Tuesday was Canada Day, a welcome day off in the middle of the week to celebrate Canada’s 141st birthday. I like Canada Day as everyone is in a really celebratory mood and it makes me proud to be a part of this beautiful country.

There were lots of things going on with the main hubs being Canada Place and Granville Island. Canada Place had bands, competitions, displays by the Canadian Forces and Port of Vancouver and a traditional citizenship ceremony (it would be really special to become a Canadian citizen on Canada Day at Canada Place - that’s what I’m aiming for in 2 years time). Granville Island had a parade and a ceremony along with lots of live jazz.

I took advantage of the emptier than normal shops to go shoe shopping. It’s a week until my wedding and I still hadn’t found the perfect pair! I’m pleased to report that I now have almost what I wanted, only more comfortable and less strappy. I can certainly live with that! Robson Street had a stage set up with bands playing as well, so that added something extra to the experience.

We spent the afternoon on Granville Island listening to the jazz and dining/drinking at the Dockside pub on the patio at the Granville Island Hotel - it really is one of my favourite places to hang out in Vancouver. Unfortunately, it was heaving and our servers were really stressed - they said that they normally have 200 people in an afternoon, but had served 1200. They’d run out of quite a few drinks.

We ended the day with a fireworks display set off from a barge in Burrard Inlet. The crowds were amazing, the fireworks not so. I think they are saving their fireworks money for BC Day (it’s BC’s 150th birthday on August 4th - yes, BC is older than Canada) and the International Fireworks Festival at the end of July/beginning of August (this year Canada will be competing with China and the US for supremacy).