SelfAbsorbed.ME : ‘It’s Your Life, We Just Write it Funnier’

We all know my feelings about Los Angeles. If you missed the recap of my trip there earlier in the summer you can read it here and here. This time around, I ventured to other West Coast cities: Seattle, Vancouver and Whistler to be exact.

Now I don’t mean to offend, but why every time I cross the border into Canada do I feel like I’m being repeatedly electrocuted with high voltages of boredom? I haven’t quite put my finger on why, but for me Vancouver was void of any spice, energy or flavor. I tried to go partying on a Thursday night and found the streets empty, the bars deserted.

This was the Hollywood of Canada?

Everyone’s annoyingly polite. Everyone follows rules. I also didn’t appreciate the fact that their currency had a lot of heavy coins, heavy coins that weren’t even saving me money anymore since the Canadian and American dollar are now equal.

A charming anecdote: When I was paused on the street consulting a map, a woman sidled up to me and asked if I needed any assistance. My first New Yorker instinct was to protectively clutch my wallet while beating her away with my Lonely Planet guide. Then I realized she was just a nice girl volunteering spare moments of her life to help strangers. After 24-hours in Vancouver, I was really longing for a homeless person to almost spit on my foot or for an enraged cab driver to call me a “stupid white bitch” as I crossed the crosswalk. I wholeheartedly admit that America doesn’t perhaps exemplify the qualities of a great nation (especially now), but at least no one can call us bland or void of personality.

Vancouver did have some upsides though. The city’s on the water, which means the air is so clean that it’s shocking for a Manhattaner to inhale. I felt like I had entered a pulmonary detox, and by the end of the trip my repertory system was functioning better than it had in weeks. The city’s also easy to navigate and has a lot of parking, which is great if you like being able to own and drive a car (which I don’t). Stanley Park is spectacularly beautiful and right in the center of the city. And the food is out of this world. One night I hit up a hot Yaletown restaurant called Goldfish. I had scallops in a mango sauce, duck spring rolls with mint, sautéed vegetables without tons of oil and get this: they had desert sushi! A kiwi, mango, strawberry fruit center surrounded by sweet coconut milk rice, incased in dark chocolate as the ‘seaweed.’ It looked like real sushi, and was served with a passion fruit dip in lieu of soy sauce. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven. Isn’t this idea genius!?

The infamously beautiful Sea to Sky road that connects Vancouver to Whistler Mountain is undergoing construction to make way for the 2010 winter Olympics. A few cranes and piles of rock here and there did not deter from these spectacular views. This drive is a must do for nature lovers, and I had no idea Whistler (consistently voted best skiing in North America) was such a pleasant summer destination as well.

Seattle is actually as awesome as it looks on the glitzy transition shots in Grey’s Anatomy (speaking of which, are we tuning in for Private Practice - yeay or nay?) The city did not disappoint. Really fresh air, seafood and a great vibe as well. Yet the more I travel in the US & Canada, the more my suspicion that New York is the best city in the world is confirmed.

I’m glad to be back. And I’m celebrating by going out tonight, tomorrow, and probably the weekend as well. Hopefully to some tasteful events, nothing too clubby or trashy (I already have a feeling I’ll be defying this statement Thursday night). And for those of you who all kindly commented on yesterday’s Please Don’t Be Nice article, I have a message for you all.

Stay tuned.