low-density, car-dependentcities likeDal-
lasare learning that travelbehaviorscan
change ifyougivepeople legitimate, safe,
reliablealternatives to thecar.”
Like, forexample, the taxi. (Asof this
writing,VancouverdoesnotallowUber.)
And, for furtherexample, thewater taxi,
whichwe took toGranvilleIsland, the tiny
peninsulaacrossFalseCreekondown-
town’swestwardedge thathousesarobust
publicmarketandshopping-entertainment
district.Wewere told itmightbe themore
touristyareaofourexcursion, andwhile
that’s true, themarket itself issplendid.Es-
pecially the famoushoney-dippeddonuts
atLee’sDonuts, threeofwhichIavailedmy
newly fashionableandsvelteself.
Betweeneatingaheartymeal suchas
thatand loudlysingingSalt-N-Pepa lyrics
aswestrolled the island (“Chocolatechip,
HONEY-DIP, canIgetaSCOOP?”),Megan
was feelingprettyenamoredofhowmuch
hersexyAmericanmanhad incorporated
Vancouver’surbanebeauty intohisbeing.
TocelebratemyVancouveriancoolness,
weplanned foraromanticdinneratAsk for
Luigi,named2015restaurantof theyear
by
Vancouver
magazine.Housed ina tiny
32-seathome inRailtown, this2-year-old
pastahavenshowcases thecity’sculinary
sophistication.Generousplatesofhand-
madepastacombinedwitharemarkable
wine listputasmileonMegan’s face that
Dallashadnotdoneall summer. Itwasa
testament, I think, toVancouver’s…
Wait.That’snotwhyshewassmiling.
Shewaskickingmeunder the tableandgiv-
ingme the“Turnaround, you idiot”eyes.
Iglancedbehindme.Sittingabouta foot
awaywasChrisPine—CaptainKirk, in
Vancouverfilming thenextStarTrekfilm.
Itseemedwereallywere living inadream.
Well—by the lookonher face,mygirl-
friendcertainlywas. “He’ssomuchhotter
inperson,”shesaid.
Iwaved forthecheck.Weweretaking
muchback fromtheCityofGlasstoourSun-
beltcity—abetterunderstandingofwhat
makesVancouverworthemulating,a feeling
forthepossibilitiesofamoderndowntown
thatworks inconcertwith its inhabitants.
Wedidn’tneedtotakebackeverythingwe
saw.Theaforementionedknowledgeand
thatsweetcoatIboughtwereplenty.
ERICCELESTE
is a senior editor of
AmericanWay
.Heused tobe abig
StarTrek
fan.
CLOCKWISE
FROMBELOW
:
StanleyParkcarriage rides; aboxof
honey-dippedatLee’sDonuts; atAsk forLuigi inRailtown, with
two-hourwaits for a table
Wait.That’snotwhyshewassmiling.
Shewaskickingmeunderthetableand
givingmethe“Turnaround,you idiot”eyes.
64
OCTOBER2015
AMERICANWAY
GETT
IN
G
THER
E
AmericanAirlines
offers6dailyflights to
Vancouver
(
YVR
)
from3hubcities,with2flightseach
from
Dallas/FortWorth
(
DFW
),
LosAngeles
(
LAX
)
and
Phoenix
(
PHX
).
