Donut Ya Know!

April 21st, 2016

Today was another beautiful day and we decided to take advantage of the nature all around Vancouver. We headed to Lynn Canyon to hike a bit and check out the suspension bridge and waterfalls. It was stunning and only about a 20 minute drive outside the city! Then, we headed to Stanley Park to see even more beauty. While both parks were beautiful and full of trees and forest, it was also interesting how different they were. Stanley Park is surrounded by the ocean with mountains views. As we walked the seawall, we continued to be amazed by the beauty around us. We saw amazingly gorgeous flowers, blue heron, and swans in just one part of the park!

For lunch, we headed to the Little Italy neighborhood, which is also (despite its name) full of Asian restaurants. We decided that since all the seafood has been amazing we should try sushi and were not disappointed by the quality and price at Tatsu Japanese Bistro.

Vancouver is full of different neighborhoods so we went to explore another one, Mount Pleasant. We found another amazing coffee shop, 49th Parallel, and were happy to discover that they are also known for their donuts. Chuck and Anna shared an amazing salted caramel old fashioned, and then we found another donut shop for Katie that offered gluten-free treats. We made our way to “Dude Chilling Park” (Yes-that is actually its name) and relaxed on a park bench, watching the locals and enjoying more views of the mountains. We are all definitely feeling like we could get used to living somewhere with the ocean and mountains to gaze at.

Later, we headed for dinner at Guu with Garlic. It was interesting to be a minority among the customers, as I am not sure that has ever happened to any of us. We walked in and were greeted by the entire staff in Japanese. The rest of the meal, we enjoyed the same. Every time we ordered an item it was yelled to the kitchen and any time a new customer entered, the entire staff would shout their greeting. It was such a fun environment! But, more importantly, there was the food. This place was probably one of the best meal experiences any of us have had. The restaurant is all small plates so we ordered quite a few to share. The fish was the freshest, most delicious fish we have ever experienced. We also enjoyed a pitcher or apply mojito.

We went back to Stanley Park to check out a few more interesting points and to check out the sunset. We first stopped at Brockton Point, where we saw totem poles and a lighthouse. We then, headed to the tip of the Park to see the sunset. Despite Chuck almost making us miss sunset due to his photography, we rushed him along and made it just in time!

We made our way back to the Gastown District for some cocktails and stopped by both Pour House and The Diamond.