SpicyTravel

Vancouver Walk and Eat – 2025

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So many things to like about Vancouver (unless you need to buy a house) – the transportation, the food and the ability to walk everywhere. Let’s get to them all.

First the transportation. Before I left, I registered my Compass Card (leftover from my last visit) and added some funds. Note: when you leave the airport, just tap the card. I bought a ticket from the machine with my card – 9.85. On the way back I tapped in from downtown and airport out – cost 3.85, the two zone fare (not totally sure why). Get the transit card, so convenient for all your travels. And if you need a car, check out EVO – they are everywhere.  However, we also walked, walked and walked (over 38k steps one day – a new personal record) in the pouring rain. Yea to the Gortex shoes and jacket.

Next the food. Oh my goodness, so good. Our first meal was in Gastown at GUU, just down from Waterfront station. We started with the Takowasa – marinated octopus and wasabi – served w/ 6 pieces of roasted seaweed – a very small portion but the wasabi didn’t peel the insides of my nostrils so that’s good. Next, we had the Salmon With Seven Friends – diced wild sockeye salmon w/ natto (fermented soy beans), pickled cucumber, pickled daikon, garlic chips, crispy wonton, green onion, fresh egg yolk, “otokomae” and roasted seaweed.  Just mix and wrap in seaweed strips, yummy. We finished with Grilled Salmon Bento Box with a daily side dish, rice, and miso soup. We ordered an extra miso so we wouldn’t start throwing punches. The grilled salmon was huge and coming from the prairies I need all the salmon I can get. With tip, we walked out paying a reasonable 50 bucks for two people. Gotta love the price.

We were going to see a movie, so a quick stop in Chinatown and Bao Bei.  We arrived a little early and it was already lined up. Luckily, we were number one (stink-eyeing any line butting persons), rewarded with a nice high top near the door (twenty minutes later, the place was packed). We started with the Bean Curd – amazing. Then on to the Beef Tartre – more amazing – then the Kick Ass Fried Rice, Steamed Prawn, Scallop and Chive Dumplings all amazing, amazing. We didn’t try any of the cocktails (sober trip), but we were close to the bar, and they looked fun. Ok, I’ve used the “amazing” adjective a lot, but it was. All in for two of us – 165. A bit pricey but well worth the experience.

Ok, it’s Vancouver and one must do sushi. I live on the prairies where fresh seafood is about as common as a Liberal vote. We went to a Yaletown spot called Oshi Nori . A small cozy spot with only a sushi bar. We had Truffle Edamame (I’ll eat anything with truffle) and all the Toro and Salmon Nigiri on the menu . We also sampled the 5 Roll Basic Set (served taco style – wrapped in seaweed). A nasty scene as we wrestled for the last piece (even numbers, please).  125, for two hungry lads. Pricey, but a very happy tummy indeed.

The biggest food trip take away –  from my house on the other side of the Rockies, I was in  downtown Vancouver eating sushi in two and a half hours. Mind boggling. I’m already planning my next walk ‘n eat  journey with my amazing travelling companion who has an excellent nose where to go.

Canmore Walk and Eat

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Ok, so we left early afternoon and walked into town with happy hour feet. First, Murietta’s, our one-time favourite spot.  However – rejection. The happy hour beer was flat and dull with an equal nastiness for the three-dip appetizer we ordered.  The intention was pita bread, but it was nothing more than a limp mass of dough. Our pleasant server brought a glass of Rose, but how long was it sitting on the shelf?  Roman times? They did bring another glass of wine not on the happy hour menu and only charged the happy hour price. And the view? Our whole intention of going to the place. Clean the streaking, dirty windows please. I was afraid of this. Ruined. The place has gone downhill. However, we will always have the first time we went there (cost 24 bucks).

After major disappointment, we went to The Wood at the end of Main Street. While it doesn’t have Murietta’s gorgeous view, it still offers great mountain scenery. We had a Sheep Dog IPA (local and very tasty) and a Riesling. We also shared the enjoyable Tuna Stack – avocado, mango, tuna, sprouts, cilantro, and deep-fried wonton for spreading (cost 46 bucks).

Then we walked down to the Malcom Hotel and went for a drink at the Stirling (nice digs – lots of wood and very shiny new). Half price wine Wednesday. Ok, me likey this. We ordered a Chablis off the featured wine list (only half price from here), but they ran out. The accommodating manager said, order anything we’ll do half price. Ok, another bottle of yummy Chablis. I should’ve tasted the food, but I wasn’t all that hungry after the earlier beer and food. We will come back for the Wednesday wine (cost-54 bucks).

The night before we went out for dinner to a place literally across the street from our condo – Bridgette bar. I had a couple of “Blindman” porters (and a local charming cider – Marty McDry). Not too shabby for a beer near Deadmonton (Lacombe). We shared some eggplant fries (very good) and the salami pizza. I loved the crust – firewood oven baked with an amazing  drizzle of honey. The meat not so – a bit greasy (but I gotta say I’m not one for meat on my pizza).  I also had the Roasted Octopus salad. Not what I expected – the mollusk swimming (literally) in a very vinegary laden dressing with thinly sliced cucumber on top. I wouldn’t order again. I would, however, love to try the elk carpaccio. And the place was hopping for a Tuesday night. Good libations and I’d love to go back and try other items off a very interesting menu (cost – 97 bucks).

All in all, the total cost of an excellent night out, just walking around and doing happy hours – 125 bucks.  Another hundred bucks the night before. Not too shabby for two nights out. Another motive for our stay was – can I park my car and just walk? The answer an emphatic yes. The car didn’t move for two days. We got up and went for some very nice walks around town with the Three Sisters forever in our sight. A new haunt, for sure.

