This spring break, we decided to leave the country! At least as far as Canada. The kids had never left the country though so it was still sort of a big deal.
Being a mere 6 hour drive from the border, we decided to drive north. This is the monument at the border crossing.
Luis found us an awesome apartment through vrbo on the top floor of a downtown skyscraper. Here's our view of Vancouver from the living room.
The Cruz kids in a "C" - technically the C was for the Vancouver Canucks but we decided to own it as a Cruz C.
The kids at a park by the water downtown.
Taking a picture of the kids taking a selfie.
Who doesn't love a water taxi?!?
Daddy and his girl enjoying a Starbucks.
We had access to a pool at our apartment which fortunately was indoors. The kids used it every day.
At the monument of one of my favorite athletes - Terry Fox. If you're not familiar with Terry Fox, look him up. After losing a leg to cancer, he attempted to run across Canada from east to west covering nearly a marathon distance a day. Unfortunately his cancer returned and he never finished his quest but he is quite an inspiration.
The view from the other side of our apartment of the stadium...we could get used to this.
We spent quite a bit of time at the Vancouver Aquarium in Stanley Park. We've been to many aquariums, and this was definitely one of the best.
The kids, being themselves.
The flamingos did not smell good.
Who dat?
And dat?
Jelly fish. Lots of jelly fish.
Siena is not a fan of the Narwhal, although it seems that most of her classmates are.
This is what throwing away a retainer looks like...this retainer rescue involved having to find a worker, having them unlock the trash, and then diving into the garbage. Thanks Siena.
Beautiful skyline. Yes, it rained but that's to be expected in Vancouver in March.
Sibling love.
The ultimate Shirley Temple!
The next day we visited Capilano Suspension Bridge and park. Find the family.
Clearly we don't pass up any photo ops.
Kids in a teepee.
Luis and the kids on the bridge. Yup, it moves, rocks, and it totally awesome.
Luis and I on the bridge.
The kids thought it was pretty amazing.
Giant spider!!!
The park also had this whole tree fort with suspension bridges. So cool.
Your arms need to grow just a little bit more Siena!
Singing?
This is the cliff walk which was also amazing.
Luis on a cliff!
Amazing views.
We spent part of the afternoon at Granville island which has local shops and restaurants, not to mention lots of character.
No trip to BC is complete without a visit to Victoria. Well, it might be but we love Victoria so we had to share it with the kids.
The first stop was Craigdarroch Castle.
Siena pondering life 150 years ago.
Siena enjoying the dining room picture where the perspective stays the same no matter where in the room you are.
Imagining what living in a bedroom like this would have been like.
The wood paneling on the stairway was beautiful.
Way too many dresses for this kid.
Siena LOVED dancing in the dancing hall!!!
Still dancing!!!
Yup, that's a toilet.
The exterior is beautiful...note the blue skies too!
Who dat?
Amazing fountain near the Parliament building.
Speaking of the Parliament building...
After a lunch and some shopping, we went to the museum.
And it was a pretty fascinating museum. The kids checking out what living like a native 1000 years ago might have been like.
Of all the fancy dresses through the decades, this is the one Siena liked best.
I made Siena take a picture with me next to the Expo 86 exhibit. I hadn't been to Vancouver since going to Expo 86 as a kid 30 years before. It's safe to say, the city has changed a bit.
The Cruzes at a plantation.
Clearly watching Ice Age a million times didn't make the kids any less wary of the woolly mammoth.
After doing all we could in Victoria, we spent a little bit of time exploring Sydney, where we caught the ferry back to the mainland.
Happy kids!
It was a great Spring Break for all of us. So glad the kids got to enjoy visiting another country for the first time!
No comments:
Post a Comment