Return to Grouse Mountain July 2019

 We took a gondola ride to the top of Grouse Mountain in North Vancouver.

I didn't see it posted anywhere, but if you can prove you are local (BC driver's licence) you can get a discount on a return gondola ride.

Mountain Admission Tickets include a scenic round trip Skyride, access to the Peak Chairlift, World-Famous Lumberjack Shows, Birds in Motion Demonstrations and visits to the Grizzly bear habitat.

We were very lucky to see both Coola and Grinder.

Grinder was found in 2001 in Invermere, BC. He was wandering alone on a logging road, dehydrated, thin, weak and weighing only 4.5 kg. His mother was never found so we’ll probably never know why he was alone. Grinder is outgoing and high-spirited. He has established himself as the dominant bear despite his smaller size. If you see Grinder and Coola play fighting, you can bet he started it. 

In 2001, Coola was found orphaned on a highway near Bella Coola, BC. His mother had been killed by a truck and, of her three cubs, Coola was the only one to survive. Coola is an easygoing bear who’s content to let Grinder take the lead in new discoveries. He can usually be found submerged up to his neck in the large pond, carefully feeling around for his underwater 'bath toys' - a log, large bone and favourite rock.

 https://www.grousemountain.com/wildlife-refuge 

Had to stop for a snack after the Ranger Talk about the bears and what could be better than a BeaverTail (a Canadian doughnut)

We learned a lot from the Remarkable Raptors demonstration.

Next big trip: January to March 2020

We will be traveling to SE Asia for 3 months on our next adventure.

• Khmer(Cambodia) Hello: suostei
• Burmese (Myanmar) Hello: haallo
• Vietnamese (Vietnam):Hello: xin chao

San Francisco, California May 2019

Getting from the Airport

We arrived at OAK and used BART to get to Powell Street.

After exiting OAK airport you will see the large BART structure ahead of you. The transfer to Coliseum station is free and from there you choose your route. We paid 10.95 from Coliseum to Powell Street. Double-check the schedule using the BART app. We returned on a Sunday and found the service was reduced and we had to transfer.

Transit

You can buy a Clipper Card from Walgreens. The card is an all-in-one transit card for the Bay area. We bought a 3-day pass for $29 (plus $3 for the reloadable card). Considering that one ride of a Cablecar costs $7, the Clipper card is good value if you plan on riding on a Cablecar, Vintage trolley, or Muni (bus).

Mayflower Hotel

We liked the location and ambience of the Mayflower Hotel. The hotel is not new and has 2 elevators with old fashioned gates. Part of the charm. We stayed in a 1 bedroom suite which came with a trundle bed so all 3 adults had a good place to sleep. When we went out of the day we stopped at the desk for candies to fuel our walk. There is a market next door. Check out was 1pm. You have to book by phoning them directly.

The hotel is family-owned EST 1929. Breakfast is included.

Mayflower Hotel

The Painted Ladies

We walked from Haight Ashbury to Divisidaro to get Alamo Park to see the Victorian houses back-dropped by downtown skyscrapers, providing quite a contrast. As throughout SFO, the hills can be challenging. The grassy hillside overlooking the houses is a place to sit and look at the view of the city. The people-watching can be interesting and when you are tired of looking at people, the park also has a dog gathering area.

Children's play area in Golden Gate Park

What a fun area for the kids. I have never seen a slide quite like the one here. Kids took pieces of cardboard to the top and slid down the cement slide. The Bubble Pirate was in the area at the time we were there and I saw my first bubble dragon. Can you see the dragon?

The Hidden Garden Steps

We took the Muni (bus) to Judah stop, got off at 16th. We walked to 17th and turned right to get to the 17th Ave Steps. It's quite a hike up but you need to climb and then go right to see the next set of steps.

Fortune Cookie Factory

We found it! This hole-in-the-wall shop is tucked in a small alley at 56 Ross Alley. It's super small and you may have to line up to get inside. Once inside you take a few steps to see the assembly line and then double back to the cashier. It's a quick stop. I bought a bag of regular and tea flavoured fortune cookies so everyone at home could try one. Signage asks you to pay .50 if you want to take pictures inside.

The shop has been family-owned and making homemade cookies for 55 years.

Vintage Streetcars

San Francisco's Municipal Railway has assembled one of the most diverse collections of vintage streetcars, trolleys, and trams in transit service anywhere. Up to 20 of these vintage vehicles carry passengers along Market Street and The Embarcadero every day. https://www.streetcar.org/streetcars/

Once inside, look for a plaque with the year and history of the car you are riding in.

