We just returned from what Ryan and I decided has been our best family vacation to date. We'd been dreaming about it for awhile, and our dream finally came true...we went on an Alaskan cruise! Alaska holds such a special place in our hearts, and we couldn't wait to get back up there. We left early Wednesday morning on our flight to Vancouver. We looked forward to a couple of days here to adjust to the time difference before boarding the ship.
It was a beautiful day when we landed, so we dropped our bags off in our room at the lovely Loden Hotel and headed back out. We took the bus straight over to Capilano Suspension Bridge Park.
There are lots of totem poles around the park as the First Peoples Nations are an important part of the history of Vancouver.
This suspension bridge was built in 1889, and it is 450 feet long and 230 feet above the rushing Capilano River. We wanted to give it a try! It was fun to bounce and sway as we walked across it; thankfully there was lots of laughter too!
It provided us some beautiful views, though we tried not to look straight down too much.
This is the view of the bridge from another vantage point. You can't even see the ground/river in this picture. It really is high up!
After making it to the other side of the bridge, we decided to do the treetop adventures. It was a fun walkway between the humongous trees that let us learn more about nature in that area. The girls enjoyed doing their scavenger hunt activity along the way too.
Of course, we looked for places to rest our feet while we walked too.
It was a neat area to explore and climb around in. After we'd finished up there, we bounced back across the bridge and headed over to the cliff walking area...we couldn't resist smiling with this bear though.
The cliffwalk is a newer attraction. It's a cantilevered walkway that clings to the granite cliffs above Capilano Canyon. It was actually scarier to walk out along these paths then the big bridge!
We were rewarded with beautiful views all along the way though, like this waterfall and pond.
This was such a beautiful park.
What a great way to start our time in Vancouver!
Ryan and I were excited to get back to the hotel because we had a pretty big surprise in store for the girls. While we three were in our room, Ryan went down to the lobby, and when he came back up, Grandpops and Grandma Jan were with him! The girls were completely shocked. They had no idea they had flown in from Chicago to join us on our trip. They even asked, "Did you fly here to see us in Vancouver?" They couldn't believe they were going to cruise with us!
Thursday was a really rainy day in Vancouver. We had kind of a lazy morning before heading to lunch at a delicious Lebanese restaurant. We were amazed at the variety and quality of ethnic dining choices! After lunch, Ryan, the girls, and I went over to Stanley Park for a horse-pulled carriage ride. It was an interesting ride that let us see some beautiful scenery without getting wet.
We walked the couple of miles back to our hotel. It was a steady rain but nothing awful at that point. In the evening, Grandpops and Grandma Jan ordered pizza to our room and kept the girls, so Ryan and I went on a little date to a fantastic Chinese restaurant. It was delicious and fun to have a date!
Friday morning was another gorgeous day. The girls and I went out on a little walking tour of the city to get out for a bit. We loved all the water fixtures and pieces of green space around downtown. It was a nice little outing.
Around 11:00 that morning, it was time to head to the boat. We loved Vancouver and hope to return another day to have more fun here!
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