Guess who's back in Vancouver? Yep, us — but this time for a few days with our family.
We disembarked from the cruise bright and early, which gave us the whole day to roam the city (read: chase kids and caffeine). First mission: find somewhere to dump our mountain of suitcases. Once the baggage situation was handled, we hopped on one of those classic hop-on hop-off buses — the perfect way to explore the city without too much walking or whining from the kids. Win-win! We strolled along English Bay (our kids will never say no to a beach), had a tasty lunch on Granville Island, and explored the cobblestone charm of Gastown.
Then came our Airbnb. It was advertised as having “one of the best views of Vancouver and the mountains.” Spoiler alert: it lied. A brand-new building popped up right in the middle of the “million-dollar view,” and the owner added tarps to the balcony for maximum sadness. So instead of mountain sunsets, we got… tarp flaps. But hey, the place was big enough for our whole crew (including Joey’s parents), so we only complained a little.
On our final day with Joey’s family, we debated heading up Grouse Mountain. It looked awesome — zip lines, bear enclosures, epic views… but the price tag? Less awesome. After doing the math, we realized we’d need to sell a kidney (maybe two) to cover the cost. So we pivoted to VanDusen Botanical Garden, which had something Grouse didn’t: a maze. Instant win. The kids loved it, the flowers were blooming, and it was the perfect peaceful place to say goodbye to their cousins.
Next stop: Vancouver Island!
We took the ferry to Victoria and joked (again) about finally spotting some orcas — we've been on an unofficial "orca hunt" since Alaska with zero success. Joey Googled it and read that sightings were "possible but rare." Not even 30 seconds after he said that… BAM. Three orcas gliding past like they’d been waiting for their cue. We screamed. We tried to get it on video but mostly just got a few blurry seconds of ocean and shrieking.
Victoria stole our hearts — smaller than Ottawa, but somehow more vibrant and alive. The weather was perfect, the city was walkable, and everything had that cute West Coast vibe.
The kids were obsessed with two things:
🚤 The boat taxi (tiny boat + waves = pure joy)
🐐 The petting zoo where they got to cuddle baby goats. We almost left with one in our backpack.
And me? My highlight may or may not have been… the Old Spaghetti Factory. Okay, laugh all you want, but for $8.95 (kids) and $16.95 (adults), we got a full meal plus bread, salad, pasta, ice cream, AND coffee. It’s like they’re daring you to bankrupt them.
Random Travel FAQ with Mylène
Q: Sooo… any more “incidents” with the fancy water bottles?
Funny you ask. The kids are now retired from sleeping with their bottles (yay, dry beds!). But Joey decided to help by filling one up, then popped it straight into the bag… unsealed. Voilà, my backpack became a traveling fish tank. So thoughtful.
Q: Mylène, you always lose things. What’s missing so far?
Actually, very proud to say we’ve only lost:
🩲 Teddy’s underwear (left behind in a cruise ship bathroom — R.I.P.)
🚗 Teddy’s booster seat (forgotten in Seward… and only remembered 8 days later, thanks Emma)
🔪 Joey’s pocketknife (confiscated at Vancouver airport because he forgot to pack it properly — rookie move)
Q: Are you STILL schooling the kids?!
Yup, school is still in session! But here's the plot twist: Emma is now teaching Teddy. We’ve basically hired our own live-in tutor. Genius parenting.
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