Canada: Day 3 Shopping at Robson Street

One street in Vancouver has all the biggest names of retail - Robson Street. With diverse offerings ranging from luxury brands like Louis Vuitton and Gucci to cheap n' chic Zara, Robson Street is the go-to place for your retail fix. Central to Vancouver's dining scene, Robson Street also has plenty of great restaurants - my fam and I went to CinCin yesterday, which was at Robson.

Although my fam doesn't really enjoy shopping as much as I do, we spent the morning at Robson to peruse a few stores so that we could spend more time in Vancouver before leaving for Kamloops. I had read that Kamloops doesn't really offer much besides golfing and other leisurely activities, which the fam was not interested in doing. At Robson, we stopped by stores like French Connection, American Eagle, and Zara. I made it a point to stop at every store which I did not recognize the name in order to find Canadian brands or brands not easily found in the United States, such as lululemon athletica and MEXX. I wish I had stopped at Aritzia.

See what Robson Street has to offer here.

On the drive to Kamloops, we stopped by Hell's Gate where we saw a gorge and a salmon fish-ladder. Apparently, falling rocks due to railroad construction during the early 1900's further narrowed the gorge, making it extremely difficult for the salmon to make their yearly migration, so these fish-ladders were built.

Canada: Day 2 Stanley Park

Stanley Park is gorgeous! It offers beautiful views all along the seawall, where lots of people jog and bike. There are several beaches along the coast and some attractions within the park such as totem poles and an aquarium. It is a very big park!

Since we did not have much time in Vancouver, we took a free shuttle around the park. It seems that everyone uses the shuttle to see the park, rather than to get place to place, since the buses were always packed and nobody ever got off.



If I ever return, I would love to bike along the entire seawall.



Around 6PM, we decided to eat at a nice restaurant. Vancouver has a fabulous dining scene (and while the prices are expensive, they're not outrageous). The fam decided on CinCin, a Mediterranean restaurant. Since we were dressed in touristy attire, we called ahead but they said it wouldn't be a problem.

I had the roasted boar gnocchi - I've never had boar before, so it was quite interesting. For dessert, petit fours! They were so adorable and very yummy - I wish I had taken a picture before we started eating them. Our waiter at CinCin provided top-notch, excellent service.



One of the petit fours - tart



A half-eaten plate of petit fours!



After dinner cookies!

And then we went back to the beach at Stanley Park to see the sunset.

Jason Mraz + Tristan Prettyman

Canada: Day 2 Capilano Suspension Bridge

Capilano Suspension Bridge is definitely a tourist trap. It is expensive to get in and is very commercialized. I mean, people-walking-around-wearing-historical-costumes-and-singing-songs commercialized. There are some nice developments, like the Treetop Walking exhibit, which is gratifying for those of us who never had tree houses as little kids.



Upon entering the park, there is a very long and very high up suspension bridge, the kind that sways from side to side when the wind blows (or when your dad walks behind you so he can shake it for his own amusement - so not funny) so it can be frightening for those with fear of heights.



The view from the Suspension Bridge is amazing.



One of the exhibits in the park.



There are several ponds within the park (with lots of fishies).



An act of vandalism - the boards are covered with all sorts of messages.

Oh, and they give you little maps that you stamp at every exhibit so you can get a prize - if you're over the age of 10, this is not for you. Trust me - you will be sorely disappointed.

Obsession Du Jour: J. Crew Snakeskin Slingbacks

J. Crew's Snakeskin Slingback in brilliant blue is drool-worthy - the gorgeous color, beautiful texture, the little bow. I wish I could get my hands on these...

Be prepared for the hefty price tag!!!

Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2

I went to see Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants 2 yesterday with two of my closest friends, and I have to say... it wasn't as good as the first one. The sequel seemed to jump around, with each girl's storyline so disconnected. And so much was happening, it veered into sappy soap opera territory. To enjoy the movie, you had to forget about reality and just enjoy the scenery - because really, that's the real reason most of us will go see this movie for, to see these four successful starlets come together on the big screen (and to drool over Michael Rady's Kostos, and now newcomer Jesse Williams).

I have to say I was inspired by the girls' wardrobe, especially Lena's grecian-inspired white dresses with matching espadrilles and Bridget's "Indiana Jones"-esque vests and work boots.

I loved how Kostos and Lena only wore white in the boat scene.



Lena (Alexis Bledel) pairs her white dresses with espadrilles. Rekindling my longing for a pair of espadrilles, I set off to find out where her shoes are from. Acccording to Premiere Props, she wears Michael Kors' Stinson Espadrille in navy stripe fabric and Anne Klein's Judine espadrille in white.

My Wishlist

My top three picks from J. Crew's Fall 2008 Collection are:

1. Herringbone ecole jacket in Sweet Potato
   
   
   
   
2. Juliet heels in Light Pumpkin
   
   
   
   
3. Jamie Bag in Honey Glaze