A Tourist in Stanley Park

During our seminars the other day, several presenters suggested that photos are good to bring to Japan in that they provide a great way to share where we come from. These images make it easier to communicate where I live, how we live, and what people are like in Vancouver. They will also serve to help me remember where I come from. Given that I have less than 5 weeks left in Vancouver, I am making it a point to pay more attention to where I live and to take lots of photos.

Yesterday, my girlfriend Janice and I took the Skytrain down to Stanley Park to meet a couple of friends. Our intention was to circumnavigate the park in its entirety – which we not only managed, but also made our way along false creek back to Main St. Needless to say, the 6 hours of walking was quite a trek.

It was actually quite exciting to be a tourist within my own city for a day. Not only was the weather beautiful and sunny with a nice breeze coming in off of the water, but the odd cloud would drift in front of the sun to create some great overcast lighting for photos. Of course we saw all of the sites to see along the walk: Coal Harbour, 9 o’clock gun, Lion’s Gate Bridge, English Bay, Burrard St. Bridge, the Plaza of Nations, Science World – I could probably go on. What really stood out for me however, were the people. Janice had made the observation about all of the different languages and accents that we could hear as we were walking. Indeed, I couldn’t name them all here – nor could I even claim to recognize them all. While living and working in Japan will have its cultural benefits, I often forget how rich the cultural diversity is in Vancouver. And although I will learn much about Japanese culture, will Japan seem like a monoculture in comparison? I will have to make a point to bring a photo of one of my classrooms to show to the students in Japan. I hope to impress them not only by the beautiful scenery this city has to offer, but by the people that make it up as well.