Alcatraz

Book ahead to be sure to get a seat on the ferry and your ticket on to the island.

 I learned so much on this tour. I never knew that it had been occupied by American Indians from Nov 20,1969 - Jun 11,1971 and you can see evidence all around the island. 

The gardens and birds were amazing. 

We got off the boat, listened to the introduction and then saw a film before we started to explore. The audio tour was amazing. It walked you from place to place inside the prison and you heard stories told by some prisoners. Everyone has a headphone so the place is quiet. The gift shop was very interesting. I'd love to go back and explore the gardens.

Great gift shop. 

Beautiful flowers are everywhere

Look for evidence of the occupation.

California sea lions at the pier

Head to Pier 39 to watch the sea lions sleep and interact with each other. https://www.pier39.com/merchant/sea-lions/

I will be back to visit you again, San Francisco!

Algarve, Portugal

We picked up a car in Lisbon and drove to Lagos.

You can kayak around, but we walked.

We visited the newly opened Slave Museum. Lagos was the first stop for the slaves. It was a great small museum using augmented reality to tell the story.

We stayed 6 nights in Lagos and then moved on to Tavira.

We stayed at Pousada Convento de Tavira and got a great off-season rate through booking.com

Our room overlooked a park and our small balcony gave us a great view of the town. The bed was comfortable and wifi strong but I missed a coffee maker in the room and there was no place in the hotel to get coffee or tea until 8am.
The front desk was great and on our last day they opened the museum for us as we had missed seeing it and it opened at 11am.

Don't miss the archeological site under the hotel. We were told that when they were excavating for a pool they came across Moorish houses. You access this by going through the bar and then down some stairs. You can also see the dig from a large glass window in the bar.

Porto, Portugal

We took a free walking tour with Porto Walkers and met here.

Porto has great signage. We learned alot about the area after reading these signs all over the city.

We took a short river cruise to see the city from another angle.

Lisbon, Portugal 2019

Beautiful gelato flower in Lisbon!

Beautiful tiles everywhere.

 I couldn't do it but maybe you'd like to give it a try.

Paris, France 2019

Sainte-Chapelle royal chapel was built to house Louis IX's collection of relics of Christ, which included the Crown of Thorns. 

The room you first walk in to is stunning, but the best is up the narrow winding staircase where I saw more stained glass than ever before. The panels tell the stories of the bible. The sun came up at one point and the whole room said "Ooo and aww" as the room filled with coloured light.

We used our museum pass and walked right in, leaving a long line of people waiting to buy a ticket.

Mona Lisa at the Louvre

River Seine

Notre Dame a month before the fire

Tyrona Park, Colombia

Take your passport or a copy of it to enter the park. After paying you will be given a wrist band. 

We went with a guide which was a good idea because the path is not well marked and because of the recent rains we had to go off the main path. We had to hike across 2 rivers and slog through mud. We went barefoot for most of the way. You can take a horse but it is also difficult for them. We saw many lost horseshoes and someone saw 2 horses fall. The horses make the trail even muddier. 

We went all the way to the camping and restaurant beach but should have stopped at an earlier bay as they had better swimming conditions. It took us 2 1/2 hours each way with our guide pushing us all the way. It was an exhausting and muddy day.

It was a lonnnnng and muddy trip.

Dangerous critters in the area.

Ixtapa, Mexico March 2018

Ixtapa, Mexico

Took a week to visit the sun in Ixtapa.

Sunset sail on the Picante

Took a day trip to Zihua

A weekend in San Francisco

My sister has rented an apartment for a month in San Francisco. She is working on her Masters and loves this city so has decided to explore and study.

I thought this would be a good opportunity to let her show me why she loves SFO so much. I flew down on Friday Oct 31, 2014 and flew home on Sunday November 2. It was a quick trip but it was fun.

Halloween night should be an interesting time for people watching. M took me to the Castro district (gay area) as it was very close to her apartment. So many costumes, so much to see. We ended up sitting in a Vietnamese restaurant watching the buses go by with every adult on board in costume. We were the only ones in SFO out of costume.

During my only full day there, we took trollies, walked, shopped, and ate. This weekend was a special trolly weekend and all of the old ones ran through the streets for this weekend only.

Fisherman's Wharf

That's Alcatraz in the background

As seen from the Fairmont Hotel