Bellingham is home to American history, Pacific Northwest pioneer stories, and shops with deals that Vancouverites cannot avoid. If you’re up for more than a slingshot trip across the border, consider spending some time in this historic town and learning about its sordid history from the entertaining and lively Good Time Girls and their variety of tours that focus on the area’s gritty past.
Sin & Gin (Summer)
Created (and led by) Marissa McGrath and Sara Holodnick in 2011, the walking tour winds through the back alleys of Bellingham unveiling its seedy saloon-era past. The costumed interpreters play the part as they tell tales of cunning Madames in the old Red Light District. History lessons are intertwined with seedy stories and entertainment from the guides who keep up the theme for entire tour. This tour is offered for $20 in the summer (for those 21+ as it does include a tavern drink at the end) but there is a seasonal fall tour available now with another fitting theme.
Gore & Lore (October)
This one hour walking tour operated by the Good Time Girls runs throughout the month of October in Downtown Bellingham and in Fairhaven.
“Join us for a creepy look into Bellingham’s scariest stories and real life horrors. Along the way we’ll set a while with a few ghosts and ghouls and reveal spine-tingling truths about some of Bellingham’s oldest tales of unsettling hauntings and strange happenings. This tour is not for the gentleman faint of heart, the lady of delicate constitution.”
The Gore & Lore tours are for ages 13+ and are offered Saturday nights in October for $15 ($12 for students with ID) and starts out from the Black Drop Coffeehouse (with a drink included). A 21+ tour is also available on Saturday nights in October for $20 and it ends at Bayou’s Oyster Bar with a stiff drink to liven you up after the terrifying tales told on your walk. Tarot readings are available, by donation, at both locations prior to the tours.
Over in Fairhaven, you can also take a Gore & Lore tour starting out from the indoor courtyard of the Sycamore Square Building. This tour is also 21+ and it takes place on Friday nights in October. Tickets are $20 and they include a drink at the Black Cat afterward.
Downtown Vancouver to Downtown Bellingham is about 80kms and takes about 1 hour in travel time, depending on traffic and the border waits. It’s fascinating to learn about a place that’s so close to us but has its own history and unique identity. Find out more about the Good Time Girls and their seasonal tours by following them on Facebook and Twitter.
It spent much more time as the provincial courthouse building but we know it today as the Vancouver Art Gallery (since 1983). 101 years ago tomorrow (October 10, 1911) the building first opened up as the courthouse. Perched between Hornby, Georgia, Howe, and Robson it’s a cultural melting pot both inside and outside of its walls.
1915-1925, Courthouse and old Hotel Vancouver. Archives # CVA 1376-131.
(Left) 1933 – VPL Number: 5877D. (Right) VPL Number: 5877F. Photographer: Leonard Frank
From rallies and protests to live entertainment, galas, pillow fights, zombie walks, and gatherings, the old courthouse/art gallery building is today’s Vancouver Icon:
The newspapers of October 10, 1911 were full of praise for the handsome new building, “the finest of its kind in Canada.” (It had replaced a much smaller structure that sat at the rear of what is now Victory Square.) The architect was Francis Rattenbury, whose other well-known B.C. works include the legislative buildings and the Empress Hotel in Victoria. [Vancouver History]
Other Vancouver Icons posts include: Dominion Building, Science World, Gastown Steam Clock, SFU Burnaby, Commodore Lanes, Siwash Rock, Kitsilano Pool, White Rock Pier, Main Post Office, Planetarium Building, Lord Stanley Statue, Vancouver Library Central Branch, Victory Square, Digital Orca, The Crab Sculpture, Girl in Wetsuit, The Sun Tower, The Hotel Vancouver, The Gassy Jack Statue, The Marine Building, and The Angel of Victory. Should you have a suggestion for the Vancouver Icons series please feel free to leave a note in the comments. It should be a thing, statue, or place that is very visible and recognizable to the public.
It’s Homelessness Action Week in Vancouver and the Union Gospel Mission is inviting everyone to explore their neighbourhood in the Downtown Eastside to learn more about the community, its history, and the people who live there.
The Eastside Stride walking tour series is led by a community member who will take you from the UGM (at 601 East Hastings) to Oppenheimer Park, Gastown, Chinatown, Strathcona and the Hastings Corridor. The two-hour tour is free of charge but provides employment to community members. It’s safe, respectful, and a unique way to learn about this important part of Vancouver.
Tours are offered every day from Tuesday, October 9, 2012 to Saturday, October 13, 2012 at various times between 10:00am and 4:30pm. You can sign up online for a guided tour or check out the online audio tour to do a self-guided version.
From historically significant buildings (like the Carnegie Centre) to significant neighbourhoods that shaped Vancouver, participants on this free tour will have a chance to experience this pocket of Vancouver thanks to those who live in the heart of it.
The 8th annual Taste of Yaletown is coming up this month as restaurants serve up delicious deals and savoury specials celebrating this downtown neighbourhood.
From October 17th to 27th, 2012 you can visit some of Yaletown’s best eateries and dining establishments to enjoy set price 3-course dinners for $25, $35, and $45. A portion of profits from each participating restaurant will be donated to the Greater Vancouver Food Bank.
As a media sponsor again this year, I have a pair of tickets available for two exciting signature Taste of Yaletown events:
CIBC Presents Taste of Yaletown: Premiere
The premiere will be held October 17th at Mini Yaletown. Attendees will sample menu items and drinks from participating restaurants such as Glowbal Grill Steaks & Satay, George Ultra Lounge, New Oxford, Hamilton Street Grill, Society, Yaletown L’Antipasto, Cache Lounge & Bistro, Killjoy and Minami. Tickets on sale now for $59.
Shake Up Yaletown
Sip and savour award-winning cocktail creations from Yaletown’s best bartenders on October 25th at Minami Restaurant. Guests will sample competing cocktails and feature menu items. Tickets on sale now for $30.
Here’s how you can enter to win tickets to one of these Taste of Yaletown events:
- Leave a comment naming which of these 2 events you would like to attend (1 entry)
- Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
I will draw two winners, one for each event, on Friday, October 12, 2012 at 12:00pm. Must be 19+ to enter and attend these events. Book your reservations now for the Taste of Yaletown and follow along on Twitter and Facebook for more information.
Update The winners are Karen & Rosalie B!
Work off a weekend’s worth of turkey by participating in Step It Up for Sophie’s Place happening Sunday, October 14, 2012.
Registration is currently open for this first annual event that will have participants climbing up 23 flights of stairs at Central City, all for a great local cause. All proceeds benefit Sophie’s Place at the Centre for Child Development in Surrey.
Sophie’s Place is a child advocacy centre focussed on providing specialized services to physically, mentally or sexually abused children up to age 16 in a child-friendly setting. It provides an opportunity to participate in the safeguarding of our children and in playing a key role in their healing process.
The Centre recently welcomed Sophie’s Place as a program under their umbrella and it is the result of a significant collaboration between the Surrey RCMP, the Ministry of Children and Family Development, Victim Services and Crime Prevention, a division of the Ministry of Justice, the City of Surrey and The Centre for Child Development.
Sign up to participate in Step It Up and collect pledged to complete the stair climb (545 steps, with a smooth elevator ride back down). Upon registration you’ll receive your own pledge page where family, friends, and colleagues can support your effort.
Follow the Centre for Child Development on Twitter and Facebook for more information.
