On Days Like These

I dream of days like these. Waking up naturally at no particular time. Leisurely journaling over a cup of hot tea. Going for a run. Spending the day with my beau chasing an adventure. Eating really good food. Conversations over cocktails. It's simple. It's my version of freedom. It's what I strive for.

This past weekend, we spent some time in Vancouver. Four days to be exact. What a difference an extra few days can make. I felt completely relaxed; like I was on a real vacation. Living in the PNW, our top choice of a weekend getaway are either LA or Vancouver. Lately we've been choosing LA because of the desperate need of sunshine and amazing Korean food. I've forgotten all about Vancouver. How beautiful it is in the spring. The amazing asian food. The gorgeous backdrop of the mountains and water surrounding Vancouver. The exchange rate in our favor. The shopping. This trip I grew to love Vancouver. I found it a livable city and very similar to Seattle. The amount of daylight available this time of the year is the best.

We came up with a list of new places to eat and things to do. Trying to experience something new with each visit. This trip we explored Fraser Valley, a small winery region east of Vancouver. Because of the cooler climate, white wines were really their speciality. I brought my Hasselblad and Pentax, only to not use them very much. All I have are some photos I snapped on my iPhone somewhere between living in the moment and my need to photograph. 

       

STAY
Shangri La 
Wedgewood Hotel & Spa




       

EAT & DRINK
Chi Modern Vietnamese
Dinesty Dumpling House
Guu Izakaya
Kirin 
Prohibition
Tasty Indian Bistro
Uva Wine & Cocktail Bar
Viji's 



DO
Granville Island Public Market
Richmond Night Market
Shop: Downtown / Gastown
Stanley Park
Fraser Valley / Wine Tasting

Thanksgiving Getaway

After we celebrated Thanksgiving with both our families my beau and I took advantage of the long weekend and headed north to Vancouver to have our own take on Thanksgiving. I had an extensive list of places to shop, eat and see outlined for us but once we arrived to Vancouver our ambitious were easily tamed by the greetings of freezing temperatures and the open arms of our cozy hotel.

I was happy to learn the Wedgwood hotel (and all of downtown Vancouver) was decked out in Christmas decor. Upon our arrival at the hotel we were embraced with the warm wood burning fireplace and the sound of live piano music coming from the lounge. Later that evening we enjoyed all of this over a bottle of wine.

The rest of the weekend was spend in relaxation mode as we took our time waking up slow, walking around downtown doing some shopping and grabbing early dinners so that we can make it back to the hotel to enjoy our romantic room. By enjoy I mean catching up on all the seasons of Walking Dead and drinking wine over bubble baths.

Shangri-La Vancouver

We stayed at the Shangri-La during our weekend getaway to Vancouver and it was beyond wonderful! I was mesmerized by the glass chandeliers... I stopped and smelt all the fresh flowers.... and the romantic dim lights gave me dreamy eyes... this place was definitely made for lovers...

Shangri-La Vancouver

1128 West Georgia Street 

Vancouver, B.C., V6E 0A8, Canada

Vancouver, BC

I am a very spontaneous person and I count myself bless to have someone who can easily adapt to this as I can imagine it could drive some people crazy. Spur of the moment, my beau and I took romantic getaway to Vancouver, B.C. this past weekend. The planning all started over dinner last Thursday night when we thought of how we’d like to spend our weekend. At the end of dinner, we agreed to the location and logistics. That night he booked our hotel, we packed and the next day we were on our way.

Although a bit cold, something beautiful about Vancouver during this time of the year is how blue the snow covered mountains are. Also, the sun doesn’t set until after 7:30pm and there is something so magical about the golden hour. I think Seattle has a lot of similarities to Vancouver; however, I don’t think about these things when I’m home. It could be that I’m just a sponge when in other cities.

While in Vancouver we stayed at the beautiful Shangri-La. We ate at Zakkushi and had the best yakatori ever, Zabu Chicken for some delicious KFC (koren fried chicken), and Kirin for fresh and authentic dim sum. We shopped on Robson street and had drinks at Xi Shi Lounge. We had a few romantic but cold walks - one around the Vancouver pier and the second at Spanish Banks Beach which had a beautiful view of the city skyline and mountains. These photos were captured during our walks…