A Splash Of Color

A splash of color on an otherwise gloomy Vancouver day.

Glass Insulators in Vancouver

It is still possible to see old glass insulators suspended along aging telegraph poles running next to country railway tracks.  Production of insulators began in the mid 1800's and they were used as a   means of insulating early communication wires.  Today with the advance of technology, fiber optics and satellites, insulators have become obsolete. As with many railway items, glass insulators are now collected with color ones being more desirable.  I was surprised to spot a row of green glass insulators hidden between an office tower and an older brick apartment building right in downtown Vancouver.

Sup Fu? Saturdays

Sup Fu? Saturdays just one of the many signs covering this wall.

Gas Meters

Rows of gas meters line the outside wall of  a Vancouver building.  Will they one day be replaced with new meters much in the same way that hydro meters were replaced with smart meters.

Back Alleys Of Vancouver

Some call them the dead zones of Vancouver, dull and lifeless, even scary while others find beauty in Vancouver's back alleys. Filled with dumpsters, back entrances and  H framed power poles holding elevated transformers that have been around since the 1940's these alleys cover much of the Downtown Eastside, Gastown and Chinatown areas.

The Three Watchmen Haida Artist Jim Hart

Created by Haida master carver Jim Hart in 2003, The Three Watchmen greets people to this housing complex in the Arbutus area.  Placed by developer and art collector Michael Audain, this striking 16' bronze sculpture,  has become a landmark on this quiet residential street.

Goodbye Garlic Breath

Goodbye Garlic Breath is just one of the many signs posted on 
this lot.

Delmar Hotel

Dwarfed in size by the massive BC Hydro tower, the Delmar Hotel still stands in the 500 block of Hamilton Street.  Built in 1912, BC Hydro tried to acquire this Edwardian style building in the 1980's.  Much in the same way that owner Fred O'Hagan of the Kingston Hotel refused to sell to telecommunications giant Telus last year, George Riste owner of the Delmar Hotel also stood his ground in the 1980's. Other properties on the block were sold but eventually B.C.Hydro gave up hopes of acquiring the property and designed their building around the site.
In 1990, typographic artwork written with artist Kathryn Walter was installed on the front facade: UNLIMITED GROWTH INCREASES THE DIVIDE.
George Riste died in 2010. He was 89 years old. The Delmar Hotel still stands. 

Shelly's 4X Bakery Products Ghost Sign

This mid 1920's  painted advertising sign was uncovered last year after the building was sold.  Listed for just under $800,000 in February, 2011, new owners uncovered the sign when old stucco was removed.  Shelly's Bakery was around for a short time in the 1920's before being bought out by Canadian Bakeries Ltd in 1929.
The building now houses pizzeria Via Tevere. 

Signs

A familiar site in Vancouver as old buildings are torn down to make way for the new.

Taking A Break

Frenchies House of Poutine: Open For Busines

Even with all the construction work going on Frenchies is open as usual.

A Splash Of Color

Even with all the rain  we've had over the last few weeks, there are still a few leaves left on the trees.

Vancouver Street Art Robson Street

This artist has chosen to use the sidewalk as his canvas.  Viewing is free but he does have a small box set aside where you can donate pocket change.

Flipped Car

Not sure how this car ended up this way, good road conditions, not icy. No ambulances.   Hopefully no one was injured. Taken on the Richmond exit of the Oak Street Bridge.

Magical Mushrooms

Looking like an image out of a Disney movie these mushrooms do appear magical.

Sagebrush,Trains and Wildfires North of Kamloops

Sagebrush and trains dot the landscape north of Kamloops. The last picture shows some of the destruction caused by wildfires that struck the area.

Jasper Bighorn Sheep

Driving through Jasper National Park earlier in the week, couldn't help but be mesmerized by the number of bighorn sheep along the highway. The attraction for these animals appeared to be the salt used to melt ice on the roads.

Log Booms Along The Fraser

Captain and crew of the tugboat River Ranger work one of the log booms along the Fraser River.

All In A Day's Work

One of the few remaining places in Chinatown where you can 
buy fresh fish right from the tank.

A House Comes Down On The West Side Of Vancouver

Looking like a bombed out building in a war zone, this house sits on the west side of Vancouver.  Neighbors say that it had major renovations less than five years ago, only to be sold and end up looking like this. Usually a salvage team is contracted to remove usable building materials such as doors, windows and hardwood flooring, ensuring that these items can be reused and not end up in a landfill.  Not sure if that happened with this house.

Machine Shop

                                             Machine Shop: No Smoking

British Columbia Sugar Refinery Vancouver's Oldest Industrial Site

Trains roll by on a continual basis, going back and forth along the old CPR rail tracks. Fenced in and locked on Vancouver Port Land, British Columbia Sugar Refinery, Vancouver's oldest industrial site dating back to the 1890's includes the ancient brick warehouse and many smaller buildings.  The Sugar Refinery sits on 13.5 acres and has 20 buildings including some Art Deco ones built in the 1940-50's. Most of these buildings are not visible from the street, hidden behind the brick structure. 
BC Refinery is still in operation and produces between 100,000 and 120,000 metric tonnes of sugar annually.

What's This? Love I Don't Remember It... I'll Help You. M. W. Bowen

A couple of weeks ago I came across  this poster on a boarded up building.  The image is of a  little child holding up a heart and giving it to an older man.  When I went back about a week later to take more pictures this is all that was left of the artwork.

Will The Ramsay Brothers And Company Warehouse Be Demolished With The Building Of The Powell Street Overpass?

Classified as a B heritage site in Vancouver, the 4 storey, 1912 Ramsay Brothers and Company Warehouse building sits just west of where the city is proposing to build the Powell Street Overpass.
In an effort to increase rail capacity to the Port, city engineering has proposed building an overpass that would allow for another east-west rail line to be built.
The historically significant Ramsay Brothers building is considered to be one of the last remaining examples of an Edwardian manufacturing/warehousing structure in this area of east Vancouver.

Preventable Teams Up With Amazing Laughter Statues

Decked in bright orange life jackets, Yue Minjun's Amazing Laughter sculptures are being used to help Preventable, BC Hydro and the Red Cross promote water safety over the summer holidays.
With over 50 deaths related to drowning and water related incidents recorded in BC on an average year, Preventable has stepped up it's campaign to promote water safety and the use of life jackets and personal flotation devices. The sculptures are definitely eye catching and it's hard to miss the message.