77 Sunset Strip

NO SIGN OF THE PEST. We’re so happy about this that I feel like leaving this entry here. However, I shall press on.

December has arrived and Christmas has definitely hit Vancouver. All the streets are covered in fairy lights (except for the gay area which seems ironic) and there is a definite hint of Christmas tree smell in all the supermarkets. The prize for best illuminations so far goes to the St Paul’s hospital Lights of Hope display, and I think there’s something really amazing about lighting up a hospital. We’ve contributed to the festive season so far by consuming concerning quantities of Christmas Hershey kisses, and mulling everything in sight. 

Last weekend Ash was working so I went to the Christmas street parade with my friend from work. I was geared up for it to be like Miracle on 34^th Street and was only slightly disappointed...and that was mainly because Richard Attenborough wasn’t there. There were tons of people lining the street and we had a pretty good spot, although I wish I’d been more prepared with some gluhwein and bratwurst because it was frickin freezing. There were some pretty good floats and a giant inflatable aeroplane that I thought was a polar bear, which frankly would have been a better fit with the occasion. All in all, a good time was had by all...especially Adam with his flask of tea. JEALOUS. 

We also had a windfall this week, when Ash took top prize at Gay Bingo at Celebrities night club on Davie Street. It was our first time there and it did not disappoint. We all had to cheer when ‘69’ was called and the 2 Drag Queens that hosted did an excellent job, becoming more and more inebriated as the evening went on. We also had an interesting 'bingo calls' discussion where I tried to explain why my Dad always runs an imaginary comb through his imaginary hair at 77 Sunset Strip. The last game was a bit pressurised for me, as we had to cover 6 cards at once (it brought back my Blockbusters panic), but Ash took the jackpot of $100, a free weekend in a Mini Cooper and a bunch of Mini swag. I have included the picture of her swagg’d up for your viewing pleasure. I think she was most pleased with the keyring.

 On the apartment front, things are still a little up in the air. The pest problem seems to have subsided, probably because they heard what happened when I trapped my thumb in one of the mouse traps. However the lady we’re subletting off has decided to move. Just around the corner, but we’re meeting to discuss what we’re going to do. It’s a shame because we’ve finally started feeling at home here.

The mountains help with feeling festive

I’ve had a pleasing week on the food front, with excellent pork jowl ramen, gyoza and another trip to Meat & Bread. We’ve got over the initial mulling problem by using a sock to create a Bouquet Garni (I was pretty pleased with myself with this idea), and I’m trying to resist the local Organic cider which comes in a giant glass flagon that they keep tempting me with at WholeFoods. We’ve written and re-written the Christmas shopping list, including a debate about how to make the best Marie-Rose sauce (I maintain you need some Salad Cream for the tang). I’ve had a struggle to find some decent Mince Pies, and all of the Christmas cakes come un-iced and HEAVY on the glace fruits which is a real disappointment. 

 We’ve found a great bar called the Railway Club that you go upstairs to (those of you that know me well will appreciate how much I like a slightly hidden bar entrance). The main attraction of the place is that it smells like stale beer and crisps, and therefore makes me feel right at home. Luckily for Mum and Dad it’s pretty much opposite their hotel so I’m sure we’ll be visiting again.

Not much snow yet!

Grouse Mountain is still number one on the to-do list, especially as I found out that they’re doing sleigh rides. However the Vancouver weather is literally raining on my parade. This week we’re heading to Stanley Park to see the lights festival and ride the Christmas train which should be really beautiful. We’ve heard on the grapevine that the Vancouver Christmas market is a let-down (let’s face it, it was always going to be) so we might give that a miss. Otherwise we’re submerging ourselves in all that Christmas in Canada has to offer...and Home Alone is of course downloaded already.

Stella x

PS. I didn’t even mention my new iPhone 4s. That proves I’m not obsessed with it.
PPS. Some people have said they can't leave a comment on the blog (Katie). If you're viewing the individual post it should have a 'Post a comment' link. If you're viewing my blog page as a whole, you can click where it says the number of comments to leave one.

PPPS. Here’s that Cheese Whiz I mentioned.

 

 

 

Kill that roach (Tracy Turnblad)

Our aparment (pre-Elizabeth Taylor)

A bit of an eventful week so far, the main item for the agenda being our new apartment. It started off pretty badly when we moved in and the place was a pig sty...I started crying whenever I went in the bathroom. However, we got the beers in and spent a long weekend spring cleaning it (coupled with money off the rent) and it finally started to take shape.

Ash in our 'cosy' kitchen

Next was to personalise it a bit, so in true student halls way we bought some fairy lights and I managed to get a free picture of Elizabeth Taylor (although that’s currently up in a little alcove and it looks like a shrine).

We spent a long, long time looking for some new bedding to jazz up the place, and replace the stuff we’d borrowed from Sandi and Steve. The only duvet covers we could find anywhere, including the massive scary mall, were upwards of £100. It finally clicked that they just don’t really ‘do’ duvets over here. It’s all about the comforter. So we found ourselves owners of a 7 piece ‘bed in a bag’ which we then had to trawl home (Ash carried it most of the way because I got a hankering for a milkshake).

