The Final Checklist

I have no idea how it happened, but somehow we have reached the end. I am currently driving away from Vancouver and into the Canadian Rockies with my Dad, and that means that my exchange at SFU is officially over.

The feeling of reaching the end is incredibly weird. The one overwhelming thought I keep having is "how did we get here"? I suppose I was so caught up in my final assignments and projects that I hadn’t realised the end was so close until it was right on top of us. Yesterday I said goodbye to the friends that I have made whilst on exchange and it really felt like the end of an era. I am sure I will see the majority of them in the future, but it still felt slightly overwhelming.

But this post isn’t about saying goodbye. Rather, I want to celebrate how well we utilised our last few days in Vancouver.

Once I had handed in all of my assignments and finished university completely, I realised I only had very limited time left in this city. Although I am not returning to England until June, most of the time between then and now will be spent travelling, and I realised there was still so much that I hadn’t done in Vancouver! This realisation pushed my friends and I into productivity, and the Final Checklist was created. We compiled a list of all of the places we hadn’t yet visited and we aimed to complete the checklist in our last few days here. Although we didn’t manage to achieve everything, we gave it a good attempt, and the sun (finally!) came out to grant us a pathway to success. But what was on the Final Checklist?

             1. Bowen Island.

Bowen Island is a small land mass between Vancouver and Vancouver Island which can be reached from Horseshoe Bay for as little as $10. I had heard about it numerous times – it is famous for its beauty and tranquillity – and yet it took until the last week of exchange for me to actually get there. We rose early and caught the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to travel to the Island and we were astounded by the views; the ferry ride is one of the highlights of the trip. You are surrounded by panoramic shots of snow-covered mountains contrasting starkly against the blue ocean which stretches for miles. Once you arrive at Bowen Island, you dock in a very cute cove filled with numerous sail boats and a pebbled beach with many independent cafes and shops nearby. The Island certainly lives up to its reputation –  it is small, peaceful and beautiful. I am sure in the summer tourists flock to its trails, but on the day that we visited it was incredibly quiet, and we really felt like we were in a separate world. We strolled through the forest trails to Killarney Lake taking in the Bridal Falls on the way. There are numerous other trails too and they are all relatively short so it is definitely possible to do all of them. We also hiked up to Dorman Point which gives you views across the entire ocean. It is a truly tranquil and pleasant spot. Visiting Bowen Island could give you a great day break from the hectic city if you needed some restoration. Particularly on a sunny day you can take a picnic, enjoy the stunning ferry ride, hike, and maybe even swim!

                2. The Lonsdale Market and the Polygon Gallery on the North Shore.

Somehow I had managed to live in Vancouver for 8 months without ever taking the SeaBus. We were graced with another sunny day, so my friends and I grabbed the SeaBus from Waterfront and headed over to the North Shore to visit Lonsdale Market. The SeaBus is just a regular mode of transport in Vancouver – people take it to and from work every day and it is considered just as normal as taking the public bus. However, for me - a girl from the very land locked industrial city of Birmingham - having a ferry as a normal mode of public transport is bizarre. I was definitely the eager tourist taking photos out of the window of the “bus” whilst all the regular passengers went about their daily lives. Once you land on the North Shore you step straight into Lonsdale Market. This is similar to the Granville Island Market, with lots of boutiques, fresh vegetables, fish stands, ice-cream stores, art and all of the rest, but it is much smaller and consequently a lot quieter, which is a welcome change from the throngs of people at Granville Island. Across from Lonsdale Market you can look back onto the skyline of Vancouver and it really is a phenomenal view.

Next door is also the Polygon Gallery. This is a contemporary Art Gallery which is pay by donation, so it is one of the more affordable ways to enjoy art in Vancouver. It is in an incredibly sleek and modern building which is bright, white and spacious. The exhibition that is running currently is based on North Vancouver, and it features art of varying mediums – sculptures, photography, time lapses and even animation, all based around the city. It also features a balcony which faces the Vancouver Skyline, where we enjoyed several minutes basking in the sunshine. Next stop, the Tap and Barrel brewery which is just over the road from the Polygon Gallery. The Tap and Barrel is a huge brewery and they have a really large outdoor seating area. Outdoor seating in Vancouver is actually pretty rare to find. There aren’t really beer gardens in the way we have at home – probably something to do with the fact that it rains all the time – so we were pretty excited to find such a huge outdoor space at the Tap and Barrel. Having only recently finished our exams, sitting in the sun to drink a beer in the late afternoon still felt like blissful luxury. There is enough to do on the North Shore to make a relaxing day out of it and it is definitely worth the visit. 

              3. The Queen Elizabeth Gardens.

The Queen Elizabeth Gardens are situated in Mount Pleasant and accessible from Main Street. I had heard about these gardens numerous times, but the weather hadn’t been good enough to pay a visit. However, in our final week after finishing classes, the heavens smiled on us and we were blessed with good weather every day. Despite feeling very fragile after a wild Saturday night, I finally made it to the Queen Elizabeth gardens with Millie and Tom. They truly are beautiful. The day we visited it was very warm weather – the first day that it properly felt like summer – and the gardens were alive with blossomed flowers and lazy bees. You can walk up the hill to the top of the gardens where you have views across the entirety of Vancouver. The gardens used to be a quarry, so they are positioned in levels which is lovely to walk through. It is also home to pitch and putt, bowling, a bird conservatory and various other activities. We only had a brief visit, but in the summer it would be a wonderful place to read, walk, picnic or just relax within some nature. Increasingly I am seeing how beautiful Vancouver is in the summertime – something I did manage to experience in September and October – and it does feel such a shame that I am leaving just as the weather is becoming its best.

And there you have it! Those were the highlights from the Final Checklist. There are still a several of things that I never got round to doing. I never visited the Museum of Anthropology at UBC or the Vancouver Art Gallery. I also never managed to hike the Chief at Squamish or visit Cyprus Mountain. There were also numerous restaurants that I wanted to try within the city and never got the chance to: Naam, Chickpea and the Jam House to name a few. In reality, though, I was always going to leave Vancouver feeling like there was still more to do. I guess that just gives me some incentive to come back in the future. And it is not totally goodbye for now. After the Rockies I am heading back to Vancouver for 4 days to meet my friends from Birmingham (!!) so I will still have time to say goodbye to the city then. But for now, I am heading out on a 10 day road trip with my Dad to explore the Canadian Rockies, and the mountains are waiting for us. I’ll see you in two weeks, Vancouver!