Another lazy post

Here's the second BUNAC entry, documenting the hectic fortnight with Kate here!

With Kate here for a fortnight, I just haven’t stopped, and I’m so tired! In a packed first weekend, we had skydived and gone to Vancouver Aquarium, and then for Labour Day Monday, we were off to Pacific National Exhibition Centre (PNE).

It was the final night of the summer festivities at the PNE, which include food stalls, shows, gymnasts, a casino and concerts. Add to that the rides at the fairground Playland, and there was plenty to do! There was a farm section with lambs, piglets, hatching chicks, thoroughbred horses and pig racing. There was Superdogs, a show where rescued canines show off their Frisbee catching, high jumping, dancing and racing skills. There was a market where there were hilarious demonstrations of ridiculous inventions. It was all very family orientated, but the Big Dipper was fun, and the entertainment well…er…entertaining!

I was back to work during the days, but once Friday came, we got the plane to British Columbia’s capital, Victoria. It was just like an English south coast town. I had to have the Fish and Chips, which had chips instead of fries for once! We took the floatplane over from Vancouver, which offered great views of the city and the Gulf Islands, and also only took half an hour. The ferry ride back was longer, but was great again for different reasons – very relaxing, and more landscape to observe.

In the city, we mostly just chilled out, drinking rose wine and enjoying the sunshine. I ended up like a slapped tomato, keeping up an English tradition! The government buildings were as old and decadent as you can get in Canada, and the bay was just beautiful under the setting sun.

Arriving back in Vancouver, and there was more mid-week fun with a tandem bicycle ride around Stanley Park, and we also took in the views of the city from the top of the Harbour Centre.

The weekend following and I surprised Kate with a trip to Kelowna – Canada’s wine country. I hired a car, which was the first time on the right-hand side of the road for me. It was strange driving in the passenger seat! About four hours, and we were in the picturesque Okanagan Valley. Blessed with more perfect weather, we arrived in the early afternoon, and made our way to a lake that my friend had recommended.

My friend had said, “take the country road to Oyama Lake”. In retrospect, she should have said, “take the rocky, off-road mountain track to Oyama Lake”. The tiny, cheap(est) car I had hired struggled up the side of the valley to the isolated lake, but it was worth it. Not only could we enjoy the fishing haven, but on the drive back down to Kelowna we were greeted by the best views I have seen in Canada.

The next day, we went on a wine tasting tour of the region. I was glad we were driving, because the tour was fast and furious. We visited a range of wineries, and were just taking back mouthful after mouthful! We received some instruction on the tasting, and I am now a professional wine taster – I will be to the annoyance of my friends back home, anyhow. The Mission Hill Estate winery included a tour, and was absolutely stunning. The buildings framed the valley around an amphitheatre, and the only winery bell tower in the world rang out to give the impression we were in a village in Tuscany.

The trip to Kelowna, although short, was a real highlight of Kate’s visit. Canada keeps impressing me with the scenery, and the Okanagan really was breathtaking.