Metrotown | Visit Burnaby British Columbia

The City of Burnaby

August 6, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Burnaby is a city in Canada, located in the province of British Columbia. The city of Burnaby offers a plenitude of pleasures. It’s located next to Vancouver – a place of culture and tradition. This means that you can also tap into the entertainment potential of Vancouver with ease, since both are adjoining cities.

A good point to start of in the city of Burnaby is the Burnaby Village Museum located in Deer Park Lake. Get nostalgic and time-wrapped as you rewind to an era of yore. Set yourself in a place of frozen time, as you walk through a theme park that displays facets of culture in the 1920s. Amongst the multitude of interesting things around, you might want to try a joyful spin in a historic carousel accompanied by enchanting tunes from a vintage Wurlitzer organ. You shouldn’t miss this place especially in Christmas. During this time, the whole place is abound with music and merry.

If art is where you heart is, the Burnaby Art Gallery is a place you shouldn’t miss. Here, you get to see and be a part of a variety of exhibitions displaying art ensembles of emerging and established artists. You also get to participate in exhibition related workshops that invite the art cognoscenti.

Check out Central Park; a nature’s backyard. Get ready to be dwarfed in the company of gigantic and exotic trees. Be pleasantly annihilated with whiffs of divinely fresh air as you walk through the jungle trails. Central Park was opened in 1986, by Prince Charles and Diana. It is a pleasant get-away from the hustle and bustle of the city. You can also use the sports and recreation facilities at this park. The Swangard Stadium is located here.

Go rowing or canoeing in Burnaby Lake Nature Park. Perch yourself in a viewing tower to get a panoramic view of all the flora and fauna. The verdant Nature Park embracing this lake consists of low-lying wet lands, and a beautiful forest.

Filed Under: Burnaby, Metrotown Tagged With: Burnaby, Travel and Tourism, Vancouver

An Entertainment Mecca

August 3, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Housing more than 450 shops, services, and attractions, Metropolis at Metrotown in Burnaby, British Columbia is a paradise for every shopaholic to visit. Metropolis, British Columbia’s largest shopping and entertainment complex, also sports a large variety of restaurants to satisfy any appetite from a cup of coffee to a plate of fried chicken. If it can be cooked, fried, baked, or poured, it can be found in Metropolis.
Metropolis has everything that one would want to buy. It has a huge variety of stores to keep any kind of shopper happy. The kids can enjoy an assortment of toy stores and entertainment centers, anyone in the mood for clothes shopping will certainly not be disappointed with too many clothing stores to visit in a single day, and everyone else can find something for themselves amongst the amazing assortment of tools, gadgets, toys, accessories, gizmos, and trinkets in the nearly endless stores. Nobody will be disappointed with a trip to Metropolis at Metrotown.
As Metropolis has become an attraction to Metrotown, Metrotown has grown around Metropolis to form Burnaby’s downtown. Even the area around Metropolis is exciting and full of life. Metropolis is surrounded by such attractions as parks, restaurants, theaters, a library, and a recreation center to keep visitors excited and exploring. And, of course, there are even more shopping centers surrounding Metropolis at Metrotown, including Station Square, which is connected to Metropolis by a sky way, and the Asian-themed Crystal Mall. Metropolis at Metrotown is literally a shopaholic’s dream, encompassing over 1.5 million square feet of retail floor space and three floors for visitors to explore until they become dizzy from all the attractions. Metropolis is impossible to experience in a single day, so don’t expect to be able to only spend a single day at this mecca of entertainment.

Filed Under: British Columbia, Burnaby, Metrotown Tagged With: British Columbia, Burnaby, Metrotown

Hiking In and Around Burnaby

July 29, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

: Image via Wikipedia

Burnaby’s temperate climate, lush forests, and short distance to the mountains make it easy for hikers of all ranges and skill levels to “get lost” (metaphorically of course) in the gorgeous natural beauties of the heavily wooded British Columbia. Most hiking is located around or on Burnaby Mountain, the cities most elevated peak. Burnaby Mountain has a variety of different trails and ascents catering to a variety of different skill levels, but each trail offers the same stunning vistas of Burnaby and Vancouver, BC as well as pristine wilderness only miles from the city itself.

Located just outside of Simon Fraser University, the Burnaby Mountain Trail is a moderately easy loop for hikers of all ages and skill levels. This five-mile trail should take most hikers around three hours and offers a wide variety of outlooks onto Burnaby below and offers views of the picturesque Vancouver skyline. Located just miles from the bustling city center of Burnaby, you must start your hiking tour of Burnaby with the Burnaby Mountain Trail.

For those looking to take in the natural beauties of the coast around Point Moody, the Shoreline Trail is perfect for all family outings. The trail is a moderately easy 3.75-mile trail that descends down to the shoreline and back. Along the way you will pass numerous historical sites, a fish hatchery, and have the opportunity to see a wide variety of marine and coastal wildlife including ducks, birds of prey, and fish. The trail is easily manageable by people of all ages, and is even wheelchair accessible.

The Belcarra Regional Park is perfect for those willing to try a technically difficult, yet rewarding hike through a variety of terrain. While Belcarra is primarily known for its rocky outcrops, cliffs, and bare hills, yet hikers will find an exceptional variety of terrain that is sure to challenge the most seasoned veteran. Located just outside of Burnaby, Belcarra Regional Park’s 6.6-mile trail descends to a pristine beach for a well-deserved and relaxing destination point.

