Lard Snack Visitor 3 - M' Lord Fonters !

Whats the best way to celebrate the Friday 5 o'clock whistle after a hard week in a Canadian office !

By meeting a mate from blighty for a couple of sccops of course ! Fresh from the airport M' lord Doogie timed his arrival perfectly for us to follow the Friday exodus into downtown Vancouver and embark upon what has become the standard ritual applied to UK visitors !

Namely to ram in as many bars and lard snack varieties as possible before a jet lag induced coma kicks in around ten pm. This weeks success story included 'smiley o'niells', the 'Yaletown Brewhouse', bbq chicken wings and smokies !!

Leaving Doogie to walk home from Yaletown past his old haunts from yester year when he lived out here (and spent every day working in a shoe box called tie rack) the plan was to reconvene bright and early for an ascent up Grouse Mountain.

Waking up to the classic early Vancouver overcast low cloud skyline our plans were switly revamped into something a little more ................well breakfast based !

Who says mens heads are ruled by their stomachs ! Well Fonters' certainly is ! Feeling suitably fuelled up and with the weather improving slightly we headed over to the North shore where my new gaff as of the beginning of July will be.

The journey is made across on the Vancouver sea bus whick links the north shore to downtown Vancouver every fifteen minutes. The views as you cross are pretty damn spectacular of Stanley park and the Lions gate bridge ! Somewhat better than you get on the northern line underneath Camden and euston any way !

Having shown Doogie the new pad we wandered into Lonsdale Quay and market which forms the sea bus terminal on the north shore. With Doogies mobile beginning to bleep into action we swiftly realised that Italy v USA had begun and that Lady Fonters was at home on her own watching the game. Deciding it was possibly time to rest our legs Fonters' ability to search out a certain favourite beer of his surpassed even my expectations !

Two minutes later and (me) armed with beer in hand we saw the last hour of a game that can only be described as having Gaz as referee ! It's my party don't you know seemed to be the approach taken !

I have a feelin the 'Chesire Cheese' pub and grill may become a bit of a local of mine when I get over to the North Shore !!

Thanks for bringing my last bag over Doogs and see you in four weeks buddy ! Lets hope the weather plays ball next time and we can do the Grouse Grind ! (oh yeah and check out the next blog re Scottish money - I wasn't bullshitting you mate)