VANCOUVER

Vancouver CULTURE

There has been an increasing variety of people coming to live in Vancouver during the past few decades, and the resulting mixture has been exhilarating.  Immigrants from Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan, Vietnam and the Philippines in Asia, from Ethiopia, South Africa and Nigeria in Africa, from the US, from many countries in Europe and from Australasia have transformed the city.  Little neighbourhoods with a concentration of people from one culture keep popping up.  Most of the world is represented by restaurants offering international cuisine and shops selling souvenirs and objets d'art.

Vancouver's temperate climate and proximity to nature encourage residents to take off in their pleasure craft, hike or  ski the slopes and play tennis and golf whenever possible.  For those who like to watch, the BC Lions football team, the Canucks hockey team, and the Canadians baseball team provide alternative excitement.

Vancouver's theatre scene is unpredictable.  Smash hits on Broadway do not always translate into successes here, while local plays sometimes become big hits.  Dance, once popular, is now in eclipse, although new shows do sometimes pop up.

The Vancouver Opera Association seems to have most success with such popular classics a s Carmen and Rigoletto, featuring visiting guest stars.  Such megastars as Pavarotti, however, appear mostly in concert, rather that in local productions.

The Vancouver Symphony is suffering under financial difficulties, but much promise is seen in its new Romanian musical director, Sergiu Commisiona.

The local rock scene is volcanically vigorous, with numerous small groups clamouring for the spotlight.  Jazz burns warmly in a few places, including Cafe Django and the Alma Street Cafe.

At the Vancouver Art Gallery, the stately old architecture and the often wild modern art are a powerful mix.

Vancouver also boasts a great public library system and more book stores per capita than any other Canadian city.

GEOGRAPHY            Pages 10,11

The BC motto, Splendour Sine Occasu, which means 'splendour undiminished' , is almost an understatement.  Canada's most westerly province comprises 950,000 square kilometres of remarkably diverse seascapes and landforms - solitary beaches, quiet coves, primeval rainforests, spectacular fiords, snow-capped ranges, tundra, alpine meadows, glacial lakes, pristine waterfalls, raging rivers and gentle, thermal springs, verdant valleys, plains and deserts.

Each day the sun sets over 6,50islands, offshore from a rugged 12,000km coastline indented by deep inlets.  The magnificent Coat Mountains tower  rank after rank in a  northwest to southeast alignment.  Eastward a broad plateau of rolling range land, mantled with moraines and other glacial deposits, stretches towards the thrusting snowy geographical continuation of the prairies. 

The Fraser, Skeena, Nass, Stikine, Peace and Columbia rivers weave a web of routes and barriers throughout the province.  The earth varies from the silty soil of the Fraser delta and the Okanagan Valley to the barren, lichen-covered lava fields of Terrace.  Subterranean volcanic activity produces thermal springs at Harrison, Khalycon, Radium and Fairmont, which are open to the public for warm mineral baths.

Precipitation varies with topography from the permanently damp rainforests of the Queen Charlotte Islands and frequent snowfalls of Mount Robson, the highest peak in the Rockies, to the sunny arid Osoyoos desert with its cactuses, tumbleweed, sagebrush, lizards and rattlesnakes.

Despite BC's vast and varied geography, man has made most areas accessible.  A network of paved highways and railway track covers the countryside.  The BC ferry fleet, the largest in the world, serves the islands and coastal towns, while in summer luxury liners cruise to and from Alaska along the Inside Passage.   
International airports at Vancouver,  350 other airfields and landing strips, and 100 seaplane bases permit access to remote regions.

Although timber, mining, agriculture and fishing all contribute to provincial coffers, tourism brings in the most revenue.  The visitors, who are mostly other Canadians, Americans and Japanese, stay longer on average in BC than anywhere else in the country.  What Nature has created, mankind has complemented with almost every conceivable recreational facility, resulting in a remarkable playground, especially in summer.  More than 300 land parks and 32 marine parks offer wilderness varying form the 30 alpine lakes and five glaciers of Kokanee Glacier Provincial Park to the colourful underwater world of anemones, abalone and other aquatic creatures sought out by scuba divers along the coast.

In a vibrant city like Vancouver, some people work on Friday, ski on Saturday and sail on Sunday.  There is also the possibility of the best in opera, art, theatre, music and cinema on a Saturday evening.  As the pulse of the province and centre of commerce and industry, and with its spectacular sea and mountain setting rivalling Hong Kong and Capetown, Vancouver offers just about everything an urbanite could ask for.

BC is a complexity of cultures.  The climate is kind in Vancouver.  Resources are abundant.  Yet most of the wilderness remains wilderness.

HISTORY                      Pages 6,7
                                                                                              

June 13, 1792
Captain George Vancouver, exploring the Pacific Coast of North America, enters a body of water he names Burrard's Channel.  Today, known as Burrard Inlet, it is the busy Vancouver harbour.

July 2, 1808
Simon Fraser, seeking fur-trading routes, arrives at Musqueam at the mouth of the Fraser River, where the native people chase him and his men back upstream.

1846
After a long territorial dispute, a treaty is signed by Britain and the US placing BC  firmly in Canada.  

August 2, 1858
Following the discovery of gold on the Fraser River, American miners begin to pour in.  The British Parliament passes an act establishing the mainland colony of Vancouver Island already exists.

November 25, 1858
Colonel Richard Moody arrives with a company of  'sappers' (soldier engineers) and begins building roads.
The first road built still exists, as North Road, now the boundary between the Vancouver suburbs of Burnaby and Coquitlam.

September 26, 1862
The McCleery family become the first settlers in Vancouver when they occupy land on the north bank of the Fraser on what is now McCleery Golf Course.

October 1862
Three new arrivals from England, John Morton, Samuel Brighouse and William Hailstone file a claim on 500 acres on Burrard Inlet.  The land is empty swampy forest, so other colonists laughingly call them  'The Three Greenhorns'.  Today that land, the city's apartment-crammed West End, is worth billions.

June 1863
A sawmill, the first industry in the area, is established on the north shore of Burrard Inlet.

September 30, 1867
'Gassy'  Jack Deighton, so nicknamed because he talked incessantly, builds a saloon in 24 hours with the help of thirsty sawmill workers.  The area around his saloon becomes known as Gastown.

1869-70
Gastown gets a jail....and the name Granville.

July 20, 1871
BC joins the Confederation of Canada, formed in 1867.

April 6, 1886
The City of Vancouver, renamed from Granville, is incorporated.

June 13, 1886
The Great Fire destroys most buildings in the new little city, and 20 people die.  Rebuilding begins at once.

May 23, 1887
The first Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR) passenger train arrives in Vancouver, Vancouver's growth begins to accelerate.

1902
Vancouver's population reaches 30,000.  Charles Woodward opens a department store, still active today.

1904
The Great Northern Railway reaches Vancouver.

1908
The University of  BC is founded, which today has 30,000 students.

1913
The World Building is completed, the tallest in the British Empire at the time.  Today known as the Old Sun Tower, it looks rather modest.

August 28, 1915
The first Canadian Northern pacific Railway train arrives in Vancouver.  Later, the line becomes known as the Canadian National Railway (CNR).

November 1, 1919
The CNR Station opens.  Today it is the terminal for VIA Rail.

January 1, 1929
On amalgamation with two adjacent municipalities, Vancouver's population jumps to 240,000;  Canada's third-largest city.

July 22, 1931
Vancouver Airport and Seaplane Harbour officially opens.

December 4, 1936
Vancouver's City Hall opens.

May 25, 1939
The third, and present, Hotel Vancouver opens on its present site, just a few days before King George VI and Queen Elizabeth stay in the royal suite.  The city names its newest park Queen Elizabeth Park.

August 6, 1940
Theatre Under The Stars begins in Stanley Park, and becomes a much-loved tradition.

October 9, 1944
The St Roch, a vessel operated by the RCMP, arrives back in Vancouver from Halifax, having gone through the Northwest Passage in both directions.  Shortly thereafter the St Roch sails through the Panama Canal, becoming the first ship to circumnavigate North America.

July 15,1959
Queen Elizabeth and Prince Philip officiate at the opening of the Deas Island Tunnel, now called the Massey Tunnel.

April 27, 1965
Yokohama, Japan, becomes a sister city to Vancouver.

September 10, 1965
Simon Fraser University opens.

1986
EXPO 86, marking Vancouver's centennial, attracts 21 million visitors during six months and puts Vancouver in the spotlight around the world.

FINDING YOUR FEET          Pages 14 - 17

WHAT TO BRING

Vancouver has become such a meeting ground of east and west and of business and sports, that almost any wardrobe is acceptable on any occasion.  Some women wear fox fur jackets and sandals to the office, while others wear parkas and running shoes.  Shorts for both sexes are acceptable leisure wear in summer, but a sweater is often welcome after the sun sets over the Pacific.  An umbrella, raincoat and water-resistant footwear can be useful any time of the year, but more so in winter.  Layered clothes are practical for venturing up the North Shore mountains or for boating.  Don't worry if you haven't brought everything you need, for practically everything is sold here.  Clothes are generally more expensive than in the US, but less expensive than in Europe.

WEATHER

If grey skies and wet weather bother you, it is better to gamble on the drier and sunnier summer.  From November through March, it is often dark and rainy.  About 250mm of rain drenches Vancouver in December, compared to 50mm in July.  The thermometer hovers around 24 degrees celsius in July and around 6 degrees celsius in December.  Vancouver snows tend to be light and melt quickly.  Winter rain downtown often means snow on the nearby mountains, so skiers can ski all day and evening and still get back downtown for a nightcap.  Cool Pacific breezes make seashore strolls pleasant in summer.  There is less smog than there used to be, now that wood and coal no longer heat homes, but an occasional patch of fog can slow drivers down in autumn.  Although a less drastic version of Los Angeles smog lays a thin beige blanket over the city, most visitors find the air refreshing.

DRIVING AND PARKING

More than 80 per cent of the travellers in BC are motorists.  Driving is always on the right, with passing on the left.  The use of seatbelts is mandatory.  Right turns are permitted on red lights, after the vehicle has  come to a full stop.  City streets, freeways and country roads are well maintained.

Vancouver is becoming more crowded.  Rush hour seems to be getting longer and parking downtown more challenging.  Many parking meters are restricted during rush hours.  There are plenty of big parking lots indoors and out, but on busy days it may take a while to find a space.  To Europeans, Vancouver drivers may seem almost archaically sedate, Victorians even more so, although driving manners seem to be deteriorating.

LOCAL CUSTOMS

Vancouver is an orderly city.  People usually queue patiently at bus stops and taxi stands.  Pedestrians usually cross at crossings, as they have the right of way at intersections.  Drivers rarely honk their horns, even when the traffic is reminiscent of downtown Bangkok at rush hour; it is a ticketable offence.

Canadian couples are used to sleeping in double beds, but many rooms have two beds for the asking.  Vancouverites usually eat salads before the main course, and west coast salads with edible flower blossoms and wild grasses are currently in vogue.  Although tastings indicate that BC produces some excellent wines, Vancouverites tend to order imported ones in restaurants.  Smoking on the street, once considered bad form, is now common, as most office buildings do not permit smoking, even in lounge areas.

