Wow, man. Thank you so much for taking the time out to type all of that. When I sit down to plan my itinerary, I will do things exactly as you mentioned here. I will extend my trip if I have to in order to explore Vancouver more. I have saved your post in Evernote just in case this thread goes kaput for some reason.
Just to give you more context about me, I have lived in Delhi for close to 20 years but never felt at home here. My favorite places to visit in Delhi were the zoo and public parks near my house. That was my way of "being in nature" in a place like Delhi. Throughout my tenure here, I have felt "rushed" and felt like everyone is angry at everyone else for no reason. I always felt like I was dragging my feet here and never felt like I was thriving.
The only two times I have felt like having inner peace in my life are when I lived in a small town in Gujarat when I was a kid and when I lived in Goa for a couple of months. I am someone who depends a lot on the environment I live in. If you were to meet me in real life, it would feel like you were meeting two different persons when you meet me in a place like Delhi vs a place like Goa.
As I mentioned before, I have never stepped out of India and wouldn't call myself a well-traveled man.
My only goal for a close to a month-long vacation in Canada is to find a place where I don't feel "rushed". That obviously rules out GTA. Although you have written a lot about Vancouver, will it feel like a big city where everyone is in a hurry to get someplace? Surely the cost of living at the place would force everyone to be a part of the rat race.
Although I should be doing this research on my own, which area would be most suitable for renting an AirBnb? I guess access to SkyTrain should be my top priority so that I can explore most things you have mentioned in your post. I have set aside a budget for this trip but I still make Indian IT guy money in Indian rupees. In other words, I have *some* money but I would rather spend it on exploring places rather than renting a fancy apartment. I also wish to avoid affluent areas, which can be nice but that's not what I am about.
PS: I am a big fan of X-Files and would most definitely visit the place where they shot the wooded area scenes if nothing else. I will also try to find time and budget for whale watching if I can. I am pretty sure it is going to be the highlight of my tour.
Some of my fond memories are from Delhi. I was in IIT-D back in mid 2000s and South Delhi was dope back then. But then college life is dope in itself.
Vancouver can be chill or it can be fast depending upon what you are doing and where you are. Lynn Valley is slow paced but downtown obviously is fast paced. One more thing, people in BC are a bit outdoor-ish and on any sunny day you will find them exercising or just running around. Take it in stride. I personally never did AirBnB in Vancouver so I do not know how good it is. I did it in Victoria BC and it was easy here. I got one in Chinatown in Victoria BC and it was an entire small studio apartment for one week. In Vancouver, my employer arranged for a serviced apartment for me to live for 30-45 days while I searched for an apartment. It was a part of my relocation package.
If you want really laid back life, move to Vancouver Island -- its retirees paradise.
That being said. BC has another name, its called Bring Cash. You need money, lots of it. Its pretty expensive to live around here. A one month vacation, just be sure you have budgeted it well because money just god damned disappears here. There are ways around it but ultimately, you are living in an expansive part of the world, it catches up with you.
Also, if you are visiting Canada, carry a visitor medical insurance because even with PR, your public medical insurance wont kick in for 3 more months. You don't want to be stuck in accident with no money in pocket. Also, even after having insurance, things can get hairy... some hospitals --especially ones belonging island health-- do not do cashless bill settlement. What it means is, you will have to pay in cash and then insurer will refund you. Yes, it sucks and can totally fuck you over. I do not know if hospitals in Vancouver do cashless direct billing. Check on it. You don't want to end up with 3-4 thousand bill with your hospital billing counter insisting on credit card and not accepting your medical insurance.
Also, mostly in BC, there are no bad places to live if you like open spaces, sunshine and nature. Every damned neighbourhood has parks. Many have sea shore. The only thing that is typically missing are sandy beaches but if you know where to look even those are not far. Only thing you have to work on is your job and possibly what you want for your family.
The biggest crunch BC is facing are doctors, teachers and general workers. Meaning some parts in BC will have issues with availability of doctors, many schools are facing shortage of teachers and many businesses are operating half staffed. Don't be surprised if you have to line up for paying your purchase as even though there may be 10 counters, there may be just 2 cashiers.
In the end there are things that you will love about BC and Canada and many things you take for granted will be missing. Thing like immediate access to an specialist doctor, things like immediate access to a plumber or a handyman to fix some part of your house, things like getting medicines on the counter, things like house help. I shit you not, I had an ancient oven to clean and I had to take appointment with cleaning lady who said she will visit me 10 days later. She cancelled appointment at the last minute due to some personal emergency. After one month of fruitless waiting around, I got the necessary tools and supplies and cleaned the oven myself over 3 days on a long weekend -- it was horrible. Meaning, you need to get handy in these parts, manual labour is in short supply.
