning. So early that I had time to drop her off at the airport and then come home and make a pie (key lime in a homemade graham cracker crust) for our "Summer Pie Day" at work.

balloon ride

Two weekends ago my aunt came to Charlottesville with some of her best friends to celebrate her birthday. She let me join them. We stayed at a resort, ate a fancy dinner, and the next morning got up bright and early for a hot air balloon ride! It was fun. Here are some pictures:

touristin' it up

I just spent a few days hanging out with a good friend who came to visit. She had never been to Charlottesville, so I showed her around.

She arrived Wednesday evening, which was just in time to go to the top of Montalto and watch fireworks! We had a picnic and enjoyed the views, but I thought the fireworks-watching-experience was a little weird because they were so far away and therefore not loud, plus not accompanied by music (for us). So it was a sort of surreal time of watching quiet little fireworks all over the city down below. But still fun.

Thursday we visited Monticello. It was very hot, but that was the story of her entire visit.

Sure there's a shuttle behind us and TJ is looking the wrong way, but hey! We look better in this one.

 

We got to try our hands at writing with a quill pen.

Obviously it didn't turn out so well. I don't know how they managed to write anything back in the day.

After Monticello we ate lunch at Michie Tavern. I had never been there before, so her visit was a good chance to try out the touristy restaurant. The food was a little better than I was expecting. Those stewed tomatoes were delicious.

After lunch we visited Albemarle CiderWorks for a tasting. Then we went down the road and did a wine tasting at Pippen Hill Farm. We also sat outside and had a snack. Not because we were hungry, but because it was so beautiful that we didn't want to leave.

Is this not the most perfect view ever? Sure it was so hot even the cheese was sweating, but still. Beautiful.

After all the wining and dining (and sweating) we went downtown and walked around Court Square and the Downtown Mall. Then we ate (again!) at The Whiskey Jar. It was really good.

Friday we got up early and drove to the Blue Ridge Parkway to hike Humpback Rocks. Luckily, it wasn't very hot. But it was a little thundery.

Dramatic views at the top!

Feelin' strong!

 After the hike we headed to Scottsville, grabbed a quick (and very necessary) lunch at Subway, and then hit the river for four hours of tubing on the James. It was very slow, but relaxing. When tubing was over we showered and went to dinner. We happened upon a new Italian place I didn't know about, and sat at the bar for a delicious and very affordable dinner. Then we walked it off around UVA, making sure to check out the Poe room.

After such a full and active day, we hit the hay early. That was good because I got up really early on Saturday to join a big group of runners at 6 AM. (6 AM! I'm sure I'll post more about this later.) I got back home at 8:30 and went back to bed for an hour or so while she did some work. Then we headed back out for another day of fun.

We drove to Staunton and visited the Frontier Culture Museum. That was probably the worst choice for a 100+ degree day, because it's all outdoors (or inside non-climate controlled historic dwellings) and requires lots of walking. But we braved the heat. And the Museum is genius for offering golf carts to rent! We wouldn't have made it through the whole place if we really had to walk. Because seriously, it was hot.

Our sweet ride, with an Irish house in the background.

In one of the American houses they had just baked biscuits!

And we *might* have helped ourselves to one each. We were starving.

Look at the adorable sheep!

When we finished the museum we were wilting and hungry, so we headed to downtown Staunton for lunch. Then we did a wine tasting at Ox-Eye Vineyards. And from there we drove to Fishersville for another tasting at Barren Ridge. There was a wedding happening, so the tastings were up the hill at a cabin. Without ice or air conditioning. The wine was possibly our favorite of all we'd had so far, but the heat was brutal.

Once we made it back to C'ville we walked around the Downtown Mall some more, stopping into more stores than usual to take advantage of air conditioning. When we'd worked up a little bit of an appetite, we enjoyed sushi for dinner, and then headed home.

I'd say we had a pretty packed and awesome time.

Tats for the Fourth

In honor of the Fourth of July I'm wearing a fun temporary tattoo. I even got two co-workers to wear them, too! (Yes, I'm at work, but that's because my friend Celia is coming to visit later today and I'll be hanging out with her and not working the next two days. Woohoo!)