Some of the dour Scots who once settled this area have left a legacy of appearing unapproachable - or maybe it's a remnant of the Wild West, where any stranger was subject to suspicion.  unlike their Seattle cousins, Vancouverites seem reluctant to be the first to say hello, although they usually respond well to friendly people.  Although Vancouverites pretend to be puritan at times, the doorman at almost every downtown hotel will accept a $5 tip and keep your car near by for you at no additional charge.

Vancouverites tend to tell other Canadians that it rains all the time here, so that they won't feel so bad about suffering through cold snowy winters, only to be bitten by the mammoth mosquitoes of springtime.  On the quiet, most residents of Vancouver admit their city is one of the most beautiful in the world.  Few venture into the great outdoors during the dark rainy days of winter, while others jog compulsively right through thunderstorms without losing pace.  In the rain, it's a little easier to distinguish the locals; they're usually the ones without umbrellas.

Many visitors find the great patches of wilderness in Greater Vancouver more than adequate for a short visit.  But travellers seeking solitude may want to head into the hinterland, where the people are friendlier and Nature's creations are unspoiled.

GEOLOGICAL PAST      Pages 8,9

About 130 million years ago, a gigantic upheaval in the earth's crust created the majestic Coast Mountains, the beginning of present-day BC.  Sixty-five million years ago, further movements brought forth the Rocky Mountains, and 40 million years later, Cascadia, the Atlantis of the Pacific, sank offshore, leaving Vancouver Island and the Queen Charlotte Islands above sea level.  A mere million years ago, most of BC was covered with a blanket of ice 2,500m thick, which slowly began to recede 70,000 years later.

North to south, as the crow flies, Vancouver's terrain runs from mountains down to Burrard Inlet and the low rolling slopes of the city centre, and beyond to the flat fertile delta of the Fraser River, which branches into two arms to greet the sea.  Immediately south of the delta lies the American border and Washington State.

It all looks fairly solid, bit is actually slowly changing.  Vancouverites received a reminder that the earth is alive in 1980, when Mount St Helens in Washington erupted and spewed a film of fine ash over the city.  One of Vancouver's most famous landmarks, Siwash Rock in Stanley Park, is the uneroded remnant of a small volcano within the city limits, and black volcanic rock underpins nearby Prospect Point.  Volcanic rock was quarried for road material out of the city highpoint that today is Queen Elizabeth Park.  Mount Garibaldi, a short drive east, was an active volcano 1,000 years ago.

Indian poet Pauline Johnson, whose ashes were scattered over Siwash Rock, named Lost Lagoon, in Stanley Park, because it used to vanish at low tide, before it was closed in by man.

Nature is continually busy creating, shaping, destroying and displacing, usually at a pace too gentle for mere mortals to detect.  At one time a thick layer of ice pressed down over the city; its retreat about 10,000 years ago left the vast and visually delightful panorama of mountains, canyons, fiords, rivers and swamps.  Without the weight of the ice, the land lifted, and layers of marine shells have been found several hundred meters above sea-level.

All Fraser River delta land west of New Westminister developed after the ice retreated, and alluvial soils continue to create several metres of new real estate ere every year.

A century ago, workers extending Granville Street unearthed ancient tools, weapons and ornaments in the Marpole Midden, the largest of its kind discovered in North America to that date.

A similar midden in Stanley Park provided so many seashells, emptied and discarded by hungry native Indian residents, that park roads were once paved with them.

Constant landslides on to mountain roads are a regular reminder that geological processes work without pause.  Vancouver has even had several minor earthquakes.  One in 1946 registered 7.3 at the epicentre, which was fortunately some distance north.  But buildings rocked, windows broke and the big clock on the Vancouver Block stopped.  Seismologists say Vancouver and environs are very likely to feel the impact of  'The Big One' , if and when it comes, although no one will mind if it fails to happen.

GASTOWN           

Gastown, a five-minute hike from the city centre, is the oldest part of Vancouver.  The area was designated a heritage site in 1971.  Old gas-style lamps and young maple trees line cobblestoned Water Street, whose three blocks comprise the heart of Gastown.   

Allow at least 2 hours.

Begin this tour at the corner of Richards and Water streets.  head east on the north side  of Water Street.

1.  THE LANDING

The first stop, The Landing, is an award-winning heritage structure containing a dozen elegant shops clustered around a central lobby, whose arched floor-to-ceiling window frames the North Shore mountains.  A shiny escalator leads from one polished oak floor to the other.  Head to the lower level, pick up a local newspaper or the New York Times at the Fleet Street news-stand and savour a cappuccino and muffin, a good melange of America and Europe, at the adjacent L'Express cafe or the 1950s-style diner at the east end of the building.

Landmark shops sell Scottish tartans, Belgian chocolates, Japanese lingerie, cut and potted flowers, Canadian winter clothes, gold jewellery handcrafted on site, designer clothes and toys for children, embroidered Victoria cushions, maple wood salad bowls and smoked salmon packed for shipping.

Continue along Water Street.

2.  INUIT GALLERY

Water Street is lined with dozens of shops selling everything from souvenir sweatshirts to art deco furniture.  The most exciting stop is the Inuit Gallery, a few doors east of  The Landing which houses an impressive array of Inuit sculpture and north west native art.  The so-called naive art recalls the way Inuit families used to live in harmony with their harsh land, expressed in soapstone and whalebone sculptures.  The shop also sells northwest native Canadian cedar carvings, buttoned blankets and ceremonial masks.

The delightful steam clock is a notable landmark along Gastown's Water Street. 

A little further along on the left is the steam clock.

3.  STEAM CLOCK

Dedicated to the citizens of Vancouver in 1977, the steam clock was built by Gillett & Johnston of Croydon, England.  The movement was based on an 1875 vintage design and has a 19kg gold-plated pendulum.  A machine in a nearby basement is triggered by the clockwork every 15 minutes and little pins play a Westminster Chimes tune which electronically blows the steam whistles.  The steam manifold for the five whistles sits on top of the cube housing the four dials, each highlighted by four enamelled copper dogwood flowers.  A 24-carat gold-plated frame surrounds the dials which glow at night.

Continue along Water Street.

4.  THE COURTYARD

In the next block meander through The Courtyard where Vancouver architects, tour operators and lawyers work behind huge glass windows.  The outdoor cafe and delicatessen up the stairs provides a pleasant pause and a view across the harbour.

At the end of Water Street turn right into Carrall Street.

5.  MAPLE TREE SQUARE

In Maple Tree Square stands the statue of  'Grassy'  Jack Deighton, a garrulous Yorkshireman who built a saloon for lumber mill workers on the site of the Broghes building behind in 1867.  The building is made with bricks from China used as ballast on sailing ships calling for timber at the Hastings Mill.  Deighton, who had arrived in Vancouver with his wife, six dollars, a few sticks of furniture and a yellow dog, was an overnight success.  Because he was so talkative and optimistic about prospects for Burrard Inlet, locals called him  'Gassy Jack,'  and the ramshackle collection of huts and shops surrounding the saloon was dubbed Gastown.  The name stayed, although the city grew westward and changed its name to Vancouver.  Jack's statue faces the old Europe Hotel, a good example of the renovated Victorian buildings in Gastown.

Turn west through the Gaoler's Mews.

6.  GAOLER'S MEWS

This cobblestoned courtyard is where Vancouver's first gaol once stood.  A little further along, Blood Alley marks the site of many dastardly deeds during the settlement of the Wild West.

The south side of Water Street is also lined with shops and restaurants.  Water Street restaurants cover the cuisines of Italy, France, Kenya, India and America.  One of the best stops for lunch is Umberto's Al Porto, whose downstairs replicates a Tuscan farmhouse and whose upstairs provides a panoramic sweep of rail cars carrying Canadian wheat and containers, backdropped by helicopters landing at the heliport in front and the Sea Bus shuttling back and forth to North Vancouver.

Return along Water Street to The Landing.

CHINATOWN

Vancouver's Chinatown, the second largest in North America (at present) after San Francisco, crams a lot of life into six city blocks, a 10-minute walk from city centre.

Allow 2 hours for walking and another hour for dim sum.

Begin this tour at the southwest corner of Carrall and Pender streets.

1.  SAM KEE BUILDING

The Sam Kee Building is the narrowest building in the world (1.8m by 30m), and is listed in the Guinness Book of Records.  The two-storey building, once living quarters for a Chinese family, is now home to Jack Chow Insurance and a group of architects upstairs who own the building.

2.  CHINESE CULTURAL CENTRE

In the nest block east, the Chinese Cultural Centre, marked by an enormous red gateway, houses a library and rooms for language lessons, tai chi, Chinese painting, lantern making and frequently changing exhibits of Oriental and Canadian art.

Behind the CCC lies the Dr Sun Yat-sen Park and Garden.

3.  DR SUN YAT-SEN PARK AND GARDEN

High whitewashed walls hide this pocket of peace from the bustling city beyond.  Modelled after the classic scholars gardens of the Ming Dynasty (1368 - 1644), the Taoist balance of yin and yang (light and shadow, smooth and rough, large and small) creates perfect harmony.  This quiet, secluded sanctuary shelters varied vistas of pebbled patios, moon gates, lattice windows, see-through shrubbery, placid milky-jade pools and craggy grey limestone.

Cross East Pender Street.

4.  EAST PENDER STREET

Across East Pender Street, the Wing Sang Building, housing the Yen Lock Restaurant, is the oldest structure in Chinatown, dating from 1889.

Both sides of Pender are lined with Mandarin, Cantonese and Szechwan restaurants, and shops selling such imported goods as wicker ware, parasols and porcelain, bamboo bird cages and jade jewellery.  Prices are reasonable, but browsers are welcome.  At the Chinese pharmacies, it is intriguing to watch the experts mixing potions of herbs, ginseng root, dried cuttlefish, powdered antler velvet and other exotic ingredients for infusions to alleviate everything from influenza to impotence.  Many westerners now take ginseng and royal jelly.

Continue east along East Pender Street.

5.  LITTLE JAPAN

At 173 East Pender, down a few stairs, is a cluster of small shops called Little Japan.  Kimono Corner artfully displays traditional Japanese clothing and noren (cotton door hangings).  The grocery store is highlighted by shelves of chocolate Pocky's, a hit with children from any country.  A restaurant serves sushi, teriyaki, soba and other specialities, along with take-out bento box lunches.  Another area displays Japanese pottery, porcelain, lacquer ware, cards and books.

Cross Main Street, still on East Pender Street, turn right on Gore Avenue, walk a block Keefer Street and turn right again.

6.  KEEFER STREET

Here the predominant aroma announces windows of Chinese pastries.  Most pastry shops have a room at the back for a tasty cup of tea and a snack (the coffee is usually mediocre).  On the south side of Keefer stands a shopping centre, with Hon's Wun-tun House (great soup and noodles for low prices; cash only, no alcohol) at street level.  The big supermarket in the basement is not nearly as much fun as street shopping.

Follow Keefer Street two blocks west back to the Dr Sun Yat-sen Park and Garden.

GRANVILLE ISLAND      

Granville Island is actually a peninsula.  Once a swampy tidal flat and later the industrial heart of Vancouver, these 15 hectares of land are now an urban oasis of parks and walkways and renovated warehouses, transformed into a successful combination of more than 200 commercial, cultural, recreational and industrial enterprises.

