Musqueam Tour with Vancouver Heritage Foundation

Browsing the Vancouver Heritage Foundation’s roster of upcoming bus and walking tours I found the mother of all tours – the history of local histories – the Musqueam Tour!

Metro Vancouver is situated within the unceded traditional territories of Coast Salish First Nations, specifically Tsleil-Waututh, Musqueam, and Squamish. The Musqueam people have lived on the South Coast for thousands of years and their traditional territory makes up much of the City of Vancouver today.

This spring, the Vancouver Heritage Foundation and the Musqueam Indian Band are developing a pilot project bus tour.

Led by Musqueam youth leaders with stories passed on from Elders, the tour will visit xʷməθkʷəy̓əm, the main village of the Musqueam people; ʔəy̓alməxʷ, a Musqueam village site at the time of the warrior Capilano, which is present day Jericho Beach; and c̓əsnaʔəm, an ancient village and burial site of the Musqueam people.

The bus will travel through Vancouver from the c̓əsnaʔəm site in South Vancouver, stop at several locations in Stanley Park, travel the water edge around Second Beach, English Bay, Kitsilano, and Spanish Banks, stop at the grounds of the Museum of Anthropology, and visit Musqueam including a tour of the Musqueam Cultural Centre Gallery.

Musequeam Tour: Witness It, Remember It, Tell It

What: Learn about historically important sites while also hearing about how thy are used now and how they fit in with modern Musqueam culture. As the bus travels between destinations you’ll learn from Musqueam guides about traditional practices, arts and crafts, songs, legends and even some personal stories.
When: Saturday, May 3, 2014 from 9:00am to 1:00pm
Tickets: Available online for $40 a piece. Each bus tour will visit 8-10 sites.

Follow the Vancouver Heritage Foundation on Facebook and Twitter along with the Musqueam Indian Band online for more information.