Mich Mosh

My friend Tom and his mom came to visit a couple weekends ago during BC Day weekend. Since they were only here for a couple days, it was a whirlwind visit. It was like doing a tour of Vancouver on crack. Tom tells me that there's a blog called Caroline on Crack whose author is considered the definitive source for L.A. hotspots and that I should do something similar, but call it Michelle on Meth.

It was a crazy weekend with tons of people out, more than I had ever seen before of all the times I've been to these touristy places. Parking was completely full but amazingly we somehow managed to score a great parking spot everywhere we went. Thanks to Tom's mom I had the opportunity to try some really interesting and exotic fruit. I have no idea what the names of them are except for the jack fruit I did try, but you can find some pictures posted in my gallery.The jack fruit is especially pungent, but good and I wonder if I would enjoy durian despite its smell.

The last thing we did was go to Grouse Mountain. Tom did the Grouse Grind in a little over an hour, but I decided to try the "easier" BCMC trail up the mountain. It wasn't a cake walk as I had thought it would be. Although it might not have been as steep as the Grind, it was still quite challenging. The BCMC trail is not very well marked and you can easily get lost merging with another trail, which happened to me. Fortunately I ran into some folks who directed me back the right way. Two and a half hours later I finally made it up the mountain. Tom who so patiently waited for me was able to find a way to get us back down the mountain without having to wait over an hour in line for the gondola ride back down. I think I'll stick to the Grind from now on.

     Captain Tom cruising the waters of False Creek.

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Theo raved over the "bottomless pop" and not the all-you-can-eat fish and chips meal that it came with. I wasn't entirely hungry at 11:30, almost two hours before my usual lunch time, but what the hey for $8.95 I'll go for it. The joint was pretty quiet when we arrived, but filled up quickly by the time our plates of fish and chips were set in front of us. Two pieces of fried cod over a bed of fries and my bottomless root beer — this had to be my most unhealthiest meal since I've moved here to Vancouver. The fish was super crispy and so were the fries. It was better than what I had in Steveston last weekend.

"Oh this is much better than in White Rock." Mario tells me to never eat the fish and chips there. "They don't let all the oil drain after its fried and it becomes all soggy. You know? Of course you know, you have a restaurant!"

"No, I don't have a restaurant. That's my dad's." Venessa jumps in, "But you'll inherit it!" I laugh. Funny... how that reminds me of all the times when people used to say that to me and Sarah when we were little.

"Tell Theo and Aggie how old you were when you started peeling peapods." I think I was four or five... all I know is that I was small. Dad would sometimes bring me to the restaurant and give me a box of peapods to peel. He showed me how to peel them and told me to do them all. Of course, I'd do a few and then go play with my remote control car. I don't really remember how old I was when I really had to do a full box of peapods, but it was always something I dreaded. "Peapods, not again!" I'd always whine. Angie, Sarah and I all wished that peapods could come peeled already. And now they do! What took them so long? Did they always exist? Or was there suddenly a demand? Probably a better source of cheap labor than kids who whined all day about peeling peapods.

The waiter asks if we want more fish. Barely able to finish our plates of fried goodness, we all said no thanks. And Theo who raved over the "bottomless pop", could only get through one glass of coke. I think I've had enough fish and chips for the year.

From City Walks Vancouver, 50 Adventures On Foot, I selected card #37: Steveston, to explore the hidden gems of Vancouver. Described as a bustling fishing community, it's located south of Vancouver in Richmond about a 30-minute drive from where I live. Not as touristy as other local attractions, Steveston's charm is perhaps in it's unique history as a small fishing village made up of Japanese, Chinese and European immigrants. You can still see remnants of its interesting past today of the abandoned cannery, which once was the largest canning operation in North America, along with historic residences that were occupied by Japanese and Chinese families near the late 1800s to early 1900s.

Part of the fun of coming here is seeing all the fishermen and their boats full of different varieties of fresh fish and shrimp caught that day. The best part about buying from these fishermen is knowing that it's fresh and where it comes from. And at ten dollars for three pounds of shrimp, prices aren't bad either.

If you'd rather eat out than cook your own seafood, you can certainly find a number of seafood restaurants right along the docks. My first mission upon arriving into Steveston was to find some good fish and chips to fill my empty stomach. It didn't take long before I found myself at the Sockeye City Grill ordering a one piece cod and chips. Their menu also featured a choice of halibut or salmon. Not exactly a fish connoisseur, perhaps I can try the other varieties of fish and chips and develop a more sophisticated palate later on.

After lunch, I decided to walk off my meal so I could return for some ice cream that everyone seemed to be enjoying so much. The walk led me to Garry Point Park which is surrounded by great views of the water and offers plenty of space for kite flying. There definitely isn't a lack of seating areas in this park as numerous benches are placed along the gravel trails and a few sandy beaches with logs makes it easy to plop down anywhere and enjoy the view.

