Archive for the ‘Richmond area’ Category

• Reader Suggestion: IKEA!!!

  Date: 2011.12.09 | Category: Cheap Date Suggestions By Others, Day Dates, Indoor Dates, Inexpensive dates, Ongoing, Richmond area | Response: 0

  As a Swede and a mega IKEA fanatic, I love this great date night idea from fellow blogger Peter of Peter’s Pig Out Food Reviews.  Peter wrote us to suggest that younger couples might enjoy going to IKEA as a cheap date idea.

  IKEA is a great fantasy place and it provides so many topics of conversations eg. which mock kitchen do you like; which bedroom display is the sexiest; should I spend 99 cents on this spatula shaped like a horse etc.

  AND, you can’t beat $1 hot dogs or ice cream for snacks or a yummy meal of meatballs and beer for cheap!  Now if we could just let them open the ball room to adults, it would be the ultimate outing for me!!

  Thanks Peter!!  We love this idea.

• Steveston Village

  Date: 2011.01.10 | Category: Day Dates, Dog Friendly Dates, Food and Drink Dates, Inexpensive dates, Outdoor Dates, Richmond area | Response: 0

  It had been a while since we had been to Steveston.  On a beautiful, sunny winter day, Pete and I decided to go for a nice walk to stretch our legs and to work off some excess Christmas calories.  Steveston was the perfect choice for our walk. 

  

  Fishing boats!

  We took our dog and walked a nice loop around Garry Point Park.  It was quite cold and windy, but it allowed us to watch some brave folks try to paraglide.  The scenery in Steveston is just fantastic – fishing boats, the water, the heritage buildings – it is quaint and relaxing. 

  After our stroll around the park, we wandered the short distance to the village itself.  We passed the Gulf of Georgia Cannery, which is an interesting museum about what life

  

  The Gulf of Georgia Cannery Museum

  was like for the people who lived and worked at the cannery so many years ago.  Admission is cheap ($7-ish) and is worth a walk through if you have the time and the interest. 

  We continued along the boardwalk and passed even more fishing boats (they can be a great place to buy fresh fish when it is in season).  There are plenty of restaurants in the Village core but this was a walking and not an eating date, so we kept on going.  We did stop and grab a coffee at one of the many coffee shops(seriously…there are a lot of coffee shops…the people here must never sleep) and kept on strolling.  You can walk or bike forever on the boardwalk.

  

  View of the Village core

  The actual path goes for miles along the Fraser River and it is completely flat so it is very easy walking or bike riding.  The views are wonderful.  We found Steveston Village to be a a great place to spend some time.  We will be back soon.

  Click here for an information site about Steveston Village

  

  Lovely Fraser River

• YVR (Vancouver Airport)

  Date: 2010.12.06 | Category: Day Dates, Drink Dates, Food and Drink Dates, Indoor Dates, Inexpensive dates, Night Dates, Ongoing, Richmond area | Response: 0

  Okay, going to YVR on a date has probably been one of our stranger date nights thus far but it turned out to be super fun.  Pete was reminiscing about the restaurant and bar at LAX called Encounters   and how it is a destination place for drinks, dinner and plane watching.  That got us to wondering if there is a neat place to have a date at our beautiful Vancouver airport.  Plus, Pete has been dying to ride the new Canada Line to YVR for a while now so our strange date night idea was borne.  I had never been to the airport without good reason – you know like flying in or out of the country – so I actually liked the idea of spending time there without worrying about the weight of my luggage or if the plane’s bar had enough booze to ease my intense fear of flying. 