Allow about two hours plus extra time for more leisurely browsing and a meal.

Walk south from downtown for 10 minutes to the foot of Hornby Street or the Aquatic Centre and take the five-minute mini-ferry ride across False Creek.  There is complimentary three-hour parking for both cars and boats on the island.

Overlooking the ferry terminal are two Arts Club theatres.  Walk right between them to the Information Centre which has maps, a calendar of current events and other brochures, and offers an audio-visual presentation explaining the evolution of the area.

Northwest is the Public Market, well worth a stroll through, if only to enjoy the aroma of a great array of local and imported fruits and vegetables, fish and seafood, plants and flowers and fast food stands.  On the waterfront, a bevy of buskers, including colourful clowns and jugglers and sometimes mediocre musicians, entertain benches of visitors munching such market products as Vietnamese salad rolls and Italian lasagne.

Northwest of the market is a good place to watch the yachts and motor boats slip out to English Bay beyond.  The deck at Bridges Restaurant  (there may be a queue)  is a super spot to sit in the sun or watch the sunset.

Turn south into Duranleau Street.

2.  DURANLEAU STREET

Duranleau Street sports a series of maritime shops selling rugged outdoor wear, scuba gear, yacht fittings and other nautical wares.  Across the street, the Net Loft shelters a dozen shops, including Edie's Hats with a selection of stylish headgear; The Postcard Place; Paper Ya's which features handmade writing paper and other paper art from around the world; Mesa, where a weaver may be at work at the loom; and the Wickaninnish Gallery of native jewellery and sculptures.

Cross Anderson Street.

3.  GRANVILLE ISLAND BREWERY

Across Anderson Street, the Granville Island Brewery  produces a popular preservative-free light lager  (Bavarian-style pilsner)  and features free tastings every afternoon.

Cross over to Cartwright Street.

4.  CARTWRIGHT STREET

The Kids Only Market houses two dozen shops and activity areas, and a playcare centre for pre-schoolers.  Just beyond the Waterfront Theatre is the supervised summertime Water Park, where children douse each other with revolving water canons, while parents watch over a coffee or lunch at adjacent Isadora's, a co-operative, reasonably-priced restaurant which has a children's play area inside for rainy days.

The rest of Cartwright Street is lined with art studios. galleries and craft shops, and leads east to the Granville Island Hotel.

Continue east to the Granville Island Hotel and the Sea Village.

5.  SEA VILLAGE

On the north shore, near a big rusting crane overhead, is a fleet of floating homes, many with skylights and patios hidden with plants and flowers.  The Sea Village is a private residential complex, but walk part way down the ramp to see the colourful collection of rural mailboxes.

Continue along the boardwalk northwest to the Emily Carr College of Art & Design.

6.  EMILY CARR COLLEGE OF ART & DESIGN

Here, big windows reveal students at work.  Visitors are welcome to view the student art exhibits in the foyer.  Next door is the Ocean Cement factory, which somehow seems to belong and makes the area more interesting.  Beyond a few more craft shops along the shore is the ferry dock.

Active visitors can sign up for classes at the art studios, enjoy a reading from West Coast Psychics above the Arts Club Lounge, go parasailing over English Bay, or rent a one-or two-seater kayak to paddle up False Creek past the floating homes to the Science Centre.

Return to the ferry.

AREAS OF VANCOUVER       

Greater Vancouver is bounded by the North Shore mountains to the north, the Strait of Georgia to the west and the American border to the south.  As more people move to the city, the fertile farmlands of the Fraser Valley to the east are fast being replaced by suburban development.

DOWNTOWN VANCOUVER

In addition to the main business and shopping area, the city centre has several different sections.  Gastown, the renovated original part of the city, contains souvenir shops, restaurants and art galleries.  Robson Street has several blocks of upmarket shops and restaurants resembling Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills, California, Chinatown has a colourful collection of shops and restaurants especially lively at weekends.  Yaletown is an area of old warehouses, recently renovated to house restaurants, galleries and artists, architects and designers.

As a result of large-scale immigration, various ethnic enclaves have developed in Vancouver, and shops and restaurants have opened to cater to their tastes.  There are also a lot of East Indians along the southern end of Main Street, Greeks along West Broadway, Germans on Fraser Street, and Italians on Commercial Drive and around Hastings and Nanaimo streets.  There is a tiny Japantown on Powell Street and an equally small  French-language pocket on West 16th Avenue.

The city's economic watershed is often held to be Cambie Street.  To oversimplify, west of that north-south route live physicians, architects, business executives and college professors; east are sawmill workers, waitresses and factory workers.

KERRISDALE

Gentrification in recent years has polished the image of this neighbourhood, which is now smarter and shinier than Kitsilano to the North.

KITSILANO

Kitsilano, especially along West Fourth Avenue, was once a hotbed of the hippy era, with its pot smokers, tie-dyers, vegetarians, protesters and peaceniks.  It is still the most laid-back neighbourhood in town.

SHAUGHNESSY

In the wealthy neighbourhood, streets lined with towering trees curve around imposing mansions.  Shaughnessy was established by the Canadian Pacific Railway a century ago as a residential enclave for executives.  In the poorest section, in downtown eastside with Hastings and Carrall streets as its hub, a vigorous group of residents is fighting to improve conditions.

SUBURBIA

Nearly two dozen suburbs surround Vancouver.  Richmond, the site of the Vancouver International Airport, is a rapidly growing city to the south.  Surrey, a huge municipality on the south side of the Fraser River, is growing rapidly, partly due to the recent extension of the Sky Train rapid transit.  The southern part of Surrey is very attractive, with dairy farms dotted around the green rolling hills.

A quiet, high-income, no-industry residential area, West Vancouver is among the most agreeable suburbs.

ART IN PUBLIC PLACES            

Vancouver has a young but flourishing art scene, resulting in more and more interesting art in public places.

Begin at the Royal Bank of Canada at 1025 Georgia Street.

1.  ROYAL BANK OF CANADA

At the top of the escalator in the main lobby is the Ksan Mural, nine panels of glowing red cedar and outlined in red, black and turquoise to depict the exploits of the raven in native Canadian mythology.  It took six carvers three months to create this 35m - long masterpiece.  The carvers are from Ksan  (which means 'between the banks' ), a native village reconstructed near Hazelton, BC, on a site where native villages have existed for 7,000 years. 

Continue east along Georgia Street.

2.  CATHEDRAL PLACE

At Cathedral Place, 925 West Georgia, the next block east, take time to watch the tinkling brass pipes and fractured glass of  'Navigational Device'  respond to the movement of people present in the foyer.  This imposing sculpture, created by local artist Robert Studer, is based on a navigation aid found in the Queen Charlotte Islands.  The hieroglyphics etched on the glass resemble oriental language characters but are undecipherable.

One block east is the Hong Kong Bank of Canada.

3.  HONG KONG BANK OF CANADA

The next stop is the Hong Kong Bank of Canada at 885 West Georgia, one block east.  The impulse to duck is almost irresistible as the 30m-long shining pendulum swings smoothly through the air just 4m overhead.  Suspended 30m above the atrium floor, the buttress aluminium column blends briefly with a matching buttress on the floor before reversing its swing.  The pendulum, sculpted by British Columbian Alan Storey, seems to form the workings of some wonderful stylised clock.  The atrium cafe (smoking not permitted) is a pleasant place to enjoy a cappuccino and the soothing hypnotic rhythm of the giant pendulum.

Right across the street is a fabulous fountain, framed by the elegant columns and sweeping steps of the Vancouver Art gallery, designed as a courthouse in 1907 by Victoria architect Francis Rattenbury.  The fountain was built in 1966 to commemorate the union of the crown colonies of BC and Vancouver Island.  A vivid mosaic of blue, turquoise, gold and green forms a wave-like pattern in the pool around a column of rough-hewn rock.

Walk five blocks north on Howe Street.

4.  PAN PACIFIC VANCOUVER HOTEL

The public rooms of this waterfront hotel, at 999 Canada Place Way, house a rich diversity of watercolours, oil paintings and prints.  In the lobby, a 3m-high vellum map celebrates the third  (1790) and final voyage of Captain Cook to Vancouver.  A series of whale sculptures overlook the reception desk, and elsewhere flamboyant abstracts, bright still lifes and glorious landscapes share wall space with antique saris, northwest native art, antique maps and etchings.

Walk along the waterfront to Burrard Street, then south to Hastings Street.

5.  PARK PLACE

Park Place, a glowing pink glass highrise at 999 Hastings Street, features a colourful collage of tactile woven strips echoing the busy Vancouver harbour scene with water, boats, buildings and mountains.  Across Burrard Street stands the Marine Building, which was constructed on the eve of the Great Depression at the then-stupendous cost of $2.5 million.  For a decade, this art deco structure was the tallest building in the British Commonwealth.  Intricate art inside and out emphasises marine transportation.  Terracotta insets on the facade depict trains, planes and zeppelins.  Brass strippings of such marine creatures as seahorses and octopuses frame the doors.  Lobby walls in sea green and gold feature ship prows jutting out, waves billowing beneath and full sails above.  On a sunny day, light filters through a stained-glass fanlight to illuminate a marble mosaic of the zodiac on the lobby floor.

Continue south along Burrard Street to the start of the walk.

TROLLEY TOUR                  Pages 32,33

The Trolley Tour is the best preview of Vancouver's varied attractions.  The four bright red and gold non-polluting gas-operated trolleys, decorated in oak and brass, are replicas from the 1890s.  You may jump off and explore at any of the 17 stops and then catch the next trolley.

Allow at least 2 hours.

The tour begins in historic Gastown at the two-tonne

STEAM CLOCK,

which operates on steam generated from the heating system of a nearby building.  The clock whistles every quarter hour and spews out wreaths of steam on the hour.  The trolley travels northwest along cobblestoned Water Street past the old CPR Station, now the SeaBus terminal, to the soaring canvas sails of  
 
CANADA PLACE,

The city convention centre and cruise ship berth for some of the most luxurious craft in the world.  The next stop is

TOURISM VANCOUVER,

to stock up on brochures about local attractions and events.  The tour wheels past the

VANCOUVER ART GALLERY,

in Hornby Street, the elegant restaurants and boutiques of

ROBSON STREET,

and then follows

GEORGIA STREET,

west to watch gaggles of Canada geese preening on grassy lawns and float planes skimming forests of masts in the marina as they take off for Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast.
Stanley Park, which juts out into English Bay, has three stops.  At the

AQUARIUM,

Canada's largest, there are orcas, belugas, otters and other aquatic residents.

The next stop is the

TOTEM POLES,

a stunning array of native carvings, backdropped by a breathtaking view across the four floating fuel stations of Coal Harbour to Canada Place.  The last park stop is the

ROSE GARDEN,

near Georgia Street, with 300 species of roses, many prized for their perfume and colour. The trolley heads southwest through the densely-populated West End, a cluster of skyscrapers looking across

ENGLISH BAY,

and Georgia Strait to where the sun sets on the mountains of Vancouver Island.  The route crosses the Burrard Street Bridge to the star-studded Planetarium and  the

VANCOUVER MUSEUM,

in Chestnut Street, housing a huge array of artefacts which illustrate the settlement of the West Coast.

