Vancouver: Hotel to hostel

With the bike crated and carted away, I was free to pursue more budget-friendly lodging options, and made my way toward the hostels of Main street. Shane at Richmond Motorsports gave me a lift to the Sky Train station, and soon I was riding the elevated rails north from the industrial area of Richmond, crossing the Fraser river to the downtown area. After checking in to the C & N hostel for four nights, I took a breath.

Around dusk I walked north to China Town where a crowded street market was in full swing: steaming food stalls, live traditional music and dance performances, crafts and the usual touristy tchotchke offerings. I ate a bowl of cold, spicy noodles and watched the passing crowd until I felt the events of the day catch up with me, walked back to the hostel and collapsed onto a creaky bed.

After a proper sleeping-in, I took the train to the end of the line, and under drizzling skies took in the sights of the waterfront.

At Coal Harbor I turned south toward the city, then east to find my way to the crowded Vancouver Art Gallery, then headed south on Granville Street. The adult shops, buskers, theaters (both public and adult), and nightclubs on Granville seemed to be waiting patiently for night to begin, giving the passing daytime tourist only an impression of their character. Finally at Granville Bridge I picked up the Seawall Promenade and ankled it past the high-dollar high-rises of Yaletown, dodging joggers and dog-walkers (watch out for jogging dog-walkers!), past the Cirque du Soleil tents, back to the hostel, soggy and broke like a proper tourist.