27-07-2013 Saturday - Laundry Pack & Fireworks

Before we start, Brenda tried to make a comment on the posts and had a lot of difficulty.  We saw the process and now completely understand why noone has made a comment or if they have why it hasn't worked.  We don't mind if you aren't commenting.  If you really want to say something to us and you have our email address please feel free to contact us that way - thanks for trying if you have!


Today we slowed down the pace.  Spent the morning catching up on laundry and reorganising the bags.  We have left one at Mick & Brenda's which contains wedding stuff and other things we shouldn't need until our return to Vancouver.  

Around lunchtime we met up with Lindsay and Andrew (she had done her exam in the morning and is hopeful that it all went well - that is the end of her Physiology course and she has one or two other exams over the next month for her final pre-course to get into Occupational Therapy.

We drove down to Lonsdale Quay where we parked and then caught the seabus across to Vancouver.  A very quick and efficient way to get across to the main part of the city from North Vancouver.

We headed to Canada Place where the boys were going to see the 4D film 'Fly Over Canada' while the girls had a coffee.  However, because there were heaps of people in the city - all obviously with the same idea - there was going to be a nearly 2 hour wait so we decided to leave it for when we get back to Vancouver if possible.



  We then caught a bus downtown and stopped for an icecream at Dairy Queen.  We then walked from there down to English Bay where the fireworks were going to be on later that night.  We managed to find a log to sit on but it was in the hot sun and we still had 5 hours to wait so we knew that wasn't going to work.

Instead we went to a local bar and had a drink and some nachos - dragging it out between so we could stay there in the cool for longer.

Then we went back to the crowded beach (apparently on the news that night they said there were around 250,000 people there).

We found a spot on the grass where John could set up his tripod and we relaxed until the fireworks started. We had a tug boat doing a water display to fill in some time.









When it finally got dark enough (around 10pm) the fireworks started.  They lasted for about 20 minutes and they shot up a couple at 15 minute intervals twice beforehand as a warning they were about to start.






 




The fireworks were spectacular with lots of colour and lots of bang!

This was a competition with England providing these fireworks and then on other nights would be China & USA.






The Olympic Torch at Canada Place.






 



Once the fireworks were finished we then made our way by foot back to the seabus along with many more people.  It was very organised with police directing traffic and the crowd orderly and not too pushy.  We managed to even get a seat on the seabus on the way back and, once we worked out how to get back into the parking station as some doors were locked, we drove home and went to bed.