You don’t have to be young to enjoy the Vancouver International Children’s Festival (May 29 to Jun. 3), but it sure helps to be young at heart, considering the roster of giggle-inducing activities: creating unique spin art using a bicycle, learning circus skills, making crazy sock puppets, face painting. Various venues on Granville Island overflow [...]

To mark the 25th anniversary of his Man in Motion World Tour (pictured), last August Canadian Paralympian Rick Hansen kicked off a cross-country relay in North America’s easternmost point, Cape Spear (Newfoundland and Labrador). The 12,000-km (7,450-mi) endeavour, which raised money for spinal cord injury research, is finally coming to an end, as the relay [...]

The newest Cactus Club location is more than just a pretty face. Sure, the restaurant is situated right on the beach, offering a stunning view of English Bay, but it’s also eco-friendly, with its living roof, organic herb garden and plentiful bike racks. The green building has been constructed to meet LEED Gold Certification. So, [...]

Bring a healthy appetite for both fresh pasta and opera music to Cafe Pacifica in the Pan Pacific Hotel. Every Saturday evening, singers from the Burnaby Lyric Opera Society serenade diners during the Italian Opera Buffet. Be sure to make a reservation, as this popular event usually sells out. Added bonus: the view from the [...]

When aspiring rock star Drew meets aspiring actress Sherri, their love is as formidable as a 1980s power ballad. Rock of Ages is sweet, silly and superfluous, but it’s also one heck of a fun Broadway musical, filled with songs by the likes of Journey, Bon Jovi and Styx. Catch all the big hits—and big [...]

Get ready to run, bike and paddle your way to glory in the Red Bull Divide and Conquer, a new multi-disciplinary endurance race taking place Jun. 16 on the North Shore. Teams of three cover 70+ km (43+ mi) by mountain running and mountain biking on Grouse Mountain and whitewater kayaking on the Capilano River. [...]

May 6 and 7 Don’t know your rolling pin from your pastry brush? Don’t worry. Alice Medrich’s Sinfully Easy Delicious Desserts (Artisan Press; $29.95) is filled with foolproof recipes grouped under enticing headings such as Pudding Pleasure, Lickety-Split Cakes, and Sweet Bites. Beginners and experts alike will be baking up a storm in no time. [...]

Attention, cowpokes: mosey on down to the plaza outside the Vancouver Art Gallery at 11:30 a.m. on May 9 and you could win a trip to this year’s Calgary Stampede (Jul. 6 to 15), complete with red-carpet and white-hat treatment. To celebrate the 100th birthday of “The Greatest Outdoor Show on Earth,” the Stampede is [...]

From the top of its green roof to the depths of its geothermal energy system, the new visitor centre at VanDusen Botanical Garden is blazing a path in sustainable design. The building, with its eye-catching undulating roofline that resembles an orchid, uses green strategies such as rammed-earth walls, reclaimed lumber, on-site water capture and treatment, [...]

April 28 Meet local foodie Stephanie Yuen and sample tasty treats from her new cookbook, East Meets West: Traditional and Contemporary Asian Dishes from Acclaimed Vancouver Restaurants (Douglas & McIntyre, $29.95), in a free event at Barbara-Jo’s Books to Cooks.—Sheri Radford