We got the ferry back across to Vancouver and despeite not having any GPS we managed to find our way to our new hotel, about 20km from the town centre.We dropped off our bags and then rushed to return the car to hertz before it closed.Having not stopped for over a week all we wanted to do was get back to the hotel and spend the afternoon relaxing in the hotel watching TV and maybe go for a swim.

Day 2 was our day out and about town exploring some of the different parts of Vancouver.We got the Skytrain to an area called the Gastown which is one of the older parts of the town. It houses the first ever steam powered clock which is still working today and gets its steam from the underground drainage system.We had some delicious lunch at a pub in the Gastown called The Hungry Pig.After lunch we took in a few of the tourist tat shops before walking up Granville Street.We walked a few blocks and arrived at Robson Street.It is these two streets which house all the funky shops, the restaurants and the bars that were mentioned in all our tour guide leaflets..We went into a few shops on Robson Street to get some ideas of what I would like for my birthday which was only a couple of days away!!The great thing about Robson Street is that it had lots of shops that were one of kind selling loads of really cool and unusual things so it was great fun to do some window shopping as it had been ages since we had been shopping for anything other than shampoo or dinner supplies.As our next stop was Fiji where we had anticipated we would be reading lots of books we had found the address of a second hand book shop.The idea being that we could hopefully pick up a few second hand books and save a bit of money.The start of the road to the shop was really nice with lots of cool bars etc however the mood of the street soon changed!There was soon lots of homeless folk littering the side of the street and the nice restaurants became smelly kebab shops and the boutiques became "adult entertainment shops" and we realised we were no longet in trendy vancouver so we picked up the pace in search of this book shop.After about a 20 minute walk we were horrified to learn that what had been the book shop was now yet another dirty mans shop and we had walked all that way for nothing.We quickly made an about turn and headed back to the Gastown to find somewhere for dinner and a couple of drinks.We couldn't resist stopping for a glass of wine in a bar called Chill Winstons and then went for dinner at our old Canadian favourite, The Spagetti Factory.Their drink special was a huge jug of sangria so we thought it rude to say no!!

Day 3 and we decided today to go to English Bay to take in the waterfront and to see where Granville Island was and if it looked like it might be worth a visit.The bay also had a beach called sunset beach which we wanted to see inspite of the fact that it was a bit rainy and grey.Down at the waterfront it reminded us of the regeneration at Leith in that there were literally thousands of new build flats and town houses and with that there were some nice restaurants and a few shops so it made for a nice walk and passed the morning.The afternoon was dedicated to finding me a birthday present and with the weather being really gloomy we got the skytrain back to our hotels stop and went to a shopping centre called Lougheed Mall.After walking around for about 2 hours I finally settled on some jeans, boots and a top (all winter style things as our next stop after fiji is winter/spring in New Zealand so a practical choice I felt).We also had to get the usual supplies for Fiji which included soap, suncream and some books as there are not any shops on any of the islands we were staying on.By the time we had finished shopping it was after seven so we just got a chinese for dinner in the food court at the mall then headed back to the hotel.

Day 4, Saturday and the day before my birthday so as a treat Michael had booked us a night at a nicer hotel out at Granville Island.We packed up our stuff and got the skytrain and then a connecting bus to the new hotel.We arrived and checked in to what was a lovely hotel and a good choice from Michael to discover that it was Canada Day!A bit like americas independence day, it is the day when the Canadians celebrate their independence.There was to be a big fireworks display down at the waterfront in celebration of this special day (and my birthday too of course)!We took a quick walk around the area and walked to Granville Market to see if there was anywhere nice for dinner and to sus out where the fireworks were going off.When we got back to the hotel we got ready to go out for birthday dinner and had a couple of glasses of fizz to get the night off to a good start.We decided to have dinner at a really nice restaurant called Earl's, literally a stones thow from the hotel.We started with a cocktail and then had the most amazing dinner.I had a delicious steak with roast potatoes and Michael had a curry with rice and nan bread and we both agreed it was one of our best dinners to date.After dinner we had another cocktail and then started to make our way down to the waterfront to watch my birthday fireworks display!The fireworks were lovely and the display lasted over half an hour.It was nice to have spent independace day with the Americans and now with the Canadians too!

Day 5 and its my 27th birthday!!We have a lazy morning in our lovely hotel and make a couple of skype calls home.We only have one night in this hotel as we are flying to Fiji in the evening so we have to check out and put our bags in storage at the hotel.We decide to spend the day acquiring insect repellant for the mosquitoes anticipated in Fiji and then take a walk to nearby Granville island (not a true island but on a spit of land so almost an island) for a look around.The insect repellant didn't take long so we were soon wandering around the public market in Granville.The market was selling lots of local produce from fruit, to meat, fish to baked goods. There were also a few local craft stalls selling jewellery and trinkets so we took some time wandering around.We stopped and had lunch from a café called "muffin granny", we found the name rather inappropriately hilarious and had to take a photo as proof that someone had actually called there café after a sex act on a senior citizen!!After lunch we bought some olives and cherries and sat at the harbour eating our purchases, watching the world go by!!It was soon time to head back to the hotel, collect our bags and make our 3 bus journey to the airport!!We cant believe that is another leg of our journey over however we have loved every minute of Canada.It is one of the most beautiful places on earth and the national parks of Alberta should be visited by everyone at least once in their life.We are not feeling too sad to leave now however as it's off to fabulous Fiji woooo hoooo!!