Vancouver Olympic Flame is Extinguished

So here I sit, in downtown Vancouver on a dreary Monday morning following the closing of the biggest event in Vancouver history. Today reality sets in and we all try to adjust back to a post-Olympic existence, and start dealing with the hang-over the 17 day party has left.

It seems some people expected all the roads to be back to normal already so they all decided to drive to work today. It took almost 30 minutes for the bus I was on to get through Chinatown and East-Van. It would sure be terrific if traffic remained reduced from pre-Olympic levels and at least some people discovered public transit was, for them, a cheaper and viable option. It was certainly enjoyable walking around downtown and not gagging on exhaust fumes!

Otherwise, today I mainly see a lot of folks walking along pulling luggage behind them. The line-ups which have been a fixture for 17 days are gone from the Bay, and the now-closed Royal Canadian Mint House. One person I know walked right in and bought a jacket at the Bay on the way to work today. Myself, I just walked over to the cauldron and discovered I could stroll right up to the much talked about, and much maligned, chain link fencing.

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On Saturday February 13, 2010 1500+ took part in the “Dancing in the Streets” Flash mob on Robson St in Vancouver, BC.

I’d never heard of Da Vinci’s “Inquest” when I visited Vancouver. Now, I can’t get the Canadian TV program out of my mind. Shot for seven years in some of the city’s most colorful neighborhoods, the award-winning crime show was to Vancouver what “CSI” is to Miami. And the reruns remind me this city deserves more than a “port of call” stop on a cruise to somewhere else.

“The weather is super, eh?” The East Indian cabbie sounded surprisingly Canadian as he made small talk en route from the airport. We were motoring through Vancouver in a Prius, the car of choice for cab drivers in this super progressive seaport city.

Quietly, almost stealthily, we passed through the busy streets of a densely populated downtown, pulling up to the Pan Pacific Hotel and the adjacent cruise ship terminal. I barely recognized this spot as Canada Place from my two trips to Expo ’86. That event, as much as anything, had put Vancouver on the map.

A blast of the horn and the gleaming Holland America cruise ship was calling her passengers to board. She’d been docked here patiently as her charges toured the town. I watched them juggle their purses and packages from my hotel suite window, which wrapped halfway around the room and offered views of the city on one side and the harbor on the other. High above the plaza, I was, as my friends called it, “living large.”

It was easy to get caught up in the energy of a city like this.

More than 900,000 passengers come through Vancouver each year; many on their way north to Alaska. They find the climate here appealing and the food and shopping exceptional.I was eager to experience both. Setting out on foot, I headed toward the city’s oldest district, Gastown. With its handsome brick buildings and cobbled streets, Gastown was enjoying a renaissance, of sorts, although still a bit rough around the edges. More than once I passed people who looked like they were right out of Da Vinci’s “Inquest.” But Gastown was hip, too, and funky. My favorite sidewalk attraction was the steam-powered clock that whistled and whirred on the quarter hour.

I built up an appetite walking through Gastown and that was a good thing. My tour group was meeting at Aqua Riva, one of Vancouver’s premier restaurants. Built on the waterfront next to our hotel, Aqua Riva had amazing harbor views and a menu to match. Course after course was exceptional, paired with equally fine British Columbia wines. We topped off the evening with a Canadian kiss — a glass of British Columbia’s celebrated ice wine.

Day two had me following a friend’s advice, with a bike ride through Stanley Park. The hour-long ride offered stunning views of the North Shore mountains and Lions Gate Bridge, as well as a roll through an urban forest and past fragrant rose gardens. The ride was pure pleasure with plenty of places to stop and picnic or rest.

As predictable as a sunset, I had worked up an appetite again and went looking for substance at Vancouver’s popular Granville Island Public Market. The place where chefs shop for fresh produce and seafood, I quickly realized the artisan qualities of their breads, cheeses and other foods. Once a sad and forgotten industrial site, Granville Island is the pulse of the city’s celebrated restaurant scene today. My only complaint was my luggage wouldn’t hold all the specialty foods I was tempted to bring home.

