Accommodation

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The Difference Between Full-Time RVing and Tourism

Today, I had the great joy of showing my friend some of my favourite sites in the Vancouver area. How lovely it is to stay long enough in one place to go back and re-explore sites you enjoyed!

We had a really, really full day. The weather cooperated beautifully, being just warm enough to be comfortable, with a mix of sun and clouds.

Late morning, we took off for Lynn Canyon. It was warmer today than the last time I went, but not by much; it gets cool up there in North Vancouver in the rain forest! It was wonderful hiking weather and we earned the picnic lunch I’d packed.

We then headed to Stanley Park via the Lions’ Gate Bridge. The park was very full this time around, so I felt very fortunate to find parking quickly. We were just heading up to the aquarium to see the killer whale statue when my friend noticed a horse drawn trolley that seemed just about ready to take off. We learned that it was a one hour tour that would take us to all the sites we wanted to see, so we decided to get on, figuring that it would easier than trying to find parking at each location.

I’ll pause here to address the issue of horse drawn tours being exploitative. I had a theory about this before I got on and it was confirmed by the driver who addressed the issue head on. The horses pulling these trolleys are big draft horses which have very little use in our day and age. A lot of these older animals get sent to the glue or jell-o factory. The company running the tours rescues these horses, gives them purpose and needed exercise, and allows them a dignified retirement.

The tour was fantastic and well worth the 28.50$ per person. Our guide was funny and an excellent storyteller. We learned that Stanley Park was originally called Duck Head Point (because it really does look like the head of a duck!) and was home to ‘squatters’ consisting of minorities–Chinese, Hawaiian, Métis, etc. The government used this point as a strategic military location for a long time and when that purpose was no longer required, they wanted to develop the land seeing as Vancouver (population 2,000 at the time!) was booming. Real estate speculators were worried that the introduction of so much new land would devalue other properties, so some backroom dealing was done to turn Duck Head Point into a park. Of course, all the ‘squatters’ were expropriated without compensation. It is a sad story with a happy ending. Also, as Stanley Park used to be a logging area, all of the forest there is second regeneration growth, not primeval forest as some romantics like to believe.

After Stanley Park, we drove to nearby Denholm Street. My friend wanted to try sushi and I was eager to go back to Tanpopo, so I decided that its proximity to Stanley Park meant that was where we were destined to end up for dinner. We walked up and down Denholm for  a bit, popping into a bookstore where I found a remaindered book about the Chilkoot Pass!

Dinner was just as good as it was the last time I ate at Tanpopo and I added spicy tuna rolls to my repertoire. They are soooo yummy. My friend liked everything but the teriyaki salmon because it was too dry for her taste. Otherwise, she bravely sampled everything.  I must say I didn’t get anything too ‘weird’ as I didn’t want to turn her off suishi from the get go, and  I’m proud of her for having several pieces of salmon sashimi and ordering the prawn tempura on her own.

We ended our night with a dip in the park’s hot tub.

I put up some new pictures, including lovely shots of Vancouver’s skyline that I missed because of fog the first time I went to Stanley Park.

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A Day Out of Time

Oy… If it was a long day for me, I can only imagine how my friend, who got up at 4AM EST must be feeling!

After a morning of work, I drove out to Abbotsford to pick her up. Abbotsford International (YYX) is just about equi-distance to the Richmond Airport (YVR) from South Surrey/White Rock but more convenient to get to and flights on Westjet are cheaper. The terminal is tiny, making the airport easy to navigate, and parking is inexpensive. I’m really glad that the RV show I went to in January was at the Abbotsford airport because I would have otherwise not known that it would be so convenient to pick up my friend there.

She is staying at the Seacrest Motel and RV Park in White Rock, a location I scouted out for her. It is a great spot. It’s almost right on the ocean, but much cheaper than places directly on the main drag and still walking distance to touristy Marine Drive. She has a huge suite with bedroom, living area, kitchenette, and bathroom. The kitchenette is fully equipped with everything she could need to make a meal and everything is spotlessly clean. I’m a bit fussy when it comes to motel cleanliness and this place passed muster. First order of business, then, was to go get her a few groceries.

What about the RV Park, you ask. Well, I checked it out and didn’t feel it was worth moving to it just to save a hundred fifty dollars. The ‘park’ is really an uneven and extremely unlevel slab of asphalt with very tight spots. They admit to this fully, marketing themselves as a cheap place to park your RV while you enjoy the beach. It would have been okay for a month if they had wi-fi, but since they didn’t I decided to stick to my current cushy digs.

