Travelog for: Shirley Sheep

I went to Abby's school today, Simon Fraser University.  Abby was meeting some friends to run some errands.

These flags are right next to the bus loop.  There's one for every province and territory of Canada.



This is a new building, the Arts and Social Sciences building, commonly referred to by its acronym, which I won't repeat here...



Here is the view from the criminology department in the same building.  On Sundays they do yoga in the courtyards.



This is some of the original architecture.  SFU is a relatively new school, only 43 years old and was designed by a local architect, Arthur Erickson, who is well known for using concrete and water features.



The area behind me is the Convocation Mall, a large, covered, outdoor area, where graduation ceremonies, protests and student gatherings are held.



This is the Academic Quadrangle, where a good number of classrooms are.  The building is a large square, with this open area in the middle.  On the ground is one of those previously mentioned water features, that for some reason, has no water.



After the quick tour, it was time for lunch.  Yam rolls, gomae and iced tea, mmmm.



We passed the recreational areas.







On the track that you can just see, that is where the great Terry Fox, who tried to run across Canada on one real leg, learned to run again on a prosthetic leg.



This road is the only one leading to the school, as the school is on a mountain.  In the winter when the road is snowed in or becomes too icy, the entire campus is shut down because it is to dangerous to drive up and down the mountain.



After all errands were run, everyone found themselves back at the Criminology department.  One of the professors asked if we would help her with some sorting, and, because we had time to kill before Abby's friend's mom could give us a ride off the mountain, we agreed to help.

Time for a little sight-seeing in Downtown Vancouver.

This building doesn't look particularly impressive, but when it was built it was the tallest building in the British Empire.



This building behind me will be the media centre during the 2010 Olympics.  It looks completed, but as you can see in the second picture, it is still under construction.





Across the inlet, you can see North Vancouver.



This is the float plane dock.  For a fee you can fly to various islands on the coast.



Behind me is Stanley Park, the largest park in Vancouver.



This is Canada Place.  Underneath the sails are lare large rooms where conventions are held.



Here is Vancouver Shipyards.

This is Waterfront Station, Vancouver's original train station.  It still is a train station, as well as a bus stop, Sky Train station, and Sea Bus station (a foot passenger ferry that travels across the inlet).



Down the street is Gastown, essentially the oldest aprt of Vancouver.  Now it is full of tourist shops.



This is the Gastown Steamclock, the first clock to ever run on steam power.



This is a typical alley in the downtown area, though this is one of the cleaner ones, as it is close to the Downtown East Side, which is known for its homless and drug users.  Behind it, you can see Harbour Centre, which is partially owned by Abby's school; many classes are held there.  The spaceship-looking thing is a revolving restaurant.

We got on the Sky Train and I thought the tour was over, but Abby had a few more things to show us.



This will be the Olympic Village in 2010.



The white building behind me is BC Place, where the local professional football (American football) team plays their home games.  The opennig ceremonies of the Olympics will be held there.



Behind me is False Creek, which is actually an inlet.



This is Science World; it was built for Expo 86.  Most of the dome on the inside is a huge movie screen.  There are many exhibits inside, aimed at teaching people of all ages aobut science.



Behind me you can see a Sky Train.  They are automated and run along a track that is elevated on concrete pillars.

I worked out on Abby's friend's Wii today.

First I tried out the Wii Fit.  Apparently my balance is a little off...



Then I challenged Yum Yum to some regular sports games.

I saw Jack Johnson in concert tonight!

He was playing at the Thunderbird Stadium on the University of British Columbia campus.







Abby and her friend picked up some cool things at the merchandise table.  Rise above plastic!



We watched the first opener, Culver City Dub Collective featuring Paula Fuga...



Then the second opener, Rogue Wave.



Finally it was time for Jack Johnson!





After the concert, we joined Abby's parents and waited for the crowd to thin.

Today we went to a corn maze!  Here are our tickets, wristbands and map:



We didn't use the map at all, because we're so good at mazes.  The object is to go through each maze, find the checkpoints (six in each maze), and punch them out using special punching tools located at each checkpoint.  We did the fish and octopus first (on the right of the map), then the orca and crab. For a better photo of the maze go here and click on the first picture.

All ready to go!



