From Vancouver To Whistler: A Travel Story

My routine was ideal. I was working from home, lived in Gastown, my room was great, and I was close to so many trails and convenient stores. I’d go for many walks at sunset by the water or rainy strolls in Stanley Park.

I used to dream about living in Gastown and being close to the seawall; it was amazing to be right in the heart of the city.

There were so many amazing cafes to write in and I’d write right in my room, too. I feel such a keen sense of nostalgia as I write this memory. It was an amazing time of my life.

In the spring, I got to see some amazing live shows once the pandemic restrictions lifted. The very first dance party I went to in the post-Covid era was the best vibes ever. I danced for the first two hours unable to stop smiling. Everyone else there had a similar disposition. At last, things were starting to get back to normal.

That was the bonus of living close to downtown. I could walk to the venues or take a short bus ride then home wouldn’t be far away at the end of the evening. What is so special about these live shows is many of these artists are people who heavily influenced my work.

I’d often listen to Rezz and Slipknot while writing my books before and after the pandemic. It was amazing seeing two such iconic musical influences live and getting lost in their music all evening.

At the Slipknot concert, I sat next to a married couple and their 11-year-old son. During an intermission, the lady asked why I was there alone.

“I don’t have friends who enjoy metal here,” I said.

I thought of my sister and cousin. They’d always go to metal shows with me, but they were across the country.

“Oh, that’s kinda boring,” she said.

“Not at all. I’ve gone to a lot of metal shows alone and have had a great time,” I said with a smile.

“I just think it’s nicer to have someone to bounce things off of, you know?” she said.

It never bothered me going to a concert alone. Most times I’d meet someone to vibe with while the show went on, but I was there mainly to enjoy the music — whether alone or with people.

The lady’s husband leaned over and looked at me intently. “You need new friends.”

I’ll never forget the intensity of his gaze. I think he didn’t like the idea of someone going to an epic concert by themselves. I knew that I needed more people in my life who would support me when it mattered. Most of that was my own fault.

I enjoyed time on my own so much that I never really sought out friends to go to shows with. I guess I’d rather go to a show alone than be with someone who wouldn’t enjoy it as much as I did.

“Well, we metal heads need to stick together,” said the lady. “Come on, I’ll buy you a glass of wine. You deserve it. Just pay it forward another time.”

It was so sweet of her to treat me to the wine. I’ll never forget that. There’s a special kindship among metal heads that you don’t often get with other music genres. I’ve been to many metal shows in my life. Some of the guys there will protect you from the mosh pit or help pull you out if you happen to get pushed in.

At some EDM shows there are guys either trying to drug you or passively watch while sketchy stuff happens. Metal people are amazing. Initially, I regretted not being able to get floor tickets, but sitting next to the family was great. We all stood up for the show and I felt so close to Slipknot, even though I was further away from the stage.

Rezz was an epic rave-style show and the crowd was huge. I kept making my way into the thick of the crowd to avoid the talkers who mingled at the back. I didn’t feel like dancing with anyone for this show.

This time it was all about my connection with the songs that helped me write so many stories over the years. Rezz is an amazing DJ and it was surreal seeing her perform live.

Gastown life was great. The only problem is my job was cutting my hours soon in addition to giving us two weeks of unpaid vacation. This seems to happen a lot whenever I get a job I genuinely enjoy. They did warn us about the time off in advance, but it’s still hard to prepare for something like that when you’re used to consistent full-time pay and you have significant bills to pay.

I had my room for a great price. $850/month is great even for a micro condo in Gastown, but with my income and bills it was still a big chunk of money. I enjoyed it as much as I could, and I’d never forget how nice it was living there. It was a literal dream come true. However, it was starting to become unmanageable with less than full time hours.

I remember watching the sunset at Crabb Park one evening and a jet flew overhead. I’ve always loved the sight of planes flying to and from Vancouver.

I feel nostalgic when I look at planes flying into the city — it reminds me of how happy I was when I first came there. I love the city so much — it was my dream and always will be. That said, with my job not giving me enough hours, I needed more stability.

You can’t predict how other people will act, but you can plan how much money you can save in a summer if you focus. I couldn’t seem to save anything while living at my lovely Gastown apartment — no matter how many low spend challenges I did.

After landing a housekeeping job in Whistler, I packed up and bought a bus ticket. I went to English Bay for my final evening in Vancouver. It was sad to leave, but I’d be back again in a few months. I’d be going deeper into the mountains soon.

On the day of the big move, I hopped on a bus with my bags and moved north to the little mountain town. With rent only being $350 per month, I was planning to save a lot of money there. If you can cut down on rent and increase your income, your savings will grow quickly.

As I took the charter bus to Whistler, I messaged Alexei to let him know of my plans. I told him I still think of the amazing summer we had sometimes. He said that he was recently thinking about our time together as well. It made me smile. He wished me the best on my new journey in Whistler. Even though we weren’t meant to last together, I’m glad I met him and got to share some of Vancouver’s magic with him.

I wasn’t sure what to expect with this new staff accommodation. Since it was so cheap, I mentally prepared myself to be greeted by a bunch of extroverted people who wanted to drink all the time and go out every night.

I was pleasantly surprised that not only was the place in a gorgeous wooded area with mountain views everywhere, the people were chill and respectful of boundaries.

