This summer I’ve had the pleasure of writing about, and researching, a handful of Nanaimo’s festivals. From chowder and Nanaimo Bars, beer and food trucks, to world class blues music and championship bathtub racing. While I was on assignment for Festival Seekers, I also hiked to Ammonite Falls and got above the city with Sunshine Coast Air, and enjoyed plenty of good eats and great drinks.

2 Days in Nanaimo

If you’re heading to Nanaimo, for fun, family, friends, or a festival, here are a couple of itinerary suggestions:

Indulge With A Day of Nanaimo Bars

Eat
Follow the self-guided Nanaimo Bar Trail for themed dessert bar goodies that include deep fried varieties, spring rolls, cupcakes, gluten free, pie, ice cream, cheesecake, truffles, and of course classic Nanaimo Bars.

Drink
Also along the Nanaimo Bar Trail, you’ll find Nanaimo Bar Martinis served up at several locations. Pop into Modern Cafe (221 Commercial St) in the heart of downtown to sip your way through a Nanaimo Bar experience. Themed martinis are also served up at The Grand Hotel (4898 Rutherford Rd), Bold Knight Restaurant (1140 Trans Canada Hwy), The Nanaimo BAR (#2, 75 Front St), and Wolf Brewing (940 Old Victoria Rd) pairs their Dead Whale Beer with a Nanaimo Bar in their tasting room.

Play
The Nanaimo Bar Pedicure is offered at House of Kiyo Salon & Spa (#2 -404 Stewart Ave) downtown, and you can shop Lobelia’s Lair (#8 321 Wesley Street) in the Old City Quarter for Nanaimo Bar soap & massage oils. The Nanaimo Museum (100 Museum Way) downtown even has a Nanaimo Bar History Exhibit.

Adventure Awaits

Eat
After (or the day before) a sweet binge on coconut, custard, and chocolate goodness, fuel up with some hearty eats at Gabriel’s Cafe (39A Commercial St) downtown. Have an omelette with oyster mushrooms, kale & aged cheddar for breakfast, or snack on some quinoa & chickpea fritters with Sriracha mayo at lunch time. Breakfast and lunch is also served at Two Chefs Affair (123B Commercial St) downtown. Try French toast with pumpkin spice, cinnamon, and vanilla bean, served with blueberries and sweet cream cheese, or a Crab BLT for lunch with fresh crab, tomatoes, crispy bacon, lettuce, and pickled ginger, stacked on a butter toasted bun.

Drink
There are some great taprooms in Nanaimo, all with a different community and flare. White Sails is just across from Maffeo Sutton Park, the Longwood Brewpub is just up the highway (5775 Turner Road) and their taproom is closer to town (101A – 2046 Boxwood Rd), and Wolf Brewing Co has a taproom (940 Old Victoria Rd) just south of downtown.

Play
From waterfront strolls to forest hikes, Nanaimo is a great place to go for a hike or walk. Tourism Nanaimo has posted about their Top 5 Walks and my favourite is their list of Waterfall Walks, including Ammonite Falls. Of course you can also bike, paddle, SCUBA, swim, zipline and more all around the region.

Three upcoming festivals that would make a great home base for your Nanaimo adventure this summer are: Nanaimo Marine Festival’s World Championship Bathtub Race on now (July 21-24); Longwoodstock Festival at Longwood Brewery (August 12-13), and the Summertime Blues Festival (August 26-28).

For all of these recommendations and more, follow Tourism Nanaimo (Facebook, Twitter) as well as Festival Seekers (Facebook, Twitter). Have a great time on Vancouver Island!

Earlier this summer, Langara Golf Course in Vancouver celebrated its 90th anniversary. Opening in 1926, it was the city’s first public 18-hole course, and was constructed by The Canadian Pacific Railway (CPR).

“In order to sell their large tract of land for housing in South Vancouver, in 1924 the CPR altered their philosophy slightly. They decided to construct the best 18-hole public golf course in the Dominion on land bounded by Cambie and Main and south of 49th Avenue.

To accomplish their goal they hired the leading golf course architect in the Pacific Northwest A. Vernon Macan… To further insure a high quality course the CPR gave him 170 acres and basically an unlimited budget.

Spring 1926 the CPR prepared for the Official Opening Day. In order to add a local flavour to the new enterprise the company revived a lost name “Langara” for the golf course. In 1790 Lieutenant Jose Narvaez named the peninsula that we know today as Point Grey the Islas de Langara. Captain Vancouver renamed the area in 1792 as Point Grey. This choice preserved the name “Langara” forever.” [Source: BC Golf House]

1927. Clubhouse at Langara. Archives# Bu N322.

The Langara Golf Links opened June 26th, 1926. All the local professionals plus the club captains attended. The Reeve for South Vancouver, JW Cornett, hit the first shot.

Vintage Photos of Golf in Vancouver

The first public 9-hole course was at the PNE in 1925, and private courses were also scattered throughout the city. Here’s a glimpse at Vancouver golf culture over the years, courtesy of the City Archives:

1925. Golf Tournament at Shaughnessy Golf Club. Archives# CVA 99-3127.

1923. United States President Warren G. Harding standing at tee at Shaughnessy Heights Golf Club. Archives# SGN 943.21.

1925. Mayor L.D. Taylor takes a swing at golf tournament. Archives# CVA 1477-753.

1920s. Mrs. D.S. Montgomery teeing off at the Jericho Country Club golf course. Archives# CVA 371-1139.

1920s. Alfred Bull teeing off at Jericho Country Club golf course. Archives# SGN 1604.

1920. Participants in the Pacific Northwest Golf Tournament at the Vancouver Golf and Country Club. Archives# Sp P103.2.

1930. Pee-Wee golf at Cardero and Georgia. Archives# CVA 99-3815.

1945. Golf in Stanley Park. Archives# CVA 586-4034. Photographer: Don Coltman.

Pokémon Go has made it to Canada (officially) this week as the interactive Nintendo game that merges the digital space with real locations takes the world by storm. If you’re new to the game, want to hunt for Pokémon or do some training, Best Buy is hosting a Pokémon Go Party in Vancouver.

Best Buy Pokémon Go Party in Vancouver

Where: Vancouver Art Gallery PokéStop (800 Robson St, Vancouver)*
When: Thursday, July 21, 2016 from 12:00pm to 2:00pm

*UPDATE (Wednesday, 9:30pm) I just received word that the location is changing. A new location will be posted on Thursday morning.
**UPDATE (Thursday, 9:30am) Robson Square is the new location, just around the corner from the Vancouver Art Gallery.
***UPDATE Another event will take place at Robson Square tonight, sponsored by Enroot Meals on Demand. They are promising over a hundred lures, starting at 7:00pm. Click here for the Facebook event info.

Image courtesy of @Apay00 on Twitter

Offering free WiFi and mobile charging stations (both of which are invaluable to Pokémon Go players), the #BestBuyPokéParty will help gamers get the most out of their tech. For those who have yet to experience the game – but are keen to ride the wave – Best Buy’s helpful Blue Shirts and Geek Squad Agents will be on site to provide quick Pokémon Go tutorials.

The first 25 Pokémon Go players to check in at the #BestBuyPokéParty will receive a free portable mobile phone charger. Attendees are encouraged to post an image from the event to social media for a chance to win the highly coveted Pokémon Go Plus gaming accessory to help catch nearby Pokémon. To enter, images must be tagged with #BestBuyPokéParty. Gamers can also expect plenty of Pokémon Go lures at the party.

Want to connect with more players? Check out the Pokémon GO: Vancouver Meet Up on July 23rd in Stanley Park where over 2.4K people have already confirmed they’ll be attending.

Early Music Vancouver presents its first ever Vancouver Bach Festival, taking place in the heart of the city at the Christ Church Cathedral this August 2nd to 12th, 2016. The festival offers local enthusiasts a veritable ‘Best of’ collection of the German composer’s masterworks, from exquisite chamber music to monumental orchestral undertakings. This is also the first summertime classic music festival of its kind since Music Fest ended in 2013.

Vancouver Bach Festival

Headlining the programme will be Bach’s crowning achievement – the Mass in B Minor at the Chan Centre on August 5th at 7:30pm. Led by esteemed conductor Alexander Weimann, the performance will feature Montreal’s Arion Baroque Orchestra, and eight internationally-renowned Bach specialists as soloists. This will be EMV’s first presentation of the Mass in B Minor, which will come to Vancouver following its tour in Quebec and Ontario.

Among intimate recital offerings, innovative Jazz pianist Dan Tepfer will find the common ground between Baroque and Jazz with his New York Times praised Goldberg Variations/Variations; Beiliang Zhu, who recently won the International Bach competition in Leipzig, will perform the famed Cello Suites; and esteemed harpsichordist Davitt Moroney will play The Art of the Fugue. The festival will conclude with a performance of Bach’s Orchestral Suites led by Monica Huggett.

Vancouver Bach Festival Lineup

Single tickets are available now for all performances ranging from $10 to $67. Enjoy any four concerts of the Vancouver Bach Festival for the price of three. Purchases of more than four concert packages will also receive a 25% discount.

To compliment the artist lineup, EMV will offer an array of thought-provoking film screenings and expert talks, which audiences can enjoy with wine and refreshments in a relaxed atmosphere.

Win Tickets

I have a pair of tickets to give away to Mass in B Minor, taking place at the Chan Centre on August 5th at 7:30pm. Here’s how you can enter to win:

• Leave a comment on this post (1 entry)
• Post the following on Twitter (1 entry)

I will draw one winner at random from all entries at 12:00pm on Tuesday, July 26, 2016. Follow Early Music Vancouver on Facebook and Twitter for more event information.

Update The winner is Kathleen!

Canadians frantically scooped up tickets to The Tragically Hip‘s summer tour in the last two months, which many fear will be their last after the band announced May 24th that their lead singer Gord Downie was suffering from terminal brain cancer.

From Victoria to Kingston, they’ll be on the road starting July 22nd and their final show in Kingston is being aired on the CBC. Screening parties are popping up across the country and Live Nation will be hosting one at the Commodore Ballroom in Vancouver.

Free Screening of The Tragically Hip Concert on CBC at the Commodore in Vancouver

Where: Commodore Ballroom (868 Granville St, Vancouver)
When: August 20, 2016 4:30pm doors, screening at 5:30pm
Tickets: Free, but reservations online open up at 10:00am on July 21st. Entry is subject to capacity. Registered guests will be admitted on first come-first served basis. Registration does not guarantee entry. General admission, 19+, limit of 4 tickets per person.

Everyone in Canada has a Tragically Hip story to tell. What road trip you were on, where you danced, who you were with when you heard their poetic lyrics packed with Canadiana. My brother first introduced me to Road Apples in 1991 while we were playing Lego, and then I won a local radio station contest guessing the lyrics to songs from Fully Completely. I knew the story of Bill Barilko before I watched Hockey: A People’s History. Everyone has a Hip story.

As a recent BBC article “The Most Canadian Band in the World” puts it, “They are even more obscure internationally. As a result, the band is like a secret handshake for Canadians, a way to establish an exclusive commonality among anyone between the ages of roughly 15 and 45.”

The Tragically Hip: A National Celebration will be broadcast live on the CBC across Canada. If you would like to check out this screening event, with a thousand other Hip fans, be sure to reserve online then also line up on August 20th to make sure you gain entry.