The rules said no picking the corn, but it didn't say anything about not posing with it.



There's a bridge in the middle of the maze and we climbed it to see the view.

This is back towards the entrance.



This is towards the back of the maze.



Look at those mountains.



Look, we found a checkpoint!



It was dark by the time we finished, but we had time to pose as these two corn people.



There was also a petting zoo at the maze, and look!  I met a sheep!  He didn't give me his name, or maybe he did, but I didn't quite understand his dialect.

Today I went to Bard on the Beach, a local theatre group that performs four Shakespearean plays from June to September every year.  Today we were here to watch The Tempest.



Unfortunately photos are not allowed, but I can assure you that it was very good.

After the play, we went for a bit of a walk in Vanier Park.

We went for a walk along False Creek.



This totem pole was covered in blackberry bushes, just off the bike path.





Then we were at Granville Island!  Granville Island is a Mecca for local artists.  There are art schools and galleries everywhere, as well as buskers on every corner.



As you can see, it's not actually an island.



We visited a little park first, well known for its turtles.



This is the Net Loft, which has various little shops, like a handwoven batik fabric shop and a marble shop.



Then we visited the market, which is the reason why people tend to visit Granville Island.









This big propellor was just sitting on the side of the street!



This is where boats are drydocked for repairs.



We passed by the Emily Carr University of Art and Design.



As Abby was taking a picture of me, I noticed something silly in one of the windows...



On the East side of the island there was this nice view of the end of False Creek.  You can just see Science World and the Olympic village construction.



On the way home we got on the SkyTrain at Granville Station, which has one of the steepest escalators in the world.

Today a new ToyVoyager arrived.



In a flurry of empty candy wrappers, Greedy popped out of his envelope and, ignoring Yum Yum and I, started looknig for food.  How rude!

I am going to tell you a story.

Once there was a young man was wasn't very good at sports, but was passionate about them and was so determined to make his school's basketball team that he practiced until he made it.  By the time he graduated high school, he was captain of his team.  He went off to university and made the team there.  One day he felt a pain in his leg, but thought nothing of it.  The pain got worse and worse until he went to see his doctor and he was told that it was cancer and his leg would have to be amputated.  He was given a prosthetic leg and taught himself how to walk again, then run, using the track at his university.  He wanted to make a difference in the lives of cancer patients by raising money to find a cure.  He decided to run across Canada to raise awareness and money, and called his run the Marathon of Hope.  He flew across the country to Newfoundland and dipped his prosthetic foot in the Atlantic, vowing to do the same in BC.  Then, he began his run, running a marathon a day, with his brother and best friend in a van behind him.  People would stand along the road and hand him money, or join in on his run for a few kilometres.  He was awarded medals.  In Thunder Bay, Ontario, he suddenly did not feel well, and one day only managed to run a few kilomtres before he had to stop.  He was rushed to the hospital where he was told that the cancer had spread to his lungs.  He died shortly after at the age of 23, never fulfilling his dream.  That man was Terry Fox, and every year around this time, millions of people donate money and run in his honour.  His old high school was named after him and the Terry Fox Hometown Run is the largest in the world.  He went to Abby's university and learned how to run again on SFU's track, and this statue stands in the centre of the campus to honour him.



(Abby says we would have participated in the hometown run itself, but she was sick yesterday and certainly not up for running.  She apologizes.)

I took the train home from school.

Today I helped Abby's family make cabbage rolls.  Abby apologizes fo the quality of the pictures; she was out working (or 'paying for her toyvoyagers habit' as she calls it) and so Erin was taking photos, but she also had to keep a tight hold on Greedy for the duration of the cabbage roll making process.

Abby ensured that we would be included before she left for work.  The note says 'We (the I is crossed out) want to help make cabbage rolls!' then Greedy added '(But especially Greedy).'




The cabbage rolls are made from meat, rice and beans mashed together and rolled in cabbage that has been boiled to make it easier to wrap. Here, Abby's Mom is demonstrating.



Then, the rolls are placed in the oven, or in this case, a special cooker with bacon, tomato sauce and more beans.



This is how they look when they are nearly finished.  Yum.



This batch was finished just in time for dinner, and we ate them hot out of the oven.

Today a new TV arrived.  It's Moony!

A new TV arrived today, Alizée.