Laura’s sister Severn was gettin’ hitched, so off we went to Vancouver for the festivities. Actually, half of the festivities—there’s another ceremony to come, but Jon’s school schedule conflicts 🙁 . (This was Jon’s first wedding ceremony, so one is probably enough anyway.)

We stayed with Laura’s mom, who, when we weren’t playing tourists or visiting with old friends, put us to work assembling old family jigsaw puzzles (to ensure they had all their pieces prior to donating them to a rummage sale). Jon went on all manner of public transit, including the Seabus, by his request. And the ubiquitous 99 B-Line Bus, wherever we were headed. Vancouver’s transit system is, in general, more wheelchair-friendly than Toronto’s, but some of their bus drivers are more than a little grumpy.

Planes, Seabuses and SkyTrains

Laura and Jon by the Aquarium’s Orca sculpture.

We did the aquarium thing, to Jon’s delight (though right after seeing the new beluga whale calf, he thought it would be a good time to leave…but we didn’t).

After seeing seals, otter, starfish, sharks, turtles, frogs and many many fish, we lucked into the dolphin show just before we left. Jon ended up standing at the balcony railing to get a good view of the dolphins making splashes worthy of Olympic divers going off the 10m platform (his Olympic favourite, and instant giggle producer).

Jump dolphin jump!

The wedding was more involved than we knew, for although the betrothals themselves were brief, it also featured a naming ceremony and speeches from several native elders, and during the toasts the depth of emotion for Sev and Jud was so clearly evident that most of the speakers lost track of the time. Not a problem for us, but I was amazed that Jon kept his head, though I’ll admit it was through judicious use of iPods. Still, Jon put up with his tie for the entire evening, which is astounding for a first time!

Jon (in a tie!) having a quick snack after the ceremony, but before the sushi appetizers.

Troy and Chiyoko (who wanted you to see her new shoes).

Sibs and cousin, plus interlopers: Laura, Troy, Tamiko, Severn, Chiyoko, and Sarika at bottom. Midori trying to blend in in the middle, and Jon cut off.

Oh, and the jigsaw puzzles? We got all but one done (the thousand piecer, by no coincidence). Mind you, we must credit Joane, Tamiko, Troy, and our anchor, Midori, for their dedicated assistance. What’s gonna work? Teamwork!

Thanks to Joane for the hospitality, Tamiko and Troy for lots of things, including rides to and from the big event, and David, for the plane trip to the big event.

Completed puzzles at right; 1000-piecer never attempted at left.