Day 11: Rainy Forest + Foggy Mountain + Happy Hour | AB-BC Trip 2023 Series

Vancouver, BC • August 9

Di ko inexpect na aabot ako sa day 11. Madaming moments na tinatamad na kong ituloy ‘to pero umiiral yung pagka-stubborn ko kasi gusto syang makitang kumpleto. Tsaka yung 28-day trip ko nga sa Pinas nakumpleto ko eto pa kaya. Although eto kasing trip na ‘to malaman at siksik kaya ang daming kelangan i-document.

Anyway, last full day na namin ‘to sa Vancouver and what a great way to spend our last day. Sobrang nag-enjoy ako sa pinuntahan naming rainforest, we had fun with the cousins, and we ended the day enjoying happy hour at this nice bar.

Forest bathing

📍 Capilano Suspension Bridge Park

Free shuttle bus going to Capilano

Kala ko dito sa Capilano, similar sa Squamish na may bridge tapos konting trail lang. But this place is massive! Di ako ready sa madaming lakad pero ang ganda at ang worth it. Isa syang malaking rainforest na very accessible kasi nag-build sila ng pathways and bridges to go around the forest.

We were greeted by totem poles and lots of information about Capilano’s history, as well as the culture of its former inhabitants. It was presented really well and there were lots of pictures that made it interesting, kaya binasa ko talaga almost lahat. Noon kasi nilalampasan ko lang yung mga ganitong text. Excited akong makita agad yung attraction. Pero ngayon mas naa-appreciate ko yung lugar pag meron akong knowledge about it.

Pumasok kami sa souvenir shop at ang dami kong nagustuhan. Ang cool kasi nung designs. Hindi very typical tulad nung mga nakikita ko sa ibang shops. Tinandaan ko lang yung mga gusto kong bilhin para pag naikot nanamin yung lahat ng dapat ikutin, babalikan namin pag uwian na. Dito yung best souvenir shop na napuntahan namin kasi ang unique nung mga items.

The suspension bridge

Sabi ko kay Kenneth, yung mga napuntahan namin sa Alberta na similar dito, mas raw or mas untouched. Parang mas preserved at minimal lang yung built structures. Dito sa Capilano, mas commercialized. Merong souvenir shop, may cabin sa gitna ng forest kung san pwede kang bumili ng snacks and hot chocolate, and daming totem poles and bridges, etc. Cute din naman. Na-appreciate ko din yung style nila. Na-observe ko lang yung difference.

Nothing special here

Pero kahit sabihin na ang dami nilang modifications na ginawa, sa sobrang lawak nya, mafi-feel mo pa rin talaga na napapalibutan ka ng nature. Tapos umuulan pa nun kaya iba rin yung vibes. But I think very fitting kasi ‘rain’forest nga eh.

Minsan pinapatigil ko si Kenneth para i-appreciate lang yung kagubatan at mag-deep breathing. Ako kasi may tendency na mag-take ng maraming photos and videos at sya naman, lakad lang ng lakad with the goal of maikot at matapos na, para makapunta na kami sa next stop. Kaya buti may moments na maaalala kong tumigil at i-relish yung experience. Pagbalik kasi namin sa Winnipeg hindi na ganito, kaya I try to not rush and get carried away.

Moss covered branches

Buti pala pinicturan ko ‘tong map, mas na-visualize ko sya ngayon. Pupunta kami sa Treetops Adventure then sa Cliffwalk.

After namin sa Treetops Adventure, pumunta naman kami sa Cliffwalk. Hindi na ‘to kaya ni Kenneth kaya umupo na lang sya somewhere with the parents. Kami lang ni Kat yung tumuloy as usual 😂

Btw, I’m so intrigued by these bronze metal plates nailed on the wooden planks (pictured above). It can be seen all over the place and I’m sure it’s used as some kind of a reparative tool. Ang interesting lang kasi naalala ko yung term na ‘kintsugi’. Yung gumagamit sila ng gold to repair broken pottery. Eto naman wood yung kelangan ng mending tapos tinatapalan nila ng metal na ‘to. For me lalo syang naging maganda at interesting tingnan, similar with the Japanese art of kintsugi.

Went back to the souvenir shop to buy the things

Bye nature!

Almost zero visibility

📍 Grouse Mountain

Nabanggit ko sa previous blogs na naka-apat kaming gondola at ito yung pangatlo. Technically ‘skyride’ yung tawag sa kanya pero basically it’s the same. Ang difference lang, mas malaki sya so mas madaming tao yung nasa loob. Less comfortable kasi walang seats at medyo siksikan. Ito yung pinaka hindi sulit na ride kasi sobrang foggy. As in hindi namin ma-appreciate yung view kasi fog lang yung makikita.

At pag-akyat namin sa taas, ganun din. Super foggy talaga na hindi mo makikita yung dadaanan mo. Pero fun pa rin naman kasi kasama na namin dito yung mga pinsan nila at pinagtatawanan na lang namin yung fog and how it seemed like we’re in a scary movie. Plus we saw some bears!

Can’t believe polar bears are twice my size!

Truffle craze

🍽️ Pourhouse

Finally natuloy din kami sa bar at this time, hindi naman hiningi yung IDs namin! Ready pa naman ako dahil nahiya nga ako last time. Umabot kami sa happy hour at ginaya ko lang sila sa mga orders nila kasi hindi ko alam kung ano yung mga cocktails. Ang usual ko lang naman na ino-order ay mojito at margarita or piña colada. Kaso yung nandito mga kakaiba. So nung umorder ng gimlet si Gab, yun na lang din inorder ko hehe. Buti masarap.

Since ngayon ko lang na-appreciate ang truffle, enjoy na enjoy ako dun sa truffle tots so nakadalwa kaming order. Ewan ko kung bakit yung mga past truffle experiences ko ay waley. Dito sa trip namin nagets ko sya. Baka merong quality truffle and mediocre truffle, at yung na-try ko noon was the latter.

Truffle tots (sarappp!) | 5 🌟

Scotch eggs | 3.75 🌟

Paguwi namin, ito nanaman yung nakakatamad na part. Ang mag-empake ng gamit. Least favorite day ko yung bukas dahil sa mga di kaaya-ayang kaganapan. For now, bye Vancouver and bye Ate Jess, Gab, Izzy and Marco! Thanks for hanging out with us!🤍