MoJo RTW: Canada - Vancouver & Kelowna

Lima, Perú 8.5.2015

We flew to Vancouver straight from San Francisco. We spent in Canada three weeks that went really fast. Roughly two weeks in Kelowna and one in Vancouver.

In Kelowna we stayed at Johannes' great aunt Raija and her family that kindly invited us. We had great time and sometimes it felt like being in Finland. Raija cooked for us wonderful home food that we had missed the last six months travelling. We relaxed and this was like a loading point, a true holiday from vacation. We are truly greatful and hope to come back soon.

In Kelowna we enjoyed nature and one day visited the Kettle Valley railway. Once hiking up we even got our share of snow on the ground. The view was beautiful and we were happy to see the blooming spring. We also met many other Canadian Finns and heard interesting stories about how the immigration went few decades back. People have always been leaving and moving around. We also visited the casinos where Johannes even won few dollars! Better to stop now while still winning.

We moved from and to Vancouver by bus that took around six hours one way. The view is awesome over the mountain roads and we even spotted a black bear while returning to Vancouver! Monica noticed a black ball next to the road but it took a while before realizing that it was a bear. Happily also Johannes saw it.

In Vancouver we catched up with some friends and spotted places from Monica's exchange period from 2009. The city had changed a lot but it was still really nice. We met some friends from those days and it was wonderful to see how great people stay great, including Dee who invited us to stay at her place. This saved our Canada-budget and we managed to enjoy our stay even more. One of the biggest thing in Vancouver is sushi and after Monica being talking about Van's sushi for five years Johannes finally got to taste it too and was positively surprised. It's just so good. And we certainly made our best to support especially Kits Sushi in Kitsilano :D

One day we hiked the Grouse Mountain even the path was officially closed. Going up we also noticed that we both have gained some weight during our American visit.. The hike was tough but fun. We did it even Monica promised five years ago that she will never do it again.

Stanley Park is a huge park just next to downtown and we spent a whole day going around it and getting lost in it. It is so peaceful in the central parts and full of animals.We also met Dusty and Jess with whom we went out and tried the poutine! Traditional food with fries and gravy. It tasted too good to be healthy. One day we had a amazing apero in Granville Island at Dee's parents boat meeting more friends. Such a lovely meeting. It was funny to see how things change in five years! :)

Vancouver is one of the most livable cities in the world and we will meet again for sure.