Some of you might remember the short Shout box discussion I started last week. But I didn't want to go too far until I confirm the details. Now that I have it confirmed, so I guess we can start the planning.

I will be going to Vancouver with my family for a short vacation trip from Mon, Dec 24 to Sat, Dec 29. But, the first and last day are traveling days, obvious I have to stay with my family. However, I'm open to any planning between Tue, Dec 25 to Fri, Dec 28.

Since this is my first time visiting Vancouver, I wouldn't mind if there's a tour guide that can bring me (or even my family) to various places. If that's too much to ask, at least you guys can suggest to me the places that I should visit (such as any "must go" places).

And since I'm all the way to Vancouver already, I was thinking of hitting the slopes up at Whistler/Blackcomb. Anyone would like go skiing with me? I really want to go but my family doesn't really ski.

As for the outing itself, I would love to hang out with you guys. Guitaring would be nice, but I don't think I'll be bringing my guitar. I'll need to borrow one from you guys. We can have lunch and hang out in the afternoon. Or perhaps if you want to witness my bowling skills :la@, I'm up for bowling anytime. But since you guys know Vancouver more, you guys should plan for it. I'll just go along with whatever you guys decide to do.

So all you Vancouverites, it's only 2 weeks away so let's get planning!

---

PLACE: Somewhere in Vancouver
DATE: TBD (Tue, Dec 25 to Fri, Dec 28)
TIME: TBD
ACTIVITIES: TBD (Guitaring would be great ...)

Vancouver......YEA!! well Dec 26th, Boxing day is going to be crazy all over..not sure if u and ur family were planning on doing some shopping but I can list out some shopping malls & some sites that you and your family could visit...


was there anything in particular u'd like to see?

k i'm just gonna blab and list out a bunch of stuff to brainstorm for now?

(**= recommended sites)


Vancouver (central/main area) :
- Oakridge Mall (shopping centre..not so great right now due to skytrain construction for the 2010 Olympics..i dont like driving there)

- Granville Island (**great subculture and festivities here, it's a living community.....people perform their music or have little shows in the open...the Public Market is amazing..and according to my prof they make the best/fresh Sake lol...it's quite refreshing but i dont have the most perfect tongue for sake or wine but i do enjoy them)
- the West 4th street area--interesting small shops around
- Kerrisdale (located West 41st & Boulevard area...a little community with some small shops)
- Main St (once again lots of small shops, more Urban stuff...i like walking around the street and seeing the different shops..can't find some of this stuff at a typical shopping mall)


Downtown Vancouver:
Pacific Centre - big shopping mall
Robson Street - always busy...lots of shops and the small streets around are nice places to walk and linger around...Robson is pretty much where most ppl go to when they go downtown)
Stanley Park/Vancouver Aquarium - who doesn't love the aquarium?!
- a lot of night life stuff here--lounges, clubs, etc. but definitely check out the restaurants ...LOTS of good food in this area

Downtown Vancouver...there are more Korean & Japanese people hanging about in this area

There's also the Gastown and Chinatown near by..but I personally don't recommend going to the Chinatown...if you want more HK style/Chinese/Taiwanese stuff ....head down to Richmond which is a small island that's right off the bridge of Vancouver

Richmond (my area! lol):
Richmond is small city really really close to Vancouver..the great thing about Richmond is that it doesn't take too long to get to one place here to another within the city...max 20-30 min drive depending on traffic

now, Richmond and Vancouver have generally been taken over by Asians..so lots of asian restaurants but the better ones can be found in Richmond and i guess it depends what kinda Chinese food you'd like. (Cantonese, Shanghai style, Szecheun, Taiwanese...and yea we got lots of Bubble tea places and our bbt places are pretty awesome.....ah yes the Japanese food is FRESH and awesome.. (my friend goes to school @ UT and she dies for sushi & bbt whenever she comes back)

Richmond has some night life ...these bubble tea places are open generally till any time b/w 11 pm-1 or 2 AM, Arcades, Internet Cafes, Pool are open...and if u are up all night and ur craving for some Chinese/Cantonese food there's the No.9 Restaurant that's open 24 hrs