It would take more space than I’ve got here to do this city justice. A guide book would barely scratch the surface. But a list of must-see locations has to include Yaletown (a hipster hangout brimming with boutique shops and possibly the world’s best facial (my skin glowed for weeks after my treatment at a spa called Spaethos); English Bay, where the beaches and sunsets attract locals and tourists alike; and a drive along BC’s famed Sea-to-Sky Highway to Whistler. It’s considered one of the most photogenic highways in the country and Whistler, of course, is a host of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

That’s Vancouver in a nutshell — one of the most exciting cities in the Pacific Northwest. Pardon me, now, while I retreat to the television room. There’s a Canadian crime show I want to catch.

About the Author:

Ginny Prior has a weekly syndicated travel radio show on Sports Byline USA, as well as travel features in print publications across the country. If you have a travel destination you’d like to share, drop a note to The Happy Wanderer at www.ginnyprior.com.

Vancouver is an incredibly vibrant, multicultural city experiencing tremendous growth in anticipation of the 2010 Winter Olympics. Considered one of the world’s most livable and beautifully-situated cities, Vancouver offers a wealth of interesting experiences for the curious visitor. Here we present a few old favorites for travelers to enjoy, as well as one or two places off the beaten path for the curious adventurer.

1) Canada Place

The first stop for anyone coming to Vancouver should be to walk along the spectacular promenade of Canada Place at Waterfront Station. Constructed as the Canadian pavilion for the World Expo 1986 and now housing the city’s Convention Center, a stroll around Canada Place allows the visitor to take in the beautiful harbor of Burrard Inlet, with its vista of snow-capped mountains, Stanley Park, and the modern glass towers of Coal Harbour nearby.

Canada Place also showcases the dynamism of Vancouver’s economic might and place in the global market. The inlet seethes with container ships bound outward to China and parts beyond. In the summertime cruise ships from the world’s major lines dock along the pier en route to Alaska. Floatplanes taking off for the wild natural coves of the Inside Passage and helicopters departing for Vancouver Island augment the energetic scene.

It was here that the Canadian Pacific Railway completed the transcontinental railway in 1889, bestowing on Vancouver the nickname of ‘Terminal City’. Since then Vancouver has changed from being the ‘end of the line’ and is now considered the ‘Gateway to Asia’ and the Far North. It’s a perfect introduction to the city of Vancouver and shouldn’t be missed by the curious traveller.

2) Spanish Banks

For another perspective on the city ride out the beaches at Spanish Banks, on the north shore of Point Grey. In summer with the tide out, the golden sands of the lovely beaches seem to stretch out to infinity. The water remains shallow and warm with the tide in during the hot months, but at any time of year the view remains breathtaking, with the tall modern condominium towers of Vancouver sparkling in the distance like shards of light within the green jade bowl of the mountains beyond.

Treat yourself to a visit at the Jericho Sailing Association and share an enormous platter of nachos served up on the delightful terrace. From your commanding perch you can watch boating hobbyists and windsurfers at play on the water or see stately craft from the nearby Royal Vancouver Yacht Club pull up their sails. Further inland, Ultimate Frisbee players sprawl out on the green fields and tennis courts attract some of the city’s best players.

The area of the park was once a seaplane base and military camp during the Second World War and now contains a youth hostel, with a local community centre and theatre. It’s a perfect spot for a picnic or just to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and well worth the visit.

3) Sushi in the West End

Vancouver is world-famous for its venerable Chinatown and the hundreds of restaurants contained therein. The city has been a home for Asian immigrants since the construction of the railway in the 19th century. Those who braved the voyage to the ‘Gold Mountain’ brought with them culinary traditions that have enlivened the palates of generations of Vancouverites. In addition to Chinese, Vietnamese, and Korean neighborhoods Vancouver once had a thriving Japantown along East Hastings, now sadly in decline.

These days, thousands of English language students from Japan and Korea have turned the area along west Robson Street and Denman into a miniature Tokyo or Seoul. One of the best ways to sample some of the city’s delights is to visit a few of the many restaurants offering affordable and delicious all-you-can-eat buffets of sushi and sashimi.