After having some bad experiences living in staff housing the first time around, it was nice to know you could feel safe in your own home even if it was temporary. It turned out to be an amazing deal for what felt like a cottage getaway in the mountains.

The job was one of the best ones I ever had. After working from home for over a year, it was nice getting out and chatting with my coworkers. I enjoy the flow of housekeeping in a resort area.

The job worked for my introverted nature where I can come in, have a little chat, grab coffee, then start my routine. The managers were friendly and nice to work with — I’ve worked at a lot of jobs; I feel it when I work for good people.

Aside from being able to save some money and enjoy my job, Whistler is a gorgeous place with a wealth of scenic trails that range from easy to difficult. The longest hike I went on was up to Rainbow Lake — it took us about 5 hours for the round trip and the scenes were breathtaking. I went with three other people and it was a lot of fun.

One of my favourite moments in Whistler was sitting on the dock at the lake with my roommate. Even though she was a lot younger than me (She was 19), we got along well. We’d talk about almost everything and we’d bounce things off one another.

I remember telling her about some of my dating experiences in Vancouver since we were on the topic of relationships. Where you live can have such a huge influence on how people view dating and relationships. Some people may deny it, but you do notice in trends in certain areas in comparison to others.

“You’re not going to find someone to marry in Vancouver,” she said. “The guys there don’t want to commit. It’s where you go if you want to be independent and work on your career. I’ve met guys in their 50’s who have brand new houses and boats, yet they still don’t want to settle on one person.”

“I really love Vancouver though,” I said. “It’s my dream city. I got to write so many stories there … and it has everything I want.”

“Yes, but if you are ready to settle down …”

I wasn’t sure if I wanted to settle down or if this was just something other people thought I wanted. Of course, I’d been ready for a relationship for a long time — with the right person. I always saw myself adventuring with someone rather than settling down and buying a house.

While it was gorgeous in Whistler, it didn’t have the same free and open energy Vancouver had. Some places just fit you better — my nervous system feels most at ease in the Vancouver area.

I recall Andy encouraging me way back to join different Meetup groups like hiking or volleyball groups to meet people with similar interests to me. It’s something I always meant to do and never did so that’s on me.

Had I tried going on a few hikes with a group, maybe I would have met someone adventurous to share my life with out west.

Maybe I was meeting people in the wrong places — clubs, bars, work, dating apps. No one from those places ever worked out. Sometimes I would be the one to break things off and other times the guy would.

When I moved west, my identity shifted to being a west coast girl. As a Vancouver local for nearly a decade, I earned the title. I’ll always have a west coast heart — I believe I was made for those beautiful lands in and around Vancouver.

I published 16 books, found my independence, overcame depression, stayed in shape, enjoyed nature, rented my own apartments, and found contentment in a lovely city.

To experience several years with little to no anxiety says something about where you live and the way you live. I was mastering the art of building a good life even though I never made that much money.

Vancouver gave me everything I needed at the time I moved there — a reason to live and then thrive. It also gave me the space to heal, grow, and create.

One morning, I woke up from a dream where I was watching a pretty pink waterfall cascade over a cliff.

“Remember how important family is. Don’t wait too long to come home,” the waterfall sang.

I woke up with a sudden urge to visit home soon. I hadn’t ever felt that before to such a strong degree. Later that day, I received a call from my dad that one of my cousins passed away from a drug overdose. 43 years old. I remember him as one of my cool older cousins growing up. I’d see him sometimes at family reunions. He’d been around the block a few times, but we always thought he’d find his way. Now he was gone. It was earth shattering for the whole family because his older brother also passed a few years ago. It was heart breaking knowing I’d lost two of my cousins in their early 40’s. I imagined him begging on the streets and couldn’t stop crying.

While I often felt anxious to leave Vancouver and go home, now I was starting to feel a little anxious about being so far away from home. Over time, life was showing me that it was getting close to the time to move back to Ontario — this is something I never imagined would happen. I suppose that is what growth does to you.

Maybe I’d experienced everything I needed to in Vancouver and it was okay to move on and try living in a new place closer to home. I wasn’t sure if this was true or if I just felt like I *should* move away to be closer to family. Let me tell you, it was not easy to come to the conclusion that you shouldn’t stay where you’re happiest.

I used to see myself living in Vancouver forever. But forever is a long time when there’s no one close by who really cares about you. Maybe the issue was that I didn’t visit family often enough.

By the end of the summer, I saved enough money to leave Whistler. Living with other people was getting to me and I missed Vancouver. I wanted to have one last era in my dream city before leaving. I found a micro suite in China Town. It was in East Vancouver — a place I’d lived in for years.

I’d grown to love the east side of Vancouver and was proud to call myself an East Van girl. I admit that I originally saw myself as a Yaletown girl and hoped to make it into one of those high rises, but the east end is where I ended up making a home and thriving. East Vancouver has so much character and a lot of great food.

For my final chapter of living in my dream city, I was going to savour every moment I could. What is so special about my new place is that it gave me an epic view of the city. I never made it to a high rise suite, but I did get the amazing view of the city. I would look out the window and sigh, remembering both my earlier days and my later days in Vancouver. How blessed I am to have lived such an amazing life on the west coast.

Would you like to read how my journey began? Check out my previous travel stories (listed in order!)