I hadn’t had lunch and her body had no idea what time it was, so we decided to go for an early dinner. The day had started off cloudy, with threats of rain, but by four o’clock it was sunny and warm. We decided to park my car at the motel and then walk down Marine Drive in search of food.

It’s a good thing I hadn’t checked out restaurant reviews prior because if I had there is no way we would have gone to Charlie Don’t Surf. I don’t care what the reviews say, I would give up cooking and eat there every night! I have rarely enjoyed such a perfect meal. My friend had lobster ravioli in a mildly spicy sauce, all of which was delicious. I had a huge salmon steak seared to perfection with cajun spices served on a bed of rice seasoned with cumin (an inspired combination that I will try at home!). With this, I had a heaping helping of glazed carrots and perfectly cooked broccoli, cauliflower, and asparagus. I thought that I didn’t like asparagus but as it turns out, I’ve just never had it properly cooked! Nearly replete, we stopped off for ice cream on the way home.

According to my friend, this day is going to be hard to top, but we’re just getting started! I have big plans for tomorrow, which is supposed to be the nicest of the weekend. Even if it ends up raining all weekend, just having this perfect evening was enough.

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Hookup Location

Over the course of the past six months, I’ve found that there isn’t really a standard for how hookups are located in an RV park beyond them being on the driver’s side of the RV. The best hookups I encountered were at the park in Oliver where I worked. There, it was exactly ten feet from my tank outlet to their intake, meaning that my sewer hose was stretched out completely and at a slight slope, making for easy dumping. The water intake and electrical plug (as well as phone and cable jacks) were in a pedestal next to the sewer outlet and just a couple of feet from the rig, meaning that I was able to cut my water hose down to six feet, necessitating less heat tape.

Here, the hookups are not working for me!

Water and electricity is provided at a pedestal at the back of the site. My 30A cord is almost stretched to the limit and my 25′ water hose was stretched so taut someone took it upon themselves to provide me with an extension! Yes! I came home one night to find that my hose was hooked into an additional 10′ length! I actually kind of resented that because the 25′ length had enough give that it did not risk pulling away from the tap and spewing water everywhere and it did not rest on the ground. Since I’ve had the extension, the hose has frozen a few times in temperatures where it didn’t freeze when it was hanging in the air. But if it makes the ‘extender’ feel better about some ill-perceived threat, well… *shrugs* 🙂

But the real issue here is the sewer placement. This isn’t a universal problem here; some of my neighbours are hooked up perfectly. But the way Miranda needed to be tucked into this site meant that her tank outlet and the sewer  intake are practically right on top of each other, meaning that my hose is way too long. Once a week, I have to go and shake it a bit to drain the grey water out (lesson learned when my shower flooded!) and let me say that draining the black tank is difficult. Thankfully, proper tank maintenance means that I won’t have any long term repercussions, but each time I go to drain and have to flush the tank with several buckets of water I kick myself for not buying a new hose and cutting down the old one!

So, hookups that work for me need to have the electrical plug and water tap near the electrical cord compartment and water intake so that I don’t have to worry about tripping over my cord and hose, but the sewer needs to be about ten feet from the tank outlet. Seems like someone is slowly figuring out how to spot a good site from a bad!

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Dreaming of a Satellite Dish

I’ve had problems with the internet service at Pacific Border since I got here, problems that have grown exponentially. I’m now on what amounts to a dial up connection in terms of speed and service reliability. It is very painful! Since internet is not included in the cost of the rent here, I spoke up before rent was due in February and was grateful to receive free service for February. The hosts here are great! (Have I mentioned recently how happy I am to be here?)

The owners were surprised to hear me complain because they claim to be known for their superior internet service… although Mac users report problems with it. Nothing was done about that since Mac users only account for perhaps 6% of their business and the problem must be at their end.

Hmm…

Well, it’s taken a lot of investigating, but the solution to the mystery turned out to be the network encryption key. They use the older WEP-style encryption key, which Macs do not like for security reasons. The solution to make the network function properly for Macs would benefit all users: upgrade encryption to WPA-style. Which they claim to be in the process of doing, but haven’t until now because most of their PC users tend to be using archaic technology. By archaic, I mean the latest junk that Bill Gates throws out, which is light years behind what Steve Jobs has been putting out for several decades now. Just call me a Mac-elitist. *ducks* 😀

Hopefully, the upgrade will happen soon (I was told that it would be within the week) and I’ll be able to get back to my regular online schedule. My inbox is backed up to the moon and I have a dozen unfinished posts waiting for publication. Oh, 20th century internet I have not missed thee.