Oh strange food

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Food, Food, Fooood, wonderful food, wonderful food. Food. Food. Food. I love food. Making food. Ordering food. Going out for food. I don’t care how it comes. I’ve even had dreams about food like the time I was chased by a giant purple lobster. As a result, I am not afraid of food. I’ve had many strange experiences with food. But I’ve never spat out anything – how rude.

A while back, I was working for the Cosmo-Demonic-Telecommunication company when they sent me on a trip to Thailand. When you travel to Asian countries on business, the company hires a guide to show you around town. The first night we went out and had traditional Thai food. I can’t remember everything we ate, but I do remember rice cooked in pineapple and giant lobsters without claws. I also learnt that Thais do not use chopsticks.  I’m not sure why, but the next time you order Pad Thai … 

However, the next night, the guide asked if we wanted to try some more dangerous food. I was travelling in a group with five or six other dudes. When we got to the restaurant, the first thing I saw was a giant snake dangling from a hook. An employee was running a knife down its belly, guts slopping on the floor. But not to waste, he gathered the innards and threw them in a pail. Ok, this looks promising (not).

Inside, we gathered around a table. Menus, of course were useless. I’m not sure if they were written in Thai or Chinese. The restaurant was the latter, I think. The guide ordered for the table. We had ant eggs – giant white pill looking objects. Then we had snake (not sure if it was hanging buddy downstairs).  Not too bad – tasted like dry pork ribs. However, the weird thing was the wine glass of blood brought to the table. The guide got angry when the waiter brought the drink, but we said don’t worry. Down the hatch. Warm and thick like a metallic milk shake. Apparently good for men. I felt my bicep increase. The food wasn’t too bad, but I don’t think I’d eat it daily and I don’t think the locals did. 

My next interesting delicacy was in New Zealand. We were invited on to the Marae (a meeting place for social and religious celebrations), a great privilege. Every day, behind the meeting house, We had a wonderful “happy” hour. We were talking and drinking excellent wine when this dude brings out these spiny looking creatures, cuts one open and the guts fall in his hand. He threw it down his gullet as though he were kicking off a jandle at the front door.  Sea urchin or Tuhinga o mua in Māori.  He looked at me, you want some, brother? I sure do. It tasted like swallowing a giant hoark left over from a bad cold. But I’d defiantly do it again. Yep, I’d eat just about anything. Once. Scorpion pizza. Sheep eye-ball soup. However, my only rule is it can’t be moving. Dipping my spoon into a bowl of crawling baby snakes, just isn’t my cup of tea. 

Ok, I gotta run upstairs and cook some grub. I’m thinking pineapple pork ribs, rice and cucumber.

Arizona – the good, the bad and the ugly

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A fantastic trip to the land of Saguaro (suh–gwahr-oh – a pronunciation botched so many times –  I’m flushed as I write), dynamic red rock parks and canyons. The most important question to judge a successful vacation  is  – would you go back? The answer is a very emphatic yes. I’m counting the days (pennies first) until I gloriously return.

Now the review. The good – the climate was amazing (we came back to -30, so in hindsight it was bloody tropical) although it was cool in the morning by afternoon it was time to  slip on the shorts and flip flops only to replace them when the sun went down with a sweater and pants (still didn’t stop people from using a hot tub). The Phoenix area was awesome,  especially the free hiking (suh–gwahr-oh national park in Tucson charges twenty-five bucks to hike and the state parks charge seven). So many trails in great condition although a bit rocky and busy (do not go on weekends). But most importantly – the people were fantastic. Everyone we met was so nice and friendly, you’d think you were in Canada. We soon found out nobody is from Arizona – met a dude from Bellingham and another person from Billings and many from Minnesota.

The bad.  It was much more expensive than I remember (except gas). Wine prices were the same as in Canada  but in American dollars. A nice bottle of La Crema from California was twenty bucks at Trevor’s (I bow to your greatness wonderful wine store mecca). It’s the same price here but thirty percent more expensive in the Canyon State. Food wasn’t cheap either. We didn’t go out for any evening meals, but lunch was a consistent one hundred US although we did have drinks with every meal. One luxury dining experience was at a wonderful  cocktail bar called Parlay where the bill was well over a hundred US. However,  I got many excellent drink ideas and I’ve never had a mezcal cocktail (ok more than “a” cocktail – it was happy hour after all). But even going to Safeway and grabbing a few food items like chicken wings (they were massive) eggs, bread, coffee and greens was fifty or sixty bucks US  (ok and maybe wine and beer a few times). I just remember the States as food and booze cheap, but not anymore, I guess.

The ugly.   Some of the highways were very dirty, especially the Interstates (I learnt to stay off them). Garbage everywhere. Another ugly – it was so hard to recycle. Accommodations had no recycling bins. Not in the rooms, or outside with the garbage containers. I saw one recycling bin in Sedona but if we hadn’t stumbled on it, our many dead soldiers would’ve been lost on the battlefield. We also had car rental issues (holy extra charges Batman) and at one AirBnB, if I heard the “five star stay” one more time, I was going to puke – property developers (the same group wanted me to copy and paste a review they prepared, really!). But developers are everywhere like blood sucking mosquitos.

The state is wonderful from the red rocks of Sedona (the  brightest stars ever) to the desert of Tucson and the rugged parks of Phoenix. However,  next time we will  drive our own car and fill it with cheap gas.