Inside Vancouver

Top 20 Halloween Activities in Vancouver for 2012

by Remy Scalza in Events on October 22, 2012

Photo courtesy of Potters House of Horrors

Our usual top 10 list just wasn’t big enough to hold all the thrills and chills on tap in Vancouver this Halloween. Here are the top 15 ways to get up close and personal with ghosts, ghouls and zombies and put a little extra scare in your Halloween night.

Judge Dee and the Chinese Garden Murders: Chinatown’s Dr. Sun Yat-Sen Garden is transformed into a terrifying haunted house for this unique piece of interactive theatre featuring 30 actors, dancers and musicians. You’re hot on the heels of a cold-blooded killer in a distant Chinese village. Can you solve the crime before it’s too late? Oct. 24-Oct. 31

Vancouver Haunted Trolley: The quaint Vancouver Trolley shows its dark side on this 2.5 tour of the city’s grisliest and most haunted sites, including the Mountain View Cemetery. Oct. 19-Oct. 31.

Stanley Park Ghost Train: After dark, the miniature rail line in spooky, 1,000-acre Stanley Park takes riders deep into a forest inhabited by characters from Grimm’s Fairy Tales, including Rapunzel, the fairy godmother and the Pied Piper. Kid-friendly. Oct. 5-Oct. 31.

Potters House of Horrors: Potters’ 10,000-square-foot greenhouse in Surrey is converted from a nursery into an enormous house of horrors every Halloween. Up to 20,000 people pass through each year for a heavy dose of zombies, nightmarish creatures and blood-curdling scenes. Oct. 12-Oct. 31. Continue reading:
Top 20 Halloween Activities in Vancouver for 2012

Margaret Atwood and More at Vancouver Writers Fest, October 16-21

by Remy Scalza in Events on October 11, 2012

It’s the time of year that Vancouver book lovers live for.

The 25th annual instalment of the Vancouver Writers Fest is coming to Granville Island this Oct.16-Oct. 21. For six days and six night, books – both Canadian and international – will take the spotlight in 77 separate events, including readings by authors, panel discussions, interviews and even musical collaborations.

The big guns at this year’s event include Canadian legend Margaret Atwood, whose novels including The Handmaid’s Tale, poetry, short stories and essays have reinvigorated Canadian literature over the past half-century. Also appearing are Pulizter-Prize-winning Dominican-American writer Junot Diaz (author of The Brief and Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao) and Alistair MacLeod, the great Canadian short story writer behind The Lost Salt Gift of Blood and other collections.

The bad news for bibliophiles is that tickets to see these literary lions sold out weeks, if not months, ago. However, there are still seats remaining for plenty of hidden gems among the 77 events planned as part of this year’s festival.

Festival organizer Hal Wake (interviewed in this great Vancouver Sun article) shared a few of his “best of the rest” picks: Continue reading:
Margaret Atwood and More at Vancouver Writers Fest, October 16-21

Burn those Thanksgiving Calories at the Turkey Trot 10K in Vancouver, October 8

by Remy Scalza in Sports on October 5, 2012

Photo credit: frosty_white_raven | Flickr

Looking for a way to work off some Thanksgiving calories? Put down that drumstick and head to Granville Island on Monday, Oct. 8, for the annual Turkey Trot 10K.

Now in its 14th year, the Turkey Trot is defined as a “run/walk/stroll.” In other words, if you don’t feel like sprinting after a weekend of stuffing your face with pumpkin pie and mashed potatoes, then you don’t have to. The unique race is equal parts competition and family get-together. There’s even a special Tot Trot, where moms and dads can push junior in a stroller.

The Turky Trot route itself, which circles False Creek, seems more like sightseeing than road racing. Continue reading:
Burn those Thanksgiving Calories at the Turkey Trot 10K in Vancouver, October 8

Justin Bieber performs with Carly Rae Jepsen in Vancouver, October 10

by Remy Scalza in Entertainment on October 4, 2012

Photo credit: Carol Campos A | Flickr

Canada’s most valuable natural resource is coming to Vancouver.

Justin Bieber is swinging into town on Oct. 10 to launch the Canadian leg of his Believe world tour. He’ll take the stage at 7 p.m. at Rogers Arena. And his opening act is none other than Mission’s own Carly Rae Jepsen, the local pop diva behind Call Me Maybe.

Back when concert dates were announced in the spring, Beliebers were shocked to discover that Vancouver had initially been left off the tour (hard to believe, considering that Saskatoon made the cut). After a tempest in the Twitterverse, however, Bieber’s organizers found a way to squeeze in a Vancouver concert.

The Justin who takes the stage this Wednesday will be a far cry from the Justin who thrilled tweens at Rogers Arena nearly two years ago. Continue reading:
Justin Bieber performs with Carly Rae Jepsen in Vancouver, October 10

Top Halloween Activities in Vancouver for 2012

by Remy Scalza in Events on October 3, 2012

Photo credit: John Biehler | Flickr

The days are getting shorter. There’s a chill in the air. A suspicious amount of zombies can be found walking Granville Street. It must be time for Halloween in Vancouver.

As usual, there’s no shortage of Halloween spooks and thrills on tap in Vancouver this year. Here’s a top 10 list of activities and events to put a little scare in your October.

Anything missing? Please let us know by leaving a comment below.

Stanley Park Ghost Train: After dark, the miniature rail line in spooky, 1,000-acre Stanley Park takes riders deep into a forest inhabited by characters from Grimm’s Fairy Tales, including Rapunzel, the fairy godmother and the Pied Piper. Kid-friendly. Oct. 5-Oct. 31.

Zombie Combat Paintball: Gear up and hunt down marauding bands of zombies in the forests of Surrey. It’s your team’s mission to rescue a trapped scientist and save the planet from flesh-eating monsters. Sept. 14-Nov. 15.

Vancouver Haunted Trolley: The quaint Vancouver Trolley shows its dark side on this 2.5 tour of the city’s grisliest and most haunted sites, including the Mountain View Cemetery and the Police Museum (formerly the coroner’s office), where an autopsy recreation takes place. Oct. 19-Oct. 31. Continue reading:
Top Halloween Activities in Vancouver for 2012