November 3rd

 

12.25pm - Hmmm, a common theme in Vancouver - back to the hotel late after along day's work.



October 16th

2pm: One of the best days of the year, certainly one I had been looking forward to for a very long day. Yes it was a beautiful autumn day in this most beautiful city, yes i had a great cup of coffee on Granville Island in the sunshine, yes here I am stretching my legs along the rive below Stanley Park. Yes I had a great plate of sushi for lunch - but above all I got to see my beloved Teenage Fanclub play tonight, an awesome show - i was right at the front, practically under Norman's nose such was the low stage - they were magical as usual - even though he politely declined to play Shock & Awe. I first saw them as a penniless student nearly 20 years ago in Manchester, hard to believe how circumstances change & time flies! An unforgettable night.

October 15th

11pm: I wish I could post something momentous about this day, but it was just work, work, work! As ever I am in the Sandman on West Georgia, where the staff know my name! It's late & I have forgotten to take a picture..

September 16th

8pm: Back from the warmth of Vancouver to snow in Canmore. Just to compound a miserable, tepid summer we are now getting snow here already. I suspect any remaining plant life in my back garden is on its last legs by now!

September 15th

5pm: I'm on the golf course again, this time with a trio of work colleagues at the Furry Creek course near Vancouver. It was a nice day, I started out in totally hopeless mode but by the end of the round was hitting the ball quite well, it's not really my cup of tea - but once in a while, especially if it is paid for by someone else - well I can abide it. Ended up in a nice restaurant in Vancouver - Chambar is well known, well respected & the food was very good.

August 4th

8pm: A beautifully warm Vancouver evening, after work i went down to Granville Island for a walk. Here we have the magnificent little aquabus service that ferries people across the river right in the heart of downtown. These boats come & go frequently, I am not sure what their real purpose is - tourism or commuting - they are are cool though. Vancouver is such a magnificent city, I am normally immersed in work here & don't get time to observe & record little things like this. Shame.

June 15th

6.30pm. Guu Izakaya bar in Vancouver - one of my favourite restaurants ever. Izakaya is Japanese tapas/pub food & this branch of Guu with it's casual atmosphere & delicious food is wonderful. Every trip to Vancouver should include an Izakaya experience in my book & as I am fortunate to be there so often I get my fair share. One of my favourite dishes is the kabocha korokke (deep fried pumpkin with egg inside) - such a nice & unusual combination of flavours & textures. Again apologies for the crappy Blackberry picture....

June 14th

7pm. Vancouver & I have left my trusty camera at home for this 3 day trip, thus forced to use my rubbish Blackberry phone camera. Suitably uninspired I just took a quick shot out of my downtown Vancouver hotel window!

April 15th

9.15am: My Air Canada plane is leaving Calgary Airport on a beautiful morning, not a speck of ash in the sky unlike Europe with it's misbehaving Icelandic volcano. We worked hard and late in Vancouver but finished the day with a superb Indian meal at Maurya - the best I have had in North America.

March 24th

9am: Two of many things I like about Vancouver. Whole Foods Market, the gorgeous new store on Cambie. In the foreground, green buds on the trees in March.

March 23rd

7pm: Not all of Vancouver is quite so scenic, from the river shore looking west you can see the industrial units of Mitchell Island, a little blob of land in the middle of one of the many tributaries of the Fraser River. I was still stuck working & snuck out to take this shot as the sun disappeared over the horizon. Later we ended up at the house of one of our customers for some of the best Indian food I have ever had the pleasure to eat - a hard days work, with a very nice denouement.

March 22nd

11pm. Another insanely busy day, this time in Vancouver & I am finally back in my hotel - however there is a nightclub by that white van & the music is pumping out. Not good & I need some sleep. Earlier had been to The Lift, a real beautiful eatery on the harbour overlooking Stanley Park - as photogenic a spot as you could wish for, if you had remembered to take your camera with you that is!

March 4th

4.30pm: I *think* this is the top of Mount Baker which peaks at 11,000 feet. The mountain, actually volcano, is located in the state of Washington which makes sense as we departed initially on a south-eastern heading out of Vancouver on the short hop back to Calgary. A glorious day in BC & Alberta & an unusually smooth ride through what is normally a bumpy air corridor.

March 3rd

6pm: Vancouver is so beautiful when the sun shines. This shot was taken looking down a side street off Broadway, the setting sun glinting on one of the innumerable glass & steel towers that abound in the city's core. The pathetic lack of snow on Grouse Mountain is obvious in the distance, how on earth they fought off such a warm winter to even stage the historic events on that mountain just 14 or so days prior to this picture, I do not know!

March 2nd

5pm: My hotel in Vancouver had a rooftop balcony, the benefits of getting the 14th floor suite. So here is the view looking north, the big Olympic inspired Maple Leaf adorning the Canada Post building. A definite sense of "after The Lord Mayor's Show" pervaded the city - everywhere the Olympic infrastructure was being torn down, businesses were quiet and the odd media straggler/tourist/athlete was to be seen wandering about looking a little forlorn.........

January 12th

Room with a view. The view from my downtown Vancouver hotel room, on a wet Tuesday night. I think it was about 10pm & we had just finished a long days work, 14 hours or more - not a moment to take a picture all day so in desperation I concocted this shot. BC Place in the foreground with it's distinctive inflated roof, a Winter Olympics venue in a few weeks time. The Science World globe glows in the background.