The “urban” city of Vancouver was situated by a newly built railroad hub, sideswiping a dispossessed waterside village of Port Moody more South, which was abandoned after speculators bought up all the land there. Claims squatters, railroad types, miners, hunters and trappers mixed freely in the old Vancouver areas, the closest Canada had to a “Wild West”. Modern travelers can see this polyglot settlement in the city layout and street map.

Vancouver has the best of all travel destinations. Mountain, sea, sun and land combine to offer endless options and attractions. The city walker visitor to Vancouver will be kept just as busy as the rural sightseer, and the sports maven with snowboard in hand will be just as challenged by the elements as the ice fisherman.

Early Western Canadians lived hard and played hard, promoting hard work, religion, cultural appreciation and respect for the scenery living around them for future generations. Squamish and other Indian tribes left fruitful contributions to ongoing humanity living in peaceful cohabitation with the beauty of British Columbia’s exteriors.

Western Canada wasn’t built in a day. Lightning justice and Injuns, gunslingers and wealthy resort towns, a burgeoning Chinese immigrant population and the detritus of European emigrates mixed with the newly wealthy and privileged. The language and cultural differences co-exist in Vancouver and throughout Canada today.

Early settlement of the Vancouver area stemmed from land and mineral discoveries with accompanying mining and industrial flash development. Much of the color of Vancouver area and surrounding  regional cities comes from original development when trains and miners flashed out West hungry for land, wealth, and adventure.

Gassy Jack Deighton is the one personality emerging from the cobblestoned downtown heart of old Vancouver, the “Granville” district. Saloons were prosperous business back in the day, and many architectural features and decor followed this school of elegance. Modern hotels like the five-star Wedgewood would make Gassy Jack’s eyes pop.

The Vancouver Art Gallery and Law Courts likewise convey a mood of elegance and refinement that contributes with the provincial scenery to build an effect of splendor and finesse (like the region’s wines!). A visitor to Vancouver might find themselves walking the Stanley Park Seawall at dawn and ending the day sipping fine wine after kayaking through cliffside coves and inlets, or sightseeing the coast from a freighter.

The underground steam system wows visitors to Vancouver, possibly because it is little known. The steam clock and steam whistle create a unique geographic marker travelers remember. The “Gastown” neighborhood also enclosed Steamtown, a reworked shopping venue. Brick gold rush money arranged the Byrnes Block area where the Alhambra luxury hotel once charged a whole dollar for a nightly stay. The Gaoler’s Mews makes for slightly Tower of London intrigue, with the nearby Hotel Europe standing a flatiron in the old civic area.

Many from other countries view the population of Canada as English or Quasi-European, yet a diversity exists between cultures. The Sun Yat-Sen Chinese gardens attest to diversity of Vancouver then and now. But surrounding areas of Vancouver hold interest such as Hollyhock retreat on Cortes Island, Nimmo Bay adventure tourism, the Kicking Horse Mountain Resort in Golden, and the Gulf Islands. Mountain biking, celebrity watching, sailing, and mountain climbing are all options unless travelers want to relax and enjoy deluxe hotel amenities.

Golfing is a religious experience for many at Greywolf Golf Course at Invermere, British Columbia. Greywolf’s “cliffhanger” holes challenge the best resort golfers and allow for a winter alpine sports village that replaces golf with skiing.

In contrast, the snowy mountain climes offer heli-skiing and mountain based snow hiking treks. So much of Western Canada is an exterior visual paradise outdoor sports are a pleasure an not a chore. Options for daytrips extend in every direction. Excursions into rockface islands or Pacific Rim trails are equally enjoyable. Inward passage ferries journey around the Pacific Coast of Western Canada, leaving visitors with fishing, yachting, or touring options.

French missionaries planting vines in the eighteenth century would be gratified to learn that Canada’s Okanagan Valley is one of the most recognizable appellations in the extremely competitive global wine market. Wine tasting daytrips from Vancouver and extended vinotourism to enjoy the Okanagan Valley are a special privilege of every Canadian visitor and resident.