#58- Road Trip

Our trip to Vancouver BC

My life long friend Bryce has spent the last three years in Africa, saving the world (of course) and he returned at the end of November. One of the things we wanted to do was take a road trip once he got back (on my list). Many options were discussed and we settled on Vancouver BC; the opportunity to make new memories, explore a newish city and get lost in our friendship. And it was a fabulous time!

Of Monsters and Men @ Crystal Ballroom

The adventure started on Wednesday when Bryce arrived to Portland via Bolt Bus from Seattle.  I had to work, so he met me at work and we went to Deschutes Brewery and got my favorite beer and favorite Mac and Cheese.  While at dinner, we got surprised with two VIP tickets to the Of Monsters and Men concert! We quickly finished dinner and walked over to the Crystal Ballroom and enjoyed one hell of a show!

Bellingham Bay

On Thursday, Bryce wandered around Portland while I worked. He sent me loving texts of his adventures while I was working. In hindsight, I wished I would have taken the day off too! On Thursday evening he picked me up at work and we drove to Seattle. Rain was pouring down all around our car, but we didnt mind. It was lovely to get lost in conversations and getting to know each other again! We stayed with my bestie Kristen and it was a cool moment; three high school friends sitting in the living room talking about life's current dilemmas and dusting off old memories of our days in Montana. I could not have asked for a better night


Friday morning we ate breakfast at a hole in the wall eatery called Beth's! We made our first stop in Bellingham WA and since I now have quite a few friends that spent time in that lovely city, I wanted a look around. Bryce was a perfect tour guide.  We got some amazing coffee and sipped it down by
 the Bay and took a driving tour of Western Washington University.
 It was freezing, but such a beautiful city!

Gas Town!

We arrived in Vancouver that evening and dropped our things off at our hotel.  Bryce found the cutest bed and breakfast located in the middle of the city! It was called Urban Hideaway and I fully recommend it to anyone wanting to stay downtown and not pay a fortune! Our first stop was Pho! I have been wanting to have Pho forever, but needed an expert to teach me the correct way to eat it. We found a quaint little spot in the International district and enjoyed warming up to a bowl of goodness! After we ate, we walked around until we found an Irish bar with live music and the best beer I have ever had, Granville Island Brewery's winter ale! We then wandered around Gas Town in search for our next pub. We walked all over and ended up sampling a smattering of beers, but the best was Granville's brew!


The next morning, Bryce let me sleep in and also made me breakfast! The bed and breakfast has an open kitchen with all that you would need for breakfast, you just have to create what you want. We journeyed over to a world renowned bookstore to start our morning. This place rivials Powells in sheer number of books, but instead of a very organized system, its piles and piles of books (most of which were piled higher than I was tall). It was fun to get lost in books from 40s and 50s and breath in their old smell. From there we walked to the Library and drove out to Granville Island (obviously to go to their brewery!). The island was cute and had a beautiful market with food, produce, Christmas gifts and people all enjoying their weekend. The sun was out making it a gorgeous day! We took a detour on our way to Stanley Park to visit a charming little coffee shop called 49th Parallel. I of course bought some coffee to bring back :) We then drove over to Stanley Park and walked around the perimeter talking about life and just enjoying spending uninterrupted time together. From there, we went back downtown and walked around until we found a coffee shop to sit and read. The night ended with pizza, our special brew and mustaches :)

Sunday we rolled out of bed and packed up to go back home. It was such a lovely weekend spent with a dear friend. We drove back to Seattle where we parted and I journeyed back to Portland. I could not have asked for a better road trip with a better friend. Plus it was fun to get out of Portland (and even the United States) for a weekend! 

On our walk on Stanley Island