We put these on in the copy room without mirrors, so I didn't realize I placed mine right on my lovely mole-removal scar. That's hot.

weekend

Last Friday I didn't have to work because I'd attended a conference all weekend at the beginning of the pay period. So I went to Richmond and got there in time for lunch with the family. Then I took a nap. After the nap I went shopping with Sunni and her friend for sandals, because I don't have any other than flip flops, but I didn't find any I liked enough to buy. Then it was back to the house to eat a bit and get ready to head downtown.

Downtown is where my Aunt Judy and I went to see Idina Menzel sing (she was in Rent and Wicked and Glee). Then we went out for a snack after the show, and shortly after that was when the storm-out-of-nowhere hit and we thought we'd be taken up in a tornado. Seriously. You should have seen us standing in the median of Broad looking like idiots with debris flying all around, almost swept off our feet. Luckily when we got across the street a security officer let us in some empty office building so we wouldn't blow away. When the wind died down a tiny bit we headed back out to get Sunni and her friend, who were at a show across the street from ours. Then the rain came and we couldn't find which parking garage we were parked in, so that was fun. We finally made it back home around midnight. Luckily after last year's hurricane storm that left all of us camped out in my Charlottesville apartment, they got a generator for the house. So we were the only home around with air conditioning and lights, which was good for the grandparents. We had Grandma with us at the house, because the generators at the assisted living facility weren't running air conditioning. And it was a hot weekend y'all.

Saturday morning I went for a run. I ran eight miles and it was very hot. But I just bought a hydration belt so I had some fluids with me. On the run I came across this giant tree in the road on Old Gun. Cars turned around and I saw a bike go around through someone's yard, but I just went under it.

After the run we had brunch at the house, and then I went with the girls to the pool. It was really hot, but I just stayed in the shade. The whole time. I sat in the shade and read, then I sat in a short chair in the water that was also in shade. That way I didn't have to bother with sunscreen. Or skin cancer. After swimming, Sunni and I dropped her friend off at home and then gorged ourselves on Sweet Frog. Then we headed home and I watched a movie with Aunt Judy and Grandpa.

Sunday I got up early and headed back to Charlottesville so I could clean my bathroom before church. I wanted a clean bathroom because I had people over yesterday, which is exciting since I've never really had anyone over who wasn't a relative.  A few work friends came over and we ate red white and blue foods and watched 1776 the musical. It was fun.

We didn't have time to eat dessert though, because after eating and chatting and watching a really long movie, it was late. So we had our dessert today at work. More red white and blue!

Bittersweet Weekend

Last weekend was fun. Thursday after work I drove to Richmond and visited with my grandpa and mom very briefly (she was in town staying with him). Then Josh and I drove to his grandparents' house again (the same place we spent Memorial Day weekend) to make pickles. When we arrived we ate dinner and then got to slicing cucumbers. His grandpa had already sliced half of them though, so that didn't take too long. They spent the night in lime, and Friday we made up the juice for them to soak. I'm trying to think of what else we did during the day, but I can't remember exactly. Visited the book sale at the local library and went for a boat ride on the pond I think. That evening we had shrimp for dinner on the porch, and then played games with his grandparents.

Saturday it was time to cook and can the pickles (the term "canning" is confusing to me because really they're going into jars, but anyway...). Once we were done with all that we ate a little lunch, and then Josh and I took our bikes to Urbanna to ride around. We rode around the little town and in some cute neighborhoods by the water, and stopped occasionally to walk along docks. After that we went to a miniature golf place for a banana split and one game. Then it was time to get back to the house, pack up, and go to dinner with his grandparents on our way out of town.

We drove back to Richmond that night, where Josh dropped me off at my grandparents' house before he came back to Charlottesville. I spent the evening hanging out with my mom, and spent the night there. Sunday I went for a run, then we picked up Grandma and went to brunch. That afternoon Mom and I did some shopping at Target, and then I drove back to Charlottesville. That's when I had to kick it into high gear and pack quickly for...

Camping! After Josh was done with the rescue squad Sunday we loaded up his car (embarrassingly full) and headed to Sherando Lake for two nights of camping with his aunt and her boyfriend. As we neared the campsite the weather looked more and more ominous, but luckily we got our tent set up before it was too dark and without rain. But then it rained all night and into the morning. We stayed in the tents until around 10 because of the rain, and finally ventured out to make breakfast. Here's our pancake cooking station.

The rain let up and was nice the rest of the day. We went on a little hike and geocached along the trails around the lake. We looked for three caches and found two of them. You can't see it too well in this picture, but there is a toy turtle cache in the tree.

