The majority of the Seawall is paved, although in a few areas, it’s made of packed gravel. In most places, too, the Seawall is divided, with pedestrians routed to one side and cyclists, skaters, and anything with wheels on the other; watch for the signs to stay on the proper side, particularly when the pathway is busy.
MAP 1: On the waterfront from Canada Place to Stanley Park, English Bay, Yaletown, and along False Creek to Granville Island, Kitsilano, and the city’s west side
Vancouver Lookout
Ride the glass elevator to the top of this observation tower for views across the city, Stanley Park, the waterfront, and the North Shore mountains. Although many downtown buildings now dwarf this 30-story tower, which opened in 1977, it’s a good place to get oriented. Admission includes a 20-minute tour highlighting local sights as you circle the observation platform, which offers a 360-degree view. Even if you don’t follow a tour, you can ask the guides to point out particular locations and landmarks.
Lookout tickets are good all day, so you can check out the daytime views, then return to see the sunset or watch the evening lights twinkle.
MAP 1: 555 W. Hastings St., 604/689-0421, www.vancouverlookout.com; 8:30am-10:30pm daily May-Sept., 9am-9pm daily Oct.-Apr.; adults $18, seniors $15, students and ages 13-18 $13, ages 6-12 $10
S Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art
The Bill Reid Gallery of Northwest Coast Art, which you enter through a courtyard in the Cathedral Place complex off Hornby Street, is dedicated to British Columbia artist Bill Reid’s life and work. Born to a Haida First Nations mother and a European father, Reid created more than 1,500 sculptures, carvings, and pieces of jewelry, most of which explore Haida traditions. Among the highlights on display are Reid’s Mythic Messengers, a 28-foot (8.5-meter) bronze frieze; more than 40 pieces of his gold and silver jewelry; and several of Reid’s works that the Canadian government featured on Canada’s $20 bill.
With exhibits both in its main high-ceilinged exhibition space and on an art deco-style mezzanine, the downtown gallery also showcases other First Nations art, including a full-size totem pole carved by James Hart of Haida Gwaii, and hosts changing exhibits of aboriginal art of the Northwest Coast region. Stop into the gift shop for First Nations prints, jewelry, and other artwork.
MAP 1: 639 Hornby St., 604/682-3455, www.billreidgallery.ca; 10am-5pm daily late May-early Sept., 11am-5pm Wed.-Sun. early Sept.-late May; adults $11, seniors and students $8, ages 13-17 $6
Vancouver Art Gallery
The permanent collection at the Vancouver Art Gallery includes more than 10,000 artworks, emphasizing artists from western Canada, including aboriginal artists, photographers, and artists with connections to the Pacific Rim region. The gallery has a particularly strong collection of works by British Columbia-born Emily Carr, one of Canada’s most important early-20th-century painters. Carr is known for her paintings of B.C.’s landscapes and its indigenous people.
Hosting changing exhibitions throughout the year, the gallery is housed in the former 1906 court building designed by architect Francis M. Rattenbury (who also designed Victoria’s Parliament Building). Noted B.C. modern architect Arthur Erickson incorporated the stone courthouse into the expanded gallery that was completed in 1983. Built around a grand rotunda, the art gallery has exhibit spaces on four levels.
The gallery offers guided tours (hours vary Thurs. and Sat.-Sun.; free with museum admission). The one-hour Survey Tours give an introduction to the current exhibits, while 30-minute Hot Spot tours focus on particular artworks. The gallery also runs programs for kids and families on Sunday afternoons that range from child-focused exhibit tours to hands-on art workshops.
The Vancouver Art Gallery has announced plans to relocate to a new building, designed by Herzog & de Meuron Architects, which will be constructed at West Georgia and Cambie Streets. Work on the new facility is slated to begin in 2017.
If you stand across Robson Street from the art gallery and look up toward the roof of the original courthouse building, you’ll spot two pieces of public art. One work is simply a line of text across the top of the building: Placed Upon the Horizon (Casting Shadows)—which is also the name of the piece, created in 1990 by American artist Lawrence Weiner.
The other, Four Boats Stranded: Red and Yellow, Black and White, by Vancouver-born artist Ken Lum, includes four fiberglass ships perched on the corners of the roof that represent the city’s history: a First Nations longboat (red); English explorer George Vancouver’s ship (white); the Komagata Maru, which carried Indian immigrants who were not allowed to disembark in Vancouver (black); and a cargo ship that brought migrants from China’s Fujian Province (yellow).