GRANVILLE ISLAND,

once decaying warehouses, has now been transformed into an area of theatres, art galleries, shops, restaurants, waterside walkways and a huge indoor market, featuring everything from fudge and fine art to fortune tellers.

The next stop is

QUEEN ELIZABETH PARK,

formerly two stone quarries but now attractive colourful gardens, a popular venue for local weddings.  Little Mountain  (152m), in the middle of the park, is the highest point in the city.
Heading downtown again, the trolley pauses at

CITY HALL,

an art deco building surrounded by woods and swamp when it was built in 1936.
The next stop is

BC PLACE STADIUM,

reminiscent of a gigantic marshmallow, which sports one of the world's largest air-supported domed roofs. 

The next stop is in

CHINATOWN, 

the trolley passes outdoor displays of exotic fruits and vegetables and shop windows crowded with rattan, bamboo and brass. Golden dragons top streetlight lanterns, pagoda roofs cap phone booths and street signs are in both English and Cantonese.

The last stop is

SCIENCE WORLD, 

a sparkling silvered 17-storey geodesic sphere built for EXPO 86, which is a hands-on science museum with changing exhibits and one of the largest  OMNIMAX  theatres in the world.
The tour ends back at the steam clock in Gastown.

PACIFIC SPIRIT PARK

A walk in the wild woods on the edge of the city offers patches of ocean framed by red cedars where squirrels scuffle through the underbrush, birds sing and serenity is all around - just a few of the pleasures of Pacific Spirit Park.  Park personnel working on the trails are also helpful. 

Allow about 2 hours, plus time for birdwatching.

Begin at Chancellor Boulevard, where the extra lane for parking begins, just beyond the Pacific Spirit Park sign.  Start on the Pioneer Trail, then follow the first right to the Spanish Trail, which meanders through the woods to Spanish Banks beach or loops back on to the Pioneer Trail to the entrance.

The Pioneer and Spanish trail loop, which is about 2km long, can be muddy in sections, but this is to be expected in a rainforest.  The Spanish Trail heads north into tall trees and undergrowth and for a while parallels the south edge of a tree-choked ravine.  A few metres off the trail, walkers can peer down into its leafy depths.

Just a few minutes into this forest, traffic sounds fade, sunlight filters through branches overhead, and the aroma of earth and cedar fills the air.  Lush ferns, salal. holly and salmon-berry bushes line the trails.  Spiders' webs glisten and mushrooms cluster on fallen trunks.  An occasional woodpecker drums on rotting trees, and tiny wrens and juncos flit about.  A chipmunk scurries down a Douglas fir and sometimes frogs serenade.  Although racoons, weasels, skunks, otters and foxes make their homes in the undergrowth, they are usually shy when people are around.

Where the trail slopes down sharply and becomes rougher, it soon divides.  The Spanish Trail heads steeply down-hill and north to Spanish Banks beach, soon visible through the trees.  The Pioneer Trail turns west, through a wooden gate.

Climb over a fallen tree trunk to an open glade called the Plains of Abraham.  At the turn of the century, a John Stewart ran a dairy farm here, but the once visible foundations have now become over-grown with fireweed and blackberry bushes.  A sign to the southwest indicates the Pioneer Trail, the corduroy road built by Stewart so he could haul his milk to market.

For a longer walk, cross the western edge of the clearing and follow the winding trail north to the cliff edge, where it swings west to parallel the cliff tops and provide views of Burrard Inlet and the North Shore Mountains.  The trail eventually ends at a clearing on North West Marine drive across fro the beach.  Any blue herons flying overhead are probably returning to their homes hidden in these woods.

Some 34 trails meander 53km thorough Pacific Spirit Park.  All that is needed is a map and a reasonable sense of  direction.

Several trails begin across from the park information office.  Many are popular with dog walkers, horseback riders, joggers, hikers and mountain bikers.  Film makers occasionally adapt the park for sets, varying fro the Amazon jungle to rural Pennsylvania.

WHAT TO SEE

Vancouver, commonly called the Gateway to the Pacific, is almost entirely surrounded by water.  To the  north is Burrard Inlet, an ice-free harbour where freighters fly flags from many nations.  To the south, the Fraser River flows west into the Strait of Georgia, which separates Vancouver and the rest of the mainland from Vancouver Island.  As a prairie farmer remarked,  ' Vancouver would be great, if the view wasn't blocked by the mountains.'  The sheltering ranges attract grey clouds that shower the city with 140cm of rain a year, resulting in fresh air and lush green landscapes.  The clouds frost the peaks with snow for city skiing five months a year.

Metropolitan Vancouver covers 3,000sq km, including the suburbs of North Vancouver, West Vancouver, Burnaby, Coquitlam, port Coquitlam, Port Moody, Pitt Meadows, Richmond, White Rock, Delta, and New Westminster, Surrey and Langley.

Although Vancouver is Canada's third largest centre  (after Toronto and Montreal ), the many waterways, mountains and parks lend the illusion of space.

While the past has been largely the story of seeking and selling natural resources, new industries are emerging.  Skills now produce sightseeing submarines, software and data terminal designs.

A growing tourism industry draws some visitors back as residents.  Hotels continue to spring up in a city centre of skyscrapers.  Well-developed facilities and roadways allow visitors and residents to ski in the morning, sail in the afternoon and enjoy opera in the evening.  Even business seems a sport in this city, which has one of the most speculative stock markets in the world.

Most people come to Vancouver for the scenery, so first select one of its many vantage points for an overview of the city.

People who like to keep their feet firmly planted on the ground may prefer to scroll along the promenade deck at Canada Place, a good orientation spot.  With its five white sails jetting out into the harbour, this city landmark features a dozen markers indicating sites of interest around the city.

You can also enjoy spectacular views from the air or from downtown city buildings.

AERIAL SIGHTSEEING

Harbour Air, BC's largest seaplane company, packages seven tours, varying from a half-hour flight over the city centre to a six-hour round-trip to Vancouver Island which includes stops at Victoria and Butchart Gardens.
Tel:  688 - 1277

Pegasus Ballooning Ltd offers the ultimate romantic adventure-aloft with the breeze over the verdant Fraser Valley, followed by a traditional champagne celebration upon landing.
Tel:  531 - 3400

Vancouver Helicopters offers scenic city and wilderness tours, departing from downtown and Grouse Mountain.  Options range from a 20-minute stopover on a glacier.
455 Commissioner Street.  Tel:  683 - HELI.

BIRD'S EYE VIEWPOINTS

CLOUD NINE

The Price of a meal or a drink at the 42-storey Sheraton Landmark Hotel, includes a 360-degree view of Vancouver.
1400 Robson Street.  Tel:  687 - 0511

HARBOUR CENTRE

The glass elevators on the south side of Harbour Centre rise 167m to The Lookout! cafeteria, revolving restaurant and viewing deck, which features a 12-minute slide show about the city.
555 West Hastings Street.  Tel:  689 - 0421
Open:  Daily 9am - 10pm.  Admission charge.

VISTAS ON THE BAY

Gourmets of both food and scenery love the revolving Vistas restaurant at the top of the Ramada Renaissance Hotel.
1133 West Hastings Street.  Tel:  689 - 9211
Viewing free.

PASSPORT'S ILLUSTRATED TRAVEL GUIDE TO VANCOUVER & BRITISH COLUMBIA       (BOOK)

A BOAT RIDE ON A BUS           Pages 34,35

The Sea Bus runs every 15 minutes from 06.00 - 18.00hrs and at half-hour intervals during the evening; reservations not required.  The crossing takes about 15 minutes.

Allow 2 hours.

Start this tour at the Sea Bus Terminal, located at the north end of Granville Street.

1.  SEA BUS TERMINAL

Tall creamy pillars mark the entrance to this classic old brick building.  The beautifully renovated interior of the terminal showcases a series of paintings from 1916 of the Rocky Mountains, looking down on a large lobby surrounded by several shops, fast-food stops and coffee bars.

Pause briefly on the overhead ramp en route to the Sea Bus for the rails. as trains load and unload.  Then board the Sea Bus to watch rail cars being shunted ahead and back over the shining rails, as trains load and unload.  Then board the Sea Bus for the sail across the inner harbour.  The original ferry that linked Vancouver with the North Shore in 1900 took considerably longer.  The Sea Buses, appropriately named the SS Beaver and the SS Otter, have no outside decks, but the windows provide a maritime pastiche of freighters with many foreign flags, luxury cruise ships sailing to and from Alaska, a variety of smaller pleasure craft, and float planes taking off and landing.

North looms the imposing majesty of the Coast Range, west the forest green peninsula of Stanley Park and the Lions Gate Bridge.  Southward stand the shining sails of Canada.  Place and the mirrored highrises of downtown, in sharp contrast with an eastward-stretching line of old buildings huddled along the waterfront.  
At night the dark waters reflect the city lights.

After disembarking on the North Shore, turn right to Lonsdale Quay.

2.  LONSDALE QUAY

The ground floor of this airy glass and steel structure, right at the water's edge, features a public market with a colourful assortment of local and imported fruit and vegetables, meat and fish, breads and pastries, cut and dried glowers and potted plants.  Inexpensive fast-food restaurants serve everything for Italian pizza to Vietnamese salad rolls.  A snack, a coffee or a cold drink on the outside deck includes the stunning harbour view at now extra charge.  The second level has a charming collection of gift shops and boutiques, while the third level is the entrance to the Lonsdale Quay Hotel.  West fro the Quay and the Sea Bus Terminal lies Waterfront Park.

3.  WATERFRONT PARK

A leisurely stroll along the meandering, wide paved walkway takes about half an hour.  Along the seawall, signs identify prominent downtown buildings.  A short wooden pier with a covered  (it does rain here occasionaly1)  observation deck and benches juts out over the water.  During the short months of summer, musical concerts are held her on many Sunday afternoons and, at other times local clubs enjoy kite-flying, square dancing, vintage car shows and native Pow-wows.  A noticeboard at the west end of the park lists events, dates and times.

Beside the walkway stands a huge series of irregular, separate steel arches spanning a shrub-covered gully, a modernistic sculpture entitled Cathedral by artist Douglas Senft.  A little further west, an elegant stylised sundial dominates Sailor's Point Plaza.  The base of the sculpture contains tiny sketches of sunken ships.  The plaza is dedicated to people who have lost their lives a t sea in both peace and wartime.  A plaque on the plaza celebrates Captain George Vancouver, the European who discovered and named Burrard Inlet.

Before heading back, peak through the windows of the pacific Marine Training Institute, to see the assembly of boats, ropes, outboard engines and other nautical devices used by modern mariners in training.

BEACHES                  

Lovers of BC's wild rainforest say nothing compares with a wintry day walk along a misty, deserted beach with waterproof boots, a broad umbrella and a frisky dog.

On New Year's Day in Vancouver, however, around 2,000 locals dash into English Bay for the Polar Bear Swim.  No one lingers long; they dress quickly and head indoors to recuperate from the chilling waters.