 However we were just settling in and getting the place how we like it when DISASTER struck.

Museum of Anthropology

We’d just spent the evening at the Museum of Anthropology which was really interesting, although a bit of a pain to get to on public transport from us. Me and Ash also agreed that we’d probably seen enough totem poles. However, when we returned home we were just settling in when something big and black scuttled across the apartment, and under the fridge at a lightning pace. Safe to say we both pretty much wet ourselves. Ash took herself off to lock herself in the bathroom while I tried to man up and get the torch to see if I could see what it was. What followed was a fraught evening where we tried to decide if it was worth staying in the apartment; the main conclusion was that it was possibly a cockroach. After Ash did some research we decided to face it head on and took to spring cleaning the kitchen again, taping up the holes and laying down inviting concoctions of coffee grounds, washing up liquid and water. Ash spent the next day on a mission to find cockroach poison, including an awkward encounter where she tried to buy boric acid and got ever-so-slightly mistaken for a terrorist. Anyway, we’ve squirted the whole apartment and we now lay in wait. So far we haven’t seen any more of them or any dead bodies. The current school of thought is that maybe it was a mouse so the search for a trap begins. Our landlord is trying to get the management to come out but to no avail so far. 

Ash ready to tackle the roaches

So, apart from that hiccup this last week has been fun. Me and Ash are working back to front schedules a bit, so we’re trying to organise our days off together. We still haven’t managed to get to the suspension bridge because of the rain, but that is first priority on our next non-rainy day off together. I’m still enjoying work and getting to know everyone, and I know have my own purple tie (I’d managed to get away with it for a bit).

I’ve been having a bit of a problem with screw top beer bottles which seem to actually cut into my hand whenever I try them, and make me feel like a total idiot. We’ve worked out the liquor store issue and stopped trying to find alcohol in the supermarkets; they don’t sell it. You have to go to a government owned liquor store. Thankfully there are 2 within a short walking distance from our apartment. How convenient. Similarly to the duvet issue, we’ve had a total mare trying to find bubble bath and spray deodorant which leads me to think that there may be some personal hygiene issues over here.

"Me" at the Museum (by Ash)

On the food side, we haven’t had as many discoveries this week. I tried salmon jerky which brought back too many painful Japadog memories, and we went to a great noodle house in Kitsilano. We found a great diner round the corner from us, but Ash put sugar on her chips by accident so the visit was slightly marred. I’ve become obsessed with perogies, a sort of Eastern European dumpling which, coupled with my dim sum addiction, is taking my dumpling frenzy to a whole new level. We’ve also discovered Whole Foods, otherwise known as the best supermarket ever. It’s better than Waitrose. They give out loads of free samples so sometimes we just go to hang around. But the food is mostly organic, and the kale is out of this  world! No Cheese Whiz or Baconnaise there. 

We’re eyeing it up for a possible Christmas shop. 

Oh, and we had CHORIZO Eggs Benedict

It’s my day off today so I’m heading under the sink to check out the traps. Wish me luck.

Stella x

PS. I’m still trying to work out what Miracle Whip is.

Seaweed and dog do not mix

No sign of bears

 It’s Sunday evening and I’ve just got back in after a walk in West Vancouver where there are ‘bear spotted in this area’ signs. We didn’t see any bears, but Ash nearly wet herself when she saw a squirrel. We’ve got a great view of the mountains around here, it seems like every day the snow comes a little further down and we had our first hail storm this week. Thankfully I have finally ordered some boots so I shouldn’t get trench foot now. 

It’s been quite an eventful second week here. Firstly, me and Ash have both got jobs. I start on the 8^th of November at a stylish technology shop right in the middle of Davie Street. It’s a different kind of shop that gives back a heck of a lot to the LGBTQ community, and I should be able to do some volunteering through them too. I’m really excited about starting, but a little concerned about my tech knowledge. I feel a bit out of my depth but they’re very supportive, and I now find myself making a mental note every time I see a someone with a smartphone (ALL the time).

We went to our first gig on Saturday night, a band called Uh Huh Her which was really fun, even if it did finish at 9:30. At our best estimate, the audience was 85-90% gay women. We’ve also discovered that I am really tall for a lesbian...but there were a couple of hard lasses in vests who stood a couple of inches taller. Phew. It was also pretty fun to be here for Halloween. The girl who served our lunch was dressed as Anne of Green Gables which made my year. If you look hard on Ash’s blog you should be able to spot her Dirts (look for the straw boater). 

Getting excited about Green Gables

We move into our new apartment in a week which is really exciting. It’s in a great position and I think we could make it feel really cosy. (It’ll probably be easy because it’s a studio and therefore ‘cosy’ by definition). However it’ll be great to have our own space and I can’t wait to start cooking with the produce here. I haven’t got high hopes for the oven but it’ll be nice to eat in. It’s been really great staying with Sandi and Steve because we’ve had some home-cooked meals, but we’ve definitely still had some new culinary experiences this week...

