Ride Ray Ride: Exploring Vancouver and the warmth of the Busque family

I went for a bike tour around Vancouver and started out by heading to Steveston on the water south of town. We had walked there at night and I wanted to see it by day but a bigger reason was that I decided before I left Vancouver I had to try some Sushi. Roni suggested I try a place called Mega Sushi as a great but reasonable hole in the wall. The area catered to tourists but in a good way and it had a nice feel to it.

When I got to Mega Sushi, which was back away from the waterfront, I was blown away. It was easily the best Sushi I have ever eaten and I've eaten a lot of sushi. I'm pretty sure that trying to find great sushi in Austin, TX is like trying to find great Mexican food in Vancouver. The Unagi (fresh water eel) was to die for.

I got back to the condo in time for dinner and Julie had outdone herself with a smorgasbord of vegetables and Pierre had grilled the salmon I caught to absolute perfection. I need to get back on the bike to work off all this great food I've been eating. Here is Roni, Alex and Julie.

After dinner Pierre takes his daughter Sophi and his dog Mia to the park near their home to burn off some energy. It was a neighborhood gathering and a fun time was had by all. The neighborhood is predominately made up of well-to-do Chinese immigrants that came from Hong Kong to escape the Chinese takeover of the island and it was interesting to watch the 25 or so Chinese women doing a traditional Chinese line dance in the park but it was a bit too dark to get a good picture.

Pierre wears my hat well. After Sophi went to bed, Pierre took me downtown as he didn't want me to get away without seeing it and we stayed out late wandering around and looking for ice cream. We finally found some after midnight in a predominately gay neighborhood and as we sat on a bench out front eating our ice cream I was really enjoying Pierre's company. I think my fondness for Pierre was misinterpreted by the elderly gentleman walking by and he gave us the warmest smile that kind of said that he thought we were a cute couple. All the while, we sat and talked of religion and spirituality. Yummy ice cream.

This is a steam powered clock that operates, whistles and chimes all from steam power. It was amazing to watch the inner workings of it but it was too dark to get really good pictures. There are many reasons why I have to return to Vancouver.

The next morning I had to prepare to leave. The family Busque busied themselves with getting started with another day and I felt good about our time together. I have received many gifts on this journey but none sweeter than the warmth of the Busque family. As I was getting in the car right at noon I looked up to see Pierre driving up. He had thought I was probably already gone but came back home in hopes he would be able to give me one last goodbye. Of course that meant we had to go share a lunch at Mega Sushi and a walk with Mia around the park.