lucy-on-coop

Trip to Sun Valley, Idaho This past weekend I travelled to the land of potatoes to visit my mom and cousin. My cousin has been living the ski bum lifestyle for about 2 years now in Sun Valley (a small ski town) and will be moving out and back east this week. I have always wanted to visit her in the fun ski town and I finally got the chance to! My mom has also been living in Sun Valley and plans to move there in the fall, so I was really excited to check it out and see them both.  The Sun Valley area is home to ski mountains, cross country areas, and hiking trails, as well as a ton of outdoorsy people! My mom and I went on a short hike to our family friend's small cabin in the middle of a valley. The cabin has amazing views of the surrounding mountains. It was a completely clear, sunny day and I realized how little I have enjoyed the sun in Vancouver. It was really nice to feel the warmth of the sun and have to squint looking up to the mountains. Our family friend...

Easter Weekend Another great thing about Canada...the Friday and Monday of Easter weekend are statutory holidays! I took advantage of the extra long weekend by skiing at Whistler on Friday and Sunday and enjoying some much needed rest and friend time on Saturday and Monday. I have mentioned this before but the one thing that still makes me so excited aobut living in Vancouver is that one day you could be hitting powder runs at Whistler and the next be enjoying a sunset picnic at a local beach. Such an amazing place to live.  Saturday night my roommate and I met up at sun sushi with two of our friends from UBC for takeout. Sun sushi is a fabulous place. they have sushi rolls for 2.50 each!! They had vegetarian options available for all of us vegheads including yam tampura, avocado, and cucumber rolls. Sun sushi is a popular spot for UBC students and given the price/ yumminess, I can see why. We took our sun sushi rolls down to Tower beach to enjoy the Saturday sunset...

3 months in Van!! I have been in Vancouver for almost 3 months now and I am beginning to feel comfortable as a resident. I now know where the bus stops are located, the bus routes, and how frequently they come. I know where the popular restaurants are and even have been to a few! I have been to the popular sunny day spots (e.g. Stanley park, Kitsilano beaches, or Granville Island) and I know popular hikes outside of Vancouver (e.g. the Chief, Garibaldi Lake), but unfortunately have not had the chance to go out and hike yet. I feel comfortable as a resident and I am excited to go and explore the places that I have heard about! The Daily Routine Morning:  Eat breakfast and leave the house around 8:15 Walk to bus stop (~8 min walk) Take bus (~20 ride) and pay using Compass card (similar to the Charlie card), CAD$2.10 per ride  Arrive at UBC, and walk to the Aquatic Ecosystems Research Lab (~5 min), where I work.  Day: Desktop research (am), eat lunch with...

PSA: Canada is not the U.S.  I didn't think that it was possible to experience "culture shock" or notice any major differences in way of life here, but I was proven wrong. Canada is not just a northern version of the United States. First off, I have noticed that Canadians (or at least Vancouverites) use these differing expressions. 1. Beanies are called "toques". 2. The term for bathroom is "washroom". 3. The term "sophomore" or "junior" are not used to describe year in school. Its all by year (i.e "1st year" or 2nd year"), which is similar to Northeastern. Woooo leg up on that one! 4. They use the english way of spelling (i.e. colour, organise, cheque). 5. The term "keener" is used commonly to describe someone as eager. I like this one 😎. 6. Sneakers are called "runners". 7. They actually use the word "hoser"!! I thought this was just a stereotypical term, but peopl...