Downtown Vancouver Canada Day Fireworks 2013

Comments 29 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Canada Place is presenting Canada Day fireworks in downtown Vancouver on Monday, July 1st with not one but two fireworks barges in Burrrd Inlet.

One barge will be setup in Coal Harbour and the other will be closer to Dundarave in West Vancouver. The best viewing locations will be Dundarave and Ambleside in West Vancouver, North Vancouver, Coal Harbour, Stanley Park, Harbour Green Park, and Crab Park.

The absolute best viewing are will be right at Canada Place in the Prime Viewing Zone where you can purchase tickets for $10. Proceeds support the Burrard Inlet Fireworks Society. Kids six and under are free if accompanied by an adult.

The 25-minute fireworks show will be simulcast on CFMI Classic Rock 101 and the PortMetroVan app for Android & iOS devices. The fireworks show will also be broadcast live on Shaw TV.

Follow Canada Place on Facebook and Twitter @PortMetroVan for all updates about Canada Day at Canada Place, including information about the parade and fireworks.

Canada Day Fireworks Contest

If you would like to secure the very best view around for the Canada Day fireworks, Canada Place and I are giving away 4 x 2 packs of tickets to the Reserved Viewing Zone.

To enter to win, start by downloading the Port Metro Vancouver app for your Android or iPhone/iPad.

PortMetroVanApp
PortMetroVan App

Once you have the app installed you can enter to win tickets to the fireworks by leaving a comment on this post naming your favourite feature (1 entry) or posting the following on Twitter (1 entry):

I got the PortMetroVan App http://bit.ly/CanPlcApp to enter to win @canadaplace #CanadaDayFireworks tix from @Miss604 http://ow.ly/mvptM

Reflecting the recent integration of Port Metro Vancouver and Canada Place, the new free Port Metro Vancouver app contains all the information, images, maps, trivia, experiences and over 150 community events of the entire organization.

Whether you want to find the poutine at Canada Day at Canada Place or identify a “Break Bulk” freighter in the Burrard inlet the app has you covered. If you needed another reason, for the first time you control the soundtrack for the Canada Day fireworks presented by Port Metro Vancouver. Get the app and be a music maestro at 10:30pm July 1st.

Miss604 is a proud Official Media Partner of Canada Day at Canada Place.

I will draw four winners (each receiving a pair of tickets) on Monday, July 1, 2013 at 10:00am.

Related Posts: Your Face at Canada Place Mural, Canada Day at Canada Place Entertainment Schedule, Canada Day Parade.

Update The winners are: Belinda, Michelle W, @erin_braincandy, @Literarytangent

VIVA From Best Buy Giveaway

Comments 155 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Best Buy is known for its great deals on televisions, smartphones, computer accessories, and video games which we pick up at their Cambie, South Vancouver, or Metrotown locations around here. Now, they’re branching out online with their new VIVA from Best Buy lifestyle brand. Whether you’re looking for a new yoga mat, vitamins, lip gloss, or a baby stroller, you can now find it at Best Buy online.

LiveCleanBestBuy

To help promote VIVA from Best Buy’s online health and beauty products I have two gift baskets to give away. The first is filled with Live Clean baby products and the second contains Live Clean skin care and body care products.

Baby Basket (value $70)
Live Clean Baby Diaper Gift set
Live Clean Baby non-petroleum jelly
Live Clean Baby diaper ointment
Live Clean Baby bar soap
Live Clean baby lotion
Live Clean baby wipes
Live Clean Baby bath
Live clean baby shampoo and wash
Live clean baby foaming wash
Live Clean Personal Care Basket (value $75)
Live Clean Fresh Face trial and travel kit
Live Clean fresh water hand cream
Live Clean Exotic Nectar oil treatment
Live Clean freshwater hand soap
Live Clean freshwater conditioner
Live Clean freshwater shampoo
Live Clean Exotic nector restoring shampoo
Live Clean Body Wash
Live Clean Fresh Face Daily Cleanser

Many of these items are either plant-derived or made from natural, sustainably-sourced ingredients. They do not contain any petroleum, fragrance, parabens, or phthalates. Here’s how you can enter to win one of these gift baskets:

  • Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win a @VIVABestBuy gift basket from @BBYCanada + @Miss604 http://ow.ly/mrlak

Follow VIVABestBuy on Twitter to find out more about the latest health, wellness, and beauty offers from Best Buy Canada. I will draw two winners, one for each basket, at 12:00pm on Friday, July 5, 2013.

Update The winners are @radicalradhika (personal care) & Harjit (baby)

Street Food Day in Vancouver

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

Vancouver loves its food trucks and after being ranked 3rd in North America when it comes to street eats, word has quickly spread about our delicious selection of curb-side dining options. To celebrate, the City of Vancouver is hosting Street Food Day in Vancouver tomorrow at City Hall.

