Shelagh's Lens
Bringing Vancouver and the world to inspired travellers
Higher Learning
Last summer in Seville, we explored the city on foot and it was a treat to explore the University of Seville. Gorgeous woodwork and architecture!
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Ballet of the Heron
The herons by Jericho Beach and Spanish Banks are always a treat to watch, and this one was particularly elegant.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Take Me Back
… to Paris, where these roses were perfectly displayed at Marché d’Aligre, an open air market in the 12th arrondissement. You don’t want to sleep in; this market is open Tuesdays to Sundays, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Unless you’re already in the 12th, take the Métro to Ledru-Rollin and walk to Place d’Aligre.
The market (marché) runs from rue Crozatier to rue de Charenton, and there are dozens of vendors. Just looking at these beauties, I’m basking again in the late morning sun, listening to the friendly exchange of a range of voices and accents, and biting in to a ripe, juicy peach.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Sunset on the West Coast
This is Vancouver, arguably at its finest: Spanish Banks on a Friday night. The air smells right, and you’re surrrounded by trees, water and mountains. There are clusters of people settled in by their logs, with barbeques winding down for the night, and the dipping sun creating early summer silhouettes.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Cheers
… to this happy young couple, distracted momentarily from events on the field.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Down At the Swimming Hole
How many countries afford opportunities to experience polar bears and grizzlies in the space of days?
After the unique opportunity to observe polar bears in Manitoba the week before last, today came with an opportunity to see grizzly bears close to home. Since we were at Kits Beach yesterday, we decided this morning to pop over to the North Shore and Grouse Mountain. There, visitors can observe two orphanied grizzlies who now make their home on the mountain.
While this fellow may look sweet, you’ll want to know that bears can readily consume more than a hundred pounds of salmon in a single day, as they need almost 20,000 calories daily. As omnivores, they also rely on berries, seeds, insects and more for nutrition. Grizzlies range from 1.5 – two meters (5 – 8′) in length, and can live as long as 20 or 25 years.
Bears’ sense of smell is a thousand times more effective than ours and, even more importantly, they are even faster than Usain Bolt. While the Olympic champion, the fastest known runner, clocks in at a speed of 43 kilometers an hour, bears can accelerate to a speed of up to 64 kilometers an hour.
This fellow and his companion – I’m not sure which is Coola and which is Grinder – hibernated from November 28 until March 6 this past winter, and the cool pond must have been refreshing. These creatures are spectacular; just look at this fellow’s claws in the image below, and watch here for more shots to follow.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Water Babies
Here are some more images of polar bears at play.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Polar Ballet
As mentioned yesterday, I could have spent hours watching this pair at play.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Polar Bear
Call me a hypocrite, and I’ll agree with you. I generally avoid zoos on principle but, as an adult, have bent my own rules to visit two: first was the Smithsonian National Zoo in Washington, DC, with the visit motivated by the chance to catch a glimpse of giant pandas Mei Xiang and Tian Tian.
Yesterday, I added Winnipeg’s Assiniboine Park Zoo to the list, fascinated by the opportunity to see polar bears from an underwater viewing tunnel. The property’s Journey to Churchill exhibit opened in July 2014 and, if not for the need to catch a plane back to Vancouver, I could have spent hours in the tunnel.
The deep thud of a bear’s massive paw on glass just inches above one’s head, along with the visions of a pair at play, reinforced a desire to travel north to see polar bears in their own environment, and that environment itself.
Share this post, and Shelagh's Lens, with others who love to travel
Anne of Green Gables’ Home
All right; having taken you close to the site of Lucy Maud Montgomery’s inspiration a little earlier today, it seems only fitting to now bring you to Green Gables and its lovely, old fashioned garden bed. Can’t you see yourself settling in on the stone bench, perhaps with a glass of lemonade, and soaking up the surroundings?
Shelagh's Lens 