I’ve returned to Chicago after a wonderful week in Vancouver. In all honesty, I really do not want to be home. As the airplane landed in Seattle my mood sank and I wished I could turn around and go back. And this is why…

You all remember the story I told about arriving in Vancouver and how pleasant the Canadian Customs Agent was. Now picture the exact opposite for the return to the US. Being a US Citizen, I assumed (incorrectly) that US Customs and Immigration would be no big issue, since all my experiences in the past have been pleasant. I approached the agent and handed him my passport and immigration form.

“Why were you in Canada?”
“I was visiting a friend” I said
“Where did you stay?”
“With him” wondering where this was going.
“Where does he live?”
“Someplace in Vancouver” hating the intrusions.
“What do you do for a living?”
Wondering why this mattered, I replied “Sales.”
“What kind of sales do you do?”
This continued until he knew the name of my company, the date of my first orgasm and when I had my Wisdom teeth removed. I’d never encountered such a personal history search in my entire life and I wondered what the fuck all this information gave him as to whether I could come back into MY OWN COUNTRY or not.

Once I had satisfied his probing, I continued on to the immigration agent, and the exact same set of questions. If this is how Innocent US Citizens are treated, I shudder at the thought of how our friends from other countries are treated.

But let me finish off the rest of my trip before I forget all that occurred.

Saturday morning AP, and the Guest Boys and I headed to this delightful diner called Elbow Room for breakfast, where the solitary waitress berated us and harassed us and treated us in a generally shitty manner. She came to the table and asked if we wanted coffee, and immediately advised us that she was too busy and if we wanted coffee, it was “over there” and we needed to get it ourselves. This, by the way, is the point of Elbow Room and they do it perfectly.

After breakfast, we met up with the girls from Seattle (actual lesbians) and we shared coffee and truly interesting conversation. I wished I could have talked with them further, but I accepted an invite from Carl, the Australian and headed over to his flat to meet him and his partner for a few drinks. We talked for a bit before they gathered me up and whisked me off to a house warming party a few blocks away. From this party, we watched the fireworks competition (Sweden’s fireworks were all timed to an Abba medley.) I was truly impressed with Carl. Throughout the evening, he would occasionally check in with me to make sure I was doing ok, and having a good time. I’ve dated men that weren’t that considerate, and I was very thankful and impressed by it.

At this party, I was introduced to Glenn when he leaned over to the host and, in a voice loud enough for me to hear, he inquired who the silent boy on the edge of the couch was. Glenn has the most beautiful eyes and the thickest eyelashes I’ve ever seen. He was sweet and we chatted throughout the evening. I left with him and a friend of his (whom I thought was his boyfriend) and headed home.

Sunday was Pride. Prior to the parade, the Guest boys joined AP at church for the 9:30am service while I walked the Labyrinth in the other wing of the church, a truly unique and interesting experience that I wish I had the time to do again.

Monday, we took the ferry to Victoria, B.C. where we toured the provincial government house of parliament and took High Tea at the Fairmont Empress Hotel. A truly fabulous thing that everyone should do once in his or her lives.

Now… on to the photos.

My first day in Vancouver, AP and I on a walk, stopped for a photo op.

On the route to Whistler, I found a Fresca! When is the last time you saw one of these?

I snapped this picture while walking around Stanley Park

Looking thru my pictures, I saw this little guy with the red mohawk and had to enlarge it. So cute.

Taken on the cruise to Victoria, B.C. (Vancouver Island)

The Guest boys, AP and I at High Tea at the Empress Hotel.

Girls who take High Tea also wear hats.

This says it all… Fairies on the Ferry.