Of course this walk can't be complete without some history, which is just what I got as I walked east on the boardwalk. Along my walk I came upon an old cannery and some historic residences. One of them known as the Murakami house is open to the public for viewing. Built around 1885, it was the home of a boat builder named Otokishi Murakami, his wife Asayo, and their children. Asayo arrived in British Columbia as a picture bride and was to be married to a Japanese fishermen she'd never met. But when she saw him, she knew it could not work and broke off the marriage. Talk about guts! She worked the next three years picking strawberries and at a fish cannery to repay her suitor for the voyage. Later she was introduced to Otokishi by a matchmaker who she married. Asayo passed away at the age of 104 and was considered to be the last living picture bride in Canada. For pictures of the Murakami house and highlights of this walk, please visit my gallery.

When the radio can no longer fulfill your musical appetite, it's time to find an alternative. Especially after playing the same tracks over and over again like a cd left in repeat. Having come across Deezer a few weeks ago, I have only visited this site a handful of times, but it serves as a great online jukebox. The only difference between this online jukebox and an old-fashion one is that the music is free! But just like a jukebox, you can't take the music with you. Instead you enjoy it in the moment on your computer. So why would anyone care to tune in on Deezer if they can't download any music? Simple. It's got some great tunes you can share with friends. Plus you can broaden your musical tastes and discover new artists. Deezer's song collection is probably nowhere near iTunes, but being able to listen to entire albums for free compared to 30-second clips on Apple's music store, makes it easier to determine if it's worth adding to your collection (although you'd have to buy it somewhere else.) 

What I like about this site immediately from the first visit is it's user-friendly features. For one, the music player is embedded on the right and stays in place no matter where you browse on the site. This allows you to continue listening to music while you click around. Another nice feature is the music player itself, which lists the previous and next song. Don't like what you're listening to? Click on another song and the current one will gradually fade out for a smooth transition. Want to add what you already own on Deezer? You can by uploading your mp3s to the site so all your favorite music is in one place. Create playlists and share with friends. If you'd like to give it a try feel free to add me to your friends list. Just search for "michellerlee."

So what are the drawbacks? Well, it would be nice if Deezer gave you the option to buy and download what you like so you can take the music anywhere you please. Hopefully its music collection will continue to grow, but there certainly isn't a lack of a diverse range of music. And oh, in case you're wondering, it's legal.

So I recently read an interesting article about how people perceive of themselves in the mirror, how it affects human behavior and people's misconceptions of their reflection in the mirror. It's quite fascinating and worth reading.

Did you know that the only other nonhuman species that have the ability to recognize themselves in the mirror are apes, chimps, gorillas, orangutans, bonobos, dolphins and Asian elephants? This confirms my theory on the intelligence of elephants. But also interesting to note is that people tend to see themselves in the mirror as more attractive than they really are according to research.

Maybe I should leave a warning for anyone who reads this article because you might feel worse afterwards. Not only do you discover that you may be self-delusional, perhaps ugly, but also bigger than you thought. That's a triple whammy. If you believe that your reflection is the same size as you or close (which I did), then you're wrong. It's actually half the size. How can this be? I know what you're thinking. In fact I still have a hard time wrapping my head around this one.

The important point is that no matter how close or far we are from the looking glass, the mirror is always halfway between our physical selves and our projected selves in the virtual world inside the mirror, and so the captured image in the mirror is half our true size.  —New York Times

So in essence, you are bigger than you appear in the mirror. You can test this theory out by tracing your face in the mirror after taking a shower and you'll see that it's half the size of your actual face. What's even more interesting is that no matter how far you step away from the mirror, your reflected face remains the same size in the outline that you've just traced. Doesn't this information just turn your world upside down? It sure boggles my mind.

What better way to explore your own city and stay healthy than exploring it on foot? Sarah gave me these fantastic pack of walking cards of Vancouver with "50 Adventures On Foot." Yesterday I decided to try them out and selected card #46: Lighthouse Park. About 30 minutes drive from the city, it's a great escape into nature with abundantly tall trees and panoramic views of the open water and sky. Oh, and there's a lighthouse to boot. The lighthouse is closed off to public access, but with so much to explore you'll find enough great spots in the park that it won't even matter.

Once occupied by Canadian forces during WWII, the lighthouse served as a location for surveillance of enemy ships and submarines that might slip into the Burrard Inlet. Barracks were built in the forest behind the lighthouse to house officers. Surrounded by water on most sides and heavily forested, it's easy to see why this natural area served as a good lookout for any signs of danger.

This was a great walk, which I would not have known about if it weren't for those walking cards and I'll definitely return to explore other trails. I've already planned on which card I'll be trying out next weekend and am very much looking forward to another great walk.

There's actually a website that scores cities based on its walkability. It's great for people who are planning to move to a new area and would like to live in a walkable neighborhood. You can type in the address and the site will return a listing of the nearest restaurants, grocery stores, shopping areas, etc. nearby as well as give a score for that neighborhood's walkability (100 being walker's paradise.) The site ranks San Francisco and New York as the top most walkable cities in the U.S.

 
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He came alone, but didn't expect to leave with a lifelong pal. Wherever Ken goes, Godzilla goes. Pictures of the dynamic duo are posted in my gallery.