33 years ago today Harbour Centre was officially opened and at 481 feet, it was the tallest building in Vancouver at the time.1 Harbour Centre is the home of The Vancouver Lookout, a revolving restaurant, a mall, various businesses and tech firms, as well as one of SFU‘s downtown campuses.
In 1977 it was called the Sears Tower and within it, the revolving Harbour House Restaurant (now the Top of Vancouver) had a special guest for the occasion. Neil Armstrong (the man who walked on the moon) left a set of footprints in fresh concrete that are still on display today.2
The building sits at the location of the old Spencer’s Department Store which was demolished when Sears moved in. Still standing on the other corner, at West Hastings and Richards, the David Spencer building currently houses offices and the SFU campus.
1930s – Archives item #CVA 1495-32
2009 – Google Street View
I have yet to make it up to the Vancouver Lookout but those I’ve spoken to said it provides an unparalleled view of the city.
Tickets to take the glass elevator up to the observation deck at The Lookout are $15 for adults, with free admission for children 5 and under. Reservations for the Top of Vancouver revolving restaurant, where you can dine at 553 feet, can be made anytime and they serve brunch, lunch, and dinner.
While it’s no longer the tallest building in the city, it is a unique part of our skyline — and it’s been a part of my banner image since 2006. Adorned with glowing red lights during the Olympics or green during the winter holidays, it’s a modern Vancouver icon. Happy Birthday, Harbour Centre!
1 VancouverHistory.ca
2 VancouverHistory.ca
Watch the World Cup in Vancouver as South Africa hosts the 2010 FIFA World Cup in just a few days. The car flags are already waving and it will have the jubilation and national pride of the Olympics all day and night, throughout the region. Our multicultural melting pot of a city will come alive with men, women, and children sporting the colours of many countries on t-shirts, cars and everything in between.
Here’s how you can catch all of the action in Metro Vancouver either on television or in-person.
CBC
As the official broadcast home of the World Cup in Canada, the CBC will have extensive coverage including commentary from Vancouver’s own Bob Lenarduzzi. You will even be able to watch matches live online.
Donnelly Pubs
Cinema Public House and Library Square Public House open at 7:00am, showing games at 7:00am, 9:0 am, 11:30am, 5:00pm, 7:00pm and 9:00 pm. The Calling Public House, The Lamplighter and The Academic open at 11:00 am, showing games at 11:30 am, 5:00 pm, 7:00 pm and 9:00 pm. This schedule will be in place until July 11, 2010.
Red Card Sports Bar
Probably one of Vancouver’s newest sports bars, Red Card will be showing most World Cup matches as their screens will be locked on the CBC as of June 11th when the open up for business at 7:00am.
Players Chophouse
Although not listed on their website, there are some ClubZone listings for World Cup games at Players Chophouse.
Ceilis
Open daily at 11:00am for World Cup broadcasts.
Commercial Drive
Nations converge on this one legendary road where you can choose from dining anywhere from a Nepalese restaurant to a Portuguese cafe. During the run of the World Cup there will also be the Car Free Day street festival as well as Italian Week.
Nyala African Cuisine (4148 Main Street) will be open daily at 6:30am serving an African style breakfast and lunch serving mostly south African and north African food. They will show all games on a 10-foot screen with HD projector.
Rio Theatre
Located just off Commercial Drive this one-room movie house usually shows World Cup games on their big screen with dozens of flags waving overhead.
Vancity Theatre
On Seymour at Davie the Vancouver International Film Centre will open up its theatre for digital broadcasts of several World Cup games. Big comfy seats and full theatre amenities will make this one comfy place to check out the action.
German Cultural Centre – Alpenhaus
Boasting Vancouver’s largest HD screen the Alpen Club will be showing every World Cup game.
The Cascase Room
Located on Main Street, the Cascade Room is planning full World Cup coverage. A schedule is available on their website.
River Rock Casino Resort
Lulu’s Lounge will be showing the matches from 7:00am – 2:00pm every day. People can also enter to win a World Cup Jersey of their choice and a VIP River Rock Package.
As a side note, we discovered a cool television special on National Geographic last night called Build up to the Cup. From commuter rail systems to new stadiums, it’s fascinating to see how South Africa has been built up for this monumental occasion. Check local listings to see when it will air again if you’re interested.
Back to events, I’m sure there are many more taking place throughout Metro Vancouver during the World Cup so if you have anything to add, please feel free to leave a note in the comments and I’ll put it to the list.
The 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa will run June 11 – July 11, 2010.
Update There will be a finale watching party / fundraiser at Ceilis on the 11th.
Update Ariane C guest posted about where to watch the World Cup final this weekend.
When in New York last month, Keira and I stayed at the Distrikt Hotel between Hell’s Kitchen and the Theatre District. Keira originally found the hotel listed online through Expedia and watched customer reviews pour in since its launch earlier in 2010. Scanning Yelp consistently and seeing that the price was right (packaged with our airfare) she recommended we book with Distrikt.
Some of the Google Street Views showed the area as being under construction and seeing as how the hotel only opened a few months ago I did some research before our trip. Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
Although there are many places to explore and discover on Vancouver Island, none is more widely known than our Province’s capital, Victoria. Continuing the Top Five series, here are some of my favourite things about traveling to Victoria. As usual, I list a few more than five things but I’ve limited the content to five categories overall.
Continue reading this post ⟩⟩
Vancouver is currently sitting in 7th place in the “Put your Town on the Map with Bing” photo contest. They are asking Canadians to submit photos of their hometowns and at the end of the campaign, the photo with the most votes (from the most popular city) will win a grand prize. Prizes incentives include cameras and swag from Walmart PhotoCentre and Kodak Canada Inc. as well as getting your photo featured on the Bing.ca homepage.
Ahead of Vancouver in the standings right now lies Ville de Saguenay, Calgary, Picton, North Bay, Quebec City, and Thunder Bay. In BC, Vancouver is in the top spot ahead of Kitimat, Kamloops, Nelson, and Victoria.
Although Vancouver is often ranked within the top ten livable cities or destinations in the world, when it comes to popular votes online we don’t quite do as well. Earlier this year Monopoly Canada was launching a new edition and asked people to vote on which cities should get which real estate on the board. The MonopolyVote site is no longer operational however last time I checked, Vancouver wasn’t in the top ten.
If you would like to give our city a boost in this photo contest, check out the entries and place your vote or submit your own photos for a chance at daily prizes or the grand prize. Be sure to also read the terms and conditions of the contest to ensure you are okay with the licensing of the photo you submit.
