Canada Day at English Bay - Vancouver

I spent part of my day in Vancouver yesterday, Canada Day! After completing some errands I went to see what was happening at the main beach at English Bay near Davie and Denman Streets. Here are a few photos that will give you an idea. It was mostly overcast but the sun was trying to make an appearance.
There were kayaks for rent at the beach but on a really hot, sunny day they do a great business! That day it was warm but not exceptional!
And guess who's got to bring these kayaks back once those that have rented them are done?

There were freighters on English Bay as usual and Canadian flags were flying near Davie and Denman Streets befitting the occasion. The annual flowers will be bigger come BC Day and certainly even better by Labour Day! I hope you had an awesome day!!! - V

pride 2010

By the time I left home, walked to the SkyTrain station at Sapperton and got into Vancouver's West End, I missed the parade this year. Many people were returning from the parade or were heading over to the beaches, especially near Sunset Beach where festivities continued. The photo above is from one I took at the 2008 pride parade.

I did take some photos at both English Bay Beach and Sunset Beach as well as some at the community garden at Burrard and Davie Streets. As soon as they've been uploaded and edited, I plan to post some of the best ones along with commentary. I hope you all had a wonderful Sunday! - V

tulips

Sunday afternoon took me into Vancouver for a haircut first (needed that) and then for a walk to the English Bay Beach at the bottom of Davie Street in the West End. The tulips are just about done for the year. In fact, most of the main plantings at Davie and Denman Streets have been removed to make way for the summer flowers to be planted out soon. I did manage to get a few good shots though. Since it was also Mother's Day, seeing the Forget-me-nots is also a plus.
The beach itself was filled with people out having good conversation plus enjoying the fresh air and sunshine. The fact hot dog stands are out and getting plenty of business must mean that the pleasant, warm weather is here for sure.
I saw a game of beach volleyball in play with the participants wearing shorts or underwear and there were sailboats on the water too. It was great weather for both.
Above is a close-up shot of the same tulip that you find in the very first image at the start of the post. And the fan palms have started to sprout their new growth for the year. It most definitely is spring with summer not too far behind. I hope you all had a great weekend and spent it doing what you most like doing! - V

today - Saturday

Today, I slept in till almost 10 am before deciding to get up. Other than the weekend, I am up at about 5 am to get ready for work, so being able to sleep in is a treat. I did the earlier post after breakfast and before heading off to Vancouver for the afternoon. Since I've got the pager and am on call, I didn't want to stray too far in the event I had to answer any important calls or have to head off to the work site to handle a situation. As things are, it's been a rather quiet day on the work front, so that's a good thing.

I took a number of photos, so I'll have some to post as soon as I get them downloaded from my camera. There are not as many as last Saturday, so it'll be easier work editing them as well. I took in parts of Stanley Park and English Bay Beach this time round.

I bought some groceries before heading back home from Vancouver. Some of the items are for supper. The fruit, such as bananas, pears and nectarines, are to last through the week. A lot of what I purchase is on sale to stretch the dollars to the best advantage.

Right now I am cooking up a stew with chicken drumsticks, a variety of vegetables such as potatoes, onion, carrots, celery, garlic (all diced) plus sea salt, freshly ground pepper and a mix of herbs to taste. I also added some water and white wine, in this case chardonnay from the pays d'oc of southern France. I'm topping up the wine as it cooks at a low heat, and if it's good enough to drink, it's good enough for the pot! I'll have some this evening before bedtime but it'll be a lot better tomorrow and certainly Monday after the flavours have had a chance to mingle.

So, how has your weekend been so far? I'm off to Metrotown briefly in the afternoon on Sunday before returning home to bake some flatbread. Then after supper it's early to bed to get ready for the work week. How soon the weekends fly by so more news later!!! - V.

Saturday in Vancouver

Saturday afternoon I had made plans to go into Vancouver but rather than head over to the Spanish Banks as originally decided, I ended up heading over to Davie Street and then English Bay Beach from there. When I arrived, there was a street market in progress on Davie Street with plenty of activity in the works. There was a stage set-up on Davie near Burrard Street with people seated in front. The stage is off to the left and not pictured in the photo above. I struggled to get a photo with enough sunlight in it since the sun is rather low on the horizon this time of year. After all, we are above the 49th parallel. There were even a couple of guys handing out condoms in front of the Priape store. All they were wearing was underwear (Jim), some flip-flops and a smile! The restaurants and taverns had lots of activity too. Booths were set up and sidewalk seating was extended out into the street. From there is was off to the other end of Davie Street to check out the annual flower plantings.

So at the other end of the street I saw another surprise aside from the annuals. The cloud pattern in the sky caught my interest, so some of the photos you see will have these clouds in them, such as the one above of English Bay Beach with the fan palms in sillouette.

And before heading out to the beach we can also pay a visit to one of the many local Starbucks locations in town. This one is at Denman and Davie Streets.

I believe I caught the flowers at the right time since they are due to be pulled and replaced by spring tulip bulbs at any time. I love the colours and textures!

There are many fan palms along Beach Avenue above English Bay Beach as you can see in the above photo. From the railing on the left you can see the beach below. Then this cloud pattern caught my interest again forming a background to the crowns of the fan palms. What do you think???

The above photo shows Sunset Beach (plus the clouds). There are a few fan palms there too plus some annual plants for added interest.

Before I left Vancouver's West End for home I spent some time at the beach (English Bay Beach) to observe the sunset. The image above shows the rays of the sun shining through the cloud cover with Vancouver Island far off to the west. Then the photo below shows a larger view of the sunset with people in sillouette. Enjoy the photos! There will be more over time and not just images of hot guys, though I'm sure you appreciate them too!!! - V.

beach volleyball

The weather has been hot and sunny, just the kind of thing we need to get people out to the beach swimming, sunning and playing beach volleyball. What an excellent way to burn those calories with an awesome workout, get a tan and show off those muscles all at the same time. Plus there's the fun of being out with others and having a great time! I was in Vancouver again Sunday afternoon for a walk along the Seaside walk along the north shore of False Creek. The main beach at English Bay is where I ended my walk and these photos resulted from a shoot at the beach of guys playing a game of volleyball. A number of beaches along English Bay are set up for the game and other activities. If you live in the area, have a look or join in!

There's a lot of activity in the first two photos aside from the game. There are people taking in the sun, having conversations, and the lifeguards taking a patrol along the water's edge. I thought some of you might appreciate a close-up of the above scene, so have a close look at the pic below. That's a guy in some colourful underwear on the right but who cares if it isn't a speedo or some other piece of swimwear, it fills the need and looks great!

Above the beach along Beach Avenue, there was plenty of activity both Saturday and Sunday with people out riding their bikes, jogging, skatebording and rollerblading! I hope you're enjoying your summer too!!! - V.

from Sunset Beach to English Bay Beach

On Sunday I more or less retraced my steps from the previous day by walking the seaside walk on the north side of False Creek in Vancouver again. Just as the day before, it was gorgeous weather with warm temperatures and plenty of sunshine. I took a number of photos but for this post, Sunset Beach and English Bay Beach are the main focus. These present the promiss of a summer yet to come and only about a week away, or less. I couldn't help but to include some photos of the fan palms and the developing annual plantings found at both beaches.

There were lots of people enjoying each other's company, sunning, swimming or some playing beach volleyball. A couple of guys were out playing wearing only their colourful underwear (first pic below) and one of them is still playing in the second photo. At a distance they would have passed as swimwear anyway, unless one was up close to get a good look. I hope you had a wonderful weekend! Summer's not that far away!!! - V.