Hello again! For those of you who are on Facebook, I've just joined. I have no idea how to use it, and I haven't actually managed to download any photos yet, but I am a member. If you've got no idea what I'm on about, check out Facebook.com.
I'm typing from sunny Whistler, site for the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. It's 35 degrees out and boiling so I've taken refuge in a dark and dingy internet cafe. In the summer, Whistler becomes a mountain biking mecca. I'm not going mountain biking, but I am going Zip Trecking tomorrow. Those of you who have been reading carefully will remember that I went zip lining in Guatemala (on the shores of Lake Atilan). I liked it so much I'm going again. Apparently they have a line here that you can swing upside down on. Whoo!
After getting back from the Rockies, I spent a few hours sleeping and doing washing in Vancouver before Mark, Tash and I headed off to Seattle. It took us three hours to cross the border, but eventually we made it. Seattle is a great place. It was lovely and sunny as we arrived, so we stopped at a park and looked at the city across the lake. Then we drove to Freemont, the trendy section and self-proclaimed 'centre of the universe'. There's a bridge in Freemont with a big sculpture of a troll under it. It's very cool.
We didn't get to go up the space needle because it was too foggy the next morning, but we did get to go to a couple of good museums - the Experience Music Project and the Science Fiction Musuem. My favourite was the SciFi one, where I saw costumes and props from all the best SciFi shows and movies. There was also a newspaper clipping from a US paper released just after 'War of the Worlds' was broadcast on US radio. Apparently quite a few people thought it was a real alien invasion.
After Seattle, we headed to the Olympic National Park. I took lots of lovely photos, we did a few walks and I saw a few Elk. I still haven't seen a bear yet (that's one of the reasons why I came to Whistler).
The next day we caught the boat to Victoria, on Vancouver Island. We couldn't get the car on the 12noon ferry, so I walked on. It's strange to cross a country border on a ferry. Victoria was lovely, once again quite hot. I spent a couple of hours walking around the city (Victoria prides itself on its hanging flower arrangements) and then a couple of hours in the Royal BC Museum. The Museum was great. Victoria is the capital of British Columbia, so its one of the best museums in the State. I visited a First Nations Exhibit, one containing artifacts from the last century and one on the Titanic. I'm not really sure what the link with the Titanic was supposed to be (apparently a couple of Canadians sailed on her), but it was a really comprehensive exhibition.
On Tuesday morning we went on a whale watching expedition. We saw seals, sea lions and a bald eagle, but no whales. The guide offered to let us go again, so I went on the 3pm whale watching tour back to Vancouver while Mark and Tash took the car back home on the ferry. I am happy to say that I did see whales on the second tour - two humpbacks. I would have liked to have seen Orcas, but I was happy enough with the Humpbacks, and after 7 hours on boats in choppy seas I was happy enough just to be on dry land.
Mark and Tash are moving apartment today, so I figured I should really get out of the way. An overnight trip to Whistler was just what I needed. I'll be back in Vancouver tomorrow evening. Mum and Dad arrive on Friday afternoon and we'll spend the weekend around the city before I leave on Sunday to meet Tony in London.
Note: Mark, if you want to become a tour guide with Tucan Tours, you have to commit yourself to 50 weeks of tour guiding. You also need to do a 6 week training course. Being able to speak another language helps you to get the job. Most of the time there are more girls than guys on gours. It's mainly because women are more likely to want to travel with other people, and are slightly more adventurous. Men tend to go just to one place, or to travel on their own.