The peaceful Gallery Café (604/688-2233, www.thegallerycafe.ca) serves salads, panini, quiche, and wine on a shaded patio.
MAP 1: 750 Hornby St., 604/662-4719, www.vanartgallery.bc.ca; 10am-5pm Wed.-Mon., 10am-9pm Tues.; adults $24, seniors and students $18, ages 6-12 $6.50 (by donation 5pm-9pm Tues.)
Vancouver Central Library
The Vancouver Central Library is both an architectural landmark and a hub of information, art, and events. Designed by Israeli Canadian architect Moshe Safdie and opened in 1995, the building has a distinctive curved shape, modeled after Rome’s Colosseum. Before you even get to the books, you can have coffee or a snack in one of several cafés in the library’s light and airy interior atrium.
The library regularly hosts events, like lectures, author talks, and movie screenings, most of which are free. In front of the library, near the corner of Homer and Robson Streets, is a public art piece, The Words Don’t Fit The Picture, a neon sign by Vancouver artist Ron Terada.
MAP 1: 350 W. Georgia St., 604/331-3603, www.vpl.ca; 10am-9pm Mon.-Thurs., 10am-6pm Fri.-Sat., 11am-6pm Sun.; free
Roedde House Museum
Vancouver wasn’t always the steel-and-glass city it is today. Go back to the Victorian era at the Roedde House Museum, in an 1893 Queen Anne revival-style home. Outfitted with period furnishings, the 11-room West End manor belonged to Gustav Roedde, the city’s first bookbinder, and his family. Admission includes a guided tour, where you learn about day-to-day life at the turn of the 19th century. The Sunday afternoon tour ($8) includes tea and cookies, and on the second Sunday of the month, you can stay for a classical concert (4pm; adults $15, seniors and students $12). There’s a jazz concert the second Thursday of the month (7pm; adults $15, seniors and students $12).
MAP 1: 1415 Barclay St., 604/684-7040, www.roeddehouse.org; 1pm-4pm Tues.-Fri. and Sun.; adults and ages 12 and over $5
A-maze-ing Laughter
One of Vancouver’s most popular public art pieces, A-maze-ing Laughter, by Beijing-based contemporary artist Yue Minjun, is composed of 14 larger-than-life bronze figures, with oversize grins dominating their equally oversized faces. Though the 8.5-foot-tall (2.6-meter) statues appear to be chortling hysterically, the artist has said that these smiling faces actually mask the misery of life in China’s post-Tiananmen Square era. The artwork faces English Bay in the West End.
MAP 1: Morton Park, Denman St. at Davie St.
TOP EXPERIENCE
STANLEY PARK
A dense rainforest at the end of the downtown peninsula, Stanley Park is a green refuge, incorporating First Nations culture and heritage, woodland and waterfront trails, the city’s aquarium, and spectacular urban and harbor views.
SIGHTS
The Seawall, a 5.5-mile (9-kilometer) walking and cycling path, circles the perimeter of Stanley Park and passes many of the park’s attractions. You can also follow the park’s outer edge by car along Stanley Park Drive. It’s also worth exploring the park’s interior trails, many of which pass through old-growth rainforest.
Among Stanley Park’s highlights are the totem poles at Brockton Point and Siwash Rock, an offshore rock formation that figures in First Nations legends. A family-friendly stop is the Vancouver Aquarium Marine Science Centre (845 Avison Way, 604/659-3474, www.vanaqua.org; 9:30am-6pm daily Jul
y-early Sept., 10am-5pm daily early Sept.-June; adults $36, seniors and students $27, ages 4-12 $21), which is Canada’s largest aquarium.
On a finger of land jutting into the harbor on Stanley Park’s east side, the red and white Brockton Point Lighthouse was built in 1914. The Seawall travels under the lighthouse, through archways that support the lighthouse tower.
From Prospect Point, the highest spot in Stanley Park, you have great views of the Burrard Inlet, the North Shore mountains, and the Lions Gate Bridge, one of the world’s longest suspension bridges.