Richmond (Asian Restaurants):
- Chinese Dynasty (cash only-Shang-hai type of food...shao-lin dumplings and noodles-Ackroyd & No.3 road)..there's another one but i forgot its name...
- Kirin (a bit pricey but the dim sum quality is thumbs up, it's right next to Richmond Centre shopping mall), other dim sum places: Fisherman's Terrace (inside Aberdeen Mall Centre)
- Ebisu (a bit more expensive, but the tapas and the selection of sushi rolls is good..the quality is yummy..they have another branch in Downtown Vancouver as well... - Ackroyd & No.3 Road)
- Pearl Castle (a bubble tea/dining place; $8+ meals..Cambie & Sexsmith, inside Continental Centre...there are tons of these bbt places scattered about Richmond and are open till almost 1 AM)
- Richmond Sushi (ALL YOU CAN EAT..late night is cheaper too found in Union Square centre, Sexsmith & Capstan Way)
- Jang Mo Jib ? this is a Korean BBQ house restaurant--great for big family dining..lots of sharing and decent-big servings
- Richmond Centre or Lansdowne (shopping mall)
- Shabusen (All You Can Eat Korean BBQ AND Japanese Sushi apprx $25 per person...this is found only in Vancouver on Granville and near West 16th? and Downtown Vancouver)



and while i'm talking about food....British Columbia is the only place that has the chained White Spot restaurant...their burgers and their triple 'o' sauce is awesome...you can find White Spot scattered around the area...they also serve Pasta, Salads, Fish & Chips, etc.

www.dinehere.ca or http://www.tasteofvancouver.com/ or http://www.tasteof604.com/

So Richmond has more 'Asian shopping malls, where you'd typically find the HK & Japan import stuff (they're all located along No. 3 Road..i really don't suggest driving on No.3 though cuz it's horrible with skytrain construction and the traffic lights are all weird)
- Parker Place (this is the mall that has import CD/DVD shop from HK, you might find another YUI poster here, they have a section of Japanese artists...most are from HK industry)
- Aberdeen Centre (one of the newest Shopping centres in Vancouver area...here you'll find our $2 Daiso store..but i'm sure u guys have one in Ontario :S..but yes the food court is pretty good...$5+ asian meals..and there are other restaurants inside this mall)
- Yaohan centre (this is where the Iwase bookstore is and i believe this is where I pick up my Japanese magazines..and i think Reset orders stuff from here too)
- and tons more....you'll find your anime stuff too

the great thing is..all these places are like on the same block so you can really just walk around

Oh but another site u should visit in Richmond:

- Steveston Village (they have good Fish & Chips, an awesome Greek restaurant called Kisimos?, and this delicious Italian cake shop called Delicatassen..i love the cakes here, especially the Tiramisu)
- The Zone bowling centre: there's cosmic bowling, and a swimming centre called WaterMania right next door, and across is a Famous Players Silvercity)
...there's also indoor go-karting but you'd have to book ahead..and of course there's laser tag...


Outside of the main Vancouver area:
Burnaby- Metrotown Centre (**Shopping Mall...this a huge mall)
West Vancouver - Park Royal Mall
North Vancouver - Capilano Suspension Bridge (i'm not sure if u wanna go here cuz it's a bit cold)


PHEW.....okay that's a quick rundown of some sites ...i'll try and brainstorm a few more suggestions ...but i think i might leave it at that....it's 5 AM here and i think i should crash!

Jeez gotchi, I have nothing to say now since u said it all....
My Area is North Vancouver. Not much there to hang out with.
Actually Park Royal is West Vancouver not north...b/c we have to cross river which is right to west. But yeah....i havent gone downtown vancouver much at all....too busy being lazy and stuff :sry =P

lol uhh yea i dont know what go into me...i was still hyped up from playing 4 hrs of Wii with my frds and i just threw everything out there.....but i'm sure i'm missed a few things! so feel free to contribute some ideas if u want or just preferences?

so first thing first, who else is from vancouver beside me and gotchi? ( and for 1 week, snake)

I cant think of anything right now kuz i just got off 6hr shift and im dead tired....

