Pride (In the Name of Love)

This is Pride Weekend in Vancouver, and today is the Pride Parade. At the intersection of Davie Street and Denman Street there is a stand of flagpoles. Through the year the Canadian flags on the taller poles stay the same, and the slightly shorter ring of poles surrounding them change according to what's happening in the city; Heart and Stroke awareness month in February, the Vancouver Marathon in May... For the last couple of weeks the Pride flags have been proudly, gaily flying.

I love my neighbourhood.

This photo also, coincidentally, fits in with the City Daily Photo Theme Day for August 1st: bright colours. Click here to view thumbnails for all participants

Post title from this song by U2.

Garden

Today was a beautiful day: perfect for a stop at the West End Farmer's Market this morning, and then I wandered a few blocks to check out the Davie Village Community Garden - a lovely little oasis at the corner of one of the busiest intersections in downtown Vancouver: Davie and Burrard Streets. In the midst of all the bustle is this chunk of land, formerly the site of a gas station, now a community garden where people grow flowers and vegetables in assigned mini plots. I'm tempted to put my name on the waiting list to get my own $10/year spot - my balconies on the 21st floor are too windy and don't get enough sun to grow much of anything.

The glass towers in the background are The Wall Centre - including until recently Vancouver's tallest building.

Post title from this song by Pearl Jam.

Bring on the Dancing Horses

Yesterday was a holiday in Canada: Victoria Day, where we celebrate the legendary British Queen's birthday. I've never attended, or for that matter even heard of, official Victoria Day ceremonies or events; for most of us it's merely the first long weekend of summery weather. It rained most of the weekend here in Vancouver except for yesterday afternoon. I took the break in the weather as a sign that I should walk to English Bay and take in some beach time. It seems a couple of officers and their steeds from the Vancouver Police Mounted Squad based in nearby Stanley Park did the same!


Post title from this song by Echo & the Bunnymen.

A-maze-ing Laughter

At the moment there are temporary public art exhibits all over the city as part of the Vancouver Biennale. This is part of an installation called A-maze-ing Laughter by Chinese contemporary artist Yue Minjun. It's a very popular exhibit - there are always people walking amongst the statues, kids climbing on them, and people imitating the poses for pictures. To see the whole installation and get a sense of scale, click here.

We've had a mild winter

Palm trees in Vancouver! They separate a section of Beach Avenue from the actual beach at English Bay, near the intersection with Davie Street. We have had a mild winter, so much warmer than usual that snow had to be flown in by helicopter to one of the Olympic venues in February, but these trees must be a hardy variety to thrive through the average Pacific Northwest winter. We had a sunny evening a couple of days ago so I walked down to the water and took this photo.