I had to check, but the change over from summer to autumn is September 22, 2016 at 10:21 A.M. EDT. Today I rode around Stanley Park. I did this same ride back in August. (See Stanley Park to Kits Beach.) However this time there was a sense of urgency. Who knew when I’d next have my schedule and the weather cooperate in this way? There was no mistaking that crisp taste of Fall in the air. Despite worrying about potentially not being able to enjoy the ride like this for months, Autumn was somehow inviting me to slow it down […]

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In Coombs BC, there is a small little Dutch Imports store right off Highway 4. They are a bright orange and hard to miss, they have everything from Dutch food to little Dutch dish towels. When you walk in the first thing you see is the aisle of Dutch candies, with their specialized licorice. They also carry a variety of other foods, meat, cheese and treats such as Dutch honey cake and speculaas cookies. The service is helpful and friendly, no complaints there. The only complaint I have is something rather unfixable, the location of the store. I’m not the […]

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It’s not often that I’m on the North Shore at brunch time, especially on my own. But an odd set of circumstances allowed me a solo brunch and I was not willing to put up with Tim Hortons (found in the same plaza.) On the stretch of Main Street North Vancouver that heads to the Second Narrows Bridge on the north side is a mall with Canadian Tire and other shops, but Toby’s was the only restaurant/pub in the plaza. It was quiet on a Saturday at 11:30. It’s a family oriented (a child’s birthday party with adults was on) […]

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On the last day before school started up again, my friends and I decided that to get out all of our nervous energy we were going to go play laser tag. Now, all of us live in Vancouver and the closest place is in Richmond, it’s called Planet Lazer. To get there we collectively took transit which took a bus, a sky train and then two other buses. Now, the place in Richmond is a large plot of land with several big recreation activity buildings you can try. They have swimming, trampolines, a movie theater and of course, laser tag. […]

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Just because it’s September, don’t give up on Kits Beach in Vancouver. I took the photos below two nights ago. Yes, it’s cooler but the views are to die for. Plus all the restaurants on Yew Street are open for business. Including the gelato shop! When the sun goes down, make sure to have a sweater!

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In Parksville on Resort drive is Riptide Lagoon Adventure Golf, with two mini golf courses that easily serve tourists who stay at the resorts. This summer I stayed with my family at Ocean Trails Resort, one of the places on Resort Drive for about the fifth time in a row. Due to the fact we’ve been staying so long the mini golf has worked its way into becoming a family tradition. They have several attractions on their grounds, bumper cars, arcade, ice cream, and of course the mini golf. Actually playing mini golf is a bit like playing in a […]

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An annual treat for visitors and Vancouverites alike is Bard on the Beach, which for 27 seasons has brought Shakespeare’s works to life. This year included The Merry Wives of Windsor, Romeo and Juliet, Pericles and Othello. “Bard,” as it’s known locally, is set up in Vanocuver‘s Vanier Park with some very large tents that, according to the program, takes 10,000 hours of labour to set up. You are well protected from the elements in the tents but you still have that outdoors feeling with sounds from the ocean. But, what about the show? We enjoyed the Merry Wives of […]

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Lefty’s is a yummy restaurant in Parksville, B.C. Their menu has many choices with a lot variety, as it is not a “we-only-have-one-focus-that-we-take-way-out-of-proportion” restaurant. Lefty’s has everything from pastas to burritos, literally, when I visited I had a burrito. When I went it was at an odd time, before dinner but after lunch so there were very few people in the restaurant. The waitress came right away with menus and drink orders (I had a Shirley Temple) so no complaints there. However, once we’d decided what we wanted to eat and ordered it took a rather long time for the […]

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Coombs BC is an interesting place. It’s 10 km from Parksville and is noted for its eclectic shopping, specifically Goats on the Roof AKA The Old Country Market. See www.oldcountrymarket.com This was not our first time at the market, but changes had been made as they are refurbishing the non wooden buildings across the street from the main market. Because this market prides itself in being fairly brand-free, the opportunities for unique shopping are good. For example, I was not expecting to find a clothing store called Wabi Sabi, which is a surfer clothing store. Considering the nearest surfing in […]

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The Parksville Museum, which is also called the heritage park, is located right next to the BC tourism info centre off of highway 19A as you enter Parksville via Nanaimo. This small museum works to preserve Parksville’s history. It comprises of a collection of old buildings that have been moved to the site and filled with artifacts dating back to the late 1890s. What’s compelling is the rustic harshness that people who lived in the area had to deal with. They were all trying to keep a connection to the larger world while dealing with the limitations in transport and […]

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