Well the first 3 weeks have gone by in a whirlwind of exploring the city, looking for houses/ cars/ boats/ electrical equipment, starting a ‘proper job’ for the first time in many years, meeting new people and generally enjoying being together.
Vancouver is a beautiful city – we knew that before we came. But it is a city and I was expecting the manic pace of London, the pollution of Johannesburg and the population of Kigali. Not a bit of it – the city is clean and green and gentle – yes, there’s traffic but it is manageable. Of course there are lots of people and many tourists but the pace is slower and friendlier. The friendliness of the people we have met – in shops, the hotel, strangers on the street – has been quite amazing.
We’ve found a house in a small ‘city’ called Port Moody ( 49°17'47.49"N 122°50'51.21"W on Google Earth - photos to follow). Port Moody is one of several smaller cities attached to Vancouver. It takes about 40 minutes driving east to reach what I would probably call a small town - but it has it's own municipality/council. The house is being vacated by the owners so it has been loved and looked after and we think it will be fine. Now all we have to do is wait for the shipping to arrive – and no-one really knows when that will be.
We have been staying at a terrific hotel - The Pacific Pallisades – in downtown Vancouver. We have a small suite on the 18th floor with great views to the north and west – so we can see the sea! We considered, briefly, getting an apartment downtown but soon decided it really isn’t for us – we need a house. We will move into the house on 5th October. The owners are leaving us some of their furniture and my PA has offered to lend me sheets and pillows and crockery until our shipping arrives.
The weather has been fabulous - until today. We've had blue skies and sunshine nearly every day - but friends are saying that fall (autumn) is really here now ... and it certainly feels cold to me - I even have my first Vancouver flu :-(
More soon ... plus photos as soon as I can sort out my Flickr account!
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hi daughter this is the mother joining the real world, so I've just told her -
ReplyDeleteLuv JP XxX