Browsing “Wanderful Series”

Wanderful is an ongoing feature where I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting details that make that particular neighborhood unique. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

Have you ever passed through an area so often that it almost slips off your radar, it’s so familiar? I regularly ride a bus or skytrain through Chinatown to get to various other places around the city, but rarely do I actually stop and explore. When I do finally make a trip, I’m reminded of what a neat part of Vancouver it is: the hustle and bustle of the busy shops, the vibrant shades of red and gold, the ornate dragons sitting atop the lampposts. Everywhere you look, you find culture and history.

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Wanderful is an ongoing feature where I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting small details that make that particular neighborhood unique and special. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

When looking at a map of the city, you can usually describe what a certain neighbourhood means to you, with a single word. In the case of Davie Street, I’ve been trying for several days to nail down just one, and keep changing my mind. Colourful. Vibrant. Eclectic. Diverse. Assured. Established. The area is so many collective things to so many people, that it becomes impossible to definitively decide on one. If nothing else, I think it’s safe to say this: the Davie Street community  is comfortable in it’s own skin.

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Wanderful is an ongoing feature where each week I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting small details that make that particular neighborhood unique and special. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

Like many other Vancouverites these days, I’ve been holing up indoors, away from the endless rain and patches of snowy weather we’ve all been subjected to recently. But I badly needed to admit something to myself: I was going absolutely stir crazy within the confines of my apartment, and although I had decided to go on a bit of a Wanderful winter hiatus for a few months, when the sun poked it’s head out on Thursday, I couldn’t resist — a spur-of-the-moment impromptu photo wandering adventure was far too long overdue.

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Wanderful is an ongoing feature where each week I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting small details that make that particular neighborhood unique and special. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

Over the weeks that I have been wandering, I’ve stumbled upon countless examples of interesting and creative street art strewn around various parts of the city. Some places are more condensed than others — for example, the alleys in the Downtown core are filled with walls of beautifully executed graffiti, Commercial Drive has murals on every second building, Main Street has hidden paste-ups in all sorts of secret places. It seems that regardless of what neighbourhood you visit, you’ll find artists using tons of non-traditional surfaces to express themselves.  Telephone poles, newspaper boxes, backs of street signs, walls and windows of deserted buildings — everywhere you look, canvases.

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Wanderful is an ongoing feature where each week I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting small details that make that particular neighborhood unique and special. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

The last few days of unexpected downpours and windstorms have brought the coldish weather in, but rather than hole up in our apartments sobbing we should celebrate the return of all things pumpkin: lattes, ale and pie, and enjoy opportunities for new scarf shopping, and the sound of leaves crunching underfoot (when they aren’t being drowned in puddles). These are the things we must do to console ourselves when the inevitability of change is upon us; that, and revel in the puffy clouds once the sky clears.

South Granville is my neighbourhood. I moved here almost 10 years ago to attend Emily Carr and just never left, despite changing apartments 3 times. …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>

Wanderful is an ongoing feature where each week I throw a hypothetical dart at the Vancouver map and travel there – by foot or by transit, and attempt to capture some of the cool and interesting small details that make that particular neighborhood unique and special. From sidewalks to back alleys, gardens to graffiti, I’ll become a wandering tourist in my own backyard. Armed with only a camera and very little natural sense of direction, it’s an journey of modest proportions, and an opportunity to see more of what makes this city AWESOME!

Does Summer transitioning into Autumn signal insanely busy times for everyone, or is it just me? In recent weeks I’ve had a zillion things on the go, but I was glad I shook off my procrastination long enough to get out wandering Commercial Drive on one of what proved to be the last really sunny weekends we might have had (for awhile, at least). It was fully my insatiable craving for J.J. Bean oatmeal cranberry muffins that got me there, but ultimately I’m glad I went. In the next month Vancouver will turn rainy, which always makes for slightly less attractive adventuring afternoons. (But puddle jumping and umbrella juggling are never poorly developed skills to have in this city.) Until then, soak it up while we can get it! Even if only in 8 minute increments.

Commercial Drive has so many amazing murals. Words cannot properly convey them, but more neighbourhoods should follow their lead because it really does wonders to showcase the diversity of local talent (and helps to spruce up some otherwise pretty mundane wall spaces). The proof is in the pictures (which cannot do the walls justice, so go explore for yourself!) …READ THE REST OF THIS ENTRY>>>