taste of kelowna

took a road trip to kelowna for a good friend's wedding reception this weekend.










my impression of kelowna is a fast-expanding, amenity-packed, playboy/playgirl car town. the most appealing feature is being situated on big blue okanagan lake - a near neccessity in the dry okanagan heat.
on the super sunny drive there (though i'm not a bit fan of air con.) i was finding it a bit warm without, ie. my back was sweating and it was gross! have to admit that i was expecting to see more orchards and vineyards along the highway and found it disappointing to be surrounded by dried out/burnt bushes of trees. maybe that idyllic landscape i was hoping for is more abundant further along the road.
anyway, had a rip roarin good time at the party - best limo ride ever on the way home (unfortunately i didn't get the name of the driver). thanks sam and serina and families for "letting us live on your farm"!

potentially useful information to pass on:
1. stopped at the Hope Drive-in & Restaurant in Hope. i had a delicious clubhouse sandwich with turkey barley soup. though we didn't have any, the wide variety of pies looked incredible.
2. stayed at the Holiday Inn Express in a non-smoking room with 2 queen beds. we spent $220 on the room after tax. it was a huge corner room with big big windows: plenty of space for 4 adults. the beds were super comfy (each body had TWO plump pillows and the covers included a duvet). the shower and toilet were separate from the sink so we didn't even suffer from bathroom conflicts! there is a cactus club, a starbuck's and a wal-mart within walking distance.
notes: if we had been in kelowna to play at the lake, the location could have been more ideal and i didn't have a chance to check out the pool.
3. ate at Merritt's Coldwater Hotel on the way home. the building is so completely old west. it was built in 1908, but the original balconies and clapboard siding (restored in 1986) look more movie-set historic than historically preserved. as for the food, both chris & angela enjoyed their chicken caesar wraps, and i enjoyed my "killer fries" - though the BLT had a sickly sweet taste that i didn't really care for.