A short bus ride down W. Georgia Street from our hotel in Vancouver dropped us off just a few steps from the city's 1000 acre evergreen city respite of Stanley Park. It was a beautiful morning with the sun shining down to attempt to heat its warm blooded visitors, such as my fiance and me. Our first stop on our stroll was to the Vancouver Aquarium as we never miss a chance to visit our underwater friends wherever we travel on vacation or otherwise. After moving through the tropical zone where we were able to actually put a name to the various corals and fish we often see when diving in the Marshalls, we headed out to the Beluga show, where the aquarium's 3 white Beluga whales showed their smarts in exchange for fish from the trainers. Next, we headed back inside to see various types of jellys and other unusual fish such as ones that put out electrical currents to communicate and others that light up like fireflies underwater.
One of the highlights of the day was seeing our first 4D show in the aquarium's 4D theater. The Planet Earth movie, Shallow Seas, played as we viewed it through our stylish red 3D glasses and felt the spray of the ocean and the tickle of its wildlife in this immersive experience. Surprisingly, one of the best animals displays of the day happened right after the dolphin show. Resident seagulls begin hanging around the dolphin pool during the show hoping for some fish, and they followed the dolphins into their small holding area when they were done performing. From there, a couple of the dolphins began to play with the seagulls, tempting them to reach for the fish they were regurgitating and tossing up and out of their mouths and within the gulls' grasp, but then catching the fish again before the gulls could actually get it. This went on for at least an hour after the show, with the gulls getting irritated and squawking at the dolphins, and the dolphins occasionally talking back or spraying back at the gulls. Don't worry, the gulls did eventually get some food from the dolphins, but they didn't make it an easy catch. Apparently, this is a regular "after show" every day at the aquarium, so the gulls know what they are getting into. :) After making sure we checked out everything we had time for inside and out, we were getting hungry, so it was time for a late lunch.
As we searched for a sushi place that popped up on the GPS as being close by the park, we discovered instead a Kintara Ramen Noodle joint. It was very much a "hole in the wall" local restaurant, but packed to the gills the whole time we were there, and I guess we were pretty lucky to be seated right away. Looking at reviews of the place afterwards, there were a few complaints about the crowded atmosphere, but the ramen was wonderful! We enjoyed every bite and thought the service was excellent. We knew it was a local place and reviewed it in our minds as just that, one of those fabulous hole in the wall places where the food and service keeps drawing you back! By the time we finished it was almost 4 pm, so a brisk 25 minute walk later, and we were back at the hotel to rest up and change for our dinner reservations at 7 pm.
Our one fine dining splurge for this trip was right in the middle of Stanley Park at the Fish House Restaurant. In a lovely old building, originally designed as a sports pavilion and club house in 1930, we dined on sun dried tomato and cauliflower soup, a poached pear and spinach salad with candied walnuts and goat cheese that was melt in your mouth wonderful, as well as the mixed fish grill and mushrooms pave for mains. The service was more than excellent with a broad smiled waiter who pampered us all night, bringing us samples of their salmon wrapped in Gruyere cheese with a white Wasabi and black sesame sauce on top and raspberry sorbet for dessert. The restaurant is also famous for their lobster oil, which makes a light and delicious dip for bread when paired with a balsamic vinegar. It was all definitely worth the price, and we enjoyed it immensely. I can't imagine what is must be like to dine that way every day. As for me, I'm thankful that I can't and don't because it makes the occasional experiences with this exquisite type of food and dining all the more appreciated and tasteful! Only a couple of more days left before it's back to the islands, but I will continue to relish each moment with my new fiancee on my first trip to Canada.
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