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of the world's best places to stay, and Vancouver has been readers' favorite city in the

Americas for three years running, Canada rarely receives its full due. U.S. travelers in

search of the unexpected seldom look to their neighbor to the north. But our report-

ers, eyes wide open, discovered a country bristl ingwith urban energy, a new pride in

native cultures and cuisines-and a serious sense of humor (something in the water

seems to breed comedians). Even its undeniably great outdoors exceeded our slopes-

and-big-skies expectations, with pampering retreats and a world-class wine region.

Sometimes, it 's those closest to you that catch you most off guard.

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Vancouver86 Inside Edition: Masteringred-hot Hollywood North-plus three happening hoods, adivine wine region, and wherethe stars go to get away.

EdmontonB l0 . Play Time: An illustratedcheat sheet for winning big atthe world's largest mall.

Calgar5rB 12 . Saddle Up: A cowgirl'sguide to Stampede-plus newheights for hiking and skiing.

ReginaB14 A Prairie Companion:The world without frontiers.

WinnipegBl6 Surprisel Ahotbed ofculture in the plains-1iusPolar Bears l0l.

TbrontoB 18 No Doze: Tracking a 24-hour city---plus hip street lifeand the next French laundry.

Ottawa822 SensoryOverload:A feast for all in the nation'scapital-plus a spa getaway.

Montreal824 Feeding Frenzy: Threedays of meals worth the trip-plus Montreal rock out.

Q,uebee City828 New France Reinvented:Living lc belle vie on the St.Lawrence.

Halifax830 'Route Royale:Amonarch's tour ofthe city.

COVef Photograph of OntarioCollege ofArt and Design byRichardJohnson

REPoRTED rv CraigArchibald (The

Regina Monologue), Geraldine Campbell(Vancouver Seawall, Sreet Life), SusanCano (Quebec City), Dana Dickey (A

Cowgirl's Guide),Jessica Flint (Edmonton),

Paul French (Ottawa; New Kid in the Sky),NathalieJordi (Monteal Three Daysof Meals; The Big Cheese; Oon't TeCharlotte; To Market, to Markeq A Poutinefor All Tastes), Nandita Khanna (Heli-High),Natalie Maclean (Sunset and Vine), roursaMcCormack (Halifax), Bianca Anita Posterli(Polar Express; The "Eh" List), David Sax

ffouring Queen Weg Sweet Sounds ofa City), Mark Schaeker (24 Hours in

Toronto; The Prince ofHockey), MelissaSteele (Winnipeg), ManTener (Heli-High),

and Tncy Young (Claims to Fame).

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long the city's coast runs a seawall for

., the sections that gird Stanley Park and; . ,.. '. downtown Vancouver.

1. Canada Place houses a cruise ship terminal,a convention center, and the Pan Pacific hotel,which boasts a heated outdoor pool and a full spa(662-81 | | *; panpacific.com; doubles, $275-$525).Across Burrard Inlet are North Vancouver andGrouse Mountain. Get a closer look from view-finders on the promenade (3 minutes, $2).

2. Rooms at the Fairmont Waterfront havefloor-to-ceiling windows and stunning views ofthe harbor or skyline (69l- | 99 | ; hirmont.com;doubles, $335-$555).

3. Ttre Vancouver Conventlon and Exhibi-tion Centre is undergoing a $535 million expan-sion that will triple its space by the end of 2008(vccep.bc.ca).

4. The maps at the Vancouver TouristInformation Centre are detailed and free(200 Burrard St; 682-2222).

5. Floatplanes from Vancouver lsland land andboats fill up at gas station islands in the harbor.

6. the Nike Runner's Lounge has local run-ning maps, a bag check and post-run massaSes(5 | 0 Nicola St.; 778-786-74631.

7. Coal Harbour is dotted with waterfront res-taunmts: Cardero's, for oysters and a beer ( | 583Coaf Harbour Quay; 669 -7 666; entr€es, $8-$25);the upstairs patio of the 5,000-square-foot Lift, forcontemporary West Coast cuisine by an outdoorfireplace (333 Menchion Mews; 689-5438; entr6es,$ | 9-$28); and the newest, Bravo Bistro, for Mo-roccan-influenced fare (550 Denman St.; 688-37 | 4;entr6es, $ | 5-$35).

8. Cyclists wanting to ride the Stanley Park sea-wall enter here (bikes must go counterclockwise).Pick up a map at the Stanley Park InformationBooth, to the lefe The Vancouver RowingClub, the city's oldest athledc club, is to the righc

9. Sit on a bench and gaze at the five sails ofCanada Place and the Harbour Centre Tower.Behind you, seven totem poles honor the re-gion's First Nations heritage. The nearby Brock-ton Visitors Centre has a gift shop with FirstNations souvenirs.

1O. ttre Nine O'Clock Gun, originally firedto signal the end of the day's salmon fishing, wasbrought to Vancouver in 1894. The cannon's 9 p.r.r.explosion is now a local tradition.

1 1 . fne life-size Girl in Wetsuig by Hungar-ian sculptor Elek lmredy, appears to float on thewater at high tide.

12. eslight detour uphill leads to the ProspectPoint Cafe, which can overcharge for its soups,sandwiches, and nachos because the panoramic

view of the Lion's Gate Bridge is priceless(669-2737 ; entr6es, $8-$25),

13. According to legend, the Salish warrior Skalswas immortalized for his selflessness as the basaltSiwash Rock.

14. Sp"t seals and bald eagles from ThirdBeach.

15. fne fish-and-chips atthe upscale SequoiaGrill at the Teahouse--$attered salmon and cod.spicy frites, mushy peas, tartar sauce, and ketchup-comes on waxed paper that look like newspaper(Stanley Park Dr.; 669-3281; entrees, $15-$33).

16. fne slides at the heated Second BeachPoof are suitable for toddlers (257-837l).

1 7. Dennis Oppenheim's Engagement-*torings in glass, steel, and aluminum, weighing 3,500pounds-was part of the city's recent SculptureBiennale.

18. tn an exceptional location steps from theseawall, the Sylvia Hotel, a converted l9 | 2apartment building, has 120 no-frills rooms (68l-9321; sylviahotel.com; doubles, $95-$142).

19. Leave the seawall to sample organic dishessuch as a chickpea and fig togine with kale, yogurcand parsley oil at Raincity Grill. There's a take-out counter in summer ( | I 93 Denman St.; 685-7337; entr6es, $ l0-$l 7).

3O. ttte beach is marked by a 2O-foot inukshulsan Inuit symbol traditionally used as a navigationalaid. This one, sculpted by Inuit artist Alvin Kanakis in granite.

21. fhe mammoth steel installation 217.5 Arcsx 13, by Bernar Venet, weighs more than six tons.

22. Watcn the barges ply False Creek whilesampling contemporary regional dishes on thepatio of Fiddlehead Joe's ( l0l2 Beach Ave.; 688-| 969; entr6es, $8-$ | 3).

23. Granville lsland, home to the city's PublicMarkeg is in False Creek (see page B8).

24. Davia Lam Park is named for the firstCanadian of Chinese origin to be made lieutenantgovernor of British Columbia, in 1988.

25. lust off the seawall, Reckless Bike rents alltypes oftwo-wheelers (l l0 Davie St;648-2600;from $6 per hour).

26. Wtrere Davie Street meets the seawall,catch the Aquabus ferry to Granville lsland(689-5858; aquabus.bc.ca; one way, g3).

27. tne domed BC Place Stadium, behindthe Plaza of the Nations, will host the opening andclosing ceremonies of