Richmond, British Columbia: Reunion with the Fam.

Travel Date: Saturday, Apr 30th 2016

I arrived at the Vancouver Marriott Airport Hotel - which happens to be in Richmond instead of Vancouver. And I checked in, and decided to walk around the area.

I stopped by a local drug store/supermarket to pick up some water and a shaving razor, and I noticed the Kinder Surprise eggs which are banned from the US. They were one of my childhood favorites, and I miss them dearly.

Feeling hungry, I walked over to nearby a restaurant: Ceili's Modern Irish Pub (Richmond, British Columbia).

Typical Irish Bar, except the bartender was of Indian descent, and spoke "North American English". I got some lunch, and some beer, and headed back to the hotel.

Back at the hotel, I decided to try out the Pinot Noir from the Okanagan Valley. I was curious how the wine tastes as compared to my favorite region where Pinot Noir are grown: Oregon. Credit to Lavon and Brian for their Oregon wine indoctrination.

I got a little extra from the bartender. The wine was amazing. I will have to compare them again with the Oregon Pinot Noir's to taste the subtle difference.

Now it was time to pick up mom and my sister. Fortunately, the hotel had a free shuttle bus to pickups and drop offs to the airport

The bus passed by some scenic views of the city.

And finally the three of us are re-united after 18 years. Mom is gleaming. We have seen each other at different points in the last 18 years, but never all together. The last time we were all together was when I left Dubai to the United States for college. It is crazy, as I begin to think it has been that long.

For dinner, we decide to head over to the small town of Stevenston, which is a small historic fishing village at the edge of Richmond, British Columbia. We head over to the scenic Fisherman's Wharf.

And decide to walk the length of the wharf while we wait for our reservations.

Mom and sis being goofy.

More family pics.

I love how calm the water is.

Views of the oncoming sunset.

Our table at the Blue Canoe Waterfront Restaurant is ready, and we head over.

Time to celebrate our reunion with some wine.

We order some amazing seafood to share.

And enjoy a delicious dinner together again the backdrop of an wonderful sunset.

We head back to the hotel and call it a night. Tomorrow, we get on a cruise ship bound for Alaska. 

Reflections:

It was great to reconnect with mother and sister, and share the beauty of the village of Steveston together. The fisherman's village has a great scenic view with an assortment of boats and colors. The weather was cool and peaceful. It definitely required a sweater. 

I enjoyed talking to mom, connecting with her, and also teasing her with my sister. My sister playfully warned me about some of the ethnically Indian nuances that would come around with mom. She was right, and it was entertaining to re-experience. I had forgotten about them. Things about childhood, that we grow up with, and we get to re-experience at a different age - amusing.

One memorable moment of kindness was in the airport shuttle bus when it arrived to pick up my mom and sis. A group of older men got onboard, maybe about 9-10 entered into the shuttle and pretty much filled the shuttle. They were definitely from Eastern Europe and spoke a different language. We were in the front, and it was just me, my mom, and my sister that could share two seats. So I got up and stood, hoping that one of the men in the entourage would move to a seat behind the bus. For about one minute, before the bus began moving no one moved. And then the oldest man, noticed me standing, put it together and moved to the back of the bus. It's moments like these that make me appreciate our common humanity and kindness.

I am looking forward to the next seven days on cruise to Alaska. It will be memorable!

Expenses: in US$ 428.24

Hotel: $199.61 (CAD $249.72, Marriott - Vancouver Airport)

Grocery Store: $15.12 (CAD $18.90, London Drugs)

Lunch: $20.18 (Ceili's Irish Pub)

Beverages: $17.94 (CAD $14.36, Marriott - Allie's American Grill)

Taxi: $16.00 (CAD $20.00)

Dinner: $143.39 (CAD $114.75, Blue Canoe Waterfront Restaurant)

Taxi: $16.00 (CAD $20.00)

Seattle, Washington to Vancouver, British Columbia: A short cross-country train ride

Travel Date: Saturday, April 30th 2016

I got up in the morning, and peered out the window. Morton told me the previous day that you could see Mt. Rainier from his window on a clear day.

Sure enough, you could see it. 

After saying goodbye to Morton, I head downstairs from his apartment, and caught an Uber to the Amtrak Seattle King Street Train Station, and stood in line.

The line is really really long.

The architecture of the train station was beautiful.

While in line, I made a friend. Unfortunately, I am writing this blog post so late that I forgot her name. I'll just call her CoolLadyISatNextTo.

We received our seat assignments: Car 8 and Seat 13 and 14. We told the ticketing agent that we would like to sit next to each other.

The train Cascades arrived, and one by one the passengers were embarking.

It is our turn.

We are all set and ready to go.

Below are some of the pretty views of the scenery and bays of Washington State as we get closer to Vancouver, Canada.

Look out for the Eagle's Nest.

We switched seats, so this time I get the window.

I think we just crossed into Canada.

We are definitely in Canada.

We finally entered the Pacific Central Station in Vancouver, Canada. Upon arrival, it looks and feels like a detention center, not that I have any experience with that.

We have to get out of our cars in turn, and wait in line. The passengers in cars are only processed one at a time.

It takes about an hour for us to move through, and finally I am through customs and legally in Canada.

The weather of Vancouver is gorgeous, cool, and sunny. I fluctuate between removing my jacket from feeling too hot, to putting it back on because it is just a little cool.

I hop on the Vancouver Metro system and head over to the Vancouver Airport Marriott Hotel in Richmond, B.C.

Reflections:
I am quite grateful to Morton for the short sleepover in Seattle, Vancouver. I had a frustrating time with update my credit card with Uber since my Marriott credit card was recently cancelled for potential fraud. But in the end it all worked out and for that I am grateful. Learning lesson: know what credit cards you've setup to automatically work for which apps.

Meeting "CoolLadyISatNextTo" was a neat experience. She was from Washington State and was traveling to Vancouver solo for the first time. So was I. It was refreshing to meet another traveler, waiting in line ahead of me at the train station, and share conversation and the train ride with her. At the end of the journey we traded emails and left on our own paths. She doesn't use facebook - sigh.

The one thing I learned about Canadian customs that I found interesting is that if you fly into Canada, and you have a passport from certain countries (as I do), then you have to get an eTA (Electronic Travel Authorization) clearance. To avoid getting the eTA, you can travel via train from the US to Canada. They don't require an eTA, which is why I traveled by train.

I'm excited about being in Vancouver and exploring as much as I can in less than a day.

Expenses in US$: $73.39
$54.00: Train Ticket from Seattle, Washington to Vancouver, British Columbia (Amtrak)
$6.79: Uber Ride to Seattle King Street Train Station

$12.60 (CAD $15.75): Train Ticket from Pacific Central Station to Richmond, British Columbia