The Rocky Mountains from the air, and impressions from Vancouver

This September a dream came true, to cross the Rocky Mountains by train. I had travelled through that area two years earlier with dear friends, and the urge to see it from the train had become stronger than ever. My friends tried to convince me that I would see more from the road than from the train tracks, but I still wanted to experience how people travelled through that area in the 20^th century. There are not many passenger trains left, but instead there is the Rocky Mountaineer, a fancy tourist train which is of course more expensive than the usual train which still crosses the Rockies. But the tourist train only rides during the day and drops off its passengers in hotels for the night. So the most exciting and stunning parts of the mountains are seen in daylight.

 Just a view from the porthole window

 Above and below: Confluence of the Thomson and Fraser Rivers

 The Rocky Mountains seen just before landing in Vancouver

I flew to Vancouver, a city I had briefly seen earlier, and after a long flight still had a few hours left to do some sightseeing. Vancouver is beautifully situated on the water. It was a very warm and balmy day and evening, and although sleepwalking I enjoyed the view from the Vancouver lookout Tower and walking along the Waterfront. I had a meal there in an Irish pub cum restaurant, seeing the moon rise on the water like an enormous football. Then it was time to pick up some food before retiring to my luxury hotel, courtesy of the Rocky Mountaineer.

 Downtown Vancouver

 Two different views of the lookout Tower

Two views from the tower

Two views from the Waterfront

The moon rising over the Waterfront

Vancouver seemed like an Asian city, with more people from the Far East than Westerners. Also the majority of schoolchildren and students I saw seemed to be Asian. To my surprise the shops in the downtown area where I stayed carried expensive and exclusive fashion labels. But I was shocked to see so many beggars and homeless people in this seemingly affluent city. It seemed that two extremes exist side by side in this city.