A giant western red cedar, roughly 800 years old, is one of Stanley Park’s best-known landmarks and the source of much controversy. Known as the Hollow Tree, the massive cedar on the park’s west side stopped growing in the 1800s and was essentially a 42-foot-tall (13-meter) tree stump. A 2006 windstorm damaged the tree, causing it to lean precipitously. The historic tree was eventually stabilized with a steel core and a foundation of underground steel “roots.” The tree is along Stanley Park Drive, north of Third Beach.
TOURS
The park has a long and rich First Nations heritage. Several First Nations, including the Burrard, Musqueam, and Squamish people, made their home in the park for several thousand years. To learn more about the park’s aboriginal connections, take the 90-minute guided Talking Trees Walk with First Nations’ owned Talaysay Tours (604/628-8555 or 800/605-4643, www.talaysay.com; 10am and 12:30pm daily May-Sept.; adults $35, ages 4-18 $28).
One option for getting around Stanley Park is on a trolley tour. The Vancouver Trolley Company (604/801-5515 or 888/451-5581, http://vancouvertrolley.com) runs a year-round hop-on hop-off tour (one-day pass adults $45, seniors and ages 13-18 $42, ages 4-12 $28) that takes visitors to eight stops within the park and to 27 other locations throughout the city. From late June through early September, the company also operates the Stanley Park Shuttle (11am-6pm daily late June-early Sept.; adults, seniors, and ages 13-18 $10, ages 4-12 $5), a narrated ride that makes 15 stops within the park.
BEACHES
Along the Seawall on the west side of Stanley Park, you can swim or sun at busy Second Beach. This sandy cove is also a pretty spot to watch the sunset. There’s a seasonal snack bar and a children’s playground near the beach. Third Beach at Ferguson Point on the west side of Stanley Park is a quiet stretch of sand with views toward the North Shore.
WATER SPORTS
A unique way to explore Stanley Park is from the water. Rent a kayak from Ecomarine Paddlesports Centre (1700 Beach Ave., 604/689-7575 or 888/425-2925, www.ecomarine.com; 10am-dusk Mon.-Fri., 9am-dusk Sat.-Sun. late May-early Sept.) on the beach at English Bay, paddle past Second and Third Beaches, and see Siwash Rock from the water. If you don’t want to navigate the route on your own, take their 2.5-hour guided kayaking tour (9:30am Thurs. and Sat., June-early Sept., $69 pp).
HIKING
Some of the park’s interior trails include Tatlow Walk, which cuts across the southwest corner of the park, between Third Beach and the north side of Lost Lagoon; Rawlings Trail, open to cyclists and pedestrians, which parallels Park Drive on the west side of the park and takes you past the Hollow Tree; and the Beaver Lake Trail, which circles the lake of the same name near the center of the park.
The City of Vancouver publishes a Stanley Park trail map on its website (http://vancouver.ca). Don’t hike alone on these interior trails, as they can be surprisingly secluded even when the Seawall and beaches are busy.
CYCLING
Vancouver’s most popular cycling route runs along the Seawall, and the most scenic section of the Seawall is the 5.5-mile (9-kilometer) loop around Stanley Park. The paved path passes many landmarks, including the totem poles at Brockton Point, Prospect Point, and Siwash Rock.
The Mobi bike share program (778/655-1800, www.mobibikes.ca) has a number of locations that are convenient to Stanley Park. You can also rent bikes from several West End shops, just outside the park’s boundaries:
• Spokes Bicycle Rentals (1798 W. Georgia St., 604/688-5141, www.spokesbicyclerentals.com; 9am-5:30pm daily; starting at $8-17/hour)
• Bayshore Bicycle Rentals (745 Denman St., 604/688-2453, www.bayshorebikerentals.ca; 9am-dusk daily; starting at $6-14/hour, 2-hour minimum)
• English Bay Bike Rentals (1754 Davie St., 604/568-8490, www.englishbaybikerentals.com; 9am-6:30pm daily; starting at $9-$15/hour, electric bikes $18/hour)
PRACTICALITIES
All of the parking lots are fee-based ($3.25/hour Apr.-Sept., $2.25/per hour Oct.-Mar.). If you purchase a daily pass, you can use it at any parking lot within the park. You can enter Stanley Park on two sides: from West Georgia Street, near Coal Harbour, or from English Bay, near the intersection of Denman and Davie Streets.
Just above Third Beach, the Teahouse in Stanley Park (Ferguson Point, Stanley Park, 604/669-3281, www.vancouverdine.com) serves a crowd-pleasing menu of west coast favorites, from smoked salmon and Pacific sablefish to burgers and steaks. The patio is particularly lovely on a sunny day or at sunset.
