City By The Sea

SHARMISTHA CHAUDHURI TELLS YOU ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW TO MAXIMISE A BRIEF TRIP TO BRITISH COLUMBIA’S FAMOUS SEAPORT CITY

- Sharmistha Chaudhuri

Clear skies and fluffy cotton-candy clouds. This picture of a vast blue with sudden interjections of white is what comes to mind when I recollect my time in Vancouver. From the moment of stepping outside the airport and driving down the Sea-to-Sky Highway to Whistler, to making merry on the streets of Gastown and simply tucking into good street food—the blue sky was a constant. If you haven’t already guessed, clear skies and I have a longstanding romance. The internet throws up various matches on sky photography and, unfortunately, I am yet to master even the basics. But that has never stopped me from attempting to capture the beautiful blue, and Vancouver gave me enough opportunities to improve.

A melting pot of cultures, ethnically and linguistically diverse, the city is one of the prettiest in Canada if not on the planet. Beautifully manicured lawns and green parks, grizzlies and skiing trails, the most-happening Granville Island below its namesake bridge, petrichor in the forest that also houses the city’s tourist-attracting suspension bridge, harbours where the naked eye can see the skyline for miles, the youthful vibe of the city interjected with businesses and multinational corporation offices, and, of course, the allure of the sea—at first glance Vancouver seems to have the best of summer and winter.