Celebration Parts I & II
When is a party not a party? When it’s run by the government! Or, in this case, not by government but by a not-for-profit that definitely smells like a government initiative. Such was the case this fine holiday weekend, when the smoldering crater of apathy that was Celebrate BC wheezed into action at the Plaza of Nations. It sounds like a neat idea – celebrate BC’s “culture, food and cuisine, entertainment, products, business, industry and tourism” – unfortunately, a lot of those elements were either missing or in short supply.
Food? Well, sure, you could spring $25 for the wine and cheese tasting, or $20 for the fresh food tasting – but how many people could you reasonable expect would do that? Not exactly a family friendly thing, now is it? Wouldn’t it have made sense to have a farmer’s market with local produce on display and for sale? How about a cooking demo or two by some of the local chefs? For those who couldn’t attend the existing “BC” food events, the food fare was limited to some decidedly non-BC food fare: burgers, hot dogs and the like. Go BC cuisine!
Industry had an equally poor showing – none of the companies in attendance were what I would consider “showcase” quality. Where were the big companies, the BC guys who made it on the world stage? Other than a few small players, the industry, business, technology, and tourism segments were poorly represented at the event. And where were the local craftsmen and the artisans?
Though culture had a better showing, with the main stage featuring local performance groups, the big main events were big dollar concerts. The culture beyond the main stage was thin on the ground, expanding the definition of culture to include local sports teams. In fact, local sports teams seemed to make up the majority of the “culture” booths.
Sad. Truly sad. Further confirmation of my earlier sentiments on BC pride.
Meanwhile, across town a real party swung into action on Sunday with the Vancouver Pride 2003 parade in the West End. Pretty impressive for a community that just earned the scorn of the Pope. The antithesis of Celebrate BC, the parade lasted an exhausting two hours and featured not only businesses and local organizations from the gay community, but a significant number of local political leaders. Heck, they even got Hedy Fry to wear a costume straight out of Rio de Janeiro.
The message is clear: if you want to celebrate, find some organizers who actually know the meaning of the term “celebration” and the lyrics to boot.
Be nice (or at least, nicer). This was the first year the event was held, and yes I agree it could have been better organized. The event was only announced at the end of May, so they had just a little over 2 months. Many people didn’t even know that it stretched onto BC Place. Also, the timing is rather unfortunate – you want it on the BC Day weekend, but you’re competing with two other more established events (the Pride parade as you mentioned, and I believe Chinatown had something going too). The $5 cover charge is pretty steep for a first time event, even if it is free for children. Should’ve been $2, tops.
I agree the industry showing was rather sad, but I understand why organizations like the BCTIA weren’t there – it’s a long weekend, and with a staff of only 5 or 6 we’re talking about a significant resource commitment to a first-time event, when they have no idea what kind of turn out there will be. There was a steady stream of traffic at the Innovation and Science Council’s booth while I was there, so it wasn’t THAT bad. We gave out alot of t-shirts and tech maps, anyway. We also had quite a few tourists, as well as people who used to live in BC, and are thinking of moving back here.
I was not there to attend the event, however I must say, it sounds a lot like a typical Vancouver ‘celebration’. Vancouver is one of the most beautiful large cities I have lived in, but as far as presenting cultural events of any sort, well, this city sucks. I was recently in Edmonton and attended Heritage Days (www.heritage-festival.com) at Hawrelak Park and I must say it was absolutely incredible!! Three full days of food, performances, arts/crafts, information, clothing, and partying of 50 cultures from all over the world… and what a celebration it was! And this is only one of several festivals Edmonton holds- all of which are equally enriching. Vancouver seems far too busy trying to impress and lure in the international tourists than to celebrate locally and develop a community of any sort. From personal experience of living in many cities across Canada, I can honestly say if you want a vibrant, community-oriented, friendly, fun place to live, Vancouver is the last place to look. But it has nice views.
Ouch! So I shouldn’t move from Ottawa, which gets more festivals and public spending than any other city in Canada? (I made that up, but it’s probably true)
I’ve always liked Kits/West 4th/Commercial Drive/Pender — a nice mix of residential and commercial, with older houses and funky shops. I don’t think I could handle living in any of the suburbs. North Vancouver/Londsdale is nice as well.
Boris, Kits is so 90’s. Main-a-lano is where to be now. A 3 block strip that encompasses Main St. below Broadway.
Tis the place to be! Just as funky as Kits but with better accomodation *and* parking…
Wait – isn’t that where you live, Evan? And you call me a yuppie? I apparently don’t follow the trends as closely as you, because I’d never heard of this area before. Who’s the yuppie now, Main-a-lano Man?
Gosh, there’s no way Evan qualifies as a yuppie. He doesn’t care what he looks like, doesn’t own anything new and he wouldn’t recognize a trend if it hit him in the face (which might be an improvement!!).
A witch! A witch! Burn him!!
True, true but I am a yuppie if you go by the original definition of Young Urban Professional before it became a nasty stigma.
In all truth I am just trying to get more people to say Main-a-lano because North Mount Pleasant doesn’t quiet roll off the tongue.
I like NoMo. Has a more trendy sound to it.