WELCOME TO ALL WHO WISH TO LEARN MORE ABOUT WHAT BRITANNIA

& SURROUNDING AREA CAN OFFER TO OUR 55 plus.


Saturday, September 20, 2008

Walking Club


Today Chiho drove Linda, Maria and me with our new Walking Club member, Brigitte, to English Bay in the rain ... the beach looked barren without the summer sunbathers ... with rain coats and umbrellas we followed the seawall to Second Beach where the Walk for Mercy group was holding an outdoor fundraiser for young women in need of safe housing and medical care for abuse and eating disorders ... we also passed the "new" outdoor pool at Second Beach ... a dedication plaque near the pool showed that it was opened in 1995 with heated fresh water (the old pool was fed with sea water by the incoming tide) ... the pool is open from Victoria Day in late May until Labour Day in September ...

From Second Beach to Lost Lagoon we followed a newly paved path - divided for people on foot and people on wheels - past an interesting variety of shrubs and trees, past the old stone bridge that crosses the creek where ducks and geese take refuge ...
on the east end of the park we passed geese, ducks, seagulls, crows and pigeons, but saw no swans ... then to her delight, Brigitte spotted several white swans on the far side of the lagoon ... we can only assume that they like to keep to themselves ...

Our walk continued along Haro Street towards Denman ... the housing varies from beautifully restored two-storey homes of the early 1900's to minimalist three-storey Art Deco apartment buildings, from cement towers built in the 1970's to steel and glass towers of the 1990's ... the tree-lined streets were decorated with flower beds and shrubs, brick-laid walkways, and roundabout gardens at the intersections ... the West End is one of the most charming urban residential areas in the world ... the population density is greater than the population of the Manhattan district of New York City ...

The rain did not stop hardy walkers, runners and cyclists ... Denman Street was bustling with people of all types ... cafes and produce markets were open to the street in a welcome gesture ... we called Chiho to meet us at Denman and Davie ... we were grateful for the comfortable ride back to Britannia ... damp and chilly, but refreshed, we poured ourselves hot coffees and treated ourselves to Maria's homemade cookies ...

Linda and I decided we need to buy new waterproof jackets if we want to continue our Saturday walks throughout the coastal rainy season which can last until June of the new year ... this is, after all, rain forest country and it is the rain that creates the wild natural beauty of the Vancouver area ...

Contributor Virginia B

No comments: