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Vancouver
- a world class city with Olympian attributes
With
the 2010 Winter Olympics torch
extinguished and top athletes from around the globe gone home;
Vancouver now basks in the afterglow of its gold medal performance as
host city of the world’s most famous Games.
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Consider exploring
Vancouver before an Alaska cruise
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Moreover,
with the summer
travel season approaching it’s my guess a goodly number of people
from
near and far will make this Pacific Coast metropolis their vacation
destination of choice--thanks largely to the positive television
coverage the city received over the course of the Olympics.
A few years have passed since I last visited Vancouver and while
hosting the Olympics was then only at the bidding stage, it was clear
it had more than sufficient attributes, natural and otherwise, to
prevail over its competitors. Now, in the aftermath of the Games, first
time visitors to the city will find it both exciting and eclectic--just
as the athletes did-- and those who have been there before will surely
see plenty of Olympics-inspired enhancements.
Olympic
fun remains
There are several venues where
visitors can let their personal Games begin. In the Vancouver suburb or
Richmond they can skate at the Richmond Olympic Oval where speed
skating competitions were held.They
can swim at the Vancouver
Olympic Centre which houses a new, state-of-the-art aquatic facility
and for memorable photos, you can be sure many will pose for pictures
at the Olympic Cauldron in the heart of downtown where the torch that
symbolizes the Games burned throughout the event. For seasons to come on Cypress
Mountain, ski and snowboard buffs will be able to attack the same
Olympic runs as the medal winning athletes.
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Enjoy a Stanley Park
horse-drawn trolley tour
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Of course, around town
there are a whole host of restaurants and trendy nightclubs where
athletes and celebrities dined and partied.
Exploring
Olympic city
While Olympics-related venues are a
nice addition to the city, Vancouver has oodles of pre-existing
attractions that shape the community’s diverse and engaging
character.
An alternative to self-drive exploring and a good, no-hassle way to see
main attractions is riding with the Vancouver Trolley Company or Big
Bus Ltd. which both offer on/off privileges.
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Vancouver is situated
between the mountains and sea
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Although
they represent
only the thin edge of what to see and do, here are a few must-see
highlights beginning with the city’s famous Stanley Park. This 1,000-acre stretch of parkland
is among the most impressive in the country with its majestic west
coast trees, seawall path, totem poles, hiking trails and horse-drawn
tours.
Almost nobody leaves Vancouver without visiting Robson Street which is
a destination unto itself. Here world-renowned shopping is mixed with
chic European-style cafes, restaurants and sushi joints. Moreover, what
Robson Street is to modern, Gastown is to historic. This neighbourhood
is the birthplace of the city and with its quiet streets and Victorian
buildings, it serves as a reflection of Vancouver’s past.
One of the finest water features anywhere is the Vancouver Aquarium,
the largest in Canada. Home to 70,000 awesome animals, visitors get
close-up viewing of beluga whales, sharks, sea otters, turtles, sea
lions and much more. This is an awesome attraction ideal for youngsters
and adults alike. A change of pace is a stroll through Chinatown,
second largest of its kind after San Francisco. Filled with fascinating
shops and restaurants, this is the heart of the city’s Chinese
community where you can buy everything from a Peking duck to a silk
kimono. It’s a bustling neighbourhood during the day and its
night market is equally popular.
For those unafraid of heights, another must-see attraction is the
Capilano Suspension Bridge, a narrow swaying bridge that stretches 450
feet across a deep canyon and over the Capilano River 230 feet below.
Those who would rather keep their feet on terra firma can stroll
through the Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Classical Chinese Garden, a sanctuary in
the heart of the city that features the first authentic classical
Chinese gardens ever built outside of China. Art lovers will be
attracted to the Vancouver Art Gallery, the city’s premier museum
that houses a vast collection of work by Emily Carr, British
Columbia’s most famous and revered artist.
Always a fun place to visit is Granville Island where the main feature
is a charming public marketplace where there’s abundant fresh
produce, seafood and unique shops. Just 15 minutes from downtown,
adventure awaits at Grouse Mountain where there are dramatic views of
the city, a hiking trail up the mountainside, zip line rides at 50 mph,
paragliding, helicopter tours, excellent restaurants and a Refuge for
Endangered Wildlife where visitors can see grizzly bears and grey
wolves in a sanctuary habitat.
The
finishing touch
An outstanding way to cap off a
Vancouver holiday is booking passage aboard the Rocky Mountaineer, a
sightseeing train company that offers 70 vacation packages and four
spectacular rail routes through British Columbia and Alberta including
into Banff National Park. A
Based in Vancouver and travelling
during daylight to capture the stunning western Canada scenery, there
are multi day itineraries plus a popular three-hour journey between
Vancouver and Whistler, B.C. where many of the Olympic skiing
competitions were held. The
Whistler Mountaineer is a sister
train to the Rocky Mountaineer that takes passengers along the famous
Sea to Sky corridor where the scenery is among the best in the West.
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Historic Gastown is a
reflection of Vancouver's Victorian past
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The Whistler
Mountaineer has two separate trains, one featuring full length dome
windows and the other an open-air observation car.
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