What Street Food Day in Vancouver
Where 12th and Cambie, north lower parking lot
When Thursday, June 27, 2013 from 11:00am to 2:00pm

The Dog Father
Photo credit: PiscesDreamer on Flickr

There are 114 food truck permits in Vancouver and about 65 are regularily open, according to @StreetFoodApp who mentioned the stat to Erin Ireland on Twitter yesterday. A handful will be on location tomorrow to celebrate Street Food Day.

Tacofino Tacofino Yolks Breakfast Yolks Breakfast

Food Cart Fest

Aside from ordering up goodies from local food trucks before, during, and after your workday downtown you can get a taste from over two dozen vendors at the annual Food Cart Fest which takes place every Sunday (12:00pm to 5:00pm) from now until September 22nd at 215 West 1st (between the Olympic Village and the Cambie Bridge).

The Food Cart Fest has communal tables, lovely False Creek views, a community market, live music and DJs, crafters, and more. Admission is $2 and children 13 and under get in free. Maximum rate for families is $5 and Vancity Credit Union members get in free.

Tour The Orpheum This Summer

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

The BC Entertainment Hall of Fame is giving you the chance to tour The Orpheum Theatre this summer. Take a 90-minute guided walk around the “Grand Old Lady of Granville Street” and learn about all of the city and entertainment history it contains (and maybe a ghost story or two).

OrpheumArchives
1946: The Orpheum on Granville. Archives# CVA 1184-2290. Photographer: Jack Lindsay.

Where The Orpheum’s Smithe Street Entrance (between Granville and Seymour)
When 11:00am on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays July 2 to August 31, 2013
Cost Admission is a $10 donation to the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame

Stage left view Balcony view
Photo credit: K D Photos & K D Photos on Flickr

Here are just a few historical tidbits about The Orpheum and you’ll definitely learn more during a tour:

  • The theatre was built for $1 million in 1927, hosting Vaudeville acts and the latest motion pictures from Hollywood.
  • “Architect B. Marcus Priteca is recognized as the most accomplished theatre designer of his era in the American Northwest and Western Canada. This is the only surviving Canadian theatre designed by Priteca.” – City of Vancouver
  • Over the years names like Garbo, Gable, Bogart, Bacall, Hepburn, Monroe, Olivier, Lancaster, Bette Davis, Jack Benny, and Alec Guinness graced the stage.

Orpheum Tours are limited to a maximum of 30 people on a first come first served basis. However you can guarantee yourself a spot by calling the reservation line: (604) 665-3470. All proceeds will go to further the work of the BC Entertainment Hall of Fame which honours British Columbians who have excelled in all disciplines of entertainment.

Minter Gardens is Closing

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

I had just completed my Abbotsford Circle Farm Tour post when I read that Minter Gardens, a Chilliwack Chilliwack Circle Farm Tour location, was shutting down in October.

Minter Gardens

“Minter Gardens has been a huge part of our lives,” Minter said in a press release. “It was a once-in-a-lifetime dream to create one of the most beautiful gardens in the world.” Since opening its gates 33 years ago, Minter Gardens has been a popular destination for gardening enthusiasts of all ages.

In recent years, however, the Minters said attendance was down, in part because of “a changing climate that offers up more cold, rainy days than the abundantly sunny ones that attract visitors to the grounds.” This has “significantly impacted the long-term viability of operating an outdoor destination garden,” the press release said.

What will become of the property is not certain but the Minter family is exploring options to develop it in an eco- and community-friendly manner. [Chilliwack Times]

Minter Gardens Minter Gardens

Minter Gardens Minter Gardens

I’ve enjoyed my recent visits to Minter Gardens, with a self-guided tour of the beautifully crafted and maintained groves, shrubs, flowers, trees, plants, and ponds. Before this 32-acre show garden closes its gates, I highly recommend taking the drive down the highway and stopping in to Minter Gardens for the day. The have a Garden Cafe, Nature Preserve, Gift Shop, and more on-site.

The gardens are open Monday to Friday from 8:30am to 6:00pm; Saturdays from 8:30pm to 5:30pm; Sundays and Holidays from 11:00am to 5:30pm. Admission is $38 (Family Rate, 2 adults and up to 4 youth under 19); $17 (Adults); $15 (Seniors); $9.50 (Youth 12-18); $6.50 (Children 6-12); Free (Children 5 and under)*.

Find them at 52892 Bunker Rd in Chilliwack once you take the Agassiz exit from Highway 1 (and visit the Garden Centre just down the road from there too at 10015 Young Road N). Follow Minter Gardens on Facebook and Twitter for more updates leading up to the closure.

*These rates may or may not include tax. Official rates are posted at the gardens.