1 post tagged “downtown eastside”

In addition to the aforementioned explosions, our weekend was filled with some colourful culture.

On Saturday, we ventured out for the Powell Street Festival in the notorious Downtown Eastside.  For those who may not know, this poverty-stricken area is the place in Vancouver for drugs, prostitution and other such shady business.  We tend to avoid even driving through there, but the event was going on in Oppenheimer Park (located in the midst of it all), so we jumped on a bus and rode through the craziness.

The festival is a celebration of Japanese-Canadian culture, and we got to experience a little of everything.  We started by perusing the craft booths, which included very cool origami art, hand-crafted tea sets and several sushi-shaped items like jewellery and candle sets.  We tried two Japanese items for lunch: a hot dog with seaweed, terikayi, and wasabi mayo (surprisingly good) and some dorayaki (sweet, bean-filled pancakes).  And we smiled at the few Japanese phrases we overheard and recognized from watching Sailor Moon.

Much like the Sawan Mela event a few weeks ago, the performances here were amazing.  The groups ran the gamut from contemporary (a Japanese-Canadian punk band was rocking out when we arrived) to traditional (featuring one set by the same duo we saw at the Ohanami in April).  We really enjoyed watching the taiko drumming group, whose members managed to combine precision with equal parts exuberance during every piece.

Sunday was the day of Vancouver’s infamous Pride Parade.  After walking around at the Powell Street Festival all day Saturday, staying up for fireworks that night and then completing our regular six-mile run on Sunday morning, we were looking forward to relaxing during this event.  Clearly, we had no idea what we were getting into.

The Pride Parade this year stretched out over 3 miles and took 3 HOURS to finish the route.  Not that this made it boring; oh no, it was 180 minutes of PURE PARTY.  We joined the spectators (estimated to be near 500,000) in clapping, cheering and dancing around as the participants and floats – with their live bands and blasting techno music – cruised by, rainbow-hued flags, banners and balloons flying behind.  The parade was brimming with a celebration of the GLBT community and sexuality in general; I absolutely loved it.

Mixed in with the requisite drag queens and scantily-clad twentysomethings were some unexpected faces.  Coming from the Midwest (where such participation is unheard of), I was pleased to see the number of political figures (current mayor, mayoral candidates, the local MP and the leader of a national party!) joining whole-heartedly in the gaiety.  And there was even representation by the firefighters, police, EMTs, Mounties and armed forces.  Canada, you kick ass.

Overall, the Pride Parade (and the weekend in general) left me with a feeling of pride for how welcoming Vancouver is.  But it also taught me an important lesson: next year, we are totally bringing chairs.