An entire month in one entry. That must be a record of some kind for me. At the very least, it’s a reflection of life when we’re not “on the go”.
We have no travel planned until I leave for Germany in September, so instead pf a day-by-day travel journal, I’m just keeping a monthly summary with a few photos.
Back in 2019 I wrote an episode called Blood & Coffee, about how exciting (a word I’m using firmly tongue-in-cheek) our lives are when we’re not travelling.
The more things change the more they stay the same.
Seven years later, our “home time” was much the same now as then, albeit in a different part of Canada.
Finances & FIFA
One of the things we do annually when in our home province is meet with our financial advisor to ensure that we can continue to travel in the style to which we’ve become accustomed.
This year that meant taking the Skytrain into downtown Vancouver, which gave us the opportunity to check out one the pedestrian zone set up on Granville Street for FIFA2026. We’re pretty chuffed that Vancouver was named the “best FIFA host city” by Sports Illustrated , and the pedestrian malls like this that were set up to allow fans to watch matches and celebrate together were a big part of that (plus Canadian west coast hospitality, of course).
On non-game days the zone along Granville Street was quieter than when a match was going on, so we got to take photos in the “selfie zone” with no lineups, as well as watching kids and adults holding impromptu soccer footwork practices in front of some of the installations. Lots of international team jerseys were on display as Vancouverites and tourists wore their heritage literally on their sleeves for a few weeks.
Bloodwork & Brunch
It’s not just our finances that need an annual check, but our aging bodies too. An unexpected bonus of visiting the local clinic this time was that the doctor I’ve been seeing as a walk-in patient for the past year was accepting patients into his family practice, so – after 3 years in BC – Ted and I now have a family doctor and he’s young enough that he’s not going to retire while we still need him!
He gave us both requisitions for standard bloodwork, including cholesterol checks to confirm that we’re still in good shape in that regard (I have genetically high levels, which he is monitoring), and my annual thyroid hormone level check (since I only have half a thyroid gland and take supplementary thyroxine to ensure it doesn’t have to work too hard).
As always, we booked our lab appointments back-to-back, and used the outing as an excuse for delicious sausage rolls at our favourite local independent café located on the route home.
Library & Latte
In our constant quest for “destinations” for what should be daily walks, we used the excuse of returning a library book to revisit East Café for afternoon coffees in their quaint outdoor garden (it could really use our landlord’s touch to make it a more welcoming space, but at least it is outdoors, which is where we want to be during Vancouver’s glorious summer weather). Books in hard copy from the library are necessary if I want to read on our patio, since my iPad overheats if it is in the sun for more than about 45 minutes (even less if it’s over 25°C).
Local Restaurants
Ted subscribes to The Vancity Lookout, an independent on-line news outlet focussed specifically on local news.
Once a month they publish a “Vancity Eats” edition, reviewing new restaurants, food emporiums, and eateries. This month, they featured Murmur, a tiny fixed-menu restaurant in whose kitchen a single young (just 21 years old!!) chef works her magic.
Not only did this month’s tasting menu look wonderful, but we were also impressed with the European-model pricing which is inclusive of all taxes and gratuities. At $65CAD per diner for four courses, or $95CAD for six courses, it’s extremely reasonable by Vancouver standards.
So, despite the fact that we rarely eat anywhere than our own kitchen when we’re home, we decided to treat ourselves.
It turned out to be one of the best restaurant meals we’ve ever had. That young chef is both inspired and talented, presenting gorgeous plates with complex interesting flavours. Her cedar panna cotta should be British Columbia’s official provincial dessert – a single mouthful of the silky smooth cream sends the scent of just-after-the-rain cedar forest into the olfactory glands. Heavenly – and that was just the crowning jewel on a meal full of highlights.
Bottom: We’d just returned from New Zealand, and these lamb chops were better than any we ate there. They were perfectly cooked, and served over turnip purée, accompanied by a scallion & leek phyllo pastry tart, sauteed bok choy, and perfectly seasoned lamb jus, plus a little bit of flaked salt.
Netflix & Nespresso
Our landlords thoughtfully provided our little place with a Breville Nespresso-style machine and a frother, so our evening routine is a movie or series on TV, and Ted making us melanges. When we have them available he even adds a biscuit to my saucer, just like a European barista would.
Why a melange? Well… a traditional Cappuccino uses a single shot of strong, dark espresso. A Wiener Melange typically uses a milder espresso, a Verlängerter (diluted espresso/Lungo). Cappuccinos contain equal parts espresso, steamed milk, and microfoam (which is airy and pourable). Melanges are a mix of coffee and hot milk topped with thicker, spooned-on foam. We thought we were making cappuccinos until our last visit to Vienna, where both options appeared on café menus and they were treated as distinctly different drinks.
Clean Teeth
It’s been a running gag for decades that sitting in adjacent rooms having our teeth cleaned is a “date”. Who says romance is dead?
Until this month, we’d been going back to the dental office in Coquitlam, our first BC residence. When we moved to Maple Ridge, it was an easy half hour bus ride, so we were in no hurry to make a change, but now that we’ve decided to settle in Vancouver a 90 minute transit ride just doesn’t make sense.
There are several dental offices within walking distance, but we decided simply to try the nearest one. Having our semi-annual cleanings done was intended to help us decide whether it’s an office and staff with which we’re comfortable.
It is, and we’ve already made appointments for our annual checkups in November, before we leave for our winter in Mexico.
Cousins’ Lunch
Being home for a stretch meant reconnecting with my DNA match 5th cousin to talk genealogy, travel, politics, and clothing shopping over a nice lunch at WhiteSpot, British Columbia’s iconic restaurant chain.
It’s always a lovely treat to spend a few hours together.
Bard on the Beach
Our financial advisor invited us to an RBC-sponsored night of theatre. Bard on the Beach is a Vancouver tradition since 1990: Shakespearean plays updated with musical numbers and modern twists, presented in a gorgeous amphitheatre-style performance tent.
I wandered around a bit before the show and found the plaque commemorating Captain George Vancouver on a hillside in Vanier Park, where one gentleman was flying a kite that simply soared in the breeze.
This year’s plays were Goblin:Oedipus, Antigone, MacBeth, and – our evening’s treat – The Merry Wives of Windsor, with a very timely soccer theme and imaginary Vancouver-area soccer club setting.
The entire evening was delightful, from the hors d’oeuvres and drinks pre+show, to the decadent cookie at intermission, and the gorgeous setting beside False Creek.
The play itself was terrific – updated with modern language and costumes, Slender as an androgynous Tik-Tok influencer, Falstaff as a womanizing soccer champion resting on his former reputation as star player, and a cheeky Miss Quickly portrayed as the soccer club’s gossipy receptionist. No photos were allowed during the performance, but we took a couple of the theatre seating and stage.
Grandsons, of course
Grandson #3, especially, complains that we’re “always away”, so we’ve set aside one day each week, usually Mondays, to make the trek to Maple Ridge and spend the day.
The trip involves all three Skytrain lines, plus a RapidBus, and clocks in at around 2-1/2 hours in each direction, but the entire trip costs just $4.60 per person at our over-65 rate.
We’re enjoying doing ordinary things with the boys: going to the pool, making JellO, picking wild plums and blackberries, and simply catching up on their lives and being close enough to be on the receiving end of precious hugs.
And that’s it…
August promises to be just as exciting.
Rose and Ted’s Excellent Adventure 