  So to YVR we went.  The ride on the Canada Line was like any ride on a skytrain.  There was the usual mix of interesting/ funny/ rude/ smelly people and Vancouver scenery.  When we got to the airport, it was unusually quiet for a Friday night.  We wandered around and were a little disheartened that the only restaurants we could find, at first, were White Spot, Milestones and some assorted food court (Read: greasy) options.  But we did find a neat plane observation area located above the food court in the domestic terminal.   Then we remembered that the Fairmont Hotel  was attached to the airport (in the International terminal above US departures – it is in the predeparture area) and so we trekked there.  Inside, we found the Jetside Bar and the GlobeYVR Restaurant

  Both places overlook the runway and have a lovely west coast feel to them – sort of like a lodge at Whistler if you know what I mean.  We decided to hang

  

  The elevators that take you up to the Fairmont Hotel at YVR

   in the Jetside Bar because we only wanted to have a drink and some appetizers.  We chatted briefly with a fun couple from Texas who had never been to Vancouver before this trip.  They had a fabulous time.  (Yeah, Vancouver!!).  The food and the drinks were great and it was fun to watch the planes take off and land.  Naturally we started brainstorming our next vacation – both real and fantasy!  As a side note, both the Jetside bar and the GlobeYVR restaurant have an offer which gives you one two zone Canada Line pass for purchases over $25.  Check their website for details

• Summer Night Market

  Date: 2010.09.14 | Category: Inexpensive dates, Limited Run, Night Dates, Richmond area | Response: 0

  Okay, it’s officially fall but Sunday night Peter and I decided to check out the Summer Night Market in Richmond.  I remember going a few years ago when it was the Richmond Night Market and had a vague recollection of it being kind of lame….sort of like going to a massive dollar store that served noodles.  But the market has grown up since then. 

  We arrived later in the evening (around 9pm).  Even though it was dark when we arrived, it was still super busy.  We paid for parking at the Home Depot lot ($5) and walked there.   You have to walk a few blocks to get to the market – so, gals, wear your comfy shoes.   It feels weird to be trudging around an industrial area late at night but just follow the crowds and you will get there! 

  The market looked beautiful lit up in the dark.  Admission is free so we just

  

  Latern kiosk

  wandered in.   Inside the market are a lot of food and vendor stands.  We chose to do some “window shopping” first and began wandering the rows of merchandize stands.  There you can buy everything from cell phone covers, to underwear to Korean Karaoke discs.  Anything cheap and sparkly seemed to fly off the shelf.  Bling is your friend if you are a vender at the Night Market.   

  During our wanders, we stumbled upon a fantastic busker named Dynamite.  We rarely stay and watch a busker’s full

  

  Dynamite the busker was dynamite!!

  act but this guy was so good at audience patter we couldn’t help but stay and watch.  He juggled and did acrobatics – and by the end he was riding a 10 foot tall unicycle in his underwear – so much fun. 

  Next we wandered off in search of snacks…in the centre of the market, there are stands selling a variety of street food (most are yummy Asian based fare).  As a note,  I am very picky about eating street food (Pete on the other hand has a caste iron stomach will

  

  Yummy!

  eat anything, anywhere) .  I was relieved to know that all stalls are inspected for food safety.   We decided to share everything we ordered in order to sample a bigger variety.  By the end of the evening we had consumed:

  • Chinese dumplings (pork dumplings with a nice sauce inside)
  • Hurricane Fries (a single potato swirled on a stick with sauce)
  • Pork and chicken skewers
  • Dragon Beard candy (a sweet light sugar and flour delicacy)
  • Squid (Pete loved it; not for me!)
  • Mango bubble tea
    

    Mollie's Mini Delights aka deep fried oreo heaven

  • Deep fried Oreos.  (Amazing!)

  By the end of the night, we were very full.  While eating, we wandered around and listened to the live music in the main stage area. The night was a very inexpensive evening.  Food cost us about $28.  This coupled with the $5 we gave Dynamite the busker as a tip and the $5 parking meant we had a date night for under $40.  We stayed for about 2 hours and had a really good time.  It is now on our To Do list for next year. 

  Our Thoughts on Summer Night Market:

  • A nice informal place to people watch
  • Has a neat kitschy vibe
  • Inexpensive outing
  • Fun to nosh on a wide variety of mostly Asian street food. 
  • Must like walking – not a lot of places to sit
  • It can be busy; need to be in a relaxed non-hurried state of mind. 

  The market closes for the summer on September 26^th so you have a couple more weekends to check it out.  Details are below:

  Summer Night Market Info