Just got home from my trip to Vancouver to help Tucker with the Gymnastics cert this past weekend. Fun times! I'm really wondering if anyone can ever say they didn't have a blast hanging out with Tucker. A smart smart man full of a ton of laughs and a good time.
The trip was quite the adventure right from the start. I drove to Calgary and caught a direct flight from there. Going through airport security I was "lucky enough to be randomly selected for additional screening". Oh lucky me!! Got the full pat down. Is there really a reason for the security officers to ask you to take your hair out of a pony tail so they can fluff it up to check if there is anything in there? Seriously! Then I boarded the plane only to sit on the tarmac for 40 min waiting for the manager to come and sign off on the safety checks they had to do.
Landed in Vancouver a little behind schedule but met up with Tucker and continued on our way. Tucker asked for a rental car with GPS but they had no cars left with one. Only an Escalade. We didn't need something that big so we went with the car and asked the lady for a map. They must produce these maps to screw with people because this map SUCKED! Streets turned into other streets when they shouldn't have, streets were mislabelled, and the parts of the city we had to get to were cut off. A 20 min drive took us 2 hours!! We were so lost! Finally checked in and left right away for something to eat because we were both starving... only to get lost trying to find the restaurant. We walked up and down the street only to ask someone... they pointed it out to us and we ended up getting lost standing right underneath the stupid sign!!!
Post meal Tucker and I got back into the car to drive to CrossFit Vancouver to see the place and know where to go in the morning. As soon as we started driving Tucker slammed on the breaks he thought he left his passport in the restaurant. No worries... I said I would jump out and grab it so he didn't have to repark. Half way out of the car he found it. In his thick Texan accent he said "Don't worry Kat I found it in my gun pocket" with his right hand across his chest into his left chest pocket. "WHAT!" My eyes must have nearly popped right out of my skull. He said it again "In my gun pocket would you like one"... as he pulled a package of gum out of his pocket. Started laughing nervously and I told him what I thought he said. That joke carried on the whole weekend... would you like a gun? Let me grab it from my gun pocket.
But ya... we got lost again trying to find the gym after the restaurant. Found 3rd Ave... drove up and down the street only to find out we were on 3rd Ave WEST not 3rd Ave EAST. Found the other 3rd Ave on the map and the gym was still no where to be found. Ended up calling T-Bear only to be told we were on the wrong 3rd Ave East and needed to be on the other side of the railroad yard. Found the place 30 min late. Thank goodness T-Bear and Chris printed out a google map from our hotel to the gym and wrote the directions on there for us!
Next morning we rocked the directions and ended up being 40 min early! Whoop! Tucker really nailed the city driving and pretty much remembered how to get there. Long exciting day of coaching ring skills.
Afterwards it was off to a Brazilian BBQ place called Samba (which we got lost getting to as well). Great eats. The servers would come to your table and cut off pieces of different meats fresh off the scewer. Lamb, beef, veal, chicken, ostrich... YUM!
And on that note I'm going to leave you hanging for more. More fun stories and pictures from day two and the ride home to come.
October 26, 2009 at 10:37 PM
Sounds like an adventure! When we were in Vancouver for our level 2, we got around using only the Google Maps application on my Blackberry. Next time, Kat!
October 28, 2009 at 8:26 AM
Haha, that is funny stuff. Glad you had a good time. Where in Van were you?!??!