Firstly, JAPADOG: the fusion of Western hot dogs with Japanese flavourings. They are mad for this over here and the place was still rammed at 3pm. I had the staple beef hot dog with Japanese dressing, onions and seaweed, and fries with soy sauce and butter dressing. It was by the fourth mouthful that I started to regret my decision. By the time we’d both come to the end of our dogs, we were both pretty close to vomming. It’s safe to say that the marriage of these flavours was perhaps a bit too much for our British palates. The windy bus journey home was tricky to say the least. Epic food FAIL. 

However, I have also found my food heaven this week, in a sandwich shop called simply, ‘Meat & Bread’. They specialise in Porchetta (haha Bobs) ciabattas, and dress it differently each day. It was salsa verde when we went, which is as close to the perfect sandwich as I could ask for. They only do 4 sandwiches a day, which change depending on what’s available and it was exceptional. Really stylish, and with that communal long table eating thing which seems to be very trendy here, I think we’re going to be visiting this place pretty often. Plus they had a massive light-up sign which said MEAT.

A couple of further points:

      1.       They make salmon into everything here and on reflection they probably shouldn’t. Salmon pepperoni is extremely dry and the idea of salmon candy just scares me.

      2.       Chorizo is super cheap so I’m pretty sure I’m going to live here forever.

      3.       There’s lots of Vietnamese food here which is amazing. But Vietnamese Mint is the devil’s food.

      4.       EVERYTHING is sweet.  Ash found this out the hard way with some cornichons and I had a bad experience with some baked beans (heavy on the molasses).

      5.       We’re still on the search for some good bars, but we’ve found a good area in Gastown, and Ash is going to be working right in the middle of it.

Ash enjoying a pint

6.       I had cauliflower at breakfast. 

We’re hoping to get out of the city soon, and get over to Vancouver Island. Ash has her heart set on doing the big suspension bridge in the forest so as soon as it isn’t raining we’re heading to Lynn Canyon to do that. I’m pretty sure that Converse on a wooden suspension bridge in the rain is a really bad idea. 

        I'm still really enjoying it and hopefully this week will be just as good. Ash is working at the American Apparel warehouse sale so I'm fixing to buy a new bow tie.

 

I promise I’ll try and talk about something other than food next time.

Stella x

And so it begins

I can’t believe that I’m finally writing my first Canadian post... but here I am, sitting in a hostel full of Aussies (mainly) fighting over pretty slow internet. Ash has already posted about our trip over and the stress I had at the airport. Needless to say, once we got on the plane it all disappeared. And the views were amazing over the mountains.

The first few days were a total blur, but I can’t believe how beautiful Vancouver is. Stanley Park is amazing, and I love being in a city where you can see the mountains between the traffic. Granville Street (where the hostel is) is a bit too neon for my taste, but I think it’s a good place to find our feet.

We’ve had a good couple of days, and attended our induction at the SWAP office which was pretty helpful. We’ve sent off for our Social Security numbers and had a good intro into where to look to live. We realised that we accidentally walked through the rough bit of Downtown on our second day here. Today we went through it on the bus and it was pretty unpleasant...lots of drugs, prostitutes etc. Rent’s cheap though. What a surprise.

We’ve started our mammoth apartment search which started really well, with a lovely woman near Commercial Drive (the lesbian area). She was really sweet and the house was nice, but the room’s a bit small so we’re keeping it as a back-up. The search took a massive turn into Weirdsville today however.  We were shown a set of houses with dirty mattresses in the living room and empty rooms with live wires...and a woman off-work with depression, a filthy apartment and a morbidly obese cat. Needless to say we’re still looking. We’re planning on heading to Ash’s family friends on Thursday so it’d be really good to have it sorted by then.

On a brighter note, we managed to get our Canadian phones today, with free international texts so we can keep in touch with people at home. We also got our Canadian bank accounts so we can get paid when we get jobs (although we did then leave our new phone chargers at the bank so not totally successful).

      Moving on... it won’t come as much surprise that I am loving all the new food over here. I keep making Ash take photos of me with it. Anyway, I wanted to share my initial food-and-drink related observations with you ( I fear this may become a regular feature):

      1.Subway tastes better at home. Weird to say it, but it totally does.

      2. All the chocolate bars seem to contain peanut butter. This does not please Ash. I am working my way through all of them.

      3. The ‘double Big Mac’ is on my list of ‘Things to conquer whilst I’m in Canada’. 

      4. The giant steamed pork dumplings were just as good as I wanted them to be. 

      5. Vancouver folk love real ale, which is great news. 

      6. You can buy Burritos that are red. From a chain imaginatively called Red Burrito. They nearly killed Ash.

      7. Most restaurants in the lesbian area are vegan and serve loads of tofu and herbal tea. I think this is a worldwide observation of lesbian restaurants.

      8. Bubble Tea (ie. Iced tea with balls of tapioca starch, which look like tadpoles) is massive over here. And it’s totally weird. 

I hope to continue my observations without putting on 4 stone. For now, it’s back to Craigslist to trawl the apartment listings. Fingers crossed for no more obese pets (fatty manx). 

Stella x

Who can blog quicker?

In an attempt to find a way of letting everyone at home know what I'm up to, I have created this blog. Ash has created one too which means we're might get into a bit of blog racing to begin with. Please read. We leave really soon.