Pavillions for Free, but what is there to see?

Being peniless (kinda), but mostly so busy with work that I haven't stopped, has meant that I've not seen all that much of the Olympics. I've watched a little on the TV in the Staff-room, I've kept track of how we're doing, and whenever I'm free I've tried to see the free stuff downtown - though the sheer volume of people has prompted me to give up more than once!

The problem with doing the Olympics on a budget, while you and all your friends are working your ass off, is that you can't really see the Live Bands and go get drunk. Alcohol - already rediculously expensive - is twice as much as The Beaver at all the Olympic venues, plus the cover charges tend to be around $20! Even the Irish House, famed for its party-atmosphere, has sobered more than one of its punters with its prices.

If its not the price which gets you it's the queues... oh dear lord. Some of them move surprisingly quickly, but still! Who wants to wait in the rain for several hours, to pay $20, to see an act which could theoretically be shit, whilst sober because they can't afford to get drunk? Exactly.

So mostly I've been on the Cultural trail, checking out Pavillions and buskers etc.

I've been lucky enough to avoid queueing longer than 20min, and I have to say that if any of these things had made me wait longer than that I wouldn't have bothered!

The Aboriginal Pavillion has had a huge fuss made over it as Canada tries to maintain its image of being First-Nations-Friendly, and isn't a bad start. They project a 10min video/light-show onto the dome-ceiling which is kinda cool. But it doesn't really tell you anything. I left with only a vague impression of what it means to be an aboriginal Canadian, and really, none-the-wiser as to their traditions, regalia, communities or language.

Live City Downtown is one of the several LIVE sites where they broadcast the games, and is also home to Canada and Manitoba Pavillions. It was raining when I went, and cold, so it wasn't so busy. Canada House was the best pavillion I'd seen - with interactive games, and the opportunity to be photographed holding the olympic torch. That being said, it was still over in less than 15 min. Manitoba Pavillion was even more boring - basically consisting of several tourist-industy driven adverts. You'd have thought that the best advertisement would be actually giving us a clue as to what you're all about - right?

Anyway, I'd managed to get into Live City just before the hockey game against Russia - wooo! So I stuck around to be a part of this crazy nationalistic atmosphere I'd been hearing all about. Maybe it was the rain... but I wasn't feeling it. I just don't think the Canadians have it in them to be ferocious spectators. The crowd inside the stadium was going absolutely wild, for the first time I heard that old footie-ground soundtrack of roars and cheers. But the Live sight was pretty tame. Even when they scored, five seconds of whooping and cheering would give way to utter passive calm...

See what I mean? ...Wierd.

Canada did very well in that game though, I watched the rest of it at home after grabbing some popcorn.

Robson Square however, has a good vibe about it. There's music and acts throughout the day and an ice rink with cheap skate hire. The zip-line queues go on for miles, but I'm not gonna do that anyway! The BC Pavillion is upstairs in the Art Gallery, and it's not bad. Again, mostly an advert for the area, but at least they had a "3D immersive experience" and some interactive boards! So BC did a pretty good job as far as pavillions go.

The German House on the other hand had nothing - which is why it's free during the day! They have over-priced German food and beer (might as well have it in Germany), a few screens (might as well watch it at home), and some tables. They have a stage with live acts after 7pm - but like I said, you have to pay a cover charge then, so it's too expensive. So all I did there was pick up a tourist booklet about Thueringen - which, as it turns out, is where Jules comes from! Whad'ya know?

So overall, the pavillions are a bit of a disappointment and I pitty the poor sods who waited hours to see these things!

Dancing in the Street - You can feel the Olympic Beat!

All you have to do is walk down a street these days, and you can find something to entertain you! Well, if you're around Robson and Granville at anyrate. I've said it before, and I'll say it again, there've been some killer musicians, artists and performers filling the streets.

I mean, for Lunar Fest they had these Taiko drummers performing on Granville:

They're Canada's first Youth Taiko band, known as Chibi Taiko. Bloody impressive if you ask me!

I really wanted to dance, but was a little too selfconscious. It's a shame isn't it, that we grow up and suddenly we're expected to not dance, or sing, spontaneously in public.

Anyway, it's not just drummers and musicians on these streets, there've been dancers too! I was lucky enough to come across these Flamenco Dancers after work, when I realised that the Art Gallery was already closed. I have no idea who they were but I liked their style:

Oh yeah, and that same day I stopped off at Trees Organic to try the "Best Cheesecake in Vancouver". Check it out:

They burnt their espresso, and kinda drowned the cheesecake in the strawberries (so I wouldn't bother getting the strawberry topping again), but oh my lord the cheesecake hardly disappointed! I will certainly take anyone who comes visit there for some coffee and cake!

The Chinese Saga Continued…

As the sun began to peek its way through the clouds, silently promising that the day would not be a wash-out, the New Year Parade came to a close. The celebrations, however, were far from over. The focus of events shifted to Zodiac Square and the Dr Sun Yat-Sen Gardens, to allow Olympic traffic access to the city. Hundred of people must have been crowding around, all squished up against the Dr’s statue. A few of the bands from the parade kicked off a round of music and martial arts demos in the square. The Burnaby-North Secondary School Viking Band replaying their rendition of “Paint it Black”…

and a group of Jazz musicians who’d dressed up for the occasion...

Having heard them already I dashed off for some lunch. Low and behold, the same bakery I went to last time was selling steamed buns (roughly the equivalent to a Chinese Hamburger). I had a Veggie one, and a Spicy Pork, total $3! They were pretty good too, and probably healthier than baked bread.

After stuffing my face I headed back to Zodiac Square, where the Cultural centre was open. I had a nosey round, very interested by the photographic display of China’s many ethnic groups.
Then I realised that the Gardens were open for less than $10, and I still had more than an hour before I needed to go. So apologising for my pitiful donation I made my way into the gardens and was impressed at how pretty they were.

A very informative lady explained that they had special tours where you could climb the rockery, and in the summer months they have outdoor concerts in the evenings. I would love to go back for that, I think it would be beautiful. Certainly it would be better to pay for the gardens in the Spring/Summer, on a day off, when I just want to relax.

As it so happened there was plenty going on for Chinese New Year. Face-painting and games for the kids – one of which I presumed to be Chinese, as I’d never seen it before. Then, tucked in the garden’s “study” there were a group of amateur singers doing a Cantonese Opera demonstration.

I stopped and waited for it, because I loved watching the two actors get ready: painting their faces, fixing their hair, and putting on spectacular silk robes. Before the main performance they sang us a couple of traditional New Year songs, and two singers who weren’t in costume sang a section from a story which was basically like Mulan.

Then, all costumed up, the two performers sang part of an opera about a woman, trapped indoors, who sends out love letters, and attracts the affections of a nice young man… or something. They weren’t all that clear about it actually.

It was impressive anyway, though Cantonese Opera can be jarring to the western ear. I guess English-speaking Musicals must sound the same to the Chinese? Anyways, it was getting close to leaving time, so I grabbed some Tiger Tea for a dollar and sat in the sunshine for a few minutes before heading to work. A good day out.

Gung Hai Fat Choy!! It's the Year of the Tiger... grrr

2010 marks the year of the Tiger, and this year - to the delight of all those who resent Valentine's Day - it fell on February 14th. The Lunar New Year is a celebration common to many Asian communities, but far and away the largest in population, it's the Chinese who put on the biggest party. Fortunately I had the morning off, so I got up bright and early for the parade, whose start time had been pushed back to 9.30am because of the Olympics. Yeah, very early. Still, it was worth getting up for!

With the Olympics in town there was a heaving crowd and fantastic atmosphere. Besides all the usual features of a parade:

- scouts, guides and marching bands

(yeah, hearing this song made me laugh)...

- flag wavers, bearers and dancers

and the poor sucker in a mascot costume!

...there were also a few awesome differences. First of all, you could not escape the beat! Loud, banging drums (which my camera will not do justice to), clashing symbols, and fireworks popped and crackled the bad spirits away.

A few local celebrities were also there, handing out red envelopes with little sweets inside for good luck.

Then there were the costumed dancers!

I was surprised to find out that these were Lion Dancers, instead of Dragons. Apparently the Chinese had about as accurate a picture of lions as Northern Europeans - actually, it's a little scary how similar the two depictions are. Anyway, the dancing was pretty impressive.

With the Dr Sun Yat-Sen Gardens open for a suggested donation of only $5 there was a lot to see, even after the parade - so I shall have to continue this another day! But for now, Gung Hai Fat Choy (Congratulations and be prosperous), and Happy New Year to all!

The one day I forget to take my camera!

I was expecting to work. So I travelled light. I didn’t know that they’d started everybody’s shifts far too early – suspected they would, but didn’t know. I thought – well that’s just fine, I don’t have a TV at home anyway, and if I stay for an hour I get a free meal. So I wasn’t too bothered. Then the night kept getting better and better (despite the lack of income)!

First off they let the staff watch the opening ceremony in the lounge area downstairs (so long as we were out of uniform) – awesome. I got the communal vibe, free soft-drinks and I wasn’t cramped for space. Some of the acts were brilliant, others less so.

The best was definitely the crazy punk-violinists doing the Irish-style folk-tap. The singers and dance choreography were generally a little weak – though I was impressed by K.D. Lang ’s voice (though singing Hallelujah for the Olympics??? A little strange considering the song’s subtext). The light-spectacular however – wow.

Anyway… so they lit up the torch (and the last one didn’t stand up properly – ooops), and then Wayne Gretzy (a hockey legend, apparently) takes the torch out of BC Place to a second cauldron.

One of the girls who were sitting near us said she knew where it was – because her friend works right next door. So we all kinda looked at each other, before I dashed out of the door as quickly and quietly as I could.

Legging it down the street I lost them, only for them to catch up with me and pass me by – I’m sooo unfit!
It felt amazing. You could hear cheering a few blocks to your left, CTV’s helicopter was right there, hanging in the sky. The closer you got to the Waterfront, the more people were turning around and realising what was going on. I ran and ran, hearing the screams up ahead as Gretzy got there.

The flame was lit behind railings covered in bloody gauze with “Vancouver 2010” images all over them! Damn, I thought. Though it was very pretty indeed.

The crowd was milling around but not so thick you couldn’t move through it. The faint smell of weed filled the air. Heaps of people balanced on chairs and street poles to get a half-arsed view of the commotion, and then with a crack and a bang came the fireworks.

The sky erupted, like the crowd, with that dazzling splash of colour and dark rattle which fireworks always bring. I couldn’t see them, not well enough. So I meandered like a salmon, keeping one eye on the sky, and knowing exactly where to get a better view; on the stairs down towards Coal Harbour. Here there were even less people. I was pressed against the chain-fence, with a spectacular view. Millions of dollars of fireworks exploding, sending a rumble through my core, lighting up the water and the sky in equal measure.

Between cheers for Go Canada! I couldn’t muster the strength to get a better view! It was good enough here. The one day I forgot my camera – and I see this!

When the fireworks climaxed, the crowd still cheering, I was ready to move on. As I passed the Olympic flame once more I saw a man pulling the covering off. “Anybody wanna help me take this off?” He was asking, defying the stupid, snobby git who decided that no-one but the privileged few should see this glowing flame in its full glory. I smiled at that.

As I neared the station there was singing, in the entrance to the Fairmont Hotel. A Russian choir, for no reason I could discern, stood serenading us with a language I could not understand. It was beautiful. It was everything this moment should be – groups of strangers in the street, celebrating, spontaneously giving their time and talents to those around them.

When the summer Olympics come, I’m going to watch the ceremony at a bar near the fireworks and watch them before going home or crashing at someone’s place! Lol.

Family Far and Near - A Short Stay on the Island

Once I'd finally found a place I decided it was high-time I went to see the family! After all, it'd been about five years. Taking the 1 1/2 hour trip to the ferry was followed by another 1 1/2 on the ferry - a long old trip, but with the sun setting against the blue mountains, I really didn't mind. Eventually we made port at Swartz Bay, Vancouver Island after a calm and chilly crossing.

It was great to see Elaine and David again! And I swiftly came to the conclusion that family are a lot like old friends. You might not see each other in years, but you meet again for five minutes and it's like you never left.

John was at Kelowna 'boarding with friends, Chris working somewhere in the middle of Canada to bring home a pretty sweet pay-packet. So after cheekily using their washing machine, and a relaxing night in front of 28 Days Later, David was roped into entertaining me. Hoping the weather would hold Elaine decided on Victoria, which was a very nice place but pretty quiet. Especially as it was winter.

Elaine got very excited when we saw a sports news-reader outside the Parliment Building though... a lot more interested than at the museum (where I swear she regressed to a petulant 6 year old). We got to the Royal BC Museum a little late and didn't get to finish it, so Elaine complained, and we managed to get in again the next day without paying extra! Yay for polite complaints.

On my last night there John got back from the mountains... having decided that island sea-air wasn't as good as mountain air, and that he wanted to go back and become a hermit. Well, we all went for a walk around Brentwood Bay before I left, and the sun actually came out. It must be glorious in the summer. You can see the jellyfish and starfish at the bottom of the marina, the water's that clear.

Finally we made a quick stop at Sidney, which reminded me a lot of Hunstanton (don't ask me how!), before catching the ferry back. A whistle-stop tour, but one I plan on doing again. Hopefully I can see Mount Washington before the snow goes.

Before I go, I'm afraid that with two jobs and the Olympics I may stop updating this Blog every day. Weekly updates will be my aim from now on, so watch this space!

à l'île de Granville avec mon camarade de maison

B.C. is not known for it's positive attitude towards the French, and it's not just the immigrants who give up studying the language. With over half its citizens claiming English as a second language, however, even Vancouver has a French Quarter. Granville Island is the closest you'll get, at any rate.

It's a small but cute little place, with fresh-fish markets, and an amazingly abundant Public Market (with some ace Hot Chocolate and cakes). There's lots of gallerys and kooky boutiques such as the Kid's Market and The Umbrella Shop. Basically it's just another excuse to go shopping - which sucked as I had no money.

Thanks to the impoverished pocket I couldn't see the Granville Island Brewery Co. either, and as there aren't many bars per se, we couldn't just pop in somewhere for a quick drink.

That's not to say that there's nothing for free. For starters you can grab some cool views at the waterfront area, out across False Creek towards downtown. Plus, with wide open performance areas, Granville plays host to plenty of buskers. They even offer a timetable for you to consider when you'll swing-on-by. We happened upon a French-Cafe singer, which was very romantic but sadly, I just don't feel that way about Jules, and I'm sure she doesn't feel that way about me!

Still it was very pleasant to sit there, after a long walk, with a hot chocolate and brownie slices, and listen to something I didn't understand:

Again, sorry for the poor quality! Clearly my camera's microphone didn't like the warm fuzzy-base sound that he made.
Granville Island's also playing host to the Swiss house, Atlantic Canada House and la Place de la Francophonie 2010 over the Winter Games, but they weren't really open when we were there, and I presume the place will be heaving when it does.

Next time I visit though, I'll be sure to go the right way round. Poor Jules had to suffer a particularly bad case of taking the wrong directions, because Google had informed me that getting off the SkyTrain at VCC-Clark was a good idea - wrong. Don't, just don't.

SameSun - More Aussies Than You Can Shake a Stick At!

SameSun Hostel on Granville Street will always be a very special place. A strange magnet, which seems to attract more travellers from down under than any other! You spend five nights in the Beaver - SameSun's cheap-as-chips bar - and you suddenly find yourself saying "eh?" at the end of your sentances. It's strange, not in a bad way, just odd. Who'd have thought I'd come to Canada and meet more Aussies and Kiwis than I have done in my whole life???

Most of them seem to come for the snow, though there are the odd ones looking to live here. I had one roommate who was looking forward to seeing real snow, and still managed to complain of the cold! (Just so you know, Vancouver's the mildest city in Canada. That's why there's so many hobos.)

The great thing about SameSun is that you can turn up alone, and by the end of the week you'll have made friends with loads of people. Staff members are familiar faces at the bar, and you only have to spend one night playing poker for them to banter over who's gonna win at the weekly Pub Quiz. And they know all about working on a budget, so drinks are cheap (for Canada), food - though hardly gormet - is REALLY cheap, and at least half the activities are free or under $10. So you have no excuse to sit up in your room, unless your flight's the next day!

Even once I'd left the hostel, I still found myself coming back to socialise. It's a bit sad really, because I'm in Canada, you know? I should be trying to insinuate myself into the local population... oh well. Rachel and I headed back for Australia Day Pub Quiz! Yes, that's right. A pub full of Aussies... celebrating their national pride. He, he, it was a good laugh. Though I was pretty much useless at answering the questions. My best contribution was the team name:

"What's that Skippy? You found the answers down the well?!"

Despite having a Tasmanian, and three Aussies we failed to win the bag of goodies:

As there were a few New Zealand questions, which none of us knew, we all blame the Kiwi for leaving early! =)

A Little History... After Much Searching

Ok, history hasn't been high on the sight-seeing list here. Mostly because you don't really come to Canada for the history, but the scenery. That's not to say that there isn't any here! For starters Vancouver is named after Captain George Vancouver who, would you believe it, comes from King's Lynn! I know, strange isn't it!? Anyway, Captain Vancouver was not the first to navigate the west coast of Canada, other illustrious names which came before him included the legendary Captain James Cook - on whose ship he once served.

But Vancouver didn't name the city himself. That was decided by a meeting of townsmen in the 19th century, which no doubt included "Gassy" Jack Deighton. So-called for his long-winded stories and ceaseless talking (remind you of anyone?), Gassy-Jack was born in Hull, and ended up running a saloon near the Hastings Mill. It soon became the centre of the growing neighbourhood, and somehow his nickname got stuck to that little area of Vancouver which we now know as Gastown.

So, apparently Gastown is not named after its cute steam-clock, rather the clock was built in honour of Gastown:

Sorry for making you crane your necks - I'm still getting the hang of this video-taking business!

So there's a short-history of Gastown and Vancouver. I did learn more about the Island and First Nations in Victoria, and Canada's Northern House, but I think that can wait for another, less colonial, day.

To China and Back in a Day

No I didn't hop on a plane - I've not got that much money! But I did go through Chinatown on one day's meandering through the city, and Gastown too while I was at it. It was the day I had my interview at the Old Spaghetti Factory on Water Street, and I figured as the two were only a stone's throw appart I should nosey on down.

Chinatown is the sort of place where people actually live, and tourists can easily find themselves on the otherside wondering where the red lamp-posts went. Or, just as easily, on East Hastings - notorious for whores and hobos. On a dreary but dry winters day it was the sort of place you walk round once (without stopping) and leave again, but as I had time on my hands I settled on the Dr Sun-Yat-Sen Gardens. It's about the only thing in Chinatown to "see" besides the enoromous gate -

With no flowers in bloom the gardens were still nicely kept and well laid out, and you can see at least part of it for free. There's a second half for which you pay $10 and are treated to a tourguide and cup of Chinese tea. I fully intend on returning for that when the flowers are in bloom, or perhaps on a summer evening, but for now it's not worth it.

Hungry, and still hanging around before my orientation, I scouted East Pender Street for food. I'd been told you could eat for a dollar round here, and at first I couldn't see how - after all the noodles and soups were all $4 min - as you'd expect. Then, when I stepped into a restaurant-come-bakery, I realised what they meant. Gianormous spring rolls and plum-filled seaseme seed balls (amongst other things) were about a dollar each at the bakery! Score!

Returning to Zodiac Square and the Gardens to munch I quickly remembered why one should always remain careful in cities. One random guy was alright, he didn't really bother me, and he was polite, but the other... well, he was talking to imaginary zodiac creatures! =S Have to admit I was pretty uneasy about him and steered well clear, but I suppose that's what you get for being so close to East Hastings!

All in all it was worth a quick look, but I fully intend on popping back for Chinese New Year and their HUGE parade! Can't wait, it'll be the most interesting Valentine's Day I've ever had! lol

I Like a Little Violence with My Sport...

The first time I saw an ice hockey game I fell in love with it. It was only a university match - in England - but it was different. Here was a game which took skill just to stand upright, let alone get a goal. A game where it was "ok" to bash into people and place them in mortal peril of loosing a finger-tip! In short, there was blood to be had, and something to proove.

So imagine my joy when I came to Canada - land of hockey lovers! The tickets we paid to go see the Canucks - Vancouver's premier team - were way overpriced by the hostel, but you know what? I didn't really care. It was my first big game. I got my weener, settled into my seat and made some noise for the boyz, hardly expecting the thrashing the Chicago Blackhawks had in store!


It was a good game, we even saw some fisty-cuffs, though the refs seemed intent on breaking them up... for some reason. *grumble grumble* Though, with so many national-team players, they probably didn't want someone's eye to go out before the Olympics!


...despite all this it was a pretty sedate pace, with constant breaks to treat the ice and, of course, the intervals (- which were kinda handy to go get that cinammon stick you'd been meaning to try!) The blood splatters on the ice remained elusive, and being so high in the bowl meant I hardly heard the roaring crowd. Still though, I'd have done it again, because any game where the team scores in the last 2 minutes is worth it!

Vancouver Canucks 5 - Chicago Blackhawks 1
(officially raped)

The Canadian Adventure

Well here we are, at the beginning of my 8 months in Canada. Okay... so I've been here 3 weeks, but I've been busy! Starting from the beginning will probably take me until next year, so I shall go with what I feel like writing, and give you all a little taste of my time here.

I want to share some of my videos with all you guys back home, and seen as though Facebook fails everytime I try! that is where we will start.

There's been loads of street performers around Vancouver for the last week or so, thanks to the 2010 Winter Games, and some of them have been really impressive. Between all the usual suspects - old homeless men with their broken guitars, and stunt acts playing with fire - there is the odd musician who actually has talent. This guy is one of them. He occasionally appears with a lady-friend, but he didn't need her. He stopped me in my tracks. So I appologise for the poor quality, but here he is:

I think he should head to The Beaver's Open Mic Night - he'd sure earn that free beer!