mlf, I'll be visiting your fair city sometime in September, along with Victoria and Toronto. Off to the travel agent tomorrow, to start talking dates and accommodations.

Missie You missed me in the lineup. I was sitting in it waiting to go to the Gulf Islands. Yes, it is really bad every long weekend. Buses get priority loading. To make the ferries particularly in the summer it is advisable to make reservations for your car as quite often you will not make the next ferry. They will reserve up to I believe 40% of the ferry. When you add up all the tour buses and trucks that use the ferry, i doesn't leave much room for cars.
Pauline You are actually picking a really good time to come to Vancouver. We quite often have beautiful Indian Summers in September. It is also a month where it does not rain all the time. Here's wishing you beautiful weather for September. When you are here, make sure you go to Stanley Park, Queen Elizabeth Park and Grouse Mountain.

rainbow It rains more in Maple Ridge than it does in Vancouver. It is a standing joke in the lower mainland about how much more rain the suburbs to the east receive in comparison to the actual city. I actually live on the North Shore, but the dryer portion. It can be raining 1 km away and I will be basking in sunshine at my house. Not all the time though.

quote:

Originally posted by mid life traveller:
Ht, Brenda and TAmmie. You haven't heard the latest news about the 2010 Olympics. All the natives of Vancouver are running away and leaving the city to the Olympic crazies. We have been told by our esteemed Olympic committee that we should rent out our houses. We might even get rich doing that. Just think how many Trafalgar tours we could go on then.

Oh, I can believe it. When Toronto was bidding for the 2008 Olympics, I had my vacation sheet all ready to submit to take those two weeks off and get outta town. I love the Olympics but I don't think I could take the crowds. It would have been a nightmare trying to get to work.

Jeannie Imagine the fun I will have. One of the ski venues is one exit past the exit for our house. I then have to cross over 3 bridges to get to where I work. Now between those 3 bridges are another 3 Olympic venues. I hope they close the universities down so that I don't have to drive. I dislike driving as it is.

MLT.

Did I see a new rail system being built from the airport to the city, will that help elevate the problem.

I caught a taxi to the airport on our way home and the driver took us through some beautiful housing suburbs, there were huge line up's on the freeway so I didn't mind the diversion.

Missie Unfortunately no unless I get to teach on the Richmond campus. I teach out in Surrey which is even further out than the airport.
You got taken through some of the nicer older houses of Vancouver. That's the area where I grew up.

Missie, can you remember how much the taxi fare was? I'm trying to get an idea for a budget for my trip.

Pauline...it was $30 something, I remember rounding it up to $40 with the tip.

Grazie

Pauline It also depends on the traffic. When we go from West Vancouver, it is $50 including tip. From downtown Vancouver it would probably be $40. If you have a hotel further towards the airport, the costs go down substantially.

quote:

Originally posted by mid life traveller:
Jeannie Imagine the fun I will have. One of the ski venues is one exit past the exit for our house. I then have to cross over 3 bridges to get to where I work. Now between those 3 bridges are another 3 Olympic venues. I hope they close the universities down so that I don't have to drive. I dislike driving as it is.

Yikes. That's going to be a nightmare.

The only positive rumour going around is that they will be closing the universities as they need the accomodation at the universities and they also need the university students as volunteers. February is also midterm break for a lot of the universities so instead of one week midterm break, they will have two weeks. My university usually only closes down for 2 days, but the admin has said that they might probably close down as a fair number of their faculty will have problems making it to campus on time for classes and office hours. We have 3 universities and I think another 4 or 5 colleges in the lower mainland.

Pauline, keep in mind that there's a flat rate from the airport to a Vancouver address (I want ot say $30-35) but a meter rate from the Vancouver address to the airport.

We really do have a beautiful city. Every time I drive northbound on Granville Street (a trek I'll be making today), I thank my lucky stars that on this one road, I can see rows of trees, beautiful houses, trendy and unique shops and restaurants, then while crossing the Granville Street Bridge, I'm in awe of the view: beautiful high-rise condos, Granville Island, Vanier Park, Burrard Inlet, False Creek, with a backdrop of snowcapped mountains.

And a reminder to anyone who's visiting Vancouver from now until September 24 - check out "Bard On The Beach", one of Vancouver's biggest annual theatre events. Shakespeare's plays (this year: "Midsummer Night's Dream", "Measure For Measure", "The Winter's Tale" and "Troilus and Cressida") are presented under a tent in Vanier Park, and the stage looks over the beach and mountains. Absolutely beautiful at sunset.

melsbud I have always paid a metered rate from the airport to a Vancouver address as well as the reverse. Maybe it varies from taxi cab company.