spongeg
July 14th, 2008, 01:06 AM
a place i never get to enough
Vancouver's Granville Island is a world unto itself
'It's a human place, a place for people to gather'
YVONNE JEFFERY
Canwest News Service; Calgary Herald
Saturday, July 12, 2008
The jaunty little Aquabus at the end of Vancouver's Hornby St. sets the tone for an afternoon's exploration: Crayon-box colours decorate its hull, the operator offers directions, and it takes just minutes to cross False Creek and deposit passengers on Granville Island.
Here the jumble of brightly coloured once-industrial buildings are full of people ready to dispense insider tips about everything from mangos to handcrafted hats, in a setting that lets you pop in for a few minutes to pick up dinner or wander for hours.
Standing among the pigeons in the square in front of the Public Market building, tuxedoed crooner Josh Minsky belts out tunes as a welcome to the island's shops, restaurants and studios. He's been playing Granville Island since 2000, after spending years in Europe.
"There's no place like Granville in the world," Minsky says as makes way for the next performer. "There aren't very many places in North America that are designed for people, not the car. It's a human space - a place for people to gather. North America needs that desperately."
Once, this area wasn't much more than a couple of sandbars. Then, in the early 1900s, False Creek was dredged to provide fill, and factories were built, producing cement, boilers, barrels, wire rope and more.
It was a heady time, but it didn't last. By the 1970s, industry had dwindled (although a cement plant still exists), and the creek itself was a wildlife wasteland. Enter Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., and $24.7 million worth of federal government funding aimed at creating an urban oasis. Consider it money well spent (the island has been financially self-sustaining since 1983).
Today, the island (technically a bubble-shaped peninsula) is home to industry, theatre, maritime suppliers, a farmers market, brewery, parks and tall, narrow, glass-fronted houseboats. People live here, work here and play here.
Most visitors begin their wanderings at the Public Market, where you can snack your way around the stalls. Kaisereck Deli has sausages, sandwiches and salads. More sausages hang at Oyama Sausage Co., amid pâtés, hams and terrines. British Columbia's heritage is everywhere: Cowichan cutting boards, Fraser Valley juice and Salt Spring Island strawberries.
Between the copious snacks and a warm sausage roll, I don't need to stop for a sit-down lunch. Instead, I amble around the old warehouses, ducking into bead stores, jewellery studios, paper-good shops and even a hammock store, where the staff insist I try "hanging out" in one. It takes some technique to get into, but the hammock is surprisingly comfy.
Going beyond the point where many visitors stop, I discover Granville Island Brewing (offering brewery tours and tastings), the Granville Island Hotel (don't miss its deck in the summer months), the galleries of the Emily Carr Institute of Art & Design, and the reclaimed Railspur Alley, where artists' studios line a narrow lane.
Visual artist Alice Parmelee Rich shares Studio 13, a space full of wooden beams, cement floors and pale walls, with artist Sandy Kay. She's finishing a commissioned acrylic on canvas, but takes the time to talk about the island's eclectic audience. "You never know who's going to walk through the door," she says. "Last year, we shipped to Dubai, to Scotland and to Georgia."
I move out to wander among the other studios. I haven't even had a chance to rent a kayak, take in a yoga class or a production from the Arts Club Theatre. Which all seem like excellent reasons to return to Granville Island on my next visit.
More information
Granville Island, go to granvilleisland.com
Tourism Vancouver, go to tourismvancouver.com
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/travel/story.html?id=344ab8bc-ce26-4531-b92f-ccb9841d43e3
Vancouver's Granville Island is a world unto itself
'It's a human place, a place for people to gather'
YVONNE JEFFERY
Canwest News Service; Calgary Herald
Saturday, July 12, 2008
The jaunty little Aquabus at the end of Vancouver's Hornby St. sets the tone for an afternoon's exploration: Crayon-box colours decorate its hull, the operator offers directions, and it takes just minutes to cross False Creek and deposit passengers on Granville Island.
Here the jumble of brightly coloured once-industrial buildings are full of people ready to dispense insider tips about everything from mangos to handcrafted hats, in a setting that lets you pop in for a few minutes to pick up dinner or wander for hours.
Standing among the pigeons in the square in front of the Public Market building, tuxedoed crooner Josh Minsky belts out tunes as a welcome to the island's shops, restaurants and studios. He's been playing Granville Island since 2000, after spending years in Europe.
"There's no place like Granville in the world," Minsky says as makes way for the next performer. "There aren't very many places in North America that are designed for people, not the car. It's a human space - a place for people to gather. North America needs that desperately."
Once, this area wasn't much more than a couple of sandbars. Then, in the early 1900s, False Creek was dredged to provide fill, and factories were built, producing cement, boilers, barrels, wire rope and more.
It was a heady time, but it didn't last. By the 1970s, industry had dwindled (although a cement plant still exists), and the creek itself was a wildlife wasteland. Enter Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp., and $24.7 million worth of federal government funding aimed at creating an urban oasis. Consider it money well spent (the island has been financially self-sustaining since 1983).
Today, the island (technically a bubble-shaped peninsula) is home to industry, theatre, maritime suppliers, a farmers market, brewery, parks and tall, narrow, glass-fronted houseboats. People live here, work here and play here.
Most visitors begin their wanderings at the Public Market, where you can snack your way around the stalls. Kaisereck Deli has sausages, sandwiches and salads. More sausages hang at Oyama Sausage Co., amid pâtés, hams and terrines. British Columbia's heritage is everywhere: Cowichan cutting boards, Fraser Valley juice and Salt Spring Island strawberries.
Between the copious snacks and a warm sausage roll, I don't need to stop for a sit-down lunch. Instead, I amble around the old warehouses, ducking into bead stores, jewellery studios, paper-good shops and even a hammock store, where the staff insist I try "hanging out" in one. It takes some technique to get into, but the hammock is surprisingly comfy.
Going beyond the point where many visitors stop, I discover Granville Island Brewing (offering brewery tours and tastings), the Granville Island Hotel (don't miss its deck in the summer months), the galleries of the Emily Carr Institute of Art & Design, and the reclaimed Railspur Alley, where artists' studios line a narrow lane.
Visual artist Alice Parmelee Rich shares Studio 13, a space full of wooden beams, cement floors and pale walls, with artist Sandy Kay. She's finishing a commissioned acrylic on canvas, but takes the time to talk about the island's eclectic audience. "You never know who's going to walk through the door," she says. "Last year, we shipped to Dubai, to Scotland and to Georgia."
I move out to wander among the other studios. I haven't even had a chance to rent a kayak, take in a yoga class or a production from the Arts Club Theatre. Which all seem like excellent reasons to return to Granville Island on my next visit.
More information
Granville Island, go to granvilleisland.com
Tourism Vancouver, go to tourismvancouver.com
http://www.canada.com/montrealgazette/travel/story.html?id=344ab8bc-ce26-4531-b92f-ccb9841d43e3