Watching the 2010 Winter Games has so far brought back memories of one of the best trips of my life: July 2004 when my son and I spent a week in and around Vancouver, Whistler and Victoria, British Columbia. The photo above is one that my son took from the car as we drove up the "Sea to Sky Highway" that runs from Vancouver up to Whistler. As the photo suggests, the scenery is so spectacular that it's hard to believe that it is real at times.*
The trip was remarkable and wonderful in ways far more important that the scenery. It was a time my son and I got to spend quality time together and experience our own special adventure if you will. It was a happy time before the divorce nightmare destroyed so much, before the collapse of my former law firm and the financial ruin that followed, and before my son largely ceased to communicate with. The trip generated memories that I will treasure always.
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Of course, the other memories that I have of Vancouver is that it is everything that Norfolk and this part of Virginia is not: tolerant, protective of all minority groups, open to diversity, cosmopolitan. The list goes on and on. Which is probably one reason that Vancouver was recently chosen as the world's most livable city by the The Economist:
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VANCOUVER is still the most liveable city in the world, according to a new ranking from the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Canadian city topped a "liveability survey" of 140 cities, as it did in 2008.
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The ranking scores each city from 0-100 on 30 factors spread across five areas: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Vancouver's average score was 98—0.8 less than last year—but the margins at the top are all tight, with the best ten cities scoring over 96.
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What is also interesting three of the top cities are in Canada - a country much derided by the American far right - and three more of the top ten are in Australia. Obviously, those nations are doing some things right - just maybe the USA could lean from their examples.
VANCOUVER is still the most liveable city in the world, according to a new ranking from the Economist Intelligence Unit. The Canadian city topped a "liveability survey" of 140 cities, as it did in 2008.
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The ranking scores each city from 0-100 on 30 factors spread across five areas: stability, healthcare, culture and environment, education, and infrastructure. Vancouver's average score was 98—0.8 less than last year—but the margins at the top are all tight, with the best ten cities scoring over 96.
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What is also interesting three of the top cities are in Canada - a country much derided by the American far right - and three more of the top ten are in Australia. Obviously, those nations are doing some things right - just maybe the USA could lean from their examples.
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