Hey...a captive audience!
So, I'm relaxing in my seat on the airplane.
It's been an interesting - but tiring - trip across most of Canada on a fantastic railroad adventure and I'm reflecting on the sights I've seen.
I noticed the young girl in the aisle talking to passengers.
Then I saw the flash of a colorful catalog sheet when she held it up. It was for
Girl Scout Cookies!
Her clipboard was clutched in her right hand and she was taking orders. At 36,000 feet.
The day before, I had flown down to Seattle from Victoria, B.C. on a float plane. A seaplane.
The pilot told me later he was cruising only at 500-1,500 feet during the 30- minute flight back into the US.
As we passed by the Space Needle I saw a small lake near downtown and realized that was our landing site.
I had seen many sightseeing float planes taking off and landing while I was in Vancouver for two days.
I looked forward to when our "floating aircraft" would lift off the water.
It was smooth as was the landing.
The landing and takeoff zone in Vancouver had been in front of
Canada Place.
This is the iconic city convention centre sitting on the harbor.
In Victoria, I had enjoyed views of the famed
Butchart Garden but bumped into a bus situation that could have been ugly.
We timed our leisure walk to end just before the 4:10 bus would leave for the 40-minute drive down from north Victoria Island to the capital.
So did about 60 others who were already standing in line.
The city bus filled and pulled out.
15 of us had the option of walking nearly half of a mile to a bus stop outside the garden for the next transport at 5:04. Or, take a cab.
The park closes at 5pm so no more buses could enter. Yikes.
And, yes, it WAS uphill.
Probably both ways.
We were back in the capital in plenty of time for a drink at the
Empress Hotel and dinner nearby. The British Columbia
Parliament building is outlined in small white lights and was a spectacular sight as the evening darkened.
Yes, there are pictures taken during the Whale Watching boat cruise but let's hold off on that for now.
(Click on the photos for more detail.)
Please come back and continue my Canadian adventure.
If you're thinking about a train trip, look into this one!
(Please click
http://photo.meetup.com/687.)
Labels: Alki Park Beach, B.C. Parliament House, Butchart Garden, convention centre, Empress Hotel Canada Place, Girl Scout cookies, Orca Killer whales, Seattle, Space Needle, Victoria Island, whale watching cruise
O Canada........
It's been 7 years since I took the train across Canada.
That was a long time ago.
Time to do it again.
Last one was in the Spring. I wanted a sneak preview of Fall Foliage.
I sure got it!
The creature comforts aboard Via Rail's
Le Canadian were as good as I remembered.
Maybe even better.
I found a discounted price online that made it possible.
Actually about what I paid all those years ago.
And, again, the price included a private roomette (they call them cabins) and all the gourmet meals during the 4-day trans-continental passage.
Added new features were two live musicians performing in activity cars, presentations by staff on such diverse topics as local Provincial history, ghost stories, railroad lore and even beer tastings.
Yes, each day there was local craft beer flowing as well as a selection of Canadian wines.
A couple in the observation car announced it was their third wedding anniversary and champagne was served to all 24 passengers sitting around them.
This was about a 20-car train so it had four raised dome observation cars, various lounge and activity centers with tables and chairs and two dining cars.
You quickly settled into your "neighborhood" instead of trekking back and forth the length of the train.
One exception was the last car on the train, the observation car with a bullet-shaped rear.
This was worth the journey because it afforded a view of the receding tracks as we sped along.
I waited until we had one of our stops and stepped down off the train and easily walked back to the last car.
As a blogger, I often take pictures of my food.
This trip was no exception.
The prime rib on my final night before we arrived in Vancouver was perfectly prepared and served as were all the meals.
Breakfast each morning was offered from 6:30am to 9:00am on a first-come basis.
The lunch and dinner had three seating times.
We stopped to add a unique car just before we got to the Canadian Rockies.
It was called the
Panorama and lived up to its name!
It was about as open as an observation car could be and seated 72 passengers at a time.
This was in addition to all the other domed cars already in use.
As I spoke to fellow passengers in the dining car and in the lounges, I realized I was hardly the only repeat traveler.
I did see one man in an observation car reading a newspaper.
Guess he was not a first timer.
We traveled far enough north that we were snowed on in Jasper when we had a stop to walk around.
My jacket and hat felt good and warm.
When we dropped back down south and were in Vancouver on the west coast, we saw that leaves were still starting to turn.
More on that later.
Did I mention whale watching? Seaplanes?
(Click on the photos for more details.)
The reality is I came home with 2,000+ digital images and am reliving the trip as I select and edit them.
There will be more pictures if you care to stop by again.
Thanks.
Labels: aspens, Edmonton, fir and birches, Jasper, Le Canadian, Parliament, red maples, Toronto, trans-continental train adventure, Vancouver, Victoria Island, Winnie the Pooh, Winnipeg
