Rain, Rain, Go Away!

Mother Nature gave us a break:  She put off wringing out the dishrag-hued low clouds hanging over Vancouver during our drive into town from the fabulous, spacious airport.  (Nothing like a few gazillion dollars --- even Canadian ones --- flowing into a city to spiff it up before the Olympic Games).

We are staying in an apartment that occupies part of the upper floor of a two-story Craftsman-style house in a quiet, maple tree-lined neighborhood.  We have a good-sized sitting room, a king-bed in our bedroom, tiled bathroom with a claw-foot tub/shower, a kitchen equipped with new appliances and tons of cookware and utensils (better than what we have at home), two TVs, two radios, and Wi-Fi.

A little after 5 pm we grabbed our umbrellas and headed off to the grocery store to get some goodies for breakfast.  A busy street two blocks away is lined with specialty stores, eateries, coffee houses, and two large grocers:  Safeway and "Capers" (which is Canadian for "Whole [Foods] Paycheck").

The drizzle that greeted us as we went out the front door became more earnest rain by the time we started back to our digs.  It's cool (Accuweather says it's 52 but "feels like 59").  Summer has, at least for the moment, clearly departed British Columbia for the season.

The proximity of food stores may lead us to "dine in" at least one night.  But this evening we're going to have dinner out at Trafalgar's Bistro (our Lonely Planet guidebook says it's a favorite with "local.").