Anyone who has been to Pike Place Market in Seattle knows that it's full of great fruits, vegetables and art and most of it for reasonable or very low prices. While we were there last Wednesday we had to pick up a huge $15 bouquet of dahlias, sun flowers, and a couple other flowers I don't know. They looked great for about 3 days, but at $15, no complaints.
On Friday it was time to head the other direction for a weekend getaway up north at Whistler. In two years you'll see some Winter Olympic Events up there. It's a gorgeous getaway and I highly recommend it. We stayed at the Whistler Westin Resort and Spa. It was a beautiful Friday afternoon when we arrived.
Our room had a kitchen, a fireplace, a bedroom and a balcony. The air in Whistler smells like a pile of Christmas trees. It's wonderful. If it could be bottled and sold, it would be because that's the kind of mountain-freshness that can change your whole day. The view from our balcony wasn't bad at all.
One of the greatest things about Whistler is how dog-friendly it is. Kobe went on his first vacation and he loved it. Not only do many of the hotels allow dogs, but restaurants often allow dogs on the patios too going so far as to provide water bowls. There are also multiple dog parks and dog beaches and Kobe loved them. He swam a couple of times and made friends with several other dogs.
Saturday wasn't overly sunny but it was dry and a nice temperature. Sunday was another story with lots of rain and clouds. The exodus of tourists from Whistler back to Vancouver down the Sea to Sky highway was slowed by the rain but Kobe got to play with another puppy at Marnie's cousin's house in Squamish. I failed to take any pictures and on the whole, I didn't take many pictures over the weekend. This was on the drive back home.
Kobe played and played and played. He's really a six-year-old puppy trapped in the body of an adult golden retriever. His Sunday playmate was an adorable 8 week old Chesapeake Bay Retriever. Marnie got her fix of puppy breath and puppy teeth (I hope), and Kobe got tired.
It was a very relaxing, revitalizing weekend away. Oh, and I asked Marnie to marry me and she said yes.
I ended Tuesdays post to get on our way to the Telus World of Science, or as most people still know it, Science World. Turns out corporately sponsored science is still pretty expensive but very popular. Built for the 1986 World Expo (that I attended) the building is commonly referred to as the tinfoil golfball.
In the background is B.C. Place. It looks cool but it's old and next door (hidden behind the tinfoil golfball) is GM Place which is newer and it's where the Canucks play as well most of the big acts like Neil Diamond (Sept. 20) and New Kids on the Block (Nov. 21). The spherical structure is the omni-theatre and below it are two floors of exhibits and fun times to be had by all ages.
Reminiscent of the Guggenheim in NYC, this is a view inside Science World while taking the ramp to the second floor. There were other cool things there but I didn't take many pictures, I was too busy taking my turn learning about science. It was awesome. Afterward we had a late lunch on Granville Island. I can now present you with the obligatory Vancouver shit hawk photo. No visit is complete without one.
Some may still be wondering where such an appropriate term for these birds came from. Canadian television is not the origin, but it's done a good job of proliferating its use. From "Trailer Park Boys:"
And for those of you not hip to Plurk where I originally shared this awesome rap by scientists about the Large Hadron Collider, (that may or may not create a black hole and end life as we know it on September 10), here is the LHC Rap.