But summer is another story.  Beaches become crowded with swimmers, sand-castle builders, frisbee players, windsurfers, kite flyers and sunseekers who want to do exactly nothing.  An occasional canine slips in without permission, and squirrels sometimes appear hoping for handouts.  Especially towards sunset, an entrepreneur with a metal detector in hand may sift the sands hoping for hidden treasures.

Although many people bring picnics, alcohol is not allowed; but it is rumoured that every now and then a thermos brings in wine masquerading as Kool-Aid.

There are sandy shores, gravel shores and pebble shores.  English Bay's Sunset Beach is ribboned with gigantic trunks from rainforest trees that have escaped from log booms, a reminder that timber is an important industry here.  The logs are great for leaning on, and they provide some privacy.  Some are big enough for a single sunbather to stretch right out on top.

Although the sun is tempered by refreshing offshore breezes, it's wise to wear a strong sunscreen for protection against the direct rays and those reflected off the sea and sand.

West Vancouver's Ambleside Beach is one of the few city beaches to permit campfires.  It's wonderful to roast hot dogs and marshmallows around a flickering fire as the Lions Gate Bridge lights up and the sailboats and freighters and the sunset fade into the darkening evening sky over English Bay.

Although beachcombing is a pleasure pastime come rain or shine in winter, Vancouver beaches are at their best in summer.  From Victoria Day to Labour Day, lifeguards supervise the city's 10 swimming beaches from 11:30am to 9:00pm.  There is no admission charge to the beaches, and changing rooms, toilets and refreshment stands are found in many convenient locations.

ENGLISH BAY
Fifteen minutes form downtown Vancouver, English Bay sports several fine beaches.

KITSILANO BEACH
This beach has a heated outdoor saltwater pool overlooking that great unheated pool, English Bay.  Nearby Jericho Beach, Locarno Beach and Spanish Banks are favourites with windsurfers.  There is adequate parking, and food stalls and picnic tables are scattered along the beach.
(Southwest of the Burrard Street Bridge)

SECOND BEACH
This beach features a tidal saltwater pool which protects children from the currents, and there are areas for picnics and barbecues and for playing soccer, football, volleyball and baseball.
(In Stanley Park, north of Sunset Beach)

SUNSET BEACH
At this beach, the closest to downtown, summer sunsets are glorious.  Residents and visitors congregate on giant logs on the beach or sip sundowners at the front tables in the nearby English Bay Cafe and the Sylvia Hotel to contemplate the end of another day.
(At the corner of Pacific Avenue and Jervis Street)

THIRD BEACH
This isolated beach is relatively quiet.
(On the west side of  Stanley Park, north of Second Beach and Ferguson Point)

WRECK BEACH
This beach has unrivalled natural beauty.  A steep trail (not easy to find, ask directions) winds down to the water from North west Marine Drive to this unspoiled wild strand, the only one in the Lower Mainland.
(On the tip of the Point Grey peninsula near the University of British Columbia)

FESTIVALS AND SPECIAL EVENTS                  

Vancouver has numerous special events scheduled all year round, but the majority of these take place in summer.  Visitors are welcome to participate.

JANUARY
Every New Year's Day, more than 2,000 Vancouverites and visitors plunge into the chilly winter waters of English Bay for the Polar Bay Swim.

FEBRUARY
The Chinese New Year celebrations are highlighted by the Dragon Parade along Pender Street in Chinatown, where colourful dragons dance to the sound of drums and eat money offered by local merchants to ensure prosperity.

APRIL
The Hyack Festival in New Westminster features an Easter Parade of antique cars.

MAY
The Cloverdale Rodeo, held at the fairgrounds, is one of the largest rodeos on the continent .  The Vancouver Children's Festival, held in red candy-stripe tents in Vanier Park, presents crafts, acrobats, theatre, mime, puppetry, music and dance from around the world.  May is also Rhododendron Month at the VanDusen Gardens.

JUNE
At the 10-day International du Maurier Jazz Festival, artists from all over the world play jazz and blues at the Plaza of Nations, several shopping malls and more intimate spots throughout the city.

The Plaza of Nations and Pacific Place are the sites of the Dragon Boat Festival, where competitors from all over the world paddle their hearts out.

Food, fireworks, and street theatre and music accompany the colourful parade of sleek oriental craft gliding along False Creek.  The Gastown Grand Prix Bicycle Race over cobblestone streets is an exciting spectacle.

JULY
Canada Day, which marks the nation's birthday on July 1st, is celebrated with picnics and parades and evening fireworks.

Vancouver Sea Festival, which focuses on the Sunset Beach area, is the biggest local festival of the year.  A week of maritime events includes a heritage boat show, a sailing regatta, an international food fair, a chocolate mermaid treasure hunt and a raft of entertainers, all capped by spectacular fireworks and the Nanaimo to English Bay Bathtub Race, a bizarre display of bravado and technical akill.

Musicians from around the world perform at the Folk Music Festival at  Jericho Beach Park.  In the Work Boat Parade, which ends at the quay in New Westminster, the tugboat ballet delights the hearts of young and old.

AUGUST
Abbotsford Airport (an hour's drive east fro Vancouver) is the site of the three-day Abbotsford Air Show, featuring aerial acrobatics by the Canadian Snowbirds, the Blue Angels from California, skydivers and wing-walkers, along with an exhibition of antique and experimental aircraft.

At the Pacific National Exhibition at Exhibition Park in East Vancouver, there are livestock displays, equestrian events, dog shows, log rolling and bungy jumping, and the downtown parade.

Children love the fun at Playland and the KidsWorld play centre.  The Teddy Bear Fair at Deas Island Regional Park, Delta, is also popular with youngsters.  The Powell Street Festival, dedicated to the history, arts and culture of Asian Canadians, is a mosaic of colourful costumes, sumo wrestling, food and music from all over the Orient.

SEPTEMBER
Particularly popular are the innovative performances at the Vancouver Fringe Festival held at various theatres in or near downtown, and the Aldergrove Fall Fair, primarily an agricultural harvest fair.

OCTOBER
Thanksgiving celebrations take place at the Burnaby Village Museum and the International Writers' Festival on Granville Island.

Octoberfest Weekends at the Commodore Ballroom are a hit with the young and lively.

DECEMBER
Carol Cruises around English Bay brighten the short dark days of winter, with a parade of lights and Christmas carolers.  First Night on New Year's Eve has become a popular way to end the old and begin the new.  Thousands of people wander around the city enjoying indoor and outdoor entertainers.

GARDENS AND PARKS                   

Every February, when most of Canada is still covered in ice and snow, the first crocuses of spring poke their heads above ground to take a look at Vancouver.  The temperate coastal climate, ample sunshine and abundant rainfall encourage and ensure a great diversity of colourful flora.  The greenery, which reigns supreme most of the year, is upstaged by riots of colourful blossom in spring and summer.

There are more than 150 gardens and parks in Vancouver, not counting the hundreds of thousands of private yards and gardens.  Two of the prettiest public oases in the city differ greatly in character.  Wild and rambling Stanley Park, is western, while the Dr Sun Yat-sen Chinese Garden is typically eastern.

BOTANICAL GARDENS AT THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
This showcase of plants from around the world includes a physic garden for medicinal herbs, planted around a sundial in the geometric design of a 16th-century herb garden.  Horticulturists here have developed such new plants as the Emerald Carpet, a practical, low-spreading ground-cover plant with little flowers.  The Arbour Garden provides cool shade where vines abound year round, while the Food Garden grows fruit trees trained in traditional styles, and the latest vegetables.  The Asian Garden features 300 species of rhododendrons along with kiwi fruit vines, magnolias and rhododendrons.
Southwest Marine Drive.
Tel:  822 - 3928
Open:  Daily 10am - dusk.  Admission charge.

NITOBE MEMORIAL GARDEN
Reflecting the private retreats of Japan, gentle walkways meander through artistically pruned cherry, maple and pine trees, and layouts of sand and rock, to a tiny teahouse.  The cherry blossoms in April or May and the iris blooms in late June are spectacular.
Across the street from the UBC Botanical Gardens.
Tel:  822 - 3928
Open:  Daily 10am - dusk.  Admission charge.

PARK AND TILFORD GARDENS
This privately owned hide-away offers a delightful variety of plantings and landscape themes.
333 Brooksbank Avenue, North Vancouver
Tel:  984 - 8200
Open:  Daily dawn - dusk.

QUEEN ELIZABETH PARK
This 52-hectare former stone quarry, transformed into sunken gardens, is a favourite site for bridal couples and wedding photos amid lawns, trees, shrubs and flowers.  It is the highest spot in the city (152m), so views are spectacular.  The blossoms are at their best in late May and June, when azaleas and rhododendrons create a brilliant kaleidoscope of colour.  An arboretum on the east side showcases trees and shrubs indigenous to the BC coast.

There is also a rose garden, a pitch-and-putt golf course, 20 tennis courts and a restaurant looking out to the city.  The Bloedel Floral Conservatory, a 20m-high triodetic dome consisting of 1,490 plexiglass bubbles, houses a tropical garden with more than 100 colourful birds flying free, and an arid area with cacti and seasonal floral displays.
33rd Avenue at Cambie Street
Tel:  872 - 5513
Open:  Daily 10am - 9pm in summer, 10am - 5pm October to mid-April. 
Admission charge to the conservatory.

VANDUSEN BOTANICAL GARDEN
Once a golf course, this 22-hectare site now displays ornamental grasses, glorious clusters of rhododendrons and heathers and an encyclopaedic collection of West Coast conifers.  The Sino-Himalayan Garden, sometimes called  'the mother of gardens', is a tribute to China.  Other attractions include an Elizabethan-style walk-through maze, a topiary garden for children, guided tours, a gift shop with a floral theme and Sprinklers Restaurant.
37th and Oak Streets, not far from Queen Elizabeth Park.
Tel:  266 - 7194
Open:  Daily 10am - dusk.  Admission charge.

CHURCHES                  

There are dozens of places of worship in Vancouver, of every faith and denomination, thanks to the variety of visitors from all over the world who eventually settled here and brought their religious beliefs and practices with them.  The following are a few that might be of interest to anyone regardless of creed.

BUDDHIST TEMPLE
This temple is an exquisite example of Chinese palatial architecture, with gilded porcelain tiles and flying rooftop dragons.  The interior is an artistic showcase of oriental sculpture, painting, carpentry and embroidery.  An outdoor courtyard encloses a beautiful collection of bonsai plants and a ceramic mural of Kuan-Yin-Bodhisattva.
A 30-minute drive south from downtown; turn west at the exit by Fantasy Gardens towards Steveston.
9160 Stevenson Highway, Richmond.
Tel:  274 - 2822
Open :  Daily 10am - 5pm.  Free

CANADIAN MEMORIAL CHURCH
Shortly after World War I, Chaplain George Falls came to Vancouver with the idea of building a memorial to Canadians who had served in the war.  He found a congregation with the same idea, solicited the support of local leaders, and then headed east across Canada to find further funding.  The result was the Canadian Memorial Church, which opened in 1928 at the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month - mortgage - free.

Although the church is constructed in attractive greystone gothic-style, the stained-glass windows are the main attraction.  Each window depicts a Biblical scene, with the provincial coat of arms beneath flanked by illustrations of historical events.

