DASH Travel - Pandemic Edition

Dan

We met on August 14th. By August 15th we were are couple. A mere six days later we booked a trip to Vancouver. Ambitious by any means, but made even more so due to the uncertainty of the pandemic. Leading up to the trip, we'd talked at length about the viability of going. Ashley (the better half of DASH Travel) was at times uncertain, while I remained confident that we'd be going. It was, after all, Ashley's birthday weekend. I understood the uncertainty, as I hadn't traveled since March, when Zoe and I went to Varadero, Cuba, at the very outset, as countries were closing their borders and flights were being cancelled. Most people that I talked to advised us not to go to Cuba, however I thought it might actually be a safer place to be - and furthermore, if we got stuck there, I wouldn't complain too fervently.

Fast-forward to many months later, through fear, isolation, spring, summer and an established routine, maybe even an encroaching sense of normalcy. Backyard visits and patio beers.

In any new relationship there's a sense of uncertainty as you are feeling the other person out, getting to know them and what makes them tick - for many, this involves watching for any red flags. For Ashley and I, there was none of this, from day one (and I won't speak for her) I had this sense of certainty which has only grown with time. It's a feeling that I've never experienced before, and honestly I never thought I'd feel.

So, it seemed only natural that we'd jump right in and plan a trip. For many couples, travelling together is the true test of the solidity of their relationship. Therefore, travelling six weeks into a new relationship could have been a disaster. That said, I'm sure you've realized by now that wasn't the case.

It was an unseasonably cold day as we arrived at the Pearson Park n' Fly and waited for the shuttle to take us to the terminal. We were hoping that Vancouver would be a much needed respite of warmth. There was a mix of excitement and trepidation as we checked in and dropped our bags off. We were incredibly early as we were expecting delays, so we had a couple of hours to kill. We had a BLT and a couple of drinks as we waited for our boarding announcement. We played some cards (which is a very fun activity that we love to do together) to pass the time. I'm pretty sure Ashley kicked my butt - but I'm OK with that.

At this point we encountered our first moment of confusion with COVID protocols. As we lined up at the gate, the gate personnel were frantically telling passengers to keep their distance and not bunch up. However, as soon as we got onto the plane we realized that the flight was completely sold and social distancing was impossible. All told it was a pleasant flight, and we arrived just past midnight at our pleasant Yaletown AirBnB, where we promptly passed out (as it was past 3am Eastern time).

After a well-needed rest, we woke up to a beautiful, sunny Vancouver morning, made a Starbucks run and planned out our day. We decided to have a relaxing day and get out and enjoy the sunshine as we set out towards Granville Island. We hopped on the ferry and a few minutes later we began our exploration. After a quick stop at Roger's Chocolates (a BC essential commodity), we explored the Granville Island Market, where we sampled some candied salmon and scones. We took a much needed break on the sunny patio of the Granville Island Brewing company.

Ashley

It was 20+ degrees and we were starting to feel the effects of the delicious drinks that we enjoyed at Granville. We decided that we should walk to Kitsilano Beach; an area I’ve heard so much about. My excitement and slight buzz had me smiling from ear to ear. As we walked, I couldn’t believe how many palm trees there were, it felt very tropical. I took pictures and sent to friends who couldn’t believe that I was in fact, still in Canada. As we walked, we came upon a dog beach. We sat on a large piece of driftwood and watched the playful pups, while wishing our pug Russell was with us. There was a black Frenchie who had the most energy, jumping over the wood and outrunning any dog who tried to join her; I imagined she would allow Russell to play with her.

As we continued our journey, we finally reached Kits Beach – I now understand all the hype. People out playing volleyball, children frolicking with their parents, cyclists, walkers, runners; it was easy to forget that we were in the midst of a global pandemic. This was my first time seeing the Pacific Ocean, I had to put my feet in the water. The water was quite chilly, however it felt refreshing on my feet as the temperature climbed.

We continued to walk along the beach until we came upon a beach restaurant, The Boathouse. We decided to continue our day drinking adventure and hit the rooftop patio, overlooking the ocean – it was picture perfect. Dan ordered Coronita (a Corona mixed with a Margarita) and I stuck to my usual – Pino Grigio. Along with our drinks, we ordered sweet potato fries and oysters. To our surprise, they were the largest oysters we have ever seen, almost mutant looking and they kind of tasted funny, but we were hungry and ate them anyway.

By the time we were finished at The Boathouse, we were feeling the full effects of day drinking. We playfully walked back to Granville Island to catch the ferry back to Yaletown – this I don’t remember much of…

It was maybe 8:00pm when we made it back to the condo and went straight to sleep, we were still adjusting to the time zone change. By 1:30am, I woke up and was absolutely starving. To Dan’s dismay, I woke him up (he was sound asleep, snoring, dreaming of bouncing on white fluffy clouds) as I was desperately trying to order pizza and I didn’t want to go retrieve the pizza alone. He begrudgingly woke up and helped me retrieve my pizza from the Uber Eats delivery man. I sat in bed and enjoyed my pizza thoroughly; Dan went back to sleep (or as he claims, tried to go back to sleep while he listened to me eat pizza, in bed next to him).