PS. i dont play guitar :angry but clarinet :la@ =P

RESET! ... he's from Vancouver, don't forget that!

Oh, i didnt know he's from Van..... :sayw @@

PS. im only available only on Tuesdays, and Thursdays...... =O

Mm ... I think for my family, a couple of major Chinese area/mall would be nice. Not too keen about western malls unless they are special (such as West Edmonton Mall or something).

As for eats, my parents would definitely like some good west coast seafood ... both Chinese and Western.

I'll do some searches on the places that gotchi mentioned.

If you want some discussions with me, I'm available on MSN.


P.S. I really want to go to Whistler for some skiing, but I need someone to go with me on at least the Blue Square slopes, and some Black Diamonds would be nice also.

uh i think iron_turkey is in the vancouver area somewhere too...and a couple more ....?

iron_turkey is from Toronto. He hasn't been on the forum for quite some time now.

I think Roxy36 mentioned about visiting Vancouver a while ago in the Toronto outing thread. Maybe you guys can PM him and see if you can meet up with him on this outing.

hmm alright, maybe one of us should PM Reset or smthn...i haven't been here long enough to know who else is from the Vancouver area...i can't remember who was the person from Burnaby either..baah!

Anywhoo...I think 25th is family day for me and 26th boxing day shopping...so I'm kinda leaning towards the 27th or 28th? Will you be driving around Solidsnake?

Hmm..some Western style Seafood food...try The Boathouse (i think there's one in Richmond and elsewhere..) or Joe Fortes (Downtown..very nice seafood/pasta)

I'd love to go skiing up in Whistler but i dont think i have time to..my brother and his gf will be up there ..not sure what day though..

did nobody mention metrotown (my second home) yet?
or am i just not reading properly?

anyways i'd totally want to hang out with you guys BUT i'm pretty much booked from the 22 all the way down to near january

have fun guys! (and seriously...i think metros pretty cool)

huhuhu....sounds fun~
lol but bad timing XP hmm definetly not on 25th...
and im going to portland on 26th night till 29th XD
hehe mayb nxt time for me XD Have funn though!
- hmm i prefer walking around the asian malls (parker, aber, yaohan etc..) and thn busing to RC ^^ or lazer tag...or bowling *o*

baah! k weird i know someone going off to Portland around that time too...
man..bad timing indeed...well it is the holidays and people tend to travel

I got work, after all it is week day :P
but I can come during evening time, beside 25 any evening should be fine with me.

Yeah ... holidays isn't always the best time since everyone has their family thing. But if we can't do a whole day thing, perhaps we'll just do a dinner thing plus activity afterwards?

Most likely my parents will rent a car, but only one car, so getting around will need to plan ahead.

I also have distant relatives in Vancouver, but I'll have to check with my mom again and see if we'll be meeting with them.

Im only good on 28th...blame my work schedule...Now the only problem i have to face is , how am i gonna get there? or wherever we r meeting?

haha gotchi, youre from richmond rite? maybe u actually know me ;) or my brother...or my cousins haha XD
mayb u guys should decide on a date first <_<

ooo gotchi, u do drive right? If u do, u could pick us up and take places..haha

Reset probably drives? Am I correct?

Yeah, preferably if someone can pick me up and drop me off, that would be great. =)

Didnt he said he might not make it? .....Mm......

Well you better go back up to read again. He said he has to work during the day but any night other than Christmas day is fine with him.

oh right, if the time is right, he could pick us up...

Wher er u staying at anyway snake? I b the probably the farthest from anywhere...

Yep I can drive.

Looks like it'll be a dinner/ night event the 4 of us? Dec 28th Evening?....but yea i think cyber you're probably gonna be the furthest away...:S so i guess where do u think you could meet us for dinner..are u taking the bus to get around?


We should meet in front of some place for dinner and head off to do something afterwards? any preferences?

