In May of this year we received a group invitation from friends that began "We were visiting with Dad about taking a trip in early October aboard the Rocky Mountaineer..."
Todd and I had been wanting to do this same trip for a few years, so the unsolicited opportunity arriving from out of the blue was spooky. We immediately said yes (in our heads), but spent a week researching and talking about it before committing. My mom was also going, so that was a bonus.
Our "Journey Through the Clouds Excursion" trip started at the beginning of this month. We flew from DFW to Vancouver and spent two nights there. We then boarded the glass-domed Rocky Mountaineer train for a two-day rail journey with overnight stops in Kamloops, British Columbia, and Jasper, Alberta, followed by a two-day bus ride with stops along the scenic Icefields Parkway and overnight stays at Lake Louise and Banff, both in Alberta. On the last day we took a bus from Banff to Calgary to fly home.
The trip was amazing: We had amazing scenery, great company, great food, and the fall weather (including an incredible snowfall on the last day that didn't impact our travel) was perfect.
On the first day we arrived at DFW airport at 7:30am and met up with our 8 other traveling companions at the gate. Our roughly 4-hour flight took off at 9:15 CST and landed at Vancouver International a little after 11:15 PST. After collecting luggage and going through customs, a mostly kiosk-interaction process, we grouped into taxis for the 30-minute ride to the hotel. Luckily our rooms were ready so we were able to check in early.
Todd and Mom waiting at the airport.
"I once flew on an airplane thiiis big..."
"...your seat cushion may be used as a floatation device. In the event of a donut emergency, bags of donuts will descend from the tray table in the seat in front of you.."
Circling around to land at Vancouver International airport
Our downtown hotel, The Pan Pacific Vancouver, was in the Canada Place building along with the Vancouver Convention Centre, Vancouver World Trade Center, and the Port of Vancouver cruise ship terminal.
This bed was very comfortable. In fact, all the hotel beds on this trip were great.
The cruise terminal. This part of the Canada Place building mimics ship elements including a prow, sails and a promenade.
Looking out at Vancouver Harbour.
We walked a short distance from our hotel, on the right, to Burrard Landing and Bellaggio Cafe, out of frame on the left, for a late lunch.
Bellaggio Cafe. It was about 55°F so they switched on the heaters under the umbrellas and we ate outside. I had an 8oz Angus burger, fries, and a Monte Cristo coffee: espresso, orange brandy, Kahlua, whipped cream. Yum.
At one corner of Burrard Landing is Bon Voyage Plaza and a sculpture title The Drop
The Drop, by the German art group Inges Idee.
Behind the sculpture is a floating Chevron station, and behind that is Stanley Park which we would visit the next day
Our group. Good people and good times!
After lunch our group split for the evening. Todd and I walked along the harbor* and around the Canada Place building before heading to our room momentarily for jackets.
The harbor was continuously busy with commuter and touring seaplane traffic. In the background left is a huge yellow pile of sulfur awaiting shipment.
Looking back at the cruise terminal from the "prow" sticking out into the harbor
The Harbour Centre building near the center of the picture houses a 360° viewing deck and a revolving restaurant. Our rail journey included a voucher for the lookout tower and we would visit it the following day.
Vancouver has an ambitious and aggressive "Greenest City Action Plan" initiative, of which recycling is an important part
The view from our room. The TransLink SeaBus Waterfront ferry terminal is in the center. It's a passenger-only ferry that takes riders across the Burrard Inlet to North Vancouver. Behind that and to the left is the Helijet helipad and to the right is the Waterfront Station rail terminus. Note this is mainly for commuter/freight traffic - our Rocky Mountaineer tour train did not depart from this location.
After stopping back in the room for jackets, we walked southeast along Water Street through Gastown - Vancouver's oldest neighborhood.
It's beautiful here...
...but did you see the size of that giant dog??
Stopping for ice cream (of course) at Soft Peaks. We both had a Mudslide cone - a soft-serve twist topped with Tim Tam flakes and chocolate syrup. The ice cream was fine but the best part was the crispy, sugary waffle cone.
Giant dog? Hold my...I don't know...corn, I guess. I felt like we stumbled into the movie The Food of the Gods, which coincidentally took place on a "...remote Canadian island..."
At the corner of Water and Cambie streets sits the Gastown Steam Clock. Built in 1977, it whistles every 15 minutes and counts out the hours.
We headed back to the hotel and settled in for the night early at 5:15pm. I finished watching Stranger than Fiction, then watched Song of the Sea. Lights out at 10pm and I slept great. We were off to a good start!
Back in the room for the night
*I've decided to use the American spelling of words unless they're part of a title or name, in which case I'll use the Canadian spelling. It's only the first post and I'm already tired of trying to keep everything straight with autocorrect and harbour, neighbourhood, centre, etc. Just tell me if I accidentally start using Vancoover.
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