Saturday

The next morning, we embarked on a journey to Whistler! Dan has been to BC several times, but he had never been to Whistler, I was so excited to experience Whistler for the first time together. The drive was beyond breath taking; ocean on one side and mountains on the other. I had to stop myself from saying “oh my god, look at that Dan!” as the roads were winding, with sharp curves and little room for error.

We stopped in Squamish on the way for our daily Starbucks fix. There was a line up of people with masks on – we were reminded that we were still in the midst of a global pandemic.

We reached Whistler - there are not enough words to describe to beauty of this place. The mountains take your breath away. We were disappointed to find out that the gondola was closed for the season, we had only missed it by a few days, but we still made the most of it.

We spent a bit of time in the village, then decided to venture out to the hiking trails. We decided to do the hike around Lost Lake. It was another beautiful sunny day. We hiked all along Lost Lake, bumping into a man with his golden retriever who was enjoying a swim in the lake. Dan remarked that he wished that he had brought his bathing suit. The man with his dog overheard us and said “See that dock over there?" (there was a dock with several people enjoying, what felt like, a summer day in October) "That used to be a clothing optional swim area in the 70’s.” As Dan pondered the thought of going skinny dipping, he looked over to the dock, it was clear that he would be the only nude one. He opted not to go swimming.

As we continued our hike around the lake, we discovered a family beach. A strange wave of jealously came over me wishing that I had raised my daughter on the West Coast. It doesn’t get much better than playing with your family or enjoying a picnic at a beach that is entirely surrounded by mountains.

We headed back into Whistler Village as we were quite hungry. The Village was packed by this point – once again, the pandemic was pushed to the very back of our minds. Patios were packed (as much as they could be as they were sticking to health restrictions and regulations), downhill cyclists getting their last ride in before the hill closed to be prepped for downhill skiing and people were out shopping. People were happy, worry about the pandemic non-existent. I’ve never felt safer during this time.

We tried to get into Earl’s as Dan had never been and it’s a West Coast staple, but the wait to get in was over an hour. We walked to other pubs and patios and each restaurant we stopped at had a line. We decided to wait in line at Black’s Pub. The food was ok, but it was still amazing experience sitting in the Village people-watching and admiring the breath-taking mountains.

(Dan - Ashley finally got her precious Candy Apple which she had been craving for week.)

It was nearing sun-down and Dan really wanted to stop at Brandywine Falls to see the waterfall. I once again, had to silence myself from yelling “oh wow look at that!” as the shoulders were no wider, nor did the winding of the road decrease, on the way back to Vancouver.

We stopped at Brandywine Fall and after just a short walk, we walked out onto a look and saw the Falls. Once again, for the millionth time, my breath was taken by nature's beauty.

Dan

What a small world this is! As we were looking at the falls, I looked over and recognized an old friend from Ottawa enjoying the same view. Life is full of fun coincidences!

Sunday

What a Sunday it was! Filled with fun, exercise and old friends. After a quick breakfast we headed down to the waterfront and rented a couple of cruiser bikes. We met Andrew, Elliot and Adrian at the entrance to Stanley Park and rode around the island. It was a bit of a cloudy day but not unusual by Vancouver standards! I was just happy to be wearing shorts.

RAISU

That evening in Kitsilano we went to meet up with a former employee of mine (Hippolyte) and his lovely girlfriend. After a drink on a local patio, we headed to Raisu for some truly excellent Japanese food. I would highly recommend this spot!

Sunday - Happy Birthday Ashley!

Unbeknownst to Ashley, I had quite the day planned. Starting with a delicious brunch at Medina (mimosa's included), we headed to Gastown (and of course, another visit to Roger's Chocolates). Unfortunately, I got a call that morning from the SeaPlane tour company informing me that, due to weather, the tour flights would not be happening. I was crushed as the perfect birthday I had planned was falling apart. However, we do what we always do here at DASH - make the most of it.

After grabbing a couple of roadies we headed down to Canada Place and sat watching the planes fly in and land gracefully on the water.

From Gastown we walked to Chinatown, where we met our lovely guide Judy who took us on a walking tour and gave us a history of the area, including a special visit to a social club. We then retired to a local coffee shop where we learned how to prepare dumplings!

After eating our fill, we proceeded just down the street to the Kiefer. They had truly made the most of the pandemic with a beautiful outdoor patio complete with mini-golf. We had some expensive yet delicious cocktails and made our way along the waterfront to the Yaletown Tacofino, where we enjoyed some delicious fresh fish tacos.

Sufficed to say the birthday was a resounding success.

Dan - Conclusion

I would say, all things considered that our first trip as a couple was a success, and having gone through the stressful elements of travel unscathed, I can definitely speak for Ashley when I say that this experience certainly brought us closer together. Also, I'd like to give myself a pat on the back as far as birthday experiences go, Ashley did say that this was her most memorable birthday ever.