Of Public Transportation and Border Crossings

On my last day in Vancouver, Emma and I sampled the transportation options... we started by driving to the sky rail and then riding 30 minutes into the downtown, then walking several blocks to Gastown and the nearby streets. We lunched at Flux, a bistro that served a mean linguine. Yum. Then we walked to Canada Place to see if there were any cruise ships on which we could stow-a-way. From there we rode the sea bus to North Vancouver and wandered through some shops there before riding back across and hitting the sky rail and then the city bus in order to follow our waitress's recommendation for a good bookstore. If we had more time there were certainly more things to see, but nothing was particularly close for foot traffic and time was of essence since I was heading south to Seattle later that evening. The book store in question was on Main between 8th and Broadway and it was everything our earlier bookstores were not. Neat, orderly and chock full of great titles and authors. I find that used book stores that sell new titles as well, tend to be the ones I like. Of course the earlier two book shops we investigated might have had some books I desired but who could tell with the dusty, teetering piles of books obstructing many of the narrow walkways between shelves... Pulp Fiction Books is the name of the more savory shop and I'd recommend browsing next time you are in the neighborhood.

My trip home began at 7:30 at the Campbell River Store where my shuttle bus to the Seattle airport picked me up. We passed through the border and had to unload everything and complete a customs document. It hardly seemed believable, even to me, that I hadn't bought a single thing. But the whole process was mostly uneventful with the exception of my discovery that my carry-on bag was bursting at the seams and weighed far more than was comfortable to lug around. Exactly WHY was I so determined not to check my luggage?

I arrived in Seattle about 30 minute late but Josh was there to pick me up and shelter me until my plane left Friday morning. He was a great host, entertaining me with pics from the trip He and Susan took rafting down the Grand Canyon, he fed me fresh picked blackberries, and before I knew it I was on my way back to the airport.

Seattle airport offers free wireless. Minneapolis does not. Sure it's available, but for an extortionist fee. Arghh... So the time I had in Minneapolis airport was spent reading, and watching part of a film on my computer-turned-DVD player. My first flight option was from Seattle direct to Winnipeg, but I waited too long to purchase the ticket and then I had to opt for this connecting flight to get the same price. So I flew to Winnipeg. Flight time--One hour. It's rather funny to hear the pilot say, "We've reached out cruising altitude and you can feel free to move about the cabin for the next ten minutes when we will begin our descent." My trip to Winnipeg was spent chatting with a friendly fellow in a kilt fresh from a bagpipe competition in Madison.

In the Winnipeg airport, I passed through customs again and then after Baked Expectations dessert and an hour and a half drive I did it once more at the Pembina border crossing by car. Wow. If they only knew-- from Canada to the States to Canada to the States.... I have a sneaking suspicion I could have gotten home in less convoluted way, but what fun would that have been?