After a late lunch and a nap, we played games, drank beer, made dinner, and enjoyed our campfire and marshmallows. Then it was time for bed.

 

The most exciting part of the camping trip came in the middle of the night though. Around 1:30am, the dog with us (not ours) woke to something in our campsite. The something, you might guess, was a bear. We didn't see it, but Josh says he heard it. I couldn't tell if I was hearing it because of the noises the dog was making. Then we heard noises up above, and discovered that the bear had stashed her three cubs up a tree in our campsite! All of this was discovered from inside our tents while shining lights out the windows. We made a bunch of noise and kept shining the lights and watched as one by one, all three cubs came down out of the tree and scurried off into the woods to join their mother. It was all scary but exciting! (And if you're wondering, all of our food was locked in our cars, so the mama bear wasn't actually rummaging around our own site much. We think she just put the cubs up there while she rummaged around the other sites around us.)

It rained a little that night, too, but nothing too bad. By mid morning on Tuesday the sun was out and it was getting warm. We made breakfast and packed up our tents to clear the site. Then we drove down to the lake and swam briefly (which, by the way, was very difficult. I can run but swimming kills me.) After quick showers (my first since Sunday) we left Sherando Lake and headed to the Devil's Backbone brewery for lunch. After a wrong turn and long drive along the Blue Ridge Parkway, we finally found the restaurant and enjoyed a great lunch with good beer. It was a nice ending to our long weekend!

But now for the bittersweet part. I had a great weekend, but it was my last weekend with Josh. After four and a half years of dating, we've decided we won't be able to go on to the "next step" with each other, and have thus broken up. It's very sad and hard, but I think it's the right thing. As anyone can see by skimming through this blog, we've had a great time together, and I will cherish the memories. So please keep us both in your thoughts as we go through this difficult transition in our lives.

fun weekends

Let me backtrack a couple weeks to tell you about my weekends. Sorry for being lazy and not posting sooner.

For Memorial Day weekend, Josh and I went to his grandparents' house over on the east side of the state. I think we can call the area the "middle peninsulas." On the way there we stopped in Richmond and ate sandwiches with my family. We got to the house later in the evening, so we didn't do a whole lot that night.

Saturday we visited a church garage sale but didn't buy anything, and then we hit up the farmer's market in Deltaville. I got a free book-on-tape from the public library. We didn't get anything else. We did look at boats and crabs though. After that we went back to the house and I think took naps. Then we got up, loaded bikes (Josh's and his grandpa's, which I was borrowing) on the car, and drove to a little place called Reedville. We rode our bikes around for a couple hours, which was lots of fun--flat roads that always ended at water. Then we ate seafood at the Crazy Crab right by the water.

 

 

Sunday we got up and watered his grandparents' garden (they were out of town the whole weekend, but let us visit and have a vacation at their house anyway). Then we headed to Irvington to have lunch with Josh's aunt and her boyfriend. After that we were gonna go kayaking, but I took a really long nap instead. After waking up around 4 we just went down to the pond and paddled around in his grandpa's boat while Josh fished. That night his aunt and her boyfriend came over and joined us for a little cookout and games. Very fun.

 

  

 

Monday we finally got around to the kayaking. We were out on the Piankatank for a couple hours. After lunch Josh took a short nap, and I went out biking again for an hour. Then we cut up some pieces of wood for me in his grandpa's shop before packing up and heading back to C'ville.

A very fun and relaxing weekend.


Now let me tell you about the next weekend. Saturday I visited the farmers' market downtown (and actually bought stuff), then met Josh for a 6 mile run. That day there happened to be lots of historical reenactors and demonstrations downtown to help celebrate Charlottesville's 250th anniversary. So we walked around after the run and looked at some stuff. Then we each went home to take a shower, but met up again for lunch and...

...bicycle shopping!

That's right, I finally bought myself a bike. And a new helmet. It's exciting.

Saturday evening Josh came over to my place with our bikes, and we went for a ride. We ended up downtown (again), where we listened in from the bridge behind the stage for a few songs of the Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers concert. Then we had a late dinner at South Street Brewery before riding back home.

Sunday I slept in, went to church, and then took a long afternoon nap. After Josh was done with the rescue squad we went for another bike ride along the river, which is very nice except for the swarms of gnats. During our ride we saw a deer swimming across the river, ducks, a fox, and fireflies. We also saw a toad back at my apartment. Lots of nature.