Live (to tape) blogging the inauguration

It all seemed pretty quiet for such a big crowd. Watching the presidential inauguration ceremony on TV this morning, I was struck by the sheer size of the crowds in Washington D.C.
There were so many people, the Mall looked like a massive, undulating carpet – later I realized it’s because everyone was wearing a tuque [...]

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Farewell to a Queen

It was an emotional final sailing on the Queen of Saanich.
Passengers making the voyage home from Vancouver Island to Tsawwassen late Sunday afternoon were surprised to learn they were part of BC Ferries history.
A smattering of applause greeted the captain’s request that passengers observe a moment’s silence to mark the Queen of Saanich’s last round [...]

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Ghost stories I have known

Do you believe in ghosts?
I can’t remember when my fascination with true B.C. ghost stories first began.
Maybe it was reading about Vancouver hauntings each year at Halloween, when the pages of the Sun’s lifestyle section would feature stories involving strange, unexplained disturbances in local restaurants, theatres, various recording studios and Gastown comedy clubs. These [...]

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Ghost city in the clouds

Just a short drive up the hills from Highway 31a outside New Denver, B.C., lies the not-quite-qhost town of Sandon.
Travellers and mining history buffs will be happy to discover there’s still quite a few old buildings to see – most of them lovingly rebuilt or restored since the place was nearly destroyed in a flood [...]

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Wrecked old ghost town on the Galena Trail

Bike down a couple of clicks along the creek and you’re suddenly upon a massive pile of wooden rubble.
This incredible heaping dump of rusted-out iron works, twisted inside a gigantic nest of fallen, weathered grey wooden beams, was once known as Alamo Siding.
Back in 1904 this was a CPR mining and siding centre. There was [...]

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Pathway soars above Golden Mile

There are all sorts of great reasons to stop in at one of B.C.’s famed Okanagan wineries. There’s the wine, for one thing, and you can normally sample a sip or two for free at the tasting bars.
Then there’s the ambiance. You get to rub elbows with folks from across the province and beyond – [...]

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Sisterhood is influential

Are women influential? I mean, influential enough to count on a list of history’s most influential characters? Maybe it depends on who’s keeping count.
Blogger Sampson T. Buckburn recently began compiling such a list, an admittedly subjective, if not impossible, exercise. But I couldn’t help but notice at 21 influential characters and counting, from Tecumseh to [...]

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