Gastown and Chinatown Map 2
TOP EXPERIENCE
S Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
From the building tiles to the pathway pebbles, all the components of the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden came from China, as did the 52 master craftsmen who arrived from Suzhou in 1985 to construct the first authentic Ming Dynasty garden outside China. Named for the Chinese revolutionary leader and politician who is considered a father of modern China, the garden was built for the Expo ’86 world’s fair to promote understanding between Chinese and western cultures.
Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden
The garden is compact, encompassing just one-third of an acre (1,200 square meters). As traditional Chinese garden design dictates, it’s built with a balance of four elements: rocks, water, plants, and architecture. The garden contains several pavilions, with elaborately scalloped roofs, lattice screens, and red columns; one of these structures, the Jade Water Pavilion, appears to float atop a pond. Wheelchair-accessible walkways meander between fish ponds and fountains, and around limestone outcroppings, bamboo groves, and native pine trees. The garden’s covered paths provide shelter on rainy days.
Take one of the informative 45-minute garden tours (included with admission) to learn more about the peaceful garden’s design and construction. From mid-June through August, tours start on the hour 10am to 4pm, with an additional tour at 5:30pm (tour times vary the rest of the year). After your tour, you’re free to wander the garden or simply linger in the serene setting.
Adjacent to the garden is the free city-run Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Park, which local architects Joe Wai and Donald Vaughan designed at the same time that the garden was constructed. While lacking the classical garden’s Chinese pedigree, this smaller park is still a pretty spot to sit. Head for the shaded pagoda and watch the fish swim past.
MAP 2: 578 Carrall St., 604/662-3207, www.vancouverchinesegarden.com; 10am-6pm daily May-mid-June and Sept., 9:30am-7pm daily mid-June-Aug., 10am-4:30pm daily Oct., 10am-4:30pm Tues.-Sun. Nov.-Apr.; adults $14, seniors $11, students and children age 6 and over $10
NEARBY:
▪ Make an advance reservation to tour the large private art collection of the Rennie Collection at Wing Sang (click here).
▪ Linger over modern Canadian bites and a cocktail at Juniper Kitchen & Bar (click here).
▪ Stop into Juke for crispy, juicy fried chicken (click here).
▪ Browse the kitchenware at Ming Wo, which was established back in 1917 (click here).
Rennie Collection at Wing Sang
Vancouver real estate marketer Bob Rennie has assembled one of Canada’s largest private collections of contemporary art. At the Rennie Collection at Wing Sang, a private museum in Chinatown’s oldest structure, the 1889 Wing Sang Building, you can see changing exhibitions of these works by both established and emerging international artists.
Rennie Collection at Wing Sang
To visit, you must reserv
e a spot on a free 50-minute guided tour, offered several times a week, typically Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday. Book in advance on the gallery website; the gallery doesn’t allow walk-in visitors.
The docents walk tour groups through the multilevel gallery’s current exhibit, introducing you to the artist and providing background both about the Rennie Collection’s holdings, which include works by approximately 200 artists, and about the building itself. Originally a two-story brick Victorian, the Wing Sang Building belonged to Chinese Canadian businessman Yip Sang. Sang expanded the building, adding a third floor in 1901, and in 1912, he constructed a six-story brick building across the alley, with an elevated passageway connecting the two structures. His family—three wives and 23 children—lived in this adjacent building.
Tours end in the rooftop sculpture garden, which has views across Chinatown. Installed on the building’s facade above the garden is British artist Martin Creed’s 2008 neon sculpture, Work No. 851: EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE ALRIGHT. This string of text is illuminated at night, making it visible throughout the neighborhood. Rennie selected this work as a symbol of optimism for the future of Vancouver’s Chinatown.
MAP 2: 51 E. Pender St., 604/682-2088, www.renniecollection.org; by guided tour only, hours vary; free
Millennium Gate
Topped with three staggered gold roofs, the three-story Millennium Gate welcomes visitors to Vancouver’s Chinatown. Erected in 2002, this ornamental gateway spans Pender Street near the International Village mall, a half-block east of Abbott Street. The Chinese characters on the gate’s east side exhort visitors to “remember the past and look forward to the future.”
Moon Vancouver Page 5
