VANCOUVER - British Columbia: Including the Alaska Highway - page 91

For the Festival of Lights (604/257-8666, www.vancover.ca/vandusen ), Central Van-
couver's VanDusen Botanical Garden is transformed each December evening by more than
80,000 lights and seasonal displays such as the nativity scene.
While most folks spend New Year's Day recovering from the previous night's celeb-
rations, up to 2,000 brave souls head down to English Bay Beach and go swimming. The
Polar Bear Swim was started in the early 1900s by a local businessman, Peter Pantages,
who took to the water every day of the year; to promote the fact that it was possible to
swim year-round, he formed the Polar Bear Club. On the first day of 1920, a small group
assembled at English Bay Beach, dove into the frigid waters, and began a tradition that con-
tinues to this day. It starts at 2:30pm.
During Chinese New Year (late Jan./early Feb.), Chinatown comes alive for two weeks
with a colorful parade, music, dancing, and a spectacular display of fireworks. The Chinese
calendar is linked to the lunar New Year, which varies from late January to early February.
Shopping
Vancouver has shopping centers, malls, and specialty stores everywhere. Head to Gastown
for First Nations arts and crafts, Robson Street for boutique clothing, Granville Street Mall
for department stores, Granville Island for everything from ships' chandlery to kids' cloth-
ing, Yaletown for the trendy clothes of local designers, Eastside for army-surplus stores and
pawnbrokers, Chinatown for Eastern foods, and the junction of Main Street and East 49th
Avenue for Indian goods.
SHOPPING DISTRICTS
Despite looking pretty dowdy these days, Granville Street Mall nevertheless forms the
heart of the downtown shopping precinct; the two-block stretch of Granville Street is closed
to private vehicles, although buses and taxis still pass through. The mall's Pacific Centre
features 165 shops, a massive food court, and a three-story-high waterfall.
Across Lions Gate Bridge in West Vancouver are a couple of shopping centers worth
a mention. In a scenic location at Marine Drive and Taylor Way, Park Royal Shopping
Centre holds almost 200 shops and three department stores. Also on the north side of Bur-
rard Inlet is Lonsdale Quay Market, the terminus of the SeaBus from downtown. This
bustling center features a great fresh-food market on the first floor and a range of boutiques
and galleries on the second.