Relocation services for British Columbia, Canada

Reflections on life in BC

As we have got our children writing diaries (“blogging”), we thought we could add our own occasional thoughts and observations on life here. It is not meant to be a diary, but is arranged chronologically for convenience.

Wherever relevant we have added links that relate to our observations.

April 2005

We went out to the theatre this week. Now in the UK we were lucky to have a great theatre on our doorstep - Richmond Theatre being a refurbished Victorian theatre with a great selection of plays. So the Granville Island stage was not an impressive building. But we were greeted as we arrived and told about the lounges to wait in. We chose the one upstairs and were treated to a spectacular view across False Creek to the condos downtown, with the yatchs moored alongside. Just stunning.

The play we saw was good and the small audience appreciative. As good Canadians, we all recycled our programmes as we left.

March 2005

I don't know what happened to March.

February 2005

Iron Chef

In the paper today there was news that Rob Feenie, Vancouver’s celebrity chef and proprietor of Lumière Restaurant (winner of Vancouver’s best restaurant and best French restaurant five years in a row) won the Iron Chef contest. He is the first Canadian chef on the series and, obviously, the first to have won.

I have not eaten at his restaurants (he also has Feenies and the Lumière Tasting Bar) but have seen him cooking on Food Network Canada. His dishes certainly look good.

Weather

Well, I have been busy and so it is a gap between this entry and the last. And today, and all this week the weather has been fantastic. Cold overnight, waking to -2°C, then warming to 8°C or so. Bright sunshine and cloudless skies.

Watching the yatchs off Kits beach this afternoon was magical.

On the other side, we drove up to Seymour to look at the skiing and tobogganning. The views were lovely but the lack of snow was rather depressing. Plenty of room in the car park and brown patches in the piste. [Shakes head]

My son, who is a keen snowboarder, has got a basketball hoop instead - that or he is playing on his Xbox. And of course there is no NHL hockey either. It seems more like summer.

January 2005

It’s snowing today

Our drive in the snow, Jan 8th, 2005Well people in the UK expect it to be snowing in Canada, but contrary to this belief it does not snow in Vancouver very much. Our local mountains (Grouse, Cypress and Seymour) do get snow, but at sea level it is fairly rare. So today (6th January) it was great to see the snow arrive.

Last year there was a snow day - when the schools get closed because of heavy snow. So the kids were hoping for another today. The morning news on Global TV emphasized that school was on.

We have a relatively steep drive, and the traction control and snow tires came in useful. Once on the main road, there was no problem. The gritters and snow plows had been out already, even though it is a relatively minor route.

But, now at 11am, the snow has been falling solidly all morning and it looks like a Christmas card again. Lovely.

Our oldest daughter has just passed her driving test, but we’re not going to let her drive in these conditions. Even we are not really experienced in snow and ice.

December 2004

First skiing

It was a Pro-D day yesterday. That is the equivalent of an inset day. What it means is the kids are off school while the teachers are getting in service training or Professional Development.

The great thing about Pro D days is that you can go skiing with the kids on a quiet day. We headed up to Cypress Mountain for the first time this season. It wasn’t the best day, as it was snowing. But the slopes were quiet and it gave us a chance to re-learn our very basic skiing and snowboarding abilities with less fear of crashing into someone else.

In the summer Pro D days can be used to similar effect - going to Playland at the PNE for example.

Snow tires

There has been some discussion about the need for snow tires in winter. Of course much depends on the area you live and where you plan to go. For much of the interior, especially the northern interior, there is no debate: snow tires are a necessity.

Here in the Lower Mainland, around Vancouver, it is more debatable. However I would recommend fitting snow tires if you plan to go to Whistler or up to the local mountains (Cypresss especially).

For example, on the 6th December, we went up to Cypress. It was drizzling on the highway, but as we drove up the mountain this turned to snow. The roads were fairly icy but nothing too scary. On our return it was clear at the top, foggy halfway down and snowing on the lower reaches.

Later that afternoon I went up again to get my daughter and friend from Cypress. By this time the drive up was clear but considerably icier than the previous trip. By the time I'd picked them up it was snowing and foggy again and there was a long line of cars crawling down the hill.

I’m taking my own advice and getting winter tires today!

November 2004

Grey cup failure - Cannabis cup success

Today’s Vancouver Sun (Nov 30th) had a couple of articles relating to Cannabis. Apparently BC’s guerrilla growers won trophies for cultivating the year’s best pot at the Amsterdam festival. We won best sativa and best indica awards.

Finally, the article stated that “domestic production probably accounts for upwards of 80% of the [marijuana] market”. It has to be grown somewhere.

In the same edition there was a small article noting that marijuana grow operations are stealing more and more power from BC hydro (the electricity board) each year. A grow op usually happens in a rental property, and the tenants illegally tap into the electricity supply. They usually ruin the house in the process as there are extensive remodelling done for watering and lighting systems.

If you are a landlord, or plan to be, remember that you now have a responsibility to inspect your property regularly. This is to cut down on the risk of it being used as an illegal grow op.

Let it snow...

It snowed here in West Vancouver. I was in the car park at Caulfield, around school pick-up time (3:00pm) and there were wet flakes falling. You can see up to Cypress from there and it was white. I heard one kid shout “it’s snowing” in great excitement.

My kids are excited and already planning to go snowboarding. Cypress opens this weekend - first weekend of December. And they have a “pro d” day on Monday - ideal time to go up the mountain. [“Pro d” means professional development and is the equivalent of an inset day in the UK - the kids get the day off, while the teachers get some inservice training.]

Time to get the winter tires on the car. Incidentally you do need winter tires if you are travelling in BC, or even going up to Cypress. I am not sure they are needed if you are just travelling around Vancouver itself. My cousin never changes her tires. To give you an insight into the traffic conditions in BC, have a look at the BC highways web cams.

Dog walking

A trail in Lighthouse Park,
West VancouverI am lucky enough to live near Lighthouse Park in West Vancouver. This is an area of old growth forest that has been preserved and is still being fought over. The fight is over whether dogs should be allowed off-leash or not. This summer a battle was won by the dog walkers and dogs continue to enjoy the park off-leash.

As a dog walker I approve. I have changed my outlook somewhat as a result of the debates that raged. I now understand that protecting a precious ecosystem involves keeping my dog on the trails and not allowing him to roam through the undergrowth. In the UK he used to love me throwing a stick into the bracken and searching for it. Now I throw the stick along the path.

One other difference about walking here. It is tougher and more dangerous. There were several bear sightings at Lighthouse Park this summer. We have never seen one, despite using the park almost every day. But we have met someone on the trail who had just seen one - on the main paved path down to the lighthouse.

The other day, I went off on an unfamiliar path, to the east of the park. It was very steep at first and quite lovely. After I had been walking for half an hour, I realized I had seen no one else and that, as the path became steeper and more overgrown, I did not know precisely where I was. Ten minutes later I emerged on a road, and made my way back to the car park. It occurred to me that if it was this easy to get “lost”, then I should make sure I am properly prepared. We're not in Surrey any more!

Happy hours

Did you know that happy hours are illegal in BC? An article in the Vancouver Sun pointed out that the liquor commission regulations prevent bars from discounting booze. The bars are discounting food instead!

Unlike the UK, where booze is available anywhere, here it is strictly regulated. You have to be 19 to drink. Our oldest daughter, 17 at the time, returned to the UK last summer and noticed that all her friends were into the pub culture. Here teens tend to migrate from one house to another, based on the quality of the entertainment and food on offer. If you want to see your teens, then get a kick-ass home theatre system and keep the junk food well stocked.

Teen parties

On the subject of booze and teens. If you have underage drinkers at a party you host, you have a responsibility to ensure that they are capable of getting home safely. There has been at least one case (see CBC news story) where the hosts were prosecuted and ended up paying part of a $2.5 million damages award.

We have also heard of a party where the hosts did everything right:

• got written permission from all parents
• arranged for taxis or transport for guests
• checked as each guest left that they were ok to drive

Unfortunately one of the guests had been drinking but didn't admit to it. He was subsequently in an accident, and the hosts were sued.

Incidentally this “social host” extends to employer’s responsibility for the state of their employees leaving the office party.

Orcas

Orca Elvis has left the building.The Orcas in the City project raised $400,000. In case you missed this, there were Orca statues all over Vancouver and Victoria. Each one was unique. If you've been to Calgary (cows) or Toronto (mooses) then you will have seen something similar.

The Orcas were auctioned off for charity. What a fantastic way to brighten up the city and then raise money too.