Jazz Festival Lures Burbite to Inner City

Don't forget to click on the photos to enlarge them.
Saturday night, younger Daughter and I took the bus deep into the downtown area of Vancouver to see a bit of the Vancouver International Jazz Festival. I probably wouldn't have gone had it not been for the fact that my fiance was working at the upper bar at the David Lam Park site. Having never been there before, I figured we could at least get a ride home. The bus was quite an experience for me, having lived in the 'burbs for most of my life and driving everywhere. Of course Daughter was horrified that I didn't even know which slot to put my fare and that I didn't know about the tickets the drivers give you as proof of payment. When I looked at her in awe after hearing the computer announce the next stop, she warned me not to look so much like a rube! So from then on, I sat quietly and enjoyed the view from up so high.















Once there, our first goal was to find my fiance and let him know we had arrived. On the walk to the upper bar (above photo, left, & notice the waterfall), I got a few shots of the stage and some of the surrounding area, including the skyscrapers that loomed over the park. (Note: just as I was posting this photo, I noticed Daughter in bottom right hand corner.) At one point, Daughter decided to fill out some sort of questionnaire on a computer "thingy," so I sat on the cement wall and watched people as they filed past on their way to one or another of the venues. It was amazing (to me) to see so many women who had "let themselves go" with grey or greying hair that was long and straggly and were wobbling along without wearing a bra. And a lot of the men looked like they were still in the "hippie era," too, with the same sort of look (sans bras of course).














Anyway, once we had "checked in," we wandered around the kiosks filling in forms for a free ipod, free music downloads, etc. and found a spot on a cement stair to listen to the music that was starting at 8 pm. Because my scrawny butt doesn't take well to sitting on hard surfaces, we decided to head down towards the water, False Creek. (Click on link to see better photos than mine of this celebrated area of Vancouver.) We could still hear the music, which was great by the way, but we were able to take a lot of photos of the sailboats, motorboats, and a paddlewheeler that happened by. We also got a bit goofy and took silly photos of each other. I'll save those ones for Facebook, but here are a couple of nice ones.

It was also fun to watch a young fellow who was throwing a ball into the water for his dog to chase. That dog never hesitated, but threw himself wholeheartedly into the water. As we had descended the steps to the seawall, I'd noticed a HUGE elephant ear plant so Daughter dutifully took my photo in front of it. Further down the steps, I noticed a cement sculpture with writing inside the circular top. It reads: "The Moon Circles the Earth and the Ocean Responds With the Tides." What an amazing sculpture!

When it started to get a bit dark, we decided to climb up to the bar for a drink. We stayed there for the rest of the evening until my fiance was finished working. But we did meet a couple of his friends who showed up and had a great conversation. After everyone except the workers had left, we were allowed to stay because we were "with the band" so to speak, and we went over to the ledge and got several good night shots. I even got one of my sweetie, but you'll notice it looks like a shadow or a double exposure - that's because I had the setting on my camera at "night" and it took a few seconds to take. He walked away before the picture was taken so all I got was this ghostly image of him! But I think it looks kind of neat.




















It was such a warm, clear evening and the lights reflecting in the water were mesmerizing. The moon was almost full and had a soft halo over it. And the lights went on in the skyscrapers.















My first foray into the jazz scene was pretty good, even though I wouldn't have considered the music they were playing last night to be what I call "jazz." Maybe some of you have heard of the Vancouver-based group - delhi 2 dublin. Click on the link to hear a bit of what we heard last night.

As we drove home, Daughter remarked how much she'd love to live in the city so close to all the action. For my part, I was quite content to return to the 'burbs to enjoy my garden and the peace and quiet. Next time I want a bit of "action," I know that I can easily make my way there via the public bus. And that's a taste of "my world" - a world I don't often see, being a "burbite."

For more worlds, click here.