Canada
Watch out for the stone statues that are created by an amazing artist working on the beaches year round. Also try a walk around beaver lake where the wildlife is awesome!
Great collection of Emily Carr's paintings. Really worth a visit.
750 Hornby Street;
tel: 604 662 4719;
www.vanartgallery.bc.ca
Get on the little passenger ferry across False Creek to visit Granville Island. Former industrial buidlings have been converted into galleries, shops, craft workshops and restaurants. There is also a fantastic farmer's market and a brewery.
South Shore under Granville Street Bridge, catch the False Creek Ferry or Aquabus;
www.granvilleisland.com
South of downtown and awkward to find by car, it is a prime example of urban regeneration. It blends the arts with a top-class public provisions market to provide a unique experience.
A few blocks south and one east of Broadway and Commercial, John Hendry Park is a little oasis in suburban East Van. A dog-walker's delight, the park is essentially a circuit around Trout Lake, which used to be a peat bog. Nearby is one of my favourite cafes in the city, Libby's, little known to those outside the neighborhood. Work by local artists is usually up on the walls (and changes frequently), the food's decent and the staff have good taste in music. Just don't steal my couch at the back.
Broadway/Commercial skytrain stations are a ten minute walk away. Sits between 13th and 19th n/s, and between Victoria and Garden e/w;
www.city.vancouver.bc.ca/parks/cc/troutlake/
Libby’s Kitchen: 3249 Porter St (Victoria and 18th);
tel: 604 874 5547;
www.libbyskitchen.com
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