So I made it to Vancouver on Monday! It was wonderful to be picked up from the airport by Jacob and Natalia who had me to stay for the first two nights. I arrived around 6pm so we loaded my stuff into the car and then had a delicious dinner at a Cuban place on Commercial Dr in East Vancouver. They have been great with advice and transport!
It has been a bit of a jet-lagged blur since Monday but I'm now typing from the 22nd floor of my new apartment in central downtown Vancouver! It has amazing views. I'll only stay here for a month but it seemed like a good way to buy some time while looking for something more permanent, and be centrally located while looking for work. My new roommates are a Canadian guy and a Kiwi couple - Kiwis are everywhere! They are all really nice but apparently I won't see much of them as they're not home often and/or work nights.
Initial impressions of Vancouver? It's a beautiful city with lots going on, plenty of tall buildings but lots of trees and parks which make it nice and green, nice wide sidewalks, friendly people, and of course there's the stunning backdrop of the snow covered mountains. There is plenty of evidence of preparations for the 2010 Winter Olympics with lots of construction going on. I haven't explored much yet but am looking forward to getting to know the city.
My hostel on Granville St was on the fringe of the dodgy part of town. It's quite a contrast from the bustling downtown just a couple of blocks over. I wouldn't walk around there by myself at night. It is noticable that there are a lot of homeless and people begging in Vancouver and it will be interesting to see what happens with the Winter Olympics coming and the council wanting to clean up the streets.
Traffic driving on the right takes a bit of getting used to as a pedestrian and car passenger. I get nervous when crossing the street because I can never remember which way I'm supposed to look! No injuries yet though! Tipping and 1, 2, 5 and 25 cent coins are another thing that's different from home - I think people tip just so they can get rid of pocketsful of change!!
Had coffee and a donut from Tim Horton's for breakfast this morning - there is one in the ground floor of the apartment building! And I've watched a couple of big ice hockey games already (it's the NHL playoffs(?) so everyone watches). So I'm quickly becoming assimilated into Canadian culture! :-)
So that's what I've been up to so far. The job hunt starts tomorrow!
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