- movies
- bowling
- arcade?
- bubble tea (well this could be a place where we could have dinner)?

lol i never tried bowling. :gboy :rolleye
YUP 28 sounds good.
But yeah, i might go take skytrain or if my parents availible, they can drop me off at metrotown...
The only problem is, how am i gonna know who i am going to meet? PS. I have no cell...which is another problem

Movies might be a bit long, wouldn't it?

Bowling is managable.

Arcade can be fun, though haven't been to one in quite some time. I bet it'd be the same for Reset too.

BBT ... that's always an option after dinner or whatever we do.

Karaoke? Not really my cup of tea ... perhaps unless the place have some YUI songs, then I'll make you guys sing. hahaha

lol i'll never sing in karaoke....i suck at singing....my voice is horrible :P muhahahaha....
First thing first, Where r we going to move around? Then we'll see what store is good to go at? ...

hmm...another problem...I don't really know too many places in the Burnaby area..other than Metrotown...but i do know my way around Richmond & Vancouver the most..cuz i live in Richmond...so yes i'm kinda leaning towards hanging around this area (plus...Richmond every thing is 10-15 min drive away!....and all the better bbt places are here LOL)...

Cyber..i can drop u off at a skytrain stop probably at metro in the evening when we're done?

Snake..whereabouts will u be staying...and i guess one of us should get a hold of where Reset's will be that evening so we can meet up with him easily as well...

yup thats probably fine with me (as long as not too late)

If you guys do this... one of you will have to take a video clip! LOL.

:good

sure, i'll be the one who's holding camera then....muhahaha

and I'll be the one directing Cyber how to take the shots ... muwahahaha


Ok .. I finally asked my dad where he booked the hotel. It's Westin on Robson St, very close to BC Place (where the BC Lions play football =B)

Earlier today, my dad was still trying to rent a car online. I don't know if he had any success tonight, but he already went to bed so I can't ask right now.

Even though my hotel is there, of course it is possible that I meet you guys elsewhere (e.g. dropped off, bus, skytrain).

wouldnt BC place would b pretty far from u gotchi? Or wherever u live....Richmond u say?

BC Place is closer to North Vancouver, Stanley Park, Aquarium, etc. It's pretty much the opposite side away from Richmond. =\

The only thing im hoping for is that it doesnt rain....that day....gonna b wet...
But i want to go where u can buy YUI's stuff.....Heck I dont have any :angry :sry :shock

oh man i've been out everyday i haven't had time to sit down and plan things...so much to do in such little time!

Wow alright so Solid's gonna be in the Downtown area....

It's really up to you guys, depending on what time u want to meet....the places where the YUI stuff I know (which is VERY LITTLE...) is in Richmond anyway. From Downtown it should be easy to bus to Richmond and back IF u guys want to do this.

5 pmish we could go to those places in Richmond before they close (whatever time taht'd be...not sure if these asian places have Christmas hours :S)....and then i dunno what we're doing

we could start off in Richmond (meet there first....)...and i don't mind driving downtown...perhaps just even having dinner there? and if u guys don't mind chipping in for parking...it is a Friday night so there will be lots of ppl downtown...or we could just eat in Richmond and go Bowling cuz everything is CLOSER in Richmond LOL...i'm so bias right now anyway...I can get u guys to a bus stop heading back to Downtown ...or i'm not sure....ahh yea it depends on the weather

any one heard from Reset yet?..

baahh k it's almost morning..i need to crash...

but I don't mind driving half-way so it's easier for both Cyber & Solid to get back to their hotel/homes... I can probably drop u guys off at Broadway & Granville. I don't really want to drive Downtown late at night .... :sry ...well watch me just do it anyway ...we'll see if my mother's feels like being the protective asian mother that day or not LOL

Uh oh....my new work schedule dosent look good.....work on 28th.....till 5pm......@%$#$#@%$#@

5pm is ok ... since Reset gets off work around 6pm (I believe). We were thinking of an evening outing anyway.

I hope so....b/c its 8hr work day,,,which means i'd b so freakin tired like today...which i just got off work.....but i can make it....for YUi's sake :good