A few months ago Darren Barefoot sent me a tweet with a link to “Dexter Goes Kayaking”. A mounted camera captured a kayaker and her dog, Dexter, enjoying a paddle in False Creek. This inspired me to look up more kayaking videos from around Vancouver:
Dexter goes kayaking from Galen Lofstedt on Vimeo.
Kayaking in Vancouver from Steve Medwin on Vimeo.
Vancouver 2011 – Deep Cove Kayak from Henrik on Vimeo.
Timelapse View of Kayaking Up Indian Arm from A W on Vimeo.
Seymour Canyon from Andrew Quinn on Vimeo.
Paula Jamieson Kayaking Spanish Banks from Kyla Jam on Vimeo.
Living by the water, it’s not often that most of us get out on it for a paddle. There are plenty of options for kayak rentals and lessons around Vancouver including Deep Cove Kayak, Ecomarine Kayak, Kit’s Kayak Crusades, and more.
The YWCA Women of Distinction Awards are being held tonight at the Westin Bayshore to recognize outstanding women who have contributed to a variety of professional fields and communities around Metro Vancouver.
2012 Business & Professions recipient Patricia Graham of Pacific Newspaper Group
For the third year as a sponsor, I am presenting a live blog tonight that will include photos, quotes, and Twitter updates from attendees, nominees, and esteemed presenters.
Please check back after 6:00pm Pacific Time for the live coverage to begin and follow @Miss604 on Twitter as well as the official account @YWVanWODA (updated by Hailey Flynn) or the tag #WODA (for Women of Distinction Awards).
In the meantime, check out the full list of nominees for tonight’s awards ceremony.
Update 6:25pm: We have arrived at the awards for the evening and the reception is hopping. Silent auction items are out on display and the WestJet prize table is busy. Anyone in attendance can enter to win a trip for two anywhere WestJet flies — and the best part is that proceeds support the programming of the Metro Vancouver YWCA.
Tonight’s program will begin in a few minutes, once the nominees have their photos taken up on stage. Dinner will be served and awards will be handed out in the following order: Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
When searching for content for today’s Vancouver Icons or Vancouver History feature I put the word out on Facebook and user Raven Moon suggested posting about the Planetarium’s building. The Planetarium, officially known as the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre, is located in one of the city’s most recognizable buildings over in Kitsilano and is this week’s Vancouver Icons feature.
The building was designed by architect Gerald Hamilton who made the roof in the shape of a woven hat worn by Haida men and women. It opened in 1968 and was originally to house the The Centennial Museum, and the Vancouver Museum did move in at that time as well. Due to financial backing of lumber magnate and philanthropist H.R. MacMillan, the planetarium was added to the design of the building.
Hamilton also designed the East Asiatic House in Vancouver, on Pender and Bute, as well as the Civic Centre and Frank Clair Stadium in Ottawa.
You’ll know if someone has lived in Vancouver since before the 1990s when they call the building the “Planetarium”. It was renamed the Space Centre in late 90s — with H.R. MacMillan prefixed to both names. The Vancouver Museum was re-branded as the Museum of Vancouver in 2009.
Each of these entities offers unique programming, events, and education on a variety of topics. Follow the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre on Twitter @AskAnAstronomer to find out more about activities in the building and in the outer reaches of the galaxy.
Other Vancouver Icons posts include: 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.
TED has just announced that they will be hosting the TED Worldwide Talent Search in Vancouver (TED Talks) on May 31st at the Roundhouse in Yaletown.
View of the Roundhouse in Yaletown. Photo credit:
John Bollwitt on Flickr
This globally-recognized non-profit conference bills itself as being “devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading” and their roster of high profile speakers has included Steve Jobs, Stephen Hawking, Tony Robbins, Al Gore, Sir Ken Robinson, and more. Some of the people behind the conference include Larry Page, Ray Kurzweil, Craig Venter and Seth Godin.
TED Talks Vancouver will be part of a series of searches to bring together some of the most remarkable speakers in TED’s history. The theme of the next TED being: “The Young. The Wise. The Undiscovered.”
They have approved a range of local applicants who each embody one of the characteristics below:
- THE INVENTOR: sharing an innovation with world-changing potential
- THE TEACHER: sharing valuable knowledge in a memorable way to teenagers or adults
- THE PRODIGY: young talent ready to break out
- THE ARTIST: who can showcase their work in a compelling, new way
- THE PERFORMER: music, dance, comedy, drama: or something entirely different
- THE SAGE: wisdom the world needs from those who have learned it the hard way
- THE ENTHUSIAST: with an infectious passion about a topic they can share
- THE CHANGE AGENT: helping shape the world’s future with work that matters
- THE STORYTELLER: vivid, original, meaningful: with a talent for connection
- THE SPARK: with a powerful idea worth spreading
The selected Vancouver applicants will be vying for a spot on the official TED main stage. These are the only auditions taking place in Canada and you can attend the talent search in Vancouver by purchasing a ticket for $40.
TED is a nonprofit devoted to Ideas Worth Spreading. It started out (in 1984) as a conference bringing together people from three worlds: Technology, Entertainment, and Design. Since then its scope has become ever broader. Along with two annual conferences—the TED conference in Long Beach and Palm Springs each spring, and the TEDGlobal conference in Edinburgh UK each summer—TED includes the award-winning TEDTalks video site, the Open Translation Project and TED Conversation, the inspiring TED Fellows and the TEDx programs, and the annual TED Prize.
TED Talks in Vancouver will take place Thursday, May 31, 2012 from 3:00pm to 5:00pm and from 6:00pm to 8:00pm. Follow the Vancouver auditions on Facebook and @TEDTalks on Twitter to see who will be speaking next week, and possibly at the next TED.
The 8th Annual HSBC City of Bhangra Festival is bringing a variety of events to Vancouver and Surrey from May 31st to June 10th.
International and local acts will perform, including over 200 Punjabi dancers, musicians, singers, break dancers, folk dancers and more. Headliners include percussionist Sunil Kalyan and vocalist JK from the UK, along with DJ Rekha and Bikram Singh from New York.
Free Events
Surrey will host a special “Celebrate the Harvest” event at the Central City plaza on Saturday, June 2, 2012. In Vancouver, Downtown Bhangra I (June 9th) & II (June 10th) will take over the Vancouver Art Gallery lawn June 9th and 10th.
Surrey will also host Bhangra House at the Newton Recreation Centre that will host a range of folk dances. Vancouver’s free Bhangra Village will be at SFU Woodward’s.
Free lunchtime concerts in both Surrey and Vancouver will take place Monday, June 4th from 12:00pm to 1:00pm (at Central City and at Robson and Howe).
Ticketed Events
rePercussion (Surrey), Bhangra on Main, Bhangra Love, Basement Bhangra: Vancouver, Ambassadors of Bhangra, and the Closing Gala all require tickets, which start at just $15, depending on the event. You can also purchase a festival pass, for access to all events, for $80.
City of Bhangra is presented by the Vancouver International Bhangra Celebration Society. Follow the VIBC on Twitter and Facebook for more information about festival events and more throughout the year.