Filed Under: Burnaby, Entertainment, Metrotown, Sports Tagged With: Burnaby, Burnaby Mountain, Hiking

Helen: Girl on a Swing

July 22, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Copenhagen has the Little Mermaid statue. The Venus de Milo graces the Louvre. In the City of Burnaby, it’s a girl named Helen who has swung away with our hearts for over half a century.

Any lover of classic cinema is familiar with the post-war haunts of detective noir thrillers of Humphrey Bogart or Robert Mitchum. You will see them looking for truth under buzzing, hazy neon light often socked in by a thick Frisco fog or ducking a hail of bullets outside the gin joints of New York or Los Angeles.

High above the Heights district in the City of Burnaby swings a loving reminder of the golden age of neon. There is a young carefree girl on a swing with flowing golden hair, a red rose dress and blue electric slippers. She doesn’t mind the West coast rain or the cold winds blowing in from Burrard Inlet. Helen is always happy.

Since 1956 Helen has been swinging above the sidewalk along the 4100 block of Hastings Street in Burnaby. She was put on earth to advertise a children’s clothing store, named “Helen’s”. From the very beginning, the city loved her.

As she swung in time with the passing of ages her appeal became unique. Other such signs disappeared as businesses moved on or replaced their signage with modern trend. Helen never seemed to mind.

Everything seemed carefree until 2007, when Helen’s Children’s Wear shut it’s doors after half a century. Like so many retail staff in a tough economy, Helen was out of a job.

Luckily the City of Burnaby wouldn’t hear of losing their favorite daughter. Wise civic leaders crowned her with heritage status, and funds were made available not only for her continued presence, but a much needed upgrade as well.

So Helen continues swinging to this day, in the exact spot where she began. The only difference is the lettering above her, changed from “Helen’s” to “Heights”, symbolizing a neighbourhood’s commitment to it’s heritage. Helen never looked happier.

Filed Under: Burnaby, Entertainment, Metrotown Tagged With: Burrard Inlet, Hastings Street, Los Angeles

Using Gap Coupons

July 15, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

Gap is a leader in providing affordable and durable clothing and accessories.So many shoppers are enjoying Gap shopping online especially those in Burnaby. With an assortment of styles, colors, and textiles, Gap dresses men, women, and children the world over with their selection of fashionable attire. From head to toe, you and your family can wear the trends from season to season. Uniquely designed to carry your wardrobe with you through the years, the prints of solid, stripes and other decorative designs can make you both comfortable and stylish at any time of the year.

But with the economic stress that most hardworking customers have recently felt, it’s always important to shop with a keen sense of affordability. Gap coupon codes are available to any loyal or potentially loyal Gap customer as they offer discounts on the items that interest your style or needs Even if you don’t have a Gap store, you can still shop online using these codes. This excites those living in Burnaby wanting to save money. By accessing specific codes that correlate with the latest sales events, promotions, and departments, you can save money all the while keeping abreast of Gap’s newest lines.

Whether the working mom needs a new pair of jeans or your children need new hats and gloves to brave the winter months, Gap has the pieces you need to complete your wardrobe of fashionable and cozy clothes. And even if you are on a budget, signing up for coupons is an easy way to save on your favorite clothes and accessories. Seasonal events arrive throughout the year and Gap coupons help you choose the items you need while keeping the bill low enough to save for the next seasonal shopping excursion.

Today, shopping is not only done in malls or while browsing through the local stores in your neighborhood because online stores allow customers to both peruse catalogs, but more importantly, you can get the latest information on sales, discounts, coupons, and other ways to save on your favorite inventory.

Filed Under: Metrotown, Shopping Tagged With: Business and Economy, Clothing, Shopping

Burnaby’s Shadbolt Centre for the Arts

July 14, 2010 by admin Leave a Comment

The City of Burnaby broke ground artistically and literally in the early 1990′s when it commissioned the breathtaking Shadbolt Centre for the Arts.

Choosing picturesque Deer Lake Park as it’s artistic centre, Burnaby awarded Hotson Bakker Architects to envision a multipurpose artistic facility that would reward patrons with smart, stunning design, capture the natural beauty of its surroundings and invite the natural world inside where artists and aficionados of all disciplines can find inspiration.

Multiple theatres, studios, rehearsal halls and meeting rooms share the space with banquet facilities that can accommodate parties numbering over one hundred at a time. Access to exterior parkland is seamless and natural barriers are unnoticed under high cathedral ceilings milled from exposed beams of Douglas Fir. The ceilings are supported by elegant stone walls and warmed with gas and natural sunlight.

Classes and events are as welcoming to all as the facility’s physical warmth suggests. There is a wide range of workshops for all ages that include dance, theatre, painting and sculpting. Performances at the James Cowan Theatre, Studio Theatre and Recital Hall are ongoing and extremely popular, with representation from local, regional and national companies appearing regularly.

On the grounds between the Bolt (as it has become known) and magnificent Deer Lake there are a multitude of outdoor festivals and concerts scheduled over the summer months. Intimate performances by local and international musicians and performers are framed against the picture postcard backdrop of Deer Lake and it’s surrounding fauna. The experience truly lifts the soul and delivers a soothing reflex against the bustle of the inner city.

It’s hard to imagine a more fitting legacy to the memory of the Shadbolts, artistic pioneers Jack and Doris, who spent their lifetimes teaching and creating art and culture among the citizens who still benefit from their example. The Shadbolt Centre for the Arts is grand testimony to the bounty and necessity of artistic expression in our existence.

Filed Under: Burnaby, Entertainment, Metrotown Tagged With: Art, Burnaby, Concert