Shabusen restaurant at the corner of Burrard and Robson is a great place to start, with its wide selection and wonderful Korean barbecue specials on the weekends, when you can cook spicy marinated chicken, beef and pork at your own personal brazier. Another great stop is Tanpopo restaurant near the corner of Denman and Davie streets, with its wealth of fresh wild salmon, tasty gyoza dumplings, salty spinach ohitashi salad and a marvelous outdoor patio where you can watch to world go by at nearby English Bay.

Be prepared to leave both restaurants perfectly satisfied as you continue your exploration of the multicultural feast that is Vancouver.

4) Nightlife in Gastown

For a night on the town Vancouver has a lot to offer the adventurous. The Granville Street strip is where revelers head to dance and drink the night away under the flashing neon signs of the heritage Orpheum and Vogue theaters at such bustling nightclubs as Republic, Tonic, and Ginger 68, to name but a few.

Gastown along Water Street is where the first European settlement was created back in the old lumber camp days and the locale saw one of Vancouver’s first saloons opened up by legendary ‘Gassy’ Jack Deighton in the late 1800′s. On the cobbled streets one may find some excellent watering holes that continue the tradition set by Vancouver’s pioneers.

Close to the original site of ‘Gassy’ Jack’s own Deighton Hotel is the charming Irish Heather Bistro, home of the best pints of Guinness in the city. In the rear, built into the snug walls of the old city jail, is a cozy glassed-in patio that hosts live Irish and Scottish music most nights. The ‘Heather’ boasts a progressive menu which combines old pub standards together with modern flair.

For a more raucous scene try the Blarney Stone pub across the street. A genuine Irish dance hall crammed with University Students on the weekends, the Blarney Stone is known throughout town as a wild and rowdy place to make new friends and have a good time. There’s free foosball tables on the upper level and be prepared to hoot and holler along with the fiddles and drums all night long.

These are just a few of Vancouver’s many active hotspots. Recommendations for music venues, concerts and movies can be found in the entertainment section of the free weekly cultural paper ‘The Georgia Straight’, found everywhere downtown. Pick one up and you won’t fail to find something for every taste.

5) Sports in the City

Vancouver boasts several professional sports franchises and a history of excellence. In 1915 the Vancouver Millionaires hoisted up the renowned Stanley Cup on the ice at the old Denman Arena, the first indoor artificial-ice hockey rink in North America.

Since then the city’s teams include the locally-beloved Vancouver Canucks of the National Hockey League and defunct Vancouver Grizzlies of the NBA. The 2006 Grey Cup Champion British Columbia Lions of the Canadian Football League play at BC Place Stadium, site of the opening and closing ceremonies of the 2010 Winter Olympics.

Throughout the year there is always a game on somewhere for fans of every sport and every budget.

Some of the best fun can be had with Vancouver’s minor league teams. The Oakland Athletics affiliate Vancouver Canadians of the Single ‘A’ NorthWest Baseball league play in a jewel of a ballpark at Nat Bailey Stadium near Queen Elizabeth Park. It’s a fun afternoon of baseball in a lovely pastoral setting for young and old alike that will often end with music and fireworks.

If Canucks tickets are too expensive or difficult to find a great alternative in the winter are the Vancouver Giants of the Western Hockey League. This young team plays at the historic Pacific Coliseum on the grounds of the P.N.E. fairgound and are coming off a WHL championship 2006 season and in 2007 they both hosted, as well as won the Memorial Cup Tournament.

Vancouver is also seeing a resurgence of interest in soccer, notably with the resurrected Vancouver Whitecaps. The team was champion of the North America Soccer League in 1979 during the height of ‘soccernania’ in Canada and the United States, winning the Soccer Bowl in New York City that year. They currently play at Swangard Stadium close to a Skytrain station in Burnaby and there is talk of a new downtown stadium in Vancouver.

Stanley Park is named after the Governor-General of Canada who donated the Stanley Cup to hockey and the city waits for its next championship and the eyes of the world in 2010 for the Olympics. With so much to do and see, a visit to Vancouver is more interesting than ever. It’s a chance to share the excitement and enjoy the hospitality of this ‘City of Tomorrow’.

Information provided by The Victorian Hotel