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Downtown
One
of the things I like most about Vancouver is the fact
that the downtown area is not deserted during the evening
or at night. The business district is relatively small
and most of downtown is still residential.
The downtown area (i.e. the westside) is also very safe,
at least compared with American cities.
A
good way to get a nice view on downtown Vancouver is
by using the observation deck at Harbour center,
in Hastings street. From the observation deck, you have
a breathtaking 360-degree panorama of the entire Vancouver
area.
A bit to the north of Harbour center at the waterfront,
you will find the shining white sails of Canada Place
. It was built as the Canada pavilion for the expo in
the 1998 world fair and soon became a landmark in Vancouver.
The structure depicts a clipper leaving the port. The
most eye-catching of the complex are the 5 huge fiberglass
sails. It is often compared with the Sydney Opera House,
which
it slightly resembles. Canadians are usually not as
patriotic as the Americans in hoisting national flags,
but Canada place has a maple leaf flag hanging every
couple of meters.
Inside the complex you can see an overview of the history
of Vancouver. You also find the World Trade Center and
the Vancouver trade and convention center in the same
complex. This center has a seating capacity of 11000
guests. Canada place also houses the Pan Pacific Hotel
as well as an IMAX theatre, and a cruise ship terminal.
Most of the cruises take the route to Alaska.
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