[The Intense Summer] VANCOUVER DAY 11

Vancouver has, arguably, the best summer weather in Canada - and I say "arguably" since there are periods of time when the city experiences nothing but chilly temperatures and nonstop rain.

But today was one of those perfect summer days: sunny, with a nice breeze.
So even though the trip to Cattle Cafe involved a 25-minute walk from Richmond Centre, I didn't mind it too much.

I was somehow able to time the walk perfectly, and met up with my grandparents in the parking lot adjacent to the plaza just as they pulled into a parking spot.

I ordered a Neapolitan Spaghetti and iced milk tea, while they ordered Chinese noodles with different soup bases and Horlicks/hot milk tea. Since I had been dying to try out the restaurant's shaved ice during my last visit (but ultimately ending up not ordering since I was already full), I opted for a mango shaved ice with coconut jelly, grape jelly, and grass jelly for toppings!

Though it couldn't possibly compare with the mango shaved ice we tried in Ximending (which used mango-flavoured ice instead of regular ice with mango milk syrup poured on top), it was still an awesome icy treat for a summer day.


Later on we went to Parker Place and Yaohan.

If you've never seen the Chinese version of pizza, well, here it is.
It's basically a flat bun, with sausage, green onions, tomato sauce, and a thin layer of mozzarella cheese thrown on top. You'll sometimes find kernels of canned corn on top as well.

I had been in search of some checkerboard cookies, but since the bakery at Parker Place didn't seem to carry them, my grandmother suggested we check out the T&T at Yaohan instead.

Turns out they did have them, in addition to having a panda version of the cookie. But at $5.99 a box, I just couldn't justify the price, and left the supermarket to wander upstairs.

I found these little chibis to be pretty adorable.

To be completely honest, there really isn't much to do at Yaohan. They have a pretty decent food court, and an extremely wide (though not quite budget-friendly) selection of packaged snacks and Asian beauty products at Osaka T&T, but there isn't much else except for some mattress and phone service stores.

Before leaving, this amazing Buy 1 Get 1 Free bubble tea deal caught my eye.

And so, me being the avid milk tea-lover that I am, I couldn't help but try it out, despite still being exceptionally full from lunch.

I ordered one of each type: Milk Tea and Green Tea. I snatched up the green tea; it wasn't overly sweet, and the tea didn't taste too milky either. Though they must have used pretty strong tea to make it, as it was slightly headache-inducing for all of us.
Nonetheless, $3.99 + tax is an amazing deal for two bubble teas with tapioca included.

We headed back after ordering the teas, but not before I stopped to snap a photo of this.

Hmmmm? Can't quite see it? Well, let's zoom in and get a closer look.

It's a Quatchi!!!!
I love(d) all the Vancouver 2010 Olympic mascots, but among all four of them, he's my absolute favourite!
(My own Quatchi plushie is back home, so this will the closest I get to seeing him before I board the flight home this weekend.)

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SUMMER 2014 LINKS

• JUNE 28, 2014 - Mill St. Brewery, Toronto Pearson Airport
• JUNE 29, 2014 - NorthWest Fan Fest 2014
•                                       - Red Star
• JUNE 30, 2014 - Photos N/A
• JULY 1/2, 2014 - Vancouver to HK Part 1 (Vancouver International Airport)
•                                        - Vancouver to HK Part 2 (Flight to Seoul)
•                                        - Vancouver to HK Part 3 (Incheon Airport, Arrival in Hong Kong)
• JULY 3, 2014 - Mong Kok
• JULY 4, 2014 - Macau Day Tour
• JULY 5, 2014 - Shopping in Causeway Bay
• JULY 6, 2014 - Tsui Wah Restaurant, I SQUARE
• JULY 7, 2014 - Arriving in Taiwan + Akazubo (Hankyu)
•                                     - Exploring Eslite
• JULY 8, 2014 - Food and Family Dinner
• JULY 9, 2014 - Ximending
• JULY 10, 2014 - Taipei 101, Ding Tai Fung
•                                       - ATT 4 Fun
•                                       - Birthday Buffet
• JULY 11, 2014 - SOGO, Taipei Underground Mall
• JULY 12, 2014 - Exploring the Area + Shinkong Mitsukoshi
• JULY 13, 2014 - Breakfast + Taoyuan Airport + Flight Back to Vancouver
• JULY 14, 2014 - Mega Sushi
• JULY 15, 2014 - Maji Taiwanese Cuisine
• JULY 16, 2014 - Thai Food + Family Dinner @ The Jade
• JULY 17, 2014 - New Hair + Cattle Cafe
• JULY 18, 2014 - Photos N/A
• JULY 19, 2014 - Garage Sale + MiniComi
• JULY 20, 2014 - Photos N/A
• JULY 21, 2014 - Cattle Cafe + Bubble Tea at Yaohan
• JULY 22, 2014 - Vancouver Aquarium
• JULY 23, 2014 - Lost in Burnaby + Afternoon Tea at Adonia
• JULY 24, 2014 - Journey via Canada Line + Pinkberry
• JULY 25, 2014 - Richmond Night Market (Part 1)
•                                       - Richmond Night Market (Part 2)
• JULY 26, 2014 - Back to Toronto