The hunt

With only a week before we set foot back in the motherland, we've been spending a considerable amount of time searching, discussing, contemplating, and budgeting for the perfect place in Vancouver. For those of you who know us well, you know that we're fairly flexible regarding accommodations... we've lived in a camper van for months, made ourselves at home in a 400 square foot cabin (with 3 people, 2 active wiener dogs, and 1 big fluffy orange cat), and we've even taken up residence in an old house on psychiatric hospital grounds. In short, we're not picky. I'd even go as far as saying we're quite accommodation-tolerant.

Then why oh why does it prove to be so difficult to find a place to live? Check out this blog to get an idea of what we're up against here while searching for a decent (not dodgy) place to live: It's Lovely! I'll Take It! This is real life in the apartment hunter's world. Honestly.

In the meantime, we'll continue to respond to overpriced ads in hopes of finding something suitable. I want to send special thanks to Ryszard, or however you spell your name, for repeatedly contacting us to make sure that we were still interested in your place, arranging a time to call us, then when I emailed you at our arranged call-time, you emailed me back to tell me the suite had been rented the day before. Sorry... I should have totally read between the lines and realized you meant "the suite is unavailable" when you asked "do you still want the suite?" Geez... where is my brain these days?

Musique du jour: Bob Dylan - Dear Landlord

Zipcars

After what feels like days and weeks and months, we've finally (tentatively) secured a sublet for our first 2 weeks in Vancouver. Woo hoo! We are relieved that upon our arrival back in Jianada on the morning of August 6th after a year away, we will have a place to lay our weary heads, hang our hats, and store our bags for two weeks. The space is a bit tight, but there are many advantages... including location; we'll be right next to Stanley Park, which we believe will be a perfect place to rest, relax, and ease back into the Canadian pace and way of life and reflect on our adventures, both past and future.

Our next order of business is to secure a car for our initial stay in Vancouver to help us with our apartment hunt... the way we see it, our options are:

a) Shortly after we arrive in Vancouver, we could bus to Sorrento, where our Honda is being stored, license it, and bring it back to the city ... this seems like a lot of work and like it will result in muddled confusion while dealing with jet-lag and culture shock.

b) Budget Rental Car

c) Zipcar! We think we've found the perfect answer with this one! Let me explain...

Zipcar (see zipcar.com), is a for-profit car sharing company that operates in the U.S., Canada, and England. Zipcar members (zipsters) sign up for either a flexible annual membership, which requires a yearly contribution of $55 plus a one-time $25 sign-up fee, or a monthly membership at a cost of $50. Membership entitles you to the use of cars located in operating cities (in Canada - Vancouver and Toronto), and depending on your plan, the cost ranges from $8 - $12 per hour or from $58 - $80 per day... and get this, INCLUDES GAS, INSURANCE, AND RESERVED PARKING! Check out this video to get the goods:



So we're pretty pumped about this option... it's a green alternative, it's cost effective, we don't have to worry about parking or parking tickets, and the commitment is low. It is perfect! We will definitely be taking advantage of this upon our return... in our shoes, it is going to work great as temporary environmentally-friendly wheels for checking out apartments. Pretty neat.

Other exciting news... we've got a camper and a truck that we're considering purchasing from our good friend Gary that we'll be bringing out to Alberta and SK with us during the third and fourth weeks of August. We're so looking forward to a camping trip upon our return... and to visiting friends and family in style! We'll have the opportunity to tour at our own pace, stopping in Edmonton, Prince Albert, Saskatoon, and Lemberg, meandering from the ocean through the Rockies and out to the prairies, stopping to see many of you and finally to pick up Oliver! Can't wait. :)

Cheers!

News of the day: No more tasers in Saskatchewan! ... yay Saskatchewan!

Musique du jour: Coyote - Joni Mitchell

10 more days to go!

Packing

Having just completed the last semester of our Bachelor of Business Administration on a one-year study abroad program in Tianjin, China, Bob and I are packing up and are preparing for our return back to the motherland... Canada. We've had the adventure of a lifetime here in China, touring this vast, amazing country and reaching as far as Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, and Laos. With a mix of apprehension and excitement about the next step, Bob and I are filling box after box with the goodies we've collected over the past 11 months, preparing for our journey halfway across the world, back to where we started from. We are certain that Canada will find us a bit shaken, dizzy, and scratching our heads... but not without a large dose of optimism about what lies ahead. So, to take us from Chapter 1 of the adventure (www.nextstopchina.blogspot.com) and into Chapter 2, we are introducing this blog, in hopes that you will continue to share in our life adventures right alongside us.

This blog is a work in process and we hope that you will enjoy the developments that we make as we progress through our next episode. It's been a blast sharing our Asian travel stories with you, and we look forward to keeping you beside us as we jump head first into life back in Canada.

Here we go!

Musique du jour: Ro Ro Rosey - Van Morrison