Aduchamp

Thank you for posting an identical trip report with identical observations as ours two years ago. I too received the usual sacreligious bleatings about daring to even mention that my trip to Vancouver wasn't the most uplifting lifetime experience.

The outdoors around the city are some of the best in the world - the city is a akin to bathing in blamange.

In view of our two week experience I would agree that it does come across as one of the world's top cities to reside. However, IMO Manchester, UK - (my local smoke) has more about it as a tourist destination.

I can sort of understand this report, but I think a lot of people fail to see Vancouver on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis. They stick to downtown, and maybe visit UBC, but never go to the Asian markets in Richmond, or the hip shops on South Main, or the lefty areas on Commercial Drive, etc. They never see any community theatre or local shows. But this is the case with probably most cities in North America that are not immediate attention-getters - knowing where to go is more than half the battle in getting to like the city.

Another restaurant with Spanish influence, and often great live music, is Latin Quarter on Commercial Drive.
http://www.dinehere.ca/restaurant.asp?r=52
I've had two very nice dinners there.

I've made many, many trips to Vancouver for work, over a period of 20 years.

It's beautiful ...wonderfu llifestyle .. lots of money and lots of chic ...but there really is not that much for a middle-aged visitor to do except dine out, shop and exercise.

"It's a great place to live but I wouldn't want to visit there."

I was just in Vancouver and think it would be a great place to live. I agree with tedgale that there aren't that many "sights" --- things you must see, the way you must see the Louvre, or the Eiffel Tower or Westminster Abbey or the Empire State Building --- but I sure loved walking the streets (we were only there a couple of days, and the weather was bad, but we managed to walk around Gastown, Yaletown, Downtown, Granville Island and Chinatown). I'd like to go back in summer to do more outdoorsy things like Stanley Park, Grouse Mountain and the Capilano Suspension Bridge.

I'm in Vancouver and I am typically at a cultural activity several times per week, and could be doing something every single night if I wanted. I'm not going to argue that the cultural offerings rival NYC or anything, but there is a lot going on if you look.

Just stumbled onto this trip report, and like much of what Aduchamp1 has to say on travel issues, I found this report interesting, insightful, and enjoyable. Sometimes we disagree, of course (on a few NYC based issues most notably), but I didn't see a whole lot to disagree with here. While there are some interesting things to do and see in Vancouver, the trio of Toronto, Montreal, and Quebec City strike me as bigger "musts" when it comes to Canadian cities. And there are several US and European cities I'd put higher on my personal "must" list as well. Still, one can do worse -- I'm much less willing to put Vancouver at ground level after visiting such cities as Lansing, MI and Charleston, WV, not to mention having experienced Trenton, NJ or ridden an inter-city bus that passed through Gary, IN.

Whoever said above that the neighborhoods are some of the most interesting aspects of this city was right, in my experience. Vancouver's Chinatown is among the Western Hemisphere's best, and I also found Granville Island, Downtown, Yaletown, Gastown, the West End, and Kitsilano interesting to explore and different from each other. I did Frommer's guide walks the time I went.

sf7307, definitely check out Stanley Park if you ever return, as it's a lovely place. The aquarium in the park is also pleasant. Re the Capilano Suspension Bridge -- I've seen and heard the opinion that the Lynn Suspension Bridge is every bit as good, plus it's free; haven't been to either, myself.

Aduchamp1, sorry to hear the Museum of Anthropology was closed, as it's really first rate. Gives a reason to go back for a brief revisit, I guess. I too enjoyed the Sun-Yat-Sen Gardens, and will echo annetti's idea to take the ferry over to Victoria and see Butchart gardens, which are exquisite.

... aaaaa-and yet again:


http://www.economist.com/blogs/gulli...bility_ranking


(though at least others in North America boldly reached the top-10 this time)

We found the day trip to Whistler on the Rocky Mountaineer to be one of the most enjoyable and scenic day trips we've taken, and that includes the U.S. and Europe. It's a great way to spend a day when you have extra time in Vancouver.

This old post is back and to me the o/p is precisely correct. Bravo for taking an actual position. I used to go to Van. and the rest of BC a lot. I always recall a guy from Toronto and his wife who lived in Van. for 4 yrs. They had a party one time and one guest walked into a room crowded with books and said "Oh books! You must be from the East." That's the diff.

Don't be ridiculous. Clearly the guest is an idiot, and your friends were in the habit of having idiotic guests over for dinner. If they did not manage to find anyone with intelligence in 4 years, where might the fault lie?

WillTravel, I started a similar post yesterday, then decided to forget it -- it just seemed so obvious.
There are idiots all over the world. It's only logical that a few would live in Vancouver.

It's an insulting snob who would also say things like "oh, the Midwest like Chicago? -- they're all hayseeds there" or "New Jersey is for people who can't afford to live in New York" -- as I said, there idiots (as well as snobs) living all over the world.