will i am's delayed diary

Kenji and Andy took leave to spend the day with us. Actually Andy called in sick. Lol. Not wanting them to come all the way down to fetch us, we took the Sky Train to Lansdowne. Nearly everyone on the train was of Chinese-descent. While waiting, we did some shopping at Lansdowne Mall. They took us out for dim sum that day. Some say that dim sum in Vancouver is better than Hong Kong due to the freshness of the ingredients, but I don't agree. Sam Sui Wah looked like your typical dim sum place with Cantonese-speaking waiters, typical furniture and gilded Chinese characters on the walls. The prices were relatively steep but the portions gweilo-sized. Some of the stuff were good, but some I did not like. The weirdest item was the baked melon lolo. Halfway through, felt a bit 'zhai' and Kenji's stomach reacted to something we ordered too. Andy sent us back to their place so that Kenji could purge a bit. The place they live in is quite nice, with several housemates. The livi

Truth be told, our schedule for the second part in Vancouver was a bit fluid. Based on a recommendation from our hosts, we visited Granville Island. Took a bus ( she even taught us how to cheat! But we didn't do that. Actually wantend to buy the tickets on the bus, but since we didn't have any coins, the bus driver just gave them to us FOC! ) and subsequently went by foot. Nearly went the wrong way as the signage was quite bad. Doubled back from on top the bridge and walked under it instead. Along the way, we asked directions from a woman who was luckily going the same way. Started off at Net Loft, a place where the local art writers from Emily Carr University sold their wares. Most of the shops weren't open, so we had a simple breakfast at Net Loft Cafe first. Wandered in Net Loft and then the Public Market. Fantastic selections of fresh produce, arts and craft. Interesting to note that all the fruit sellers spoke Cantonese. Then went to RIP and the Kids Market.

As with all my travel posts, they can lengthy affairs that sap your patience. Hehe. Tater even suggested that I just fast-forward to the current. But, I can't! This blog acts as my journal. A place where I compile all my life events, memorable or mundane. Anyway, stay with me for just a few more posts. Hehe. Today I'll reward everyone with an LRT Celebrity, KPop Kim ! Been ages since I found someone of this quality. Rare to see someone all-dressed up, with slick hair, flawless skin and big guns ( I'm such a sucker for muscular arms ) on the Ampang Line. I managed to get some pretty good shots since it was two in the afternoon. Perfect light. Even managed to get his pits! Enjoy!

It was the day to head back to the city, so we got up earlier than usual and checked out. Drove back to Banff to have breakfast at Melissa's Mistake , a famous breakfast place in town. We went for the weirder items-- crab and asparagus omelette and eggs benedict with chorizo. Surprisingly, the potatoes came grated, like noodles. Pour over coffee was bottomless but wasn't that great ( expected I guess ). Their large pancakes are quite popular too. Before leaving Banff, we had time for a few more tourist attractions like The Hoodoos, a weird rock formation that looked like a huge termite nest. With one hour left in our schedule, we squeezed in the Banff Springs Hotel. Took a look around the luxurious and historical hotel ( 1888 ) and then continued driving to Calgary to catch our flight out to Vancouver. Returned our rental and took a look at the final reading of the odometer-- 900+km, not bad at all. Fast food at Chick-fil-a was lunch and a pumpkin spice latte from Starbu

Our great outdoors adventure was about to end. Already our last day in the Rockies. Although I'm not a fan of roughing it out, I must admit that it's very breathtaking out there. Breakfast was at Laggan's . Couldn't get the door open cause I underestimated it. Needed to put in more muscle! The woman sitting at the counter beside the door told me it happened to her coming in. LOL. Tried a little something called The Cure. Definitely cured our hunger. First on our list was Bow Lake Summit. From up there, one could get an amazing view of Peyto Lake. Although the name of the place seemed to suggest another hike in the cold, on the contrary, it was extremely easy to access by car. Just a short walk from the parking lot would bring you to the look out point. Minimum exertion, maximum enjoyment. With that said, it's truly a perfect place for tours, so we only managed to enjoy the view for an uninterrupted thirty seconds before the tourists came pouring in by the bus-load