Xploring Canada & Beyond

This is a Picture of the modern kind of treetop walkways.
All made of steel, glass and cabling.
Check out the tiny Spider on the wall holding it all up. Eeek!

Incredible! Remember when science-fiction book covers used to have pictures of futuristic cities with buildings joined by walkways that seemed to have very little holding them up? That's what this pic reminds me of.

This next Picture shows the old and the new.
Above is the counter levered concrete observation platform. (circa 1890)
And below is the modern one mentioned earlier.

These Pictures remind me a lot of that Tower you posted earlier with the trees growing on top.
Can you guess the origin/history of this Building ?
One clue, It is a memorial to a dead Brother.

It's an amazing-looking building, and I look forward to reading more about it!

It is right next to 'The Sylvester Hotel' Vancouver.
This Picture shows the main object at the front of the Building.

Great altagardener,
It is so hard to remember all these names when one is only there for a couple of days.
And as you are from Calgary, You should know.

Thank you so much for your help.
If there is anything else you can help with, I would truly appreciate it.

kell.

A quick look through some old Pictures shows you are completely right altagardener.
I would really appreciate your input on a permanent basis.
Nothing like a local for true details.

Do you know what the half round part of my mystery building is ?
The one with the Tree on top.

Altagardener, both Van Dusen garden and MacMillan-Bloedel Conservatory sound familiar - I probably visited both places and have confused them. I recently went through my old pre-digital photograph albums hoping to find garden pics to jog my memory, but I failed to write captions, and now I have no clue where the pics were taken. I must remember to write myself a note to remind me to label all pics in future!

Kell, don't keep us guessing with the odd-shaped building! What's its history?

By the way, I did find an album pic of me standing on top of Grouse Mountain, taken moments before I slipped and fell into the mud. I'm not going to try to scan and post the photo, because I was having a bad hair day, even before falling down.

This was My first Garden I visited in Vancouver.
I think this Guy must have had a large Family to help him with his Garden.
It doesn't look like he could do much with no arms. ;o(

Groan! And apparently no legs either - but that didn't stop the Daleks from conquering the universe.

AHhhh! Doctor Who.
I loved that Program.
Fancy having wheels in place of Legs.
How would I climb a Ladder and trim My Palms ?

Do you have any Bonsai's ?

This was the Carp Pond.
It was raining all day.

Can you believe the Work that has gone into the Pathways ?

Beautiful, beautiful garden! I wish mine was like that. But, as you say, it looks like a lot of work.

I don't have any bonsai, just plants that are stunted. My citrus trees have been in the same pots for about 10 years, and are annually reduced (I hesitate to say "pruned" because that implies that I know what I'm doing) so that they don't perforate the ceiling or impale passers-by.

So where are your Citrus Trees growing if they could perforate the ceiling ?

What a perfectly Beautiful collection of Rocks.

Taken from the same spot just showing more of the Paths.

I love the swooping, uplifted lines of the roof on that gazebo. It looks as if it might flap its wings and take off.

My potted citrus trees are in the house. One in the living room, and three in a large, enclosed, heated porch that we call the mud room (it's where we leave our muddy boots).

This Garden is very small.
So most of the Pictures are of The Gazebo.
But I did walk around it.

In this Picture you can see just how close the external buildings are.
They are closing in and will soon cast shadows over the Gardens.

I am no Asian or a Garden Architect but.
This flat rectangular Bridge left me totally flat.
Maybe they ran out of money or Ideas ?

Yes, the plain, flat bridge doesn't seem to fit in with the style of garden. A weathered, natural stone slab would look better, I think.

Do you know this Park ?

This is the Orphan Grizzly Bears at Grouse again.
What do you think of the the wire that separates us ?
Just as well they are well fed. ^_^

I think I remember Stanley Park - lots of big, old trees; some great walking trails with views of water, city, and mountains; and some fine totem poles - but it may have changed a bit since I visited. Wasn't there a storm that knocked down a lot of the trees?

There sure was a BIG Storm.
These two trees were simply snapped off never to grow again.
The one on the left looks like what we call lightning strike.

Have you ever seen lightning strike? I've only ever seen the aftermath, and that was scary enough. When a willow on my property was struck, a strip of bark blew off, from topmost branch to bottom of trunk, and jagged splinters of wood "shrapnel" were strewn in all directions. Many years ago, when I worked at a public garden where the walkways had metal edging strips, I saw where a lightning strike had dug a deep trench across one of the paths, exploding tarmac and dirt as the current passed underground from one metal strip to the other. I always seek shelter when I hear rumbles of thunder!

This was our effort last October no one came for a treat, not even a trick.
We are much to far away from Neighbours for them to bother us.
These Pumpkins cost $20 each in Woolworths.

Some of those pumpkins remind me of my relatives. Hee hee! I don't get trick-or-treaters either, as I'm far out of town, there are few houses on my road, and even fewer children, and my driveway is long and unlit. Of course, I still have to buy candy just in case there's a caller, and when there isn't, I have to confess, I eat it.

Oh, Woolworths! I remember stores of that name in the UK and there used to be a similar store (Woolco?) in Toronto. I bought my first rock garden plants in a Woolworths store in England - some tiny alpines that I grew in containers on a balcony. And my first set of dinner plates came from Woolworths too. After nearly 40 years, there are only 3 of the plates left, but I use them every day. Hooray for Woollies!

Yes Woolworths is good for us too.
I still have a big jar of Jellybeans.
And I only threw out the Licorice in the last few days.
I also have a couple of dozen Easter Eggs from last year.
And here we are only days away from this years Easter.

The 'Trick' was on me. (ouch)

Ow! I count 10 stitches. Let me guess - you were carving pumpkins with a really sharp knife? I hope your finger has fully recovered.

Finger has recovered OK.
But I think I will be mentally scarred forever.

Have you seen this green lady ?

Most Shipping Lanes around the World have Buoys.
But this Canadian Port has Buoys dressed up as Gurls. ;o)

Close up of Gurl in 'Scuba Gear'.

Where is this intriguing sculpture? Is she floating, or attached to a rock? What's her history?

Well she is attached to a Rock.
A bloody big Rock.
I will look for a good link for you.

"Girl in a Wetsuit".
Unable to obtain a license to replicate 'The Little Mermaid' statue in Copenhagen.
The city of Vancouver commissioned a modern version with diving mask, wetsuit, and swimfins.
It was created by Elek Imredy and installed on the 9 June 1972.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Girl_in_a_Wetsuit