Time to make your English teacher beam with pride. That, or deny ever having met you. ••• 1. Which author is famously known as The Bard or The Bard of Avon? 2. Match the quotes to the plays… a. ‘Many a true word hath been spoken in jest.’ b. ‘If

They sit regal, if a little mucky, on the north side of the Vancouver Art Gallery. They watch the goings on in the courtyard and scare off anyone who tries to come in the wrong way. These fifteen ton lions look self-possessed and stern, but they have had a hard-knock life. The

Usually, I just stumble into it. We’re driving to Main or through Denman to do this or that, and suddenly we’re in the middle of a street party. Instead of cars, the streets are filled with couples doing salsa, locals selling their honey and chocolate, shoppers modelling jewellery in tiny hand mirrors and

If there was someone who knew the people and places of Vancouver, it was Chuck Davis. ‘Mr Vancouver’ – historian, author and broadcaster – wrote about Vancouver in articles and in The Vancouver Book and The Greater Vancouver Book. He told local stories on radio, television and to eager audiences. Chuck

Amidst the cars, the high-rises  and the bike racks, stands a bull. A life-size bull. Royal Sweet Diamond is the work of Joe Fafard – an Officer of the Order of Canada who was born in Ste. Marthe, a small agricultural community in Saskatchewan. This imposing bronze sculpture was installed in

It is a long, twisty drive or a 45 minute flight from Vancouver. But, the trip to Tofino and the pristine Clayoquot Sound is well worth some slog. The beaches, like Chesterman, are endless. The surfers are out in their wet suits, rain or shine. Dogs are leaping for balls, otters

If you wander off 49th into the main lobby of Langara College, you’re bound to find something interesting afoot. Sometimes it’s vendors selling bracelets, scarves or leggings. Sometimes it’s students raising money with homemade cupcakes or samosas. And sometimes it’s a pop-up gallery displaying the work of graduates from Creative Arts programs in Design Formation,

First, you come to Coco e Olive on Main for the food: the peppery cheese and fresh herb scones, the  roasted tomato, goat cheese and basil quiche, the buttery shortbread. Do not even bother trying the goat cheese salad, unless you want to develop urgent cravings at inopportune times. If you

When I worked at the Marine Building, one of my favourite lunch walks was down through the edge of Gastown to those two blocks of Cordova that house quirky, interesting, local stores. First stop was always the highlight: Salmagundi Antiques. Merriam Webster defines salmagundi as ‘a heterogeneous mixture’ or ‘a salad

For those who are visiting Vancouver for the first time, Southlands can come as quite a surprise. There, down the hill from Southwest Marine, are horses and miniature ponies clomping about the streets. Busy barns, unassuming bungalows and gigantic mansions front bales of hay and riding rings. Southlands Nursery has