The BC window depicts a soldier's faith with Christ meeting a Roman centurion pleading on behalf of his palsied servant.  The historic panels show Captain Vancouver at Nootka Sound in 1792 and Simon Fraser exploring the Fraser River in 1808.

The Nova Scotia window illustrates the arrival of Jacques Cartier in 1543 and of Lord Rollo, the first Englishman, in 1759.  The Yukon window depicts the Chilkoot Pass in 1898 and a Royal Mail dog team with cariole.

The spectacular chancel window portrays a biblical motif of sacrifice and young manhood.  The all-Canada window facing north depicts the services rendered by all men and women of  Canada throughout World War I.

The windows are interesting for their comments on world peace and history and for their exquisite craftsmanship.
At the southwest corner of Burrard Street and Fifteenth Avenue.
Tel:  731 - 3101.
Open:  regular church services are held Sunday morning at 10:30am, but for many visitors who may prefer to study the windows in relative solitude, staff at the community centre, adjacent to the church on Sixteenth Avenue, keep the keys and escort those interested to the chapel during regular business hours.

CHRIST CHURCH CATHEDRAL
Located in the heart of downtown Vancouver, this century-old-sanctuary looks as though it should be nestled into a green valley in rural England.  Of special interest are the English and Canadian stained-glass windows and a tableau of the Crucifixion.
690 Burrard Street.
tel:  682 - 3848.
Open:  Daily 10am - 4pm.  Free

WESTMINSTER ABBEY
This modern Benedictine monastery is both a high school and a degree-granting theological seminary.  Every Sunday the 10 bells of the 50m tower chime over the valley to announce mass.  Resident monks create and restore paintings and other art forms in an atmosphere of peace and tranquillity.  Various sculptures, stained-glass windows and murals decorate the monastery.  Overnight rooms are available (reservations recommended), as St. Benedict believed that there should always be guests at a monastery.
Tel:  826 - 8975.
Open:  Daily 2pm - 4pm.
Guided tours available; modest dress requested.  Donations accepted.

GALLERIES                  
Vancouver is a young city, and youthful energy and enthusiasm is reflected in the freshness of its art scene, both in traditional West Coast art and in the more avant-garde work.  Since galleries often close to mount new shows and because some are staffed by volunteers, it is often wise to phone ahead.

DOWNTOWN

THE ALEXANDER GALLERY, at 1249 Howe Street
Tel:  681 - 8848
Houses a fine collection of contemporary work; go upstairs to see a unique private collection.

A WALK IS, at 976 Denman Street
Tel:  682 - 0060
Features fresh and vivid work by young contemporary artists.

BUSCHLEN - MOWATT, at 1445 West Georgia Street
Tel:  682 - 1234
Stages dramatic international quality shows, with ongoing emphasis on Miro and Picasso.

CATRIONA JEFFERIES, in an office building at 550 Burrard Street
Tel:  683 - 2415
Exhibits interesting contemporary local art.

THE MARION SCOTT GALLERY, at 671 Howe Street
Tel;  685 - 1934
Features Inuit, aboriginal and Northwest Coast native art.

THE SERGIO BUSTAMENTE GALLERY, at 1130 Mainland Street
Tel:  684 - 1340
Displays the whimsical work of this renowned Mexican artist.

THE VANCOUVER ART GALLERY, at 750 Hornby Street
Tel:  682 - 5621
Once home to the provincial law courts, is a neoclassical heritage building and a work of art itself.  It houses paintings by early 20th-century Canadian artists known as the Group of Seven; evocative rainforest works by Emily Carr (1871 - 1945); works by Dutch, Italian, French, German and English masters; and photography, sculpture, graphics and video works.

You can wander around on your own or join a free 20-minute tour.  The reference-only library, gift shop and restaurant make the Vancouver Art Gallery a rainy-day special.

GASTOWN

THE CROWN GALLERY, at 562 Beatty Street
Tel:  684 - 5407
Displays contemporary art.

THE EXPOSURES GALLERY, at 851 Beatty Street
Tel:  688 - 6853
Features Photography.

THE INUIT GALLERY, at 345 Water Street
Tel:  688 - 7323
Exhibits and sells excellent traditional Inuit masterworks, Cape Dorset Inuit sculpture, and West Coast native Indian works.

THE PEREL GALLERY, at 112 West Hastings
Tel:  681 - 5820
Run by up-and-coming young art students from Simon Fraser University.  Call for an appointment.

THE SMASH GALLERY OF MODERN ART, at 160 West Cordova Street
Tel:  662 - 7200
Features aggressive contemporary art.

THE VIDEO INN, at 1102 Homer Street
Tel:  688 - 4336
Houses a collection of contemporary Western Canadian video works.

WOMEN IN FOCUS, at 857 Beatty Street
Tel:  682 - 5848
Displays contemporary art by Canadian women.

GRANVILLE ISLAND

THE CHARLES H SCOTT GALLERY, in the Emily Carr College of Art and Design, at 1399 Johnston Street, Granville Island.
Tel:  844 - 3809
Mounts travelling shows.  You can also walk through the school and look at students' work.

LEONA LATTIMER, at 1590 West 2nd
Tel:  732 - 4556
Sells many current works by First Nation artists.

SOUTH GRANVILLE

THE ALEXANDER HARRISON GALLERIES, at 2932 Granville Street
Tel:  732 - 5217
Specialise in Canadian turn-of-the-century art.

THE ATELIER GALLERY, at 3084 Granville Street
Tel:  732 - 3021
Sells contemporary art.

BAU - XI GALLERY, at 3045 Granville Street
Tel:  733 - 7011
Features international-standard contemporary art.  Be sure to look upstairs as well.

THE GEORGE CROMARTIE GALLERY, at 2818 Granville Street
Tel:  736 - 6625
Runs a small art centre for seminars and art shows, and has a permanent Stephen Denslow collection.

DIANE FERRIS, at 1565 West 7th Avenue
Tel:  737 - 2629
Is the place to watch the careers of such young romantics as Richard Lukacs and Angela Grossman.

THE DORIAN RAE COLLECTION, at 3151 Granville Street
Tel:  732 - 6100
Is a long-time importer of Asian and African art and artefacts.

EQUINOX GALLERY, at 2321 Granville Street
Tel:  736 - 2405
Features international 20th-century shows.

THE GALLERY OF TRIBAL ART, at 1521 West 8th Avenue
Tel:  732 - 4555

PETLEY JONES, at 2245 Granville Street
Tel:  732 - 5353
Features contemporary and older works in dealer's stock.

OTHER GALLERIES

THE WESTERN FRONT, at 303 East 8th Avenue
Tel:  876 - 9343
The premier parallel gallery in Canada, with artist-managed gallery space.

THE ALEX FRASER, at 2027 West 41st Avenue
Tel:  266 - 6010
Has an excellent fin-de-siecle collection, especially of Quebec artists

THE SFU ART GALLERY, in Harbour Centre
Tel:  291- 4266

VANCOUVER HARBOUR            

Vancouver, Canada's largest port and one of the top 20 in the world, is the country's gateway to the Pacific Rim and plays an exciting role in international trade.  Every year more than 3,000 ships, most flying foreign flags, carry bulk, general and containerised cargo between Vancouver and a hundred other ports around the world.  The two dozen terminals circling Vancouver Harbour move more than 70 million tonnes of cargo annually.  Enterprises engaged in this trade range from BC Sugar and United Grain Growers to Cassier Mining and the Saskatchewan Wheat Pool.

Beyond the Inner Harbour east of Second Narrows Bridge are several oil refineries and a major sulphur export operation at Port Moody.  About 35km south of downtown, near the BC Ferries dock at Tsawwassen, the Westshore Terminals at Roberts Bank ship coal, sulphur and lumber to other countries.

A BEHIND-THE-SCENES LOOK
Vanterm, at the north foot of Clark Drive, has an observation deck for viewing a major container terminal, along with a theatre where an informative audio-visual show explains port operations.  The viewing area is open year round from Tuesday to Friday for self-directed tours.  Guided tours are offered from June to August on Sunday afternoons.

CANADA PLACE PROMENADE
Canada Place has a wrap-around public promenade for observing the Inner Harbour.  A self-directed walk, called 'Promenade Into History', follows a series of plaques describing historical waterfront events.  The promenade also provides great dockside viewing of some of the world's most luxurious cruise ships, which run from here to Alaska from May to September.

PANORAMIC VANTAGE POINTS
Harbour-view rooms at the Pan Pacific, Waterfront Centre and Ramada Renaissance hotels enable visitors to Vancouver to get orientated quickly.  Much cheaper are the bird's-eye vantage points at Vistas, the revolving restaurant atop the Ramada Renaissance Hotel, where visitors can enjoy regional specialities or coffee and dessert as the harbour panorama moves by.  The Lookout!, a circular observation deck high above Harbour Centre, also affords a 360-degree view of the harbour and the city, and photographic plaques and decorative display panels relate the history and character of the area.  But there is an admission charge.

VIEWS FROM THE WATER
For a view of the harbour from the water, take the Sea Bus from the downtown terminal to North Vancouver.  Alternatively, contact any Travel Info-Centre for details about harbour cruises.

WATERFRONT PARKS
Several parks around Burrard Inlet offer great picnic spots and harbour views.  From the Stanley Park Port Look Out, on the seawall just south of Brockton Point, almost the whole harbour is visible and a series of  plaques outlines port operations.

Much smaller Portside Park, just east of Canada place at the foot of Main Street, offers grassy slopes, children's play areas and a good view of various marine activities.  New Brighton park, further east and adjacent to the Alberta Wheat Pool just off McGill Street, has a pool, a pier and lots of open space.  From here there are views of the facilities handling grain and forest products and of ships sailing through the Second Narrows.

Waterfront Park, located between the Lonsdale Quay and the Pacific Marine Training Institute in North Vancouver, provides a panorama of the harbour and the city skyline.  Harbour View Park, located further east on a narrow strip of land at the mouth of Lynn Creek, features a creekside walking trail and a platform for observing the loading and unloading of forest products.

MUSEUMS        

A wide variety of city museums provide an in-depth look at the history and cultural life of Vancouver, with exhibits ranging from food and maritime history to sports and First Nations cultures.

MUSEUM OF ANTHROPOLOGY
The Museum of Anthropology at the University of British Columbia, probably Canada's most memorable museum, is best known for its superb collection of art and artefacts of the province's First Nations peoples.  The spectacular concrete and glass structure sits on a cliff overlooking English Bay and, beyond, the North Shore Mountains and Howe Sound.  Inside the MOA, as it is affectionately called, a dozen galleries house a great variety of objects, which express the complex social and ceremonial life of many cultures from around the world.

ENTRANCE TO THE WORLD OF ART
The museum's cedar entrance doors, designed and carved by contemporary Ksan master carvers, depict the joining of heaven and earth in the creation of the first Gitksan people.  The doors, along with the adjoining side panels, form a rectangular structure inspired by traditional Indian bent box.  Carvings from traditional West Coast house interiors, with illustrations showing their original placement, border the entrance ramp.  At the base of the ramp, a bear sculpted by the contemporary artist Bill Reid, of the Haida people, is one of the few touchable exhibits in the museum.  Be sure to feel its square snout and large teeth, nostrils and ears, characteristic of the Haida bears.

