From the Miss604 Flickr Pool: Rain

Comments 2 by Rebecca Bollwitt

It’s rather fitting that the first collection of images From the Miss604 Flickr Pool for 2012 have a “rain” theme. Make jokes about living on the “Wet” Coast and complain about umbrella etiquette all you want. The fact is that all of this lovely precipitation, that allows us to splash around in our wellies, ensures that we have the most beautiful, green, and lush scenery that any world class city could ask for.

Sunny Day @ Rain Coast Rain rain go away...
Photo credit: Paul Kreuger & S. Vegas on Flickr

Storm's a'coming
Photo credit: Tom Wiebe on Flickr

Bright umbrella Beaten down by the rain
Photo credit: Ruth and Dave & Ruth and Dave on Flickr

No Rain Stops the Sun DSC_0221.jpg
Photo credit: kardboard604 & colink. & Cherish Bryck Photography on Flickr

Red
Photo credit: eych-you-bee-ee-ahr-tee on Flickr

Tonight in Vancouver: A Piece of Robson
Photo credit: [travelfox] on Flickr

Rain Rain Go Away
Photo credit: Ryan Mezzo on Flickr

Weather reporting at it's finest
Photo credit: Eyesplash on Flickr

Granville street in the rain Vancouver Rain
Photo credit: Helen.Ailsa & popejon2 on Flickr

Rain On Your Parade
Photo credit: !graceface! on Flickr

Caught Outside
Photo credit: Maurice Li on Flickr

As always, please click through on the images to see more work from each of the photographers and feel free to share your own images in the Miss604 Flickr Pool.

Surrey International World Music Marathon

Add a Comment by Rebecca Bollwitt

Early bird registration for the Surrey International World Music Marathon is now open.

surrey marathonThe marathon event and festival will take place September 28 to September 30, 2012 and participants can sign up for the full marathon, half marathon, 5km run, or kids fun run.

Each mile on the course is being sponsored by a different country with the various community groups and cultural associations decorating their mile along the course as well as providing an entertainment stage and volunteers to cheer on the runners.

There will be a Weekend Expo, a Finish Line Concert, and even a charitable component. Early bird registration closes January 31, 2012 and will be followed by regular registration rates.

You can follow the event on Facebook and Twitter for additional information and updates.

Update It’s official! Surrey’s first-even marathon is now a Boston Marathon qualifying event. From the organizers: When the runners participating in the full or half marathon components of the inaugural Surrey International World Music Marathon begin their run, they will be setting history as well as taking the first step towards the world of marathon’s biggest event – the Boston Marathon. Despite it being the first year of the event, the Surrey Marathon has taken the official steps needed to be a “qualifying event” for the historic Boston race.

Arctic Air Premiere on CBC: Win Your Way Into the Red Carpet Event

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

CBC’s latest original series, Arctic Air, will premiere January 10, 2012 and to celebrate, they’re hosting a red carpet screening event at the Vogue Theatre in Vancouver.

Arctic Air

Arctic Air is a one-hour adventure series set in the booming Arctic, about a maverick airline and the unconventional family who runs it. On the ground, Bobby (Adam Beach), the headstrong business partner, struggles to save the airline from crashing financially while Mel (Kevin McNulty), the cantankerous co-owner, keeps his crew of pilots in the air. Caught in the crossfire is Mel’s hotshot pilot daughter Krista (Pascale Hutton).

The cast and crew of Arctic Air will be joined on the red carpet by other celebrities and VIPs for this viewing, which will be followed by a Q&A session for the crowd. The CBC has offered up 5 pairs of tickets to this event that I can give away to my readers. There are 2 ways for you to enter to win:

  • Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)
RT to enter to win your way into the @CBCArcticAir #CBCPremiereVan from @CBCVancouver & @Miss604 http://ow.ly/8igqD
  • Answer the trivia question in the contest box below (1 entry)

Each winner will be able to attend the screening event with a guest on January 10, 2012 at 7:00pm at the Vogue Theatre (918 Granville). I will draw all 5 winners on Monday, January 9, 2012 at 10:00am 3:00pm.

Follow Arctic Air on Facebook and Twitter throughout the season.

Update The winners are: @taigimaeda, Jared, Lyn, Gladys, and Rebecca.

Girls Ride Free at Mount Seymour 2012

Comments 1 by Rebecca Bollwitt

The 6th annual Girls Ride Free – Shred for a Cure campaign at Mount Seymour starts January 9, 2012 and will run until March 2, 2012. Ladies can pick up their free lift passes from participating locations and enjoy a night on the mountain every Monday after 6:00pm.


Keira-Anne and me. Photo credit: Keira-Anne on Flickr

The best part of this “Shred for a Cure” event is that it event supports a great cause. Donations will be accepted all night long at Guest Services and all proceeds from each Monday night will go to the BC Cancer Foundation and breast cancer research.

Participating Voucher Locations

Ladies can pick up their vouchers for a free lift ticket at any of the following locations. Redeem the voucher on the mountain, at Guest Services, on any Monday night starting January 9, 2012. A maximum two vouchers can be picked up at once.

Vancouver
Pacific Boarder – 1793 West 4th Ave
Granville Island Brewing – 1441 Cartwright Street
Vancouver Ski & Board Services – 271 East 2nd Ave

North Vancouver
North Shore Ski & Board – 1625 Lonsdale Ave
Boardroom – 2057 Lonsdale Ave
Narrows Pub – 1970 Spicer Road

Burnaby
Comor – 3700 East Hastings Street
Street to Snow – 3807 East Hastings Street

Langley
Coastal Riders – #102-8860 201 Street

062a
Photo credit: MrDoopey on Flickr – Submitted to the Miss604 Flickr Pool

During Shred for the Cure/Ladies Nights you can also stop by the RockChute Inn at 8:00pm for food, drink specials, and a prize draw starting at 9:00pm.

Gung Haggis Fat Choy 2012

Comments 5 by Rebecca Bollwitt

Gung Haggis Fat Choy is one unique event where you can catch poetry and Kung Fu, highland dancers performing with sheng players, and delicious deep-fried haggis dumplings. It’s an annual Vancouver tradition that combines Chinese New Year with Robbie Burns Day in a single event.

Scottish singer plus Chinese folk instrument
Photo credit: bmann on Flickr

Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dinner

  • Date: January 22, 2012 (Chinese New Year’s Eve)
  • Time: 5:00pm (doors) 6:00pm (dinner)
  • Where: Floata Restaurant at #400 – 180 Keefer St, Vancouver
  • What: An 8-course Scottish/Chinese banquet dinner complete with entertainment

Tickets are available through the Firehall Arts Centre box office, online or by phone (604) 689-0926. They are $65 regular admission, $50 student, $40 children. You can also book a table of 10 for $625. Service fees apply to each ticket price.

  • Hosts: TV and radio host Tetsuro Shigematsu, Parliamentary Poet Laureate Fred Wah, and scholar Dr. Jan Walls.
  • What to Wear: Kilts and tartans, as well as Chinese jackets and cheong-sam dresses are preferred. But our guests are dressed both formal and casual – be comfortable, be outrageous, be yourself.
  • The Dinner: Appetizers will arrive at the tables by 6:00pm and soon after, the dinner formalities begin. From then on a new dish will appear somewhere around 15 minutes, quickly followed by a co-host introducing a poet or musical performer.
  • Finale: The evening will wrap up somewhere between 9:00pm and 9:30pm, with the singing of Auld Lang Syne. They start with a verse in Mandarin Chinese, then sing in English or Scottish. Participants can socialize further until 10:00pm.
  • Read the full list: What to Expect at the 2012 Dinner.

The dinner is a primary fundraiser for the the Gung Haggis Fat Choy Dragon Boat team.

The Gung Haggis Fat Choy concept is the brainchild of Toddish McWong aka Todd Wong who came up with the idea after he was asked to help out with SFU’s annual Robbert Burns Day celebration back in 1993. The name being a play on the Chinese New Year/Lunar New Year greeting, Gung Hay Fat Choy.

He, a 5th generation Canadian was learning about Scottish-Canadian culture with its strange traditions of men wearing skirt-like attire, carrying swords, playing funny sounding musical instruments and eating exotic foods. On top of that, the Chinese Lunar New Year fell on January 27th only two days away from Robbie Burns Day, which is always January 25th in celebration of the Scottish Bard’s birthday. “Gung Haggis Fat Choy!” said Wong, “I can celebrate two cultures at the same time.” And thus was born the persona of Toddish McWong with his growing appreciation of Scottish Canadian history and culture. – Who is Toddish McWong?

The Gung Haggis Fat Choy dinner officially began in 1998 and since that time it has expanded throughout the Pacific Northwest and onto Vancouver Island (Victoria’s event is January 28th this year). In 2005, the dinner moved to the largest Chinese Restaurant in North America at the time (Floata) and has since been attended by Mayors, MLAs, and celebrities. Todd Wong also received the 2008 BC Community Achievement Award, presented by the Premier, “for his devotion to community service, building bridges and cross-cultural understanding, and acknowledged as the creator of Gung Haggis Fat Choy.”

Thanks to Toddish McWong, this harmonious cultural mix celebrates the true essence of Vancouver each year.