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Happy Birthday Canada Line!

Frederick Linsmeyer • August 17, 2010 • Local, Trains

Canada Line at Richmond-Brighouse station

The Canada Line turns one year old today! On August 17^th, 2009, Vancouver, Richmond and the Vancouver International Airport all became linked together with rapid transit.

Since it opened, the Canada Line has transported some 36 million passengers between the two cities. During the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, 3.88 million passengers rode the system between February 12^th and 28^th.

Ridership numbers on the rapid transit line average close to 95,000 per day.

Source: TransLink

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Anime Evolution 2010

Frederick Linsmeyer • August 16, 2010 • Conventions

Another year, another Anime Evolution. Costumed fans of anime and manga gathered around the core of the University of British Columbia during a sweltering summer weekend. There was lots to see and do, along with plenty of awesome costume, but the convention wasn’t as great as anticipated.

Read the rest of this article…

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100 years of the Fair at the PNE

Frederick Linsmeyer • August 9, 2010 • Local

The historic wooden roller coaster at Playland

Since 1910, the Fair at the PNE has delighted locals and visitors alike with rides, food, exhibits and various of other events. During the fair’s centennial year, the PNE has returned with a strong line up of musicians; including Cindy Lauper, Huey Lewis and The News, Jesse Cook, Wayne Newton, Kevin Costner and Michael Bolton. Of course, there’s always the popular PNE Prize Home, the Dal Richards Orchestra, Super Dogs, mini donuts and more!

The Fair at the PNE runs from Saturday, August 21^st to Monday, September 6^th, 2010. Don’t forget to come early on Sunday, August, 22^nd as the fairgrounds open at 9:00 am PDT with free admission, but only until 12:00 pm PDT.

Passes to the PNE and Playland can be purchased online.

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Celebration of Light 2010 – Night 3

Frederick Linsmeyer • July 29, 2010 • Local, Photography

Mexico delights the crowds

The beaches were packed as Mexico took the stage, err, barge, during the third evening of the Celebration of Light. The crowd cheered on a magnificent performance by Lux Pirotecnia that lit up English Bay.

This time I sat with a group of friends on the rocks by the inukshuk on the beach and was able to capture some truly spectacular pictures of the fireworks. Sadly, a few last minute stragglers blocked my friend (who has the better camera and full tripod), so she wasn’t able to take any photos.

There’s only one more night left to the Celebration of Light – a tribute to China, on Saturday, July 31^st, 2010. Head down to English Bay to catch the last pyrotechnical show of the year over the water.

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Celebration of Light 2010 – Night 2

Frederick Linsmeyer • July 25, 2010 • Local, Photography

Spain lighting up the sky

Spain put on an amazing show for the second night of the Celebration of Light fireworks festival. The evening was bathed in dazzling colours that lit up the darkened skies and wowed the crowds along English Bay.

If you missed the show, take a look at some of the photos taken from my spot on the sea wall. These turned out much better considering I used a mini tripod to help steady the camera.

Mexico will take to the skies next on Wednesday, July 28^th, followed by China on Saturday, July 31^st.

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Renaming GM Place to Rogers Arena

Frederick Linsmeyer • July 6, 2010 • Local

Rogers Arena with Downtown Vancouver

General Motors Place, or “the Garage” as it’s come to be known by local hockey fans, will be getting a new name after 15 years.

The Vancouver Canucks and General Motors of Canada have agreed on a new sponsorship deal which didn’t include naming rights for the arena.

The Canucks have announced the new name as Rogers Arena, in partnership with Rogers Communications.

Since GM Place’s opening in 1995, the the car manufacturer has had its name on the structure, except during the 2010 Winter Olympics when it was temporarily known as Canada Hockey Place.

Source: Vancouver Canucks

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Downtown Historic Railway to return this month

Frederick Linsmeyer • July 5, 2010 • Trains

After the Olympic Line carried locals and visitors alike between Granville Island and the Olympic Village Canada Line station, the Downtown Historic Railway will be returning to the rails. The Transit Museum Society hopes to be rolling again in mid to late July, but has not finalized hours of operation.

The Downtown Historic Railway operates two historic interurban streetcars: numbers 1207 and 1231. The streetcars were built in 1905 and 1912 respectively and were run by the British Columbia Electric Railway, right up until the end of service in 1958.

Due to construction along the eastern portion of the line, the streetcars will run between Granville Island and the Olympic Village (Leg-in-Boot) station and will no longer continue onwards to the Science World station.

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Celebration of Light 2010 country line-up

Frederick Linsmeyer • July 3, 2010 • Local

South Africa's 2009 performance.

At long last, the participating countries for this year’s Celebration of Light have been announced. Four nations will be presenting their skills and colours over four nights this July with 30 minutes of pyrotechnical beauty. The line-up features displays from:

United States – Wednesday, July 21^st, 2010
Spain – Saturday, July 24^th, 2010
Mexico – Wednesday, July 28^th, 2010
China – Saturday, July 31^th, 2010

The fireworks begin at 10:00 pm PDT, so come out early to hunker down in a good spot to catch the show over English Bay. Visit the Celebration of Light web site for maps on where to best view the event from along with transportation options.

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Stanley Park photos

Frederick Linsmeyer • June 19, 2010 • Photography

Totem Poles at Brockton Point

Since this past Saturday, along with today, had proven to be exceptional weather-wise, I headed down to Stanley Park to wander around the sea wall and along the many trails. Not many cities have access to such a large and spectacular natural area within the downtown core.

In both my trips, I took quite a few photos of the sea wall, Siwash Rock, the Lions Gate Bridge, the Rose Garden, Beaver Lake and the totem poles at Brockton Point. All of the photos are available on Gallery.

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Replacing the sails at Canada Place

Frederick Linsmeyer • June 17, 2010 • Local

Canada Place at night

Another Vancouver icon is undergoing roof repairs. The famed white sails at Canada Place are being replaced as part of a rehabilitation project to fix leaks and install a covering that will last longer than the existing fabric.

The replacement is being funded by the federal government’s Infrastructure Stimulus Fund, part of Canada’s Economic Action Plan.

Canada Place was constructed in 1983 and opened in time to house Canada’s pavilion for Expo 86. In addition to serving as a convention centre, the landmark is also a cruise ship terminal, as many large ships can be seen berthed during the warmer months.

The project is expected to be completed sometime in 2011.

Source: Canada Place

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