THE SPECTACULAR GREAT HALL
In the Great Hall, natural light streams through 14m-high windows, which illuminate an exquisite assembly of weathered cedar totem poles.  Totem poles do not usually tell a story, but depict creatures representing the genealogy of the families that raised them.  Ravens, bears, beavers, frogs, eagles and wolves are often an integral part of tribal crests.  Totem poles have traditionally been raised to identify families or to commemorate the departed, and a raising continues to be an occasion for a potluck, or celebration.  A selection of red cedar chests and carved canoes and dishes complements the elegant totem poles displayed here.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE GALLERIES
The Masterpiece Gallery houses an intriguing collection of intricately carved miniatures in silver, gold, argillite, ivory, bone, horn and wood, mostly dating from the 19th century.

But the highlight of the contemporary collection is the acclaimed sculpture Raven and The First Men, carved in laminated yellow cedar by Bill Reid, and displayed in a skylighted rotunda.  The sculpture is a dramatic portrayal of the birth of mankind, with the first Haida people emerging both frontwards and backwards from a partially open clam shell.

The Theatre Gallery displays a permanent collection of fine examples of First Nations masks, along with changing temporary exhibits.

Gallery Nine houses a permanent exhibition of more than 4,000 colourful textiles and articles of clothing from around the world.

The Research Collections Room, since the museum is both a public and a teaching institution, features a visible storage system, with a series of glass-covered drawers that let visitors see but not touch more than 10,000 objects, arranged in cultural and artefact categories.

THE OUTDOOR EXHIBITS
One of the best exhibits is outdoors on the grassy area between the museum and the cliff.  The Kwakiutl and Gitksan totem poles standing here with two Haida houses, one for the living and one for the dead, are completely at one with nature.

BC SPORTS HALL OF FAME AND MUSEUM
This museum provides high-tech, hands-on sports entertainment.  Visitors can run, swim, hop, and slide their way through the computer-enhanced Hall of Champions which honours BC's elite athletes and teams, or test their athletic skills against top competitors in the Participation Gallery.  The museum covers 150 years of history, from an 1860's Victorian picnic to a recently televised pro game.  Real-life athletes and teams give demonstration of their skills.
At BC Place Stadium.
Tel:  687 - 5520
Open:  Daily 10am - 5pm.

CANADIAN CRAFT MUSEUM
Located in the courtyard behind Cathedral Place, this newcomer on the local scene houses a fascinating collection of objects d'art crafted from clay, wood, glass, metal and fibre.  Special features are the glass door and window created by renowned stained-glass artist Lutz Haufschild.
639 Hornby Street.
Tel:  687 - 8266
Open:  Monday to Saturday 9:30am - 5:30pm, Sundays and holidays noon - 5pm.  Admission charge.

H R MACMILLAN PLANET ARIUM
This educational centre, considered one of North America's finest, offers journeys through time and space with entertaining and informative programmes including astronomy laser shows.
1100 Chestnut Street in Vanier Park.
Tel:  736 - 3656
Open:  Tuesday to Sunday, with shows at 2pm and 5:30pm; additional shows at 1pm and 4pm on weekends and holidays.  Admission charge.

At the nearby Gordon Southam Observatory, visitors can gaze through a large telescope at the distant worlds of the sun, moon, stars, comets, planets and galaxies.
Open:  Tuesday to Sunday noon - 5pm and 7pm - 11pm; reservations advised.

VANCOUVER MARITIME MUSEUM
Identified by the tall Kwakiutl totem pose which stands in front, this museum highlights the history of marine exploration, sailing, fishing, maritime art and the developments of the port of Vancouver.  Adjacent Heritage Harbour is ow home to the St Roch, a two-masted schooner which is now a National Historic Site.  Built in the 1920's, it became the first ship to navigate through the treacherous waters of the Northwest Passage from west to east.
1905 Ogden Avenue.
Tel:  737 - 2212
Open:  Daily 10am - 5pm.  Closed Christmas Day. 
Tours every 30 minutes.  Admission charge.

VANCOUVER MUSEUM
This museum, which houses one to the largest civic collections in Canada, is devoted to regional history and the First Nations, but also features exhibitions of decorative arts from Asia, Europe and the Americans.
1100 Chestnut Street.
Tel:  736 - 4431
Open:  Daily 10am - 5pm; hours extended Monday to Friday to 9pm in summer.
Closed:  Mondays  September to May and Christmas Day.  Admission charge. 

SCIENCE WORLD               
A hundred years ago, the site of  Science World was a swamp covered with water.  Today, its silver geodesic sphere is a city landmark, shimmering over the eastern end of False Creek.  Billed as the most curious place on earth, this science complex attracts 700,000 inquiring minds a year.

Most visitors like to spend two to three hours at Science World, and many enjoy lunch or snack in the Bytes Cafeteria before moving on.  In the street-level foyer are the Information Centre, cloakrooms, telephones, and the cafeteria and gift shop.

SCIENTIFIC WONDERS DISCOVERED
On the street level beyond the entrance are the Gravitram for experimenting with potential energy and the force of gravity; the IBM InfoWindows, which introduce the world of computers, and the puzzling optical effects of the Visual Illusions exhibit.

On the second level, the Matter and Forces exhibition presents the world of physics, where visitors can touch a tornado, lose their shadows and stretch an echo.  The nearby Search Gallery focuses on the natural history of BC.  There are tree roots hanging from the ceiling, a crawl-through beaver lodge, a hollow tree and a see-through beehive.

The Music Machines Gallery allows the inquisitive literally to step on sound and compose music on a giant walk-on synthesiser which can be programmed for 120 sound selections.  Everyone has fun playing in booths filled with keyboards, drum pads and an assortment of electronic instruments demonstrating the physics of sound.

In the Travelling Exhibits Gallery, interactive exhibits which change regularly include kaleidoscopes, challenging puzzles with tangrams  (Chinese puzzles which consist of several basic shapes which can be combined to form a great variety of other figures)  and geometric shapes; the study of physiognomy, in which the curious can observe how faces express feeling, deceive, encode identity and record experiences; and Jim Henson's Muppets.  At the Science Theatre, the most popular shows are the Arcs and Sparks electricity show and the  laser light presentation.

BIG - SCREEN EXCITEMENT
The third level at Science World houses the 400-seat OMNIMAX Theatre where the audience is surrounded with awesome images on the world's largest domed screen and engulfed in wrap-around sound.  These larger-than-life shows cover such subjects as the history of transportation, the vast icy wilderness of Antarctica, and the explosive ring of fire circling the Pacific Rim.

STANLEY PARK ZOO               
The Stanley Park Zoo was born as the result of an incident about a century ago.  Shortly after the park opened in 1889, the park warden adopted a black bear, which he kept tethered to a tree stump.  Apparently, the local vicar's wife used to bring over household scraps to feed the bear.  But one day the bear ignored the food and took a swipe at the lady's skirt, ripping part of it away with his claws.  So the bear was banished to a bear pit, and it was decided to set aside an enclosed section of the park for wild animals.  Since then, the zoo has grown to house some 400 animals representing 90 different species.

Today, about 2 million people a year visit the bear grottoes, penguin playground, otter pool, monkey house and the aviary, which includes bats, all in the lower zoo.  In the upper zoo, Arctic wolves, bison, deer, emus, kangaroos and beaver live mostly in open-air enclosures, while peacocks and other exotic birds roam freely.

The adjacent Miniature Railway, which has always carried more adults, was built about 30 years ago, partly because terrific winds had uprooted thousands of trees and created an open area.  Passengers ride in little canopied coaches pulled by a replica of the engine that led the first transcontinental train in to Vancouver in 1887.  The 10-minute ride along the narrow rails goes through an avalanche tunnel past wild animal exhibits and round a small artificial lake.
Tel:  681 - 1141
Open:  10am - dusk. 

VANCOUVER AQUARIUM
The Vancouver Aquarium is home to more than 9,000 aquatic creatures.  A 5.5m-high bronze sculpture of a leaping killer whale, expertly crafted by Haida artist Bill Reid, marks the entrance.

Inside the aquarium, the more active dinizens of the deep range from delicate sea-horses and smiling crocodiles to playful sea otters and the sleek killer whales that Reid so beautifully portrayed.

The Marine Mammal Deck is a great place for watching the orcas swim, socialise and play.  Near by a wall-size viewing window shows playful sea otters cavorting above and below water.  On the same deck is another area for harbour seals.

The Arctic Canada exhibition lets visitors look beneath the polar ice of the High Arctic at graceful white beluga whales; the big underwater windows are fine for nose-to-nose viewing.  Other sights and sounds of the far north, including fish with antifreeze genetically built in, are presented in a discovery centre.

The North Pacific Gallery and the Rufe Gibbs Hall have displays of such Canadian coastal water residents as giant octopuses, silvery salmon and waving sea anemones.

The humid Amazon Gallery provides pathways for strolling through a small tropical jungle, with banana and other equatorial trees where sloths hang lazily in the heat.  Brightly coloured tropical birds flit among the tiny marmosets living in the tree-tops.  Other imported Amazon residents include anacondas, piranhas, sting rays and electric eels.

The Tropical Gallery features steely-eyed sharks, fish that glow in the dark, and rainbows of reef fishes whose families come from the clear blue waters of the Caribbean and Australia's Great Barrier Reef.

The aquarium's  Summer Speakers' Series offers early evening lectures by naturalists on a variety of topics.
Stanley Park.  Tel:  682 - 1118
Open:  mid - June to early September 9:30am - 9pm, mid - October to mid - March 10am - 5pm.
Rest of the year 10am - 6pm.  Admission charge. 

YALETOWN              

Yaletown, the trendiest downtown area, centres around Mainland Street between Nelson and Davie streets.  Just over a century ago, this neighbourhood was rainforest wilderness - until 1887, when the Canadian Pacific Railway moved its operations from the little town of Yale to this spot on the north shore of False Creek.  A shanty town of wood-frame homes, boarding houses and hotels developed here.  One of the original wooden homes, the Perry Linden House, still stands at 1021 Richards Street.

After the turn of the century, brick warehouses replaced the wooden structures.  By the 1950's most residents had moved to the suburbs.  In recent years, creative people have been converting the old warehouses into work and retail space, resulting in wonderful walking streets of shops, galleries and restaurants. 

At entrepreneur Johni de Groot's Sample Room, at 1000 Mainland Street, a discount clothing store, restaurant, coffee bar, confectionery and card shop, and hair studio all flow into each other under one roof.

The Yaletown Galleria, at 1080 Mainland, houses three floors of offices and shops, overlooking a central atrium.  The shops include the Light Resource, where a lighting specialist makes cappuccinos for customers, and the Five Continents Trading Company, which sells furniture and accessories ranging from etageres to oriental urns.

Il Barino Bistro, at 1116 Mainland, recently voted Vancouver's favourite restaurant, features both Italian cuisine and decor.

A couple of doors away, the Sergio Bustamente Gallery displays the whimsical sculptures and jewellery of the Chinese-Mexican artist.

