Exploring downtown Vancouver

I didn't really have any plans for today, and all the members of the Cohen family (whom I'm staying with here in Vancouver) were busy with work or study all day, so I decided to take a trip downtown. Vancouver is nice and easy to get around, with its great bus system, and the weather was fine and sunny too (if a bit cold). I went and checked out the Broadway area first, then I continued on to the main downtown district.

Vancouver is quite a nice city to walk around, what with its great scenery, its friendly people, and its peace and safety. I spent a fair bit of time around "Canada Place", which is a kind of cruise-ship-terminal and exhibition-centre thing sticking out into the harbour. Canada Place has great views of the harbour, of the mountains, and of Stanley Park. It's about the closest thing Vancouver has to Sydney's Darling Harbour.

View of Stanley Park and mountains from Canada Place.

I also stopped by the art gallery, although I didn't go inside (naturally). They have a cool device outside this building, which locals are calling the "doomsday clock". It counts down the days, hours, minutes, and seconds to the opening of the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympic Games.

This was the count when I stopped by.

So yeah, a bit of a lazy exploration day today, but a good way to get myself acquainted with Vancouver, and to start finding my way around the city on my own.