Vancouver Walk – compass card loaded. Shoes shined.  Eat – restaurant list compiled (thank you Reddit friends).  Carry-on bag, prepped.  I’ve used the same bag for at least twenty flights, no problem. We are all ready to go.

And then … What?  Uber reservation for 9:30 pm, not am. Oh no, luckily a very chatty dude was in the area. Airport, sir. Arrival. Let’s use the Verified Traveller Lane. I love the quickness. What the machine is broken? Take bags off. Move to another machine. Ten minutes turns into half an hour. No worries. I’m early. Ready to board the plane. What? Check my bag. No way. I knew I shouldn’t have flown Scare Canada. Don’t get poopy, Sir, you can take it on the plane. We land, I’m out the door, downtown in forty minutes. Man, I love this town. All systems go.

The apartment – built in 1912, old but tons of character – is in Mount Pleasant, a five-minute walk to the train and the False Creek path. Perfect location. Our first reservation was for Miku Sushi, right on the water and close to Waterfront Station. However, a very welcome family gathering,  so we go to Cardero’s instead – fresh Fanny Bay Oysters, Moule et frites and twenty-four-dollar glasses of Mission Hill Reserve Chardonnay. The food was expensive but very yummy and the harbour view is almost worth the price.  However, me and the boy were still hungry walking out the door.

So snacks before bed, off to  Como Taperia – anchovy stuffed olives, Patatas Bravas, sardines, bread, Truffle Manchego and Ibérico Salchichón and a small glass of Rioja. The atmosphere is great – bustling, shiny happy people. But the meat and cheese – over twenty bucks and it was barely a sample. The Bravas were too crispy for me. The sardines come in a tin, ok I suppose. The meal was just over 100 bucks. Ummm not too sure, but the location and the people are great.

The next day, a walk to Granville Island for an excellent bagel with lox and cream cheese – a whopping 35 bucks for two. We make reservations for Sushi Hil. Back on Main, we order the Nigiri Set and the Chirashi Set. The sushi is a life altering experience, the tuna on egg literally melted in my mouth and the fresh water unagi and aburi hotate were heavenly. I wish I could remember the rest, but I was in such ecstasy my mouth and brain were swirling in happiness – 130 bucks for two, plus a million-dollar tip.

The boy was a bit under the weather and in need of spicy noodles, so off to Peaceful Restaurant after a walk along the Arbutus Greenway – who knew it was here? And a quick stop at Duer, purchasing the greatest pants ever. We ordered the Dan Dan noodles, very peanutty, the spicy green beans (finally some green shit) and spicy Szechuan noodles. Excellent, our second time here. Never fails. I don’t know the cost. The boy paid and refuses to tell me.

Our final outing was to Chinatown, a Vancouver must, so off to Chinatown BBQ. We arrived just in time. Lineup. The place is a very small diner style restaurant. We ordered the Crispy Pork (amazing!), duck, Gai Lan with roasted garlic oil (thankfully more green shit) and pork fried rice. All very good – 100 bucks all in. I wasn’t impressed with the duck until the next day. We had tons of leftovers, so we ate them in the airport waiting for our flights. Cold duck, who would’ve known.

Another very successful trip the to coast.  Walk over 94k steps in three days. Eat – belly full and happy. I find it amazing to leave my house at 9:30 am and by 1pm, I have a bowl of west coast noodles in front of me –  energy needed for the uphill climb with a rolly in tow.