Whistler while you work

Well, we had a wonderful time at Whistler. We came home last night at 11.30pm after a great day. Anselm had a ball on his third ski day. The rest of us took the gondolas to the top of Blackcomb and Whistler, which was stunning-- incredibly high and steep, with magnificent views. Unfortunately we snapped the camera batteries away on the lower slopes and missed shots of the upper reaches of Whistler with the sun striking the clouds over the peak above: spectacular. I took a swim during Eliot's nap in the indoor/outdoor heated pool and hot tubs that Anselm had enjoyed so much the previous two evenings.. great fun with the blue sky above, steam rising and icicles forming on the step handles. We ate a fine apres-lazing around lunch in an Irish pub.

After picking up Anselm from ski class and loading him up with the requisite hot chocolate, we headed down to Vancouver for a truly excellent Chinese dinner at The Imperial, recommended by another Fodorite. The restaurant put us on the empty second floor so the kids got to stretch their legs between their afternoon naps and their post-dinner bedtime car ride home, while Blaise and I ate way too much of the amazing food. (Scallops stuffed with banana in lemon sauce; steamed tofu and scallops with black bean, like it should be, tangy with no gluey sauce; and hot pot of black cod and eggplant.. yum.)







In all, one of our most successful trips ever. The workshops went very well; we got some work done; Eliot settled fine into the daycare on the second day; Anselm was happy and excited throughout; Abby and Barry were both excellent companions, for us and for the kids, and were very accommodating in letting us go to the banquet and out to our movie. The scenery was awesome, and the hotel made the ski/visiting experience incredibly easy and convenient.. we were a minute or two's walk away from everything we needed. And all within driving distance of Seattle. We will definitely do that again.