Day 12 of October

LA, Disneyland, San Francisco, Vancouver, Victoria, Madonna Vacation
(con't)
Sunday morning, up with the larks, I think I'll take a walk in the park, hey, hey, hey it's a beautiful day.  Ok, not a Madonna song, but it sure fits with the weather in Victoria. Had a much more restful sleep last night. The bed was softer, thanks to the foam cover; and the room was warmer, thanks to a working furnace.  Not sure what time Patrick returned from the University last night, but he crashed on the couch in his room so it was a little noisy in the morning (snoring echoing everywhere)
 Bill went for his usual workout and I packed up our suitcases once more.  With a hug and a kiss goodbye we were on our way back to Vancouver.  We managed to catch the 12:00 ferry without having to wait too long.  This time I did stay in the car to snooze while Bill headed up deck to check out the view.  With the help of our friend GPS we headed to our next hotel.  I'm pretty sure we didn't go the direct route, and I was actually getting a little nervous when we drove through a couple of industrial areas.  But it turns out this hotel in Vancouver was the best hotel of our entire trip (family homes excluded).  It was the Days Inn, Vancouver Metro.  I booked this particular hotel for a couple of reasons.  One, it was centrally located in the middle between the airport and Rogers Place (where Madonna was playing).  Two, it was only one of a handful of hotels that hadn't tripled their price because of the Madonna concert.  Once we arrived, we discovered that we were a few blocks (ok, maybe 10) from the Sky Train.  For the cost of $2.50 (a deal on Sundays) we could take the train directly to the Rogers Place.  The registar at the hotel was very helpful, and if I had to find a hotel to stay at again, I would chose this over and over.  When she found out we were going to the Madonna concert, she mentioned that quite a few guests were also going.  Someone else must have done their research too. 
  We headed up to our room, which was comfortable, cozy and clean.  There wasn't a lot of time for relaxing.  We decided to head out early and eat before leaving for the concert.  Our hotel was located in what looked like a mini Little Saigon, so we headed for noodles.  Supper didn't take as long as we thought, so when we arrived at the Rogers center, we were a bit early.  Bill decided to snooze on a bench and I spent the time people watching.  I couldn't believe the number of scalpers.  I even got to see a police bust go down.  After listening to the scalpers explain the story (cause they are so reliable) I was starting to feel sorry for the guy who was being taken down.  Turns out he just got a ticket for jaywalking. 

  So the doors open for the 8:00 concert and our seats are amazing.

 Rumours were going around that Madonna would be late.  I guess people aren't used to opening acts in Vancouver.  It's not that Madonna was late, she just had a DJ opening for her.  I quite enjoyed him; Bill was getting a little tired of him after an hour and a half.  Of course we spent a lot of time people watching while the stage was being reset for Madonna.

(big hair)

(big nose)

(big egos)

And then she arrived - and boy did she arrive.  I may not agree with all that is Madonna, but the lady can put on a show.  My favorite number was when she brought in the marching band - from the sky.

I lost track of the costume changes, but she wasn't off stage for very long.  I can honestly say that is the best concert I have been too. But when Madonna is done, she is done.  There wasn't really any encores, but there were a couple of times you thought it might be over and she would be back out.  But when the concernt was done, the lights were on and the stage hands had the stage coming apart pretty fast. 
   I was tired from just standing all night, can you imagine how tired Madonna and her dancers were.....   So we headed to the sky train to get back to the hotel and admire my Madonna T-Shirt.  Worth it - quality wise no, memory wise - yes.
   Hotel for 1 night $59.00, sky train cost 10.00, Madonna T-shirt $40.00, continental breakfast - free; Madonna concert - priceless.  Thanks to Ashley and Patrick for the tickets.