Back in the early days of the Vancouver online media and tech scene, before social media was even a word and “Web 2.0” dominated conversations between open MacBooks covered in stickers at local coffee shops, there were unconferences. These events were open to everyone, they cost nothing, anyone could be a speaker, and ideas flowed like the donated Jones Soda pop that was stacked in the back corner of the meeting venue.
The unconference (which also led to the name “camp” being added to the end of a theme or title word) are where ideas blossomed, friendships were formed, and inspiration spread. Unconferences are a rarity these days but we’re lucky to have BIL arrive this weekend to fix that.
BIL Conference in Vancouver This Weekend
TED is getting a lot of attention in Vancouver again this year but BIL is also in town, bringing together anyone and everyone who wants to share stories and ideas to interested audiences. Unlike TED, BIL has no price tag and the cost of admission is being an active audience member, volunteer, or hopping on stage to present a topic.
“Open to the public and fully participant driven, our yearly gathering features a wild mix of technologists, scientists, artists, hackers, and those with a passion for community awareness, social entrepreneurship, and innovation. Our attendees are our speakers and our speakers are our attendees and in true unconference style, attendees are responsible for shaping the conference itself through their participation.”
Where: The Imperial (319 Main Street, Vancouver BC)
Register: Sign up here to attend, speak, or volunteer
When: Saturday, March 21st and Sunday, March 22nd, 2015. Doors open at 8:00am, opening remarks at 9:30am.
Check out the schedule, and the list of confirmed speakers so far including my friend John Biehler. Follow BIL on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
Things to do in Vancouver This Weekend
Events that run for longer than three days in a row are highlighted in green below.
Friday, March 20, 2015
Sponsored by Miss604: Friday Late Night Movie at the Rio Theatre
Macaron Day in Vancouver
Harrell Fletcher – Artist talk
Beer Olympics III – The Hung(ov)er Games
Kyle Bottom’s Comedy Bucket
PATS Vintage Pop Up Shop
TED Conference
Family Programs at the Vancouver Art Gallery for Spring Break
Spring Break at the Cannery in Steveston
Vancouver Fashion Week
PlayDome at BC Place
Vancouver International Dance Festival
Saturday, March 21, 2015
CiderWISE
BIL Vancouver
Free Community Paddling Day
Canadian Cancer Society Yukigassen – Snow Battle Vancouver 2015
F Cancer Event with host Stephen Amell
Artisan Fair at River Market, New Westminster
Ping Pong Showdown
Winter 2015 Farm Programs in Surrey – Farm Tykes: Bonjour from Madeline
Public Talk on Orijit Sen’s mural, from Punjab, with Love
Meat Your Maker – Vancouver Farmers Markets
Zakir Hussain’s Celtic Connections
Terminal City Roller Girls Bout
Vancouver Shogi Club (Japanese Chess)
PATS Vintage Pop Up Shop
Vancouver Fashion Week
PlayDome at BC Place
Vancouver International Dance Festival
Sunday, March 22, 2015
Mason Bee Workshop
The Family’s Pasta & Italian Cooking Classes
Modo Vancouver Spring Run Off
BIL Vancouver
Polka Pot painting pARTy
Hastings Park Farmers Market
PATS Vintage Pop Up Shop
Vancouver Fashion Week
PlayDome at BC Place
Vancouver International Dance Festival
Check out the full March event listings here and if you have an event to include, please send it in by email for a free listing. Follow Miss604 on Twitter for more daily updates.
The best part about a glass of wine is that it can be enjoyed in almost any setting. On a sunshine soaked patio with friends, at a multi-course pairing dinner, or sitting on the couch while binge watching your favourite series. The latter is the focus of a new campaign partnership between Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi Wines and Miss Vickie’s potato chips. They are encouraging you to #UnwindTogether by pairing some of their varieties and flavours for a chill night of comfort and entertainment at home.
Wine and Chip Pairings
Woodbridge and Miss Vickie’s sent me a box of four wines and four flavours of chip, here were their suggestions:
Cabernet Sauvignon + Original Recipe
Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi’s Cabernet Sauvignon has rich berry aromas that give this wine a delicious full body. When coupled with the unique crunch and toasty finish of Miss Vickie’s Original Recipe potato chips. TV Pairing: Action.
Pinot Grigio + Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar
The crisp nectarine and peach flavours of Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi’s Pinot Grigio, together with the tangy and refreshingly acidic balance of Miss Vickie’s Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar potato chips, make for a pairing perfectly suited to relaxing. TV Pairing: Reality TV.
Sauvignon Blanc + Lime & Black Pepper
The crisp and bright tropical notes of Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi’s Sauvignon Blanc create an explosion of flavour when sampled with Miss Vickie’s Lime & Black Pepper potato chip. TV Pairing: Drama.
Merlot + Balsamic Vinegar & Sweet Onion
Woodbridge by Robert Mondavi’s Merlot has bright, fruity flavours that come alive when paired with the tangy sweetness of Miss Vickie’s Balsamic Vinegar & Sweet Onion potato chips. TV Pairing: Comedy.
Our Favourite Pairing
John and I spent some quality time on the couch watching everything from Motive, Anthony Bourdain’s Layover and The Amazing Race, to Stripes and Fever Pitch (the 1997 version with Colin Firth). Our cups full, our chip bowl overflowing. The result: You can’t go wrong with the Original Recipe and the Cabernet Sauvignon, but our standout favourite was the Pinot Grigio with the Sea Salt & Malt Vinegar chips. The citrus notes in the wine played off the vinegar, toning it down and creating a balanced sip.
Deals in March and April
This month, BC Liquor Stores, select BC independent wine shops, and independent liquor stores in Alberta and Manitoba are all providing a free bag of Miss Vickie’s potato chips with a Woodbridge purchase. In April, the gift with purchase promotion continues in British Columbia only, along with a $2.00 off coupon neck tag in BC and Saskatchewan.
Win a Woodbridge #UnwindTogether Prize Pack
Woodbridge and Miss Vickie’s have offered up this pairing opportunity for a Miss604 reader to experience. The bundled prize pack includes 4 bottles of wine, 4 bags of chips, 2 wine glasses, a glass bowl, and a cozy blanket. Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment naming the pairing you most look forward to trying (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Wednesday, March 25, 2015. Must be 19+. Please enjoy responsibly. Follow Woodbridge on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
Update The winner is Jeanie!
Deadmau5 and The Weeknd are coming to Surrey this summer as Holland Park hosts the inaugural FVDED in the Park Summer Music Festival. Presented by Blueprint and Live Nation Canada, the all-ages event will take place July 3rd and July 4th, 2015 featuring world-class artists from a variety of genres, performing across two outdoor stages.
FVDED in the Park Summer Music Festival in Surrey
“With programming scheduled to showcase a variety of musical genres, including house, R&B, hip hop and more, up to 22,000 people are expected to attend the ticketed festival daily. Holland Park was selected as the ideal location for this large-scale event, based on its scenic backdrop, access to over 14 acres of park-space, and proximity to rapid transit.”
Located in Surrey’s emerging city centre, Holland Park has hosted the award-winning Fusion Festival since 2008 along with Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic celebrations and a Mumford and Sons show in 2013. The park, situated between King George SkyTrain and Surrey Central Station become the heart and soul of civic festivities since the City of Surrey began the park’s massive reconstruction following months of public consultation that began in 2004. The redevelopment of the park has transformed it from a once quiet and underused space to the vast expanse and variety of gathering spaces it provides today.
“Surrey was the obvious location for this new property,” said Erik Hoffman, Live Nation Canada’s Senior Vice President of Talent. “We had a wonderful time producing the Mumford & Sons event here in 2013. Now, with our partners at Blueprint, we’re bringing a different experience to Holland Park with this exciting and progressive urban music festival. FVDED in the Park speaks to current music and cultural trends, so it made perfect sense to connect this with such a growing and diverse community.”
Surrey Mayor Linda Hepner comments, “We are excited to welcome FVDED in the Park to our community. Bringing a well-organised festival of this calibre to Surrey further reinforces our standing as a world-class destination. I look forward to seeing everyone there.”
General Admission Two-Day Festival Passes and 19+ VIP Area Passes will be available for purchase on Monday, March 23 at 11:00am. General Admission passes will be valid to admit all ages. The daily lineup and on sale date for the Single Day Passes will be announced in the coming weeks.
The FVDED in the Park lineup includes: Deadmau5, The Weeknd, Afrojack, Tyler The Creator, Flosstradamus, The Chainsmokers, Danny Brown, Chuckie, Vic Mensa, Pete Tong, Claude VonStroke, Keys N Krates, TOKiMONSTA, Destructo, Stwo,Thugli, Haywyre,Tommy Kruise, and more.
Follow the festival on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram along with the tag #FVDED2015 for more information.
Update: Single Day Lineup Released
FRIDAY JULY 3, 2015
deadmau5 / Tyler, The Creator / Flosstradamus / Danny Brown / Chuckie / Pete Tong / Claude VonStroke / Tommy Kruise / Destructo / Haywyre
SATURDAY JULY 4, 2015
THE WEEKND / Afrojack / Excision / The Chainsmokers / Borgore / Ty Dolla $ign / Vic Mensa / TOKiMONSTA / Keys N Krates / Stwo / Botnek / HUMANS / Thugli / Flipout
Click here for the full daily schedule.
UPDATE: Day 1 Photos
I sent John Biehler out to FVDED in the Park to capture the first day (Friday, July 4th) in photos, here’s his collection:
All photos © John Biehler for Miss604
Have a great time, be sun smart, and bring an empty water bottle to refill at one of the free stations. There are also a lot of great food options on site.
Springtime in Vancouver is celebrated every time the wind blows and delicate, fragrant confetti floats down from branches to cover our sidewalks, streets, and lawns. The cherry (and plum) blossoms are here and the puffy pink blossoms are forming pillowy canopies, making it hard to resist taking as many photos as you can while they last.
The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival is coming up as well so I thought it would be a good time to share some information about cherry blossoms in Vancouver.
Things to Know About Cherry Blossoms in Vancouver
Where Did They Come From?
“For more than sixty years, Vancouverites have enjoyed a love affair each spring with the soul-stirring flowering plum and cherry trees that line our streets and grace our parks,” writes Carol DeFina, Communications Coordinator for the Vancouver Park Board, via the Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival. “In the 1930s, ‘40s and ‘50s, the staff initiated a number of significant cherry tree plantings—provided primarily as gifts to the Park Board. In the early 1930s the mayors of both Kobe and Yokohama presented the Park Board with 500 Japanese cherry trees for planting at the Japanese cenotaph in Stanley Park honouring Japanese Canadians who served in WWI. And so, as the impact of cherry tree plantings began to reshape the city’s landscape, Vancouverites were soon smitten by their fleeting beauty, their clouds of blossoms, as they heralded spring’s arrival each year.
In 1958 three hundred more cherry trees were donated by the Japanese consul, Muneo Tanabe, reported in the newspaper as “an eternal memory of good friendship between our two nations.” The ornamental cherries were planted along Cambie boulevard, between 49th and 33rd Avenues, in Queen Elizabeth Park and around the Japanese monument in Stanley Park.”
How Many Trees Are There?
“By the time the Park Board completed its first comprehensive street tree inventory in 1990, nearly 36 percent of the 89,000 trees on city streets were represented by trees of the Prunus genus—the flowering plum and cherry trees. Of the 479 different classifications of trees identified in the inventory, the most common species was Prunus serrulata ‘Kwanzan’, the Kwanzan flowering cherry. (12.6 percent) This was followed by Prunus cerasifera, the Pissard plum. (12.4%).
Since that time, Akebono cherries, which seem to display superior performance in our rainy Pacific Northwest climate, have become been much more prevalent in Park Board planting programs. Plums have been de-emphasized due to root problems, though a significant number continue to be added as replacements.”
In the 2014 version of the festival’s Ornamental Cherries guide, there were an additional 19 cultivars listed, bringing the total to 54 different varieties of flowering cherry trees that can be found in Vancouver neighbourhoods, with over 40,000 individual trees.
Kwanzan. Photo credit:
Rachid H on Flickr
Plum or Cherry?
Many of the early blossoms in March are actually plum, not cherry. Here is a handy guide to identifying a plum vs cherry blossoms.
Akebono
My favourite. The Akebono is in bloom right now (early March) and has distinctive light pink blossoms, they’re the dominant tree at Art Phillips Park/Burrard SkyTrain in Downtown Vancouver:
Akebono. Photo credit:
Lawrence on Flickr
There’s also a grove along the Island Park Walk at Granville Island, where I took the top photo for this blog post yesterday.
Cherry Grove
It is believed that the world’s first AIDS memorial is in Vancouver, at Cherry Grove in Coal Harbour. Back in 1985, three cherry tree were planted across from the Vancouver Rowing Club to commemorate friends and family who died of AIDS. Musician Mark Kleiner told me last year that the Vancouver Park Board had approved a plaque to be installed about this memorial for which he’s written a song.
Haiku
Do you love the blossoms so much that you want to write a poem about them? The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival’s Haiku Invitational is now open for submissions.
subway platform
she brushes cherry petals
from her black umbrella
~ by Garry Eaton from Port Moody, British Columbia
Akebono at Burrard Station. Photo credit:
Tom Magliery on Flickr
Festival Events
The Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival has various events throughout the month of April, from the Sakura Night Gala and Sakura Days Japan Fair, to Cherry Blossom Picnics, Bike the Blossoms, Blossom and Bollywood Kite Dance, and the BC Blossom Watch Photo Contest.
Where Can You Find Cherry Blossoms in Vancouver?
Check out the Neighbourhood Maps online and the Blooming Now page to see what is currently blooming in specific locations around the Lower Mainland.
