August 2 Vancouver

 We're trying something NEW!  We're taking the AMTRAK from Seattle to Vancouver.  We've never traveled on AMTRAK before, but this looks like a good fit.  The train takes 4 hours, and is very inexpensive compared to plane travel.  Plus the station is nearly within walking distance -- we could if we didn't have two very heavy bags.  Add in the time to get to the airport, security, and then from the airport and the train just makes sense.  So we'll try it out.

The station in Seattle looks very much like a train station should.

The train followed the coast line for most of the trip.

The seats were large and with ample leg room, arranged 2-2.  No assigned seats for us, and half of the seats faced backwards, so we were careful to choose forward facing.  There was an electrical outlet so we could keep our phones charged.  It was like flying first or business class on a plane -- except on the train the bathrooms were huge compared to planes.

There was no In Train Entertainment nor high speed wifi, so we had to look out the windows for amusement.

The windows were tinted with some sort of polarized tint.  You can see it in the water color below.

The Pacific Northwest has higher tides than we experience in Florida.  Mud flats like this are the result of the water leaving Puget Sound during low tide.

But apparently they aren't mud flats, but rather a sandy beach suitable for a family outing.

Waiting for the tide to come in.

Approaching Vancouver

 

 The train was on time, and we were in Vancouver in time to go find lunch.  A very good trip, and AMTRAK could be in our future plans.  We did have to go through Canada immigration right out here on the platform, and other than making us stand in line for 15 minutes (we were one of the last people off the train) it was painless.

 

We were in Vancouver a day early for our Rocky Mountaineer journey.  I had booked us at the same hotel as RM was using -- Pan Pacific -- with the same room class,  Deluxe Harbor View.  This was the view outside our window.  OMG!

Pan Pacific is right at the Vancouver Cruise Terminal.  If we looked down from our window, Disney was loading up for a cruise to Alaska.

And float planes.  This is the hub for Harbor Air (saw them in Victoria) and planes were taking off and landing every 5 minutes, it seemed. If I wasn't hungry I could have watched them for hours (and later that day I did -- which is one of the reasons this post is so late).

Right across the street from the Pan Pacific is a good food court, located in the "basement" of the Fairmont Waterfront.  There's even a tunnel underneath the street to get to it if the weather is bad.  And the food court had the quintessential Canadian food -- Tim Horton's.  But every time we were in there, the line at Timmy's was loooong.  That's because they sold more than just donuts, all sorts of lunch and dinner items.  But I did stand in line for donuts one morning, and it was worth the wait.

After dining at an alternate establishment (Scottish International cuisine of McDonalds) we explored the local area, looking for a supermarket to get snacks for our week long train trip.  We passed the Vancouver Art Gallery more than once during our stay.

After acquiring supplies we retired to the lobby lounge at the Pan Pacific to enjoy the harbor and our newly acquired knowledge of cabernet sauvignon.

And add a little charcuterie for dinner, and life is good.