Babymoon to Vancouver!

I recently returned from just about the best Babymoon anyone can imagine.  Beth graciously invited me to join her on a little vacation to...VANCOUVER!! She earned the trip through MUCH hard work at her job, so I felt very lucky to be included. For months we'd been planning sights to see and restaurants to try. And, since Vancouver's in the Pacific Northwest, we'd also been crossing our fingers and toes for good weather.

Apparently, we need not have worried so much about the weather; it was likely the sunniest, loveliest weekend that Vancouverites have seen in months. We bathed in sunshine and 60-degree temps for our entire visit! Here we are by the harbour with the snow-capped mountains behind us...so stunning!

How often do you get to see parts of a city, waterfront and snow-capped mountains all in one view??
One of our favorite visits was to Granville Island. We loved all of the cute shops and many yummy things at the farmer's market!

Seeing the sights while walking around Granville. Can you tell that the weather was ideal??

We took a ferry ride, and were totally envious of the folks who live in adorable, little homes right on the water.

Unfortunately, there was not enough room for this couple and their big, fluffy dog in our ferry.

We really enjoyed the 360-degree views of the city from the top of Vancouver Lookout. We went in the morning and then back again for a gorgeous sunset!

The beautiful view from the Sea Wall...as we walked to Stanley Park (akin to Central Park in Vancouver).

Beth (out for a jog and) being funny.

No visit to a new city would be complete without trying lots of new restaurants, coffee shops and bakeries. OK...so Starbucks is not new, but my latte was!  (It's on the right.) I said, "Yes, please!" to every beverage or food that included maple!

Maple donut!!

Canadian humor. Hehe.

Well, after only a few days of walking around like locals, doing a little shopping, and enjoying a lot of sightseeing and eating, it was safe to say that our first visit to Vancouver (and Beth's first to Canada) made us pretty big enthusiasts!

What fun to have a new city to explore!!

Here's us ready for our last night out...wearing the pashminas we bought on Granville Island.

In advance of our trip, we made reservations at Hawksworth (thanks to a wonderful suggestion from my friend Anna who's from Vancouver, but lives in Cincy) for our last (and fanciest) dinner. Then we were thumbing through a magazine on Vancouver dining and discovered that Hawksworth won "Most Upscale Restaurant" in Vancouver last year! Lucky us!

Here's what I ate: melt-in-your-mouth lamb over lentils and a cauliflower puree, topped with toasted sunflower seeds, beets and clementine slices! I also drank a delicious mocktail, so I was very pleased with my meal. (Beth had tandoori sturgeon with a glass of champagne...hard to beat that combination either!)

What a wonderful last dinner!

It's safe to say that Vancouver suited us perfectly and we hated to leave. Can't wait to go back one day and find even more gems in our favorite new city!

Thank you again, Beth, for inviting me on such a fantastic trip. I loved spending three days with you and exploring a new city for both of us, and I can't think of a better last trip before Baby D3 arrives!