Walking tours are very popular in Vancouver but there’s a very special tour coming to Surrey for the holidays. On Saturday, November 30, 2013 the Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Association is hosting the Santa Window Walk. This free community event will connect local businesses, charities/non-profits, and high school art students for an afternoon of music, cheer, and holiday spirit.
- Santa Window Walk
Free guided tour in Downtown Surrey
- Meet up at Quattro
Corner of 108 Ave + Whalley Blvd)
- Saturday, November 30, 2013
From 1:00pm to 3:00pm
The walk will encompass over 14 Christmas designs on window spaces donated by participating businesses including Bozzini’s Restaurant, Jiffy Cleaners, Surrey Christmas Bureau Toy Depot at the Dell Shopping Centre, TD Bank, KFC, SUM Place, Jod’s Hair Salon, Whalley Optical, Roath’s Pawn Shop, Midas, and Round-up Café.
Organizations will be placed in front of their respective window, painted by local high school students, and encourage the community to donate towards their cause by caroling, selling hot chocolate or painting faces by donation.
Groups include the Surrey Christmas Bureau, Surrey Food Bank, Centre for Child Development, Sophie’s Place, Surrey Urban Mission, Nightshift Street Ministries, Arts Umbrella, RCMP Youth Division, KidSport, Whalley Scouts, Surrey Hospice, Kinsmen Lodge, Surrey Memorial Hospital Foundation and the North Surrey Lions Club. The window generating the highest amount will receive a cash award – one for the artists and one for the charity.
In addition to businesses with painted windows, “Snowflake Stops” (stores displaying a snowflake sticker) will be open to participants who can stop by and pick up an entry form to win a gift basket generously donated by local businesses. Draws will take place at Prospera Credit Union on November 30th at 2:55pm.
The tour ends at Prospera Credit Union (104 Ave at Whalley Blvd) and both the starting point and the final location are within walking distance of either Gateway or Surrey City Centre SkyTrain stations. I grew up in this neighbourhood and I think it’s fantastic to have an opportunity like this, to invite everyone to the community to see what it’s all about. Follow the Downtown Surrey Business Improvement Association on Facebook and Twitter for more information.
Christmas at Hycroft has been a Vancouver tradition for over 40 years and it’s kicking off the holiday season in style this weekend. Home of the University Women’s Club, this elegant Edwardian mansion, rich with local history, serves as a beautiful venue for shopping and entertainment.
What: Christmas at Hycroft
Date: Thursday, November 21, 2013 to Sunday, November 24, 2013
Time: 11:00am to 9:00pm daily, Sunday 11:00am to 6:00pm
Where: Hycroft Manor (1489 McRae Avenue, Vancouver)
Tickets Admission is $13 for adults, $5 for children (5-11). Valet parking $5, complimentary coat check.
All three floors will be decorated for the season with boutiques and local artisans setup on the second floor. Lounge in the Speakeasy and take a break from shopping to enjoy homemade dishes, prepared by Executive Chef Walter Messiah, on the Terrace Bistro or to sip a Christmas Blend from Salon Tea.
Venture out into the courtyard for the children’s craft tent, a visit with Santa, food trucks (mini doughnut, hot dogs, popcorn, fairy floss, chestnuts) and Kitchen Creations in the Coach House with Olde World Fudge and Tartine Tarts, preserves, Christmas puddings, mincemeat, lemon curd, renowned lemon lentil soup and freshly baked goodies like butter tarts.
Follow Christmas at Hycroft on Facebook and Twitter, along with the University Women’s Club on Twitter for more information.
Regrettably due to the nature of Hycroft, only the main floor, coach house and courtyard are accessible to wheelchairs. Sorry no strollers permitted inside house, no food permitted inside the house, no smoking permitted in the house or grounds.
Seventeen89 Restaurant + Lounge has recently opened up at 1789 Comox Street, calling upon the tradition of this classic West End space and marrying it with the exciting culinary creations of Chef Daryle Ryo Nagata and third-generation fisherman Paul Puratich.
Photos courtesy of Seventeen89. Follow on
Facebook and
Twitter for more information.
The pairing is unlikely, and unique in Vancouver: a renowned chef working alongside a commercial fisherman. Yet it’s a formula that works. With more than 40 years at sea, Captain Paul Puratich knows his seafood — in fact, he’s probably had a beer with the guy that caught it. Seventeen89 is home to the freshest catch in the city, more local and sustainable than the most stringent certification programs demand. The perfect man to cook the bounty is Chef Daryle Ryo Nagata, who has spent decades running acclaimed hotel kitchens around the world, and leading the charge for sustainable Canadian cuisine. Together, they’ve taken over an iconic space in Vancouver’s West End where they’re serving utterly delicious casual favourites along with friendly service.
Seventeen89 is now open Tuesdays to Sundays, 4:00pm until 10:00pm for tapas and dinners. One of their offerings is a decadent five-course Couples Romance Dinner for Two in a private booth that can be screened with velvet curtains. Enjoy a crafted martini upon your arrival followed by an amuse bouche with sparkling wine. You and your date will then enjoy a cocktail cone trilogy with shrimp, crab, and smoked salmon with caviar.
Moving onto the next course, paired with a pinot gris or viognier, you’ll enjoy butternut squash risotto with grilled vegatables. Returning to the sea with the next course, your glass of sauvignon blanc will be paired with the 1789 Signature Oyster Display. The pièce de résistance will be a filet mignon with king crab, asparagus and hollandaise with a glass of La Domeliere Rasteau. Top off the evening with a selection of desserts, coffee or tea.
Photos courtesy of Seventeen89. Follow on
Facebook and
Twitter for more information.
This luxurious experience for your palette is $300 total for two people, inclusive of tax and gratuity. Seventeen89 has generously offered up this entire Couples Romance Dinner for Two for me to give away to a Miss604 reader and their very lucky guest. Here’s how you can enter to win:
- Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
Be sure to follow Seventeen89 on Facebook and Twitter for more information about the venue and their menu.
I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Monday, November 25, 2013. Must be 19+. Please enjoy responsibly and plan a safe ride home.
Update The winner is Ro!
Life in Vancouver can breeze by so quickly sometimes, one minute we’re enjoying free outdoor movies in Ceperley Meadow and the next the Robson Square ice rink is open for skating. We’re pretty good at slowing things down though, when it comes to a lunch break outside the Vancouver Art Gallery, a stroll on the Seawall, or sipping a warm beverage at our local cafe. The following photos illustrate these pauses, freezing the hustle and bustle of local traffic in beautifully coloured frames:
Photos of Vancouver Traffic at Night
This Thursday I will be sleeping outside in downtown Vancouver in support of Covenant House. The temperature will drop to near-freezing and I’ll have a piece of cardboard and a sleeping bag as comfort. That’s about it although that’s more than some people have in this city. Ahead of my sleep out, I am collecting donations online to support my campaign for Covenant House and I am reaching out to ask for your support.
Covenant House Vancouver opened its doors in September of 1997 in response to a study that revealed that there were over 10,000 (now around 8,500) runaways in BC annually. The study also revealed that street youth were in desperate need of short-term transitional shelter and long-term supportive housing.
Covenant House Vancouver provides food, shelter, clothing and counselling to the estimated 700 (believed to be an undercount but no other number is deemed more reliable) street youth living in Vancouver at any given time. Most of the young people we help have fled abuse at home or have aged out of the foster care system. Last year, over 1,500 young people accessed Covenant House’s services.
Covenant House Statistics
- 39% of Covenant House’s youth present with a mental health diagnosis
- 70% have witnessed family violence
- 50% of Covenant House’s youth present with an addiction problem
- 95% of Covenant House’s youth report that Covenant House has helped them
- 75% of youth feel more confident about their future after staying at Covenant House
- Average length of stay has increased 83% in past five years (Covenant House knows that a young person’s success rate increases significantly with longer stays)
Please consider supporting my campaign this week. You can also follow Covenant House on Twitter and Facebook to learn more about their work in Vancouver. Thank you!
Covenant House Sleep Out
On November 21st, executives, public figures and well connected leaders in our community will sleep outside for one night in solidarity with those youth who may face many more cold, lonely nights until they find their way through the doors of Covenant House Vancouver. From Los Angeles to New York, Toronto to New Orleans and in other major cities across North America, participants will raise funds from their companies, colleagues, friends and family to support the life-changing work that is being done to help young people leave the streets and begin new lives. These leaders will draw the attention of the larger business community and our nation to the problem of homelessness among young people.
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