Yaletown is not too glossy - yet.  It is the kind of place where an advertising executive in a Gucci jacket might carry work home in a dustbin bag.  Enjoy it quickly, before it changes

HISTORIC HOUSES                   
Vancouver, like Los Angeles, seems to have suffered from the philosophy of down with the old and up with new, as far as preserving historic ('heritage') homes is concerned.  But a few treasures remain.

HY'S MANSION
This elegant Victorian stone mansion was built in 1900 by American sugar tycoon B T Rogers as a family residence.  The original home had 18 fireplaces with self-cleaning flues (several of which remain) and a pantry cooled by ice.  The walls are oak-panelled, and the floors are laid with teak from Fiji.  A spectacular stained-glass window overlooks the staircase which rises from the main foyer.  It depicts three women believed to represent the virtues of faith, hope and charity and the graces of wisdom, youth and beauty.  The background is decorated with BC wildflowers and seashells.

Other features of the house include a walk-in humidor for cigar-smokers and, outside, a wrought-iron fence built from balconies of the old San Francisco city hall.  It now houses a restaurant, noted for its excellent steaks, and is open evenings only.
1523 Davie Street, a five-minute walk from English Bay.
Tel:  689 - 1111.

ROEDDE HOUSE
Built in 1893 by the German immigrant Gustav Roedde, Vancouver's first bookbinder, this house is part of a park site that includes nine Victorian West End houses, most of them renovated for family accommodation.

Designed by F M Rattenbury, the architect responsible for the Empress Hotel, Roedde House is built in simple Queen Anne style, with a cupola, bay windows, an upstairs porch and a downstairs veranda.  The interior has been furnished with period furniture to reflect city life at the turn of the century.
1415 Barclay Street, a 10-minute walk from the city centre.
Tel:  684 - 7040
Open:  Sunday 2pm - 4pm and by appointment.  Admission by donation.

LE GAVROCHE
A good way to make the past present is by enjoying a meal in a heritage home restaurant.  Named for the street urchin in Les Miserables, Le Gavroche is located in a refurbished three-storey Victorian house whose roof is green with moss, looking out to the Bayshore Hotel and Coal Harbour.  The intimate dimly-lit interior, with its oak floors, flickering flames in the wood-burning fireplace, and dark floral print wallpaper contrasting with white tablecloths, quickly transports diners back to a more romantic time.  The restaurant is renowned for refined service, fine French cuisine and one of the city's best wine collections.
1616Alberni Street.
Tel:  685 - 3924.

THE ORPHEUM:  A CANADIAN CLASSIC                   

Here in one of North America's youngest cities, the patina of the past so prevalent in Europe is most wonderfully preserved in the Orpheum theatre.  This gracious old building boasts a history of hosting such great artists as Charlie Chaplin, Igor Stravinsky and Helen Hayes.  Its grand opening in 1927 was a social highlight in city history.  The Orpheum, with 2,800 seats, was then the largest theatre on the Pacific coast.  The premiere featured a silent movie, but people really came to see the vaudeville:  Marie White and the Blue Slickers, dance exponents Chaney and Fox, Ethel Davis in refreshing song chatter, and everybody's favourite, Toto the clown with his little dog Whiskey.

INTERIOR AND BACKSTAGE WONDERS
The Orpheum has always been a star, even with mediocre performers.  Originally built as a link in the Chicago-based theatre chain, it was designed in conservative Spanish Renaissance style, with a basic colour scheme of antique ivory and gold.  Ornamented pilasters and colannades, highlighted with imitation and sometimes real gold-leaf, contrasted with rich tapestries of black and gold arabesques, creating an aura of exotic luxury.  Dramatic maroon velvet draperies lent a regal touch.  A hundred glittering chandeliers lighted the hall.

Beneath the stage, an electrically operated elevator raised and lowered three big Wurlitzer organs, which sounded like a full orchestra.  One is still played a few times every year.  An animal room accommodated the assortment of dogs, monkeys, tigers and elephants featured in some of the shows.  An efficient ventilation system changed the air in the theatre every three minutes.  One Orpheum manager said the downstairs was spooky and uncomfortably reminiscent of The Phantom of the Opera.

FAMOUS PLAYERS AND THE TALKIES
During the early 1930's, when live music faded and talking pictures took over, the Orpheum passed into the hands of Famous Players Theatres.  The Nabob company sponsored elegant afternoon teas on the mezzanine.

One of the Orpheum's proudest moments was probably the Canadian premiere of Gone With The Wind in 1939.  The theatre has attracted countless famous faces, including Marilyn Monroe, who came to town in 1956 to publicise Gentlemen Prefer Blondes.

Snack vending machines appeared in the Orpheum in 1942, and a confectionery counter in 1945.  By 1950 usherettes were selling confections from trays in the auditorium.  From 1943 to 1965, Nabob's Harmony House was broadcast from coast to coast from  'Canada's most beautiful theatre' .  One of the last grandes premieres was King Rat in 1965, with a guest appearance by author James Clavell, then living in West Vancouver.  Meanwhile the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra had been a frequent tenant from the early 1930's.

RESTORATION TO FORMER GLORY
In 1973 Famous Players announced that the Orpheum would be gutted to create six mini-cinemas, reflecting a continuing trend towards smaller theatres.  Vancouverites wrote 8,500 letters in protest.  Consequently, the city purchased the Orpheum for $3.9 million and spent almost as much restoring the acoustics and fine furnishings.  Octogenarian artist and decorator Tony Heinsbergen, who had worked on the original structure in 1927, supervised the interior decoration and painted the mural on the massive 20m overhead dome.  Florentine Joseph Tinucci did much of the ornate and decorative plasterwork and reproduced the columns, now part of the soundshell.

In 1977, the Orpheum reopened, once again a breathtaking beauty and the finest heritage concert hall in the country.  In 1983, a new foyer was completed, and the Orpheum was declared a National Historic Site.  Today, the Orpheum continues to host classical and popular musical events.
Smithe Street at Seymour.
Tel:  684 - ARTS
Open:  Tours upon request.

STANLEY PARK                 
In a province so vast and varied as BC, there are many close-to-nature hideaways.  But it is relatively rare to find an urban wilderness so accessible to so many people as Stanley Park.  About a 10-minute walk from downtown, the park covers an area of 400 hectares  (about the same size as Central Park in New York City), jutting northward into Burrard Inlet and marking the entrance to Vancouver Harbour.  Surrounding it is a 10km seawall popular with walkers and cyclists.

FROM WILDERNESS TO PARK
Remarkable foresight on the part of Vancouver's city council in 1886 resulted in the creation of Stanley Park.  The swampy peninsula was then a naval reserve where deer, bear, raccoon and cougar roamed along narrow trails and abandoned logging roads.  The council petitioned the federal government to set it aside as a park.

The petition was granted, leaving only Deadman's Island as a naval base.  So in 1888, the then Governor General of Canada, Lord Stanley, dedicated the park  'to the use and enjoyment of people of all colours, creeds and customs for all time'.

A PARK FOR ALL TASTES
Today, about eight million people a year come from all over Canada and the world to enjoy Stanley Park.  But there is still enough of nature for everyone.  Even on a warm summer day, visitors who do not want to mingle with the crowds can seek out the solitude to a shady trail.

Stanley Park is many things to many people.  To youngsters, it is the sandy beach, a baby beluga whale or a miniature railway.  To teenagers, it is a trysting place and a playground for such sports as soccer, skateboarding and cycling.  To families, the park often means a Sunday picnic on a blanket under weeping willows.  To the many elderly who live near by in the West End concrete jungle, this urban oasis means a pleasant stroll around Lost Lagoon to feed the birds and squirrels.

THE GREEN OASIS
The dense park forest consists mainly of cool conifers - red cedar, Douglas fir and hemlock.  One old red cedar here measures 6m across and 64m high.  The deciduous underforest is mostly of broad-leafed maples, vine maples and alders.  The cultivated Rose Garden, which displays thousands of blooms every summer, adds a big splash of colour near the Georgia Street park entrance.

PARK WILDLIFE
There are few wild animals in the park today, except for those in the zoo and aquarium.  The last cougar disappeared nearly 50 years ago.  Occasionally a black-tailed deer swims over from the North Shore to chat with his enclosed cousins through the fence and maybe enjoy a free lunch.

The beavers have been removed from Beaver Lake, because their efficient sawmill and logging operations were destroying many trees and leaving others to fall on unsuspecting visitors.  They also dug tunnels that undermined the miniature railway and penetrated the bison pen.  After Easter every year, a suspicious number of domestic bunnies appear in the park, suggesting that some parents have given their kiddies more than they can handle.

It was migratory birds, however, that introduced carp to the Lost Lagoon, named by poetess Pauline Johnson when its waters used to disappear at low tide.  The water now locked in by man-made devices is fresh.  The Lost Lagoon areas is a bird sanctuary, home to cormorants, mergansers, scaup, ringbill, green wing-tail, shovelers, mallard and many other species of feathered friends.

A few hundred Canada geese also maintain residence here and another thousand or so fly in for the winter.  In spring, mother geese, ducks and swans parade proudly around with their gaggles of young ones.

Bald eagles, which have several nests in the park, fly over Lost Lagoon and, on occasions, shamelessly grab an unsuspecting mallard for a meal, totally indifferent to horrified onlookers who have forgotten that Mother Nature is both creative and cruel.

UNKNOWN VANCOUVER                  
Although Vancouverites love their city, they sometimes take local treasures for granted, so visitors have to hunt to find them.  Such local newspapers as the Georgia Strait, along with local radio and television stations, provide information on the area's life and leisure.  Almost every weekend sees a variety of community events.  At the spring dog parade, hundreds of Vancouverites walk their pets in Stanley Park.  Libraries often hold readings by Canadian authors, and visitors may purchase a temporary card to borrow books.

For an outdoor adventure, try picking strawberries, raspberries and blueberries in the Fraser Valley in summer.  Salmonberries and blackberries can also be picked along many country roads and trails.

A great way to see the suburbs is to take in a garage sale on a Saturday or Sunday morning; this combines the opportunity for a bargain buy with an ideal informal meeting place.  It is interesting to see what people sell and buy.  No one is in a hurry and it is easy to strike up conversations.  And you may get your Christmas shopping done early and at reduced prices.

CAPILANO FISH HATCHERY
Here you can watch salmon in various stages of growth in glass-fronted holding tanks.  In the spawning season, the fish swim upstream and leap ladders into the hatchery.
Off Capilano Road in North Vancouver.
Tel:  666 - 1790
Open:  Daily 8am - 5pm.

NATIONAL FILM BOARD
The National Film Board's library hires out 1,000 Canadian video tapes, varying from animated shorts to profiles of Canadian poets and lengthy documentaries.  An invaluable source of information for film and video buffs.
1045 Howe Street.
Tel:  666 - 0716
Open:  Daily 9am - 5pm.

VANCOUVER FLEA MARKET
Bargain shopping is a favourite pastime in Vancouver - as can be seen at the suburban garage sales - and the flea market is a mecca for junk-hunters.  Vancouverites reveal their hidden treasures at this weekend event, where both junk and genuine bargains fill the display tables.
703 Terminal Avenue. 
Tel:  685 - 0666
Open:  Saturday and Sunday 9am - 5pm.  Admission charge.  

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