Logistics
clothing
Before setting off, I checked the weather forecast for various places along the route and the weather conditions of the same period last year, and then prepared accordingly. In principle, one set of inner and outer clothing is one set per day, plus a waterproof windbreaker and a thin cold suit. Shoes are equipped with hiking shoes, flat shoes, and indoor slippers. Since the return trip was by plane, it was adjusted to match the weight of the luggage. In particular, I did not bring the hat, scarf and gloves used in early winter this time. When I climbed the glacier, I immediately thought that it would be nice to have these things with me.
food
Throughout the trip, many of the hotels I stayed at were included in the room rate for breakfast, and they were settled early in the hotel these days. A few mornings without breakfast were settled at Tim Hortons, A&W and other chains. All breakfasts are Western-style Continental Breakfast.
Because I have to rush to travel, I spend most of my time with lunch at fast food chains such as A&W, Harvey's, and McDonald's. Almost all of the fast-food restaurants selected are located next to the highway exit/entrance. There are also three exceptions. Once in Regina. After leaving the parliament building, we went to a nearby Red Lantern Restaurant (Chinese Lantern Restaurant) for lunch. I wanted to order a green cabbage, but there was no other green vegetable at home, so I had to order garlic broccoli, which tasted okay. The owner is from Guangzhou and very welcoming. His family puts rice in a thermos and serves it to guests, which is very intimate. The second time was in Calgary, where I asked for a Chinese-style box lunch at the Food Court at the T & T supermarket near my hotel. The third time was in Victoria, and I went to an Internet celebrity restaurant, The Ruby on Douglas (Ruby). It's a Cora-like breakfast chain restaurant that serves breakfast and lunch and closes at 2 p.m. It was about 12:30 noon when I arrived, but I could still order breakfast. The portion size is relatively large and is the only impression left on this restaurant.
Before you go, do some homework on Google Map about restaurants in the city where you stop overnight, focusing on Chinese or Asian restaurants (Vietnamese, Thai, Japanese and Korean) within a 3-5 km radius of the hotel, mainly on the opening hours, menus, related images, customer reviews, especially those of Asian descent.
In Su Sheng, I went to Lil's Asian Cuisine, an Asian restaurant near the hotel. It is a family-run restaurant with electric stoves for home use. According to the boss, if there are no guests, the stall will be closed at 8 pm; Otherwise, it opens later. His home-cooked rice is Southeast Asian taste, the taste is average, not soy sauce bibimbap, better than eating hamburgers and hot dogs. By the way, Asian restaurants in Su Sheng generally close early, many end at 8 p.m., and some even end at 7 p.m.
In Thunder Bay, have dinner at a Pho Umami restaurant. Pho is less than 3 km away. There are not many varieties of pho on the menu, the portions are not large, and the taste is average, but it is safe to say that there is no MSG in the soup. You can find an alternative to burgers and hot dogs here, and it really will be fine, not too much to ask for.
In Winnipeg, have dinner at the Noodle Express in Chinatown. This is a Cantonese food stall, the restaurant is not big, and there were no other guests when we went. The taste of the product is ok and it is very affordable (large amount, cheap). One serving of garlic canola in his house, compared to two servings at restaurants in Toronto and Montreal. After going out for three days, I finally ate Tang Ren greens once.
In downtown Calgary, there are many steakhouses with high customer ratings, and finally Caesar's Steak House & Lounge is the famous Alberta steak. Seats were reserved in advance. The restaurant is decorated in the style of the 1970s or 1980s. A large charcoal stove is set up in the dining area, where customers can watch the chef fry the steak. The steak is delicious, juicy, charred on the outside and tender on the inside. The overall dining experience was mediocre, mainly due to the long waiting time for the food, which was said to be caused by the guests who came to a large table before we were seated.
In Jasper, have dinner at Jasper China Restaurant. This is the only Chinese restaurant in town, the owner is Cantonese, and it specializes in Cantonese cuisine. The hall is small and closes at 9 p.m. When we arrived, it was almost 8:15, and the waiter received us to take our seats after getting the consent of the owner. The portion size is not large, the taste is okay, and it is definitely not the kind of Western-style Chinese food that fools foreigners.
For all four nights in Metro Vancouver, dinner was settled in Richmond. There are many choices here, with reference to the recommendations on the Little Red Book.
On the first day, I went to Sun Sui Wah Seafood Restaurant. I wanted to taste the Pacific Geoduck, but I had already placed an order, but I didn't expect that after a while, the waiter came back and said that the last elephant mussel was ordered by other guests, which was a bit disappointing. Had to change the lobster. It tastes good.
The next day, when I returned to Richmond from Victoria, it was past 9 p.m. and I went to the Oh Gee Wang Fatty Crab Pot and ordered his signature meat and crab pot. There are a lot of phoenix claws in the pot, and I don't understand why it is so matched.
On the third day, I went to the Chef Tony Seafood Restaurant, where I finally ate elephant mussels. The taste of his home feels better than that of Xinruihua.
The fourth day is the last day of the tour. At noon, I went to the Garden City Hot Pot for morning tea. His family makes hot pot, and there are not many varieties of morning tea, such as no bra sausage. I ordered traditional refreshments such as shrimp dumplings, dry steamed roast sales, beef balls with tangerine peel, and fresh bamboo rolls, which tasted good. Dinner was served at Hao's Lamb Restaurant. This restaurant is also recommended by reading Xiaohongshu, and the taste is also very good. Just can't eat spicy, this meal is spicy and sweaty, and the order is only slightly spicy. After the meal, I went to Bubble Fruity for dessert. This is a Hong Kong-style dessert shop that only accepts cash. The dessert tastes good.
There are also many restaurants in Richmond recommended by Little Red Book, which are too late to taste due to the length of stay, itinerary and personal combat strength. One of the most wanted to taste is HK BBQ Master, looking at the pictures and reviews sent by online customers, the taste should be very good. Unfortunately, his house closes early (8 p.m.) and is closed on Wednesdays. Hope to have the opportunity to make up for it later. There is also a roasted goose king (RGK BBQ) next to the Yidong restaurant. This is the first roast goose shop seen in Canada (all of them sold roast duck before), and there was no time to taste and verify.
Figure 34: Richmond, BC's Garden City Hotpot morning tea
In general, there are many choices of Chinese food in Metro Vancouver, all kinds of tastes, the taste is indeed good, better than Toronto and Montreal, and the price is higher than these two cities.
live
The hotel is booked about 3 months before departure, and the hotel can be cancelled free of charge. The earlier you book, the more options and better prices you can offer, especially for hotels in Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Vancouver. In particular, in Lake Louise and Jasper, demand during peak season far exceeds the capacity of hotels in these two places, so book well in advance if possible. When booking a hotel, pay attention to whether the hotel accepts pet friendly, such as the Home Inn in Medihat to make the right choice.
In the town before arriving in Banff, except for the first stop, Su Seng, the booked hotels are located near the highway entrances and exits. First, it can avoid the morning rush hour in the local urban area the next day, and secondly, the price is lower, and parking is free. In the Vancouver area, there are more hotels to choose from, but hotel prices are not low around the end of June. However, many hotels in the Vancouver area require additional parking, so be aware when booking a hotel.
The focus of this tour is Banff National Park and Jasper National Park. When visiting Banff National Park, choose from hotels in Canmore, Banff and Lake Louise. Canmo is located about 25 kilometers south of Banff and offers the lowest hotel rates. Banff is a well-developed tourist town with hotels, restaurants, supermarkets, shops and other facilities, which is very convenient. Hotel prices in Banff are higher than in Canmo. Lake Louise is located about 60 km north of Banff, with far fewer restaurants and hotels than Banff and Canmo, and hotel prices are the highest. We didn't book a hotel in Canmo, mainly because we didn't want to travel an extra 50km every day. Experience from this trip proves that staying at least one night in a hotel in Lake Louise is a necessary and wise arrangement. If I had a choice, it would be by Lake Louise, not the town.
When visiting Jasper National Park, hotels in Jasper Town should be preferred from a convenient point of view. Although the town is small, it is fully equipped with many restaurants and shops to choose from. If you can't book a hotel or bed and breakfast in Jasper Town, you can stay at Hinton outside the east gate of the national park, but it is about 80 kilometers from Jasper Town, which is relatively less convenient, but the hotel price is much cheaper.