Sandcastles and Steaks in Vancouver, BC

In September, 2008, Mom and I drove to BC to visit family. My aunt Leny and Uncle Bill live in Abbotsford, about an hour east of Vancouver and across the border from Sumas, WA. It takes about 6 hours from Portland. During our stay we did some sightseeing and mostly visited relatives. Here is a sampling of photos I took, and yes the weather was spectacular...a rarity in the Pacific Northwest. Enjoy!


About another hour east lies the resort of Harrison Hot Springs. We happened upon a sandcastle contest, with entrants from all over the globe. (Yes, even Holland was well-represented here.) The sculptures are made only with sand and water, but a spray was added to the finished shape to retain it. Some have been up for several weeks, and yes there were actually some castles.


This one is entitled "The Rainbow Olympics presents 'Drag Racing'"...now, I did some drag racing when I was a young hotrodder, but this is definitely something different! (Yeah, I know...I could on with this one!)

Artist and her scupture.

Spectators, outside looking in. No, Leny and Mom weren't specifically excluded. Only Bill and I were willing to pay the admission.

This one particularly touched me. I cannot recall the title (it may not have had one), but it shows the fertile imagination of some of the artists.

Flowers from Bill and Leny's garden.

Later on Saturday we met several cousins at Jamie's new apartment in Vancouver. On the couch are Mom and Leny. Standing behind are (l-r) Patti, Lucy, Bernice, Jamie Patti's daughter) and Bernice's son Anthony.

Bernice, Lucy and Tony (Bernice's husband)

Patti and Berni

Dinner in downtown Vancouver

A wild night on the town...