Fireworks on Halloween

Last night was quite something on Commercial Drive, our first encounter with the Parade of Lost Souls. Costumed folk came from all points of town and beyond to partake in this yearly tradition, all in good Halloween spirit. The streets were closed by 6 at night to make room for the procession of hundreds of Vancouverites young and old. Starting point was nearby Grandview Park. Our small group of four at times went separated (luckily we had cell phones on us!) - there were several shrines created in the park, drums going and various music being performed in spots. There was beautiful lighting projected on some of the buildings nearby. As we walked en masse through the streets of East Vancouver, we were greeted by some very outrageous costumes and wildly-decorated homes.

Now here's something that's still hard for me to get used to. First, I start life living with fireworks going off on July 4th. Then I move to The Netherlands where on New Year's Eve they're lit. Now in Canada, they're fired off on Halloween!

Notice Ad's pumpkin on the left! It was inspired by someone in a recent issue of the Vancouver Sun!

October and I'm Still Paddling!

So we're into the third week of October, the rain has passed and today brought a gorgeous sunny afternoon with 14C temperature. It was time to get back into the kayak and paddle the urban waters of Vancouver. I saw two harbour seals, one of which I started to play with in the water. He/she came out on the side of the boat and then immediately behind me. As I tried to make a circle with the boat to entice the creature to stay around, sadly enough, seal was gone somewhere else. The winds were whipping up a bit and it was high seas for a while out there!

Am I the only one who finds the new Canucks line-up hard to get used to? Ad and I got settled into all the team players last season, and now they've gone and traded lots of players. Bertuzzi is down in Florida. January 7th will be the only chance we Vancouverites will have to see him play against the 'new' Canucks. How that will pan out with Nasland here and Todd there, is anybody's guess. So far, I find it a crying shame that Anson Carter wasn't bought up. Now everyone's pinning there hopes on Luongo. And let's not dare think of any injuries. For the price paid to acquire him, it should hopefully bring us to post-season play. One can only hope…

The annual Parade of Lost Souls is coming up, and as last year's Parade was cancelled, this is the first time that Ad and I will be able to witness this very unique Vancouver event.

Off to have a late afternoon well-deserved coffee!
Ariane C

VIFF rules!

46 films in 16 days. I laughed. I cried. I related. Walked out of four. And so closes another year at VIFF (Vancouver International Film Festival, no. 25). I met lots of film buffs in the daily ticket allotment line-up, some of who'd flown in from San Diego and as far away as Connecticut. Those folk easily absorbed five films a day, every day. One woman had already surpassed her 100th film mark by the 10th day! Films from around the world, many including their directors and makers in tow. I met a handful of Japanese actors, their director and Art Director one evening. Chatted with them via their interpreter. Some had films making their international premiere here in Vancouver. As a first-time volunteer, I signed on early to accept about 25 hours of work at our local Ridge Theatre. Over and over, I'd meet those friendly folk with a (paid) film pass, commenting about the films they'd seen and ones they'd be seeing on that day. It was truly a world in itself outside busy downtown Vancouver. Enjoyed the chance to do this, especially after having lived eight years in The Netherlands and not once attending the Rotterdam Film Festival.