Back in British Columbia

Prince Rupert

Our “Alaskan cruise”, via the BC Ferries and Alaskan Marine Highway, ended in Prince Rupert, a town located on the shores of the Pacific Ocean in the northwest corner of British Columbia. Upon our return from the northern most region of these United States, we were again struck by the orderliness of Canadian towns. Now doubt this level of cleanliness is a result of stringent zoning regulations and so on, the likes of which probably do not exist in many parts of the Great American Experiment. Nonetheless, we had a pleasant evening in Prince Rupert recovering our land lubber legs, before our big drive through BC back to Continental USA.

The Trans-Canadian Highway between Prince Rupert and Prince George was another overdose of spectacular mountain and lake scenery dotted with pleasant tidy towns. This stretch of highway is also known as the “Highway of Tears”. Apparently, a significant number of women have gone missing along this stretch of highway (predominantly whilst hitchhiking) and are assumed murdered. So although we enjoyed the scenery, we drove probably quicker than was necessary and Lish was sure to make very speedy restroom breaks.

Crab pots stacked on the harbour at Prince Rupert

Bald Eagle encountered along Highway of Tears.

Prince George

Like Prince Rupert, Prince George is a Canadian town named after a British Royal, King George III. (Prince Rupert is named after Prince Rupert of the Rhine). It is thought of as the capital of Northern BC and is very close to the border of the Yukon. Despite its remoteness, we had a very nice sushi dinner there. The only other tit-bit we picked up while there, is that we were advised by the receptionist at our motel, that they get a lot of snow in Prince George. I looked into this, and apparently they do get on average 216 centimeters of snow annually.

Whistler

On our way south, we overnighted in Whistler, also known as “Little Australia” or “Australia North”. There are many Australians in Whistler, even at this time of year, when it is neither the peak of the summer tourist season or the ski season. There was a moment in our hotel lobby were all of the guests checking out and all of the staff checking the guests out were Australians. I've read on the interweb that out of the 4000 odd Canadian working visas given to Australians each year, about 2500 go to Whistler to work.

Snapshot from car on the way to Whistler

There seems to be no explanation for the prevalence of Australians here, other than we know that this is a place Australians like to go. But perhaps the reason lies somewhere in Whistler's reputation as a rocking party town. Not wishing to be seen as unpatriotic, we put on our best clothes and hit the bars. It was Halloween and we were soon beckoned into a party, populated by about 200 Australians and 5 Canadians, all decked out in fantastic costumes.  Cowboys, frankenstiens, superheros, tragic skiing accidents, and even some ex-presidents took to the dance floor. The best we could come up with was dirty campers who haven't had a proper shower for a while and I'm pleased to say we nailed it.

Chilliwak

Still progressing south, we stopped in the city of Chilliwak to visit an old friend, Josh, who kindly and very hospitably put us up for a couple of nights. Chilliwak's horizon is filled with a snow capped mountain vista (the Cascades perhaps?) and tidy, organized suburbs. It is another example of an orderly and well planned Canadian city. Well done Canada.

Also while in Chilliwak, we also were exposed to the computer game “Rock Band” for the first time by Josh's friends and our new friends (and followers!) Kourtney and John. Although it was evident that we were not naturals, it was fun nonetheless and our hosts very kindly humoured our poor performances. Their hospitality ran to farce, though, when they let us win an Australia vs Canada boardgame duel. Anyone who has played a boardgame with Alex knows that his team must lose.

Vancouver

2010 has been a big year for Vancouver. Consistently rated one of the world's most livable cities, Vancouver hosted the Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in 2010. Now it was to play host to the Green Blazing team and it proved itself once again to be “proud, resourceful and fun” (as the city promises in the Official Visitors' Guide to Vancouver). Whilst in town, we witnessed the resignation of the Premier of British Columbia, Gordon Campbell, and the largest ever lottery win in Canada's history. A charming couple won the prize and both quit their jobs the following day, pledging to invest the money and live off the interest. Sensible and oh so Canadian.

Olympic Torch in Vancouver

We did a glory alumni visit to the University of British Columbia to commemorate Alex's six months there, complete with trips to the Beanery Cafe and Wreck Beach. Although all the signs greeting you at the entrance to the long walk down to Wreck Beach indicate that clothing is optional at the beach, we were still surprised to find that some people were taking this option up (Quote Alex – “I promise you, it wasn't like this before, I don't know what's happened here...”). After being terrified by the nudists, whom, I should point out, were all male (except for one lady who was clearly mentally ill), we rushed back to the university grounds for a quick walk by Gage Dormitories and the Law School

Wreck Beach, in a section that is sans nudists

We did the obligatory Long Run around Stanley Park, and yes, I do mean to capitalize the term “Long Run”, to liken it to the “Long March” (because that's what a run with Alex always ends up being). A brief stop was allowed on the Long Run to view the Beluga whales at the Stanley Park Aquarium.

Vancouver has a diverse population, which means it has terrific food. We were treated to fresh slabs of salmon in sashimi and teriyaki forms for dinner one night at Samurai Sushi in the West End of town. We also had a real deal authentic Chinese meal in Richmond. It's hard to explain why this meal was more authentic than those presented at other Chinese restaurants, but I think it had something to do with the perfectly prepared steamed dumplings and the live crab harvesting video playing on the restaurant's television.

Now that we had had our fill of delicious fresh food, common sense people and political correctness, it was time for us to drive by the Peace Arch, head over that international boundary, and get into some greasy fast food, start lovin' liberty and talk sh*t to whomever would listen. Ah, God Bless America.