Third full week in Vancouver over, and these are some things that happened, and things that we've noticed:

1. Early in the week we went to pick up some free flower pots that were advertised on Craigslist and saw a lady round the side of the house. We said hello and ended up getting a tour of a beautiful early 1900's house Alex and Lauren had bought and are renovating. Lauren is from Australia and met Alex - a Canadian - while he was on a working holiday in Melbourne. They kindly asked if we needed anything and when we mentioned that we could use a dining table they gave us a spare one they had. It fit perfectly into the space we'd hoped to put one in.

We also ended up going over there later in the week to do some weeding and other stuff around the garden, which because Lauren payed us was our first job in Canada. Dan cut some branches from a hazelnut tree that was starting to obstruct the view, and now wants to be an arborist. 

2. Alex and Lauren recommended Lynn Canyon, so on Saturday evening we took a 30-min Northerly drive to check it out. Driving over the bridge into North Vancouver felt like we were heading into Middle Earth - the various hues of the trees, the misty mountains in the background, and the North Vancouverites walking around with their loping, orc-like gait all made it seem magical. Heading up the mountain, trees in suburban streets had moss-covered trunks. We arrive at the canyon 40 mins before the gates closed for the day, so quickly made our way across the free suspension bridge spanning the gap between two cliffs above the raging waters of the modestly-named Lynn Creek. 

3. When you turn on the tap in Vancouver, or at least in our house, the temperature of the water is satisfyingly extreme. When you ask for hot water, it's really boiling - you can cook two-minute noodles without using the microwave. When you ask for cold water, it's feels like it's come from a water cooler. So good.

Till next week.

The raging waters of Lynn Creek

Brianna on the Lynn Canyon suspension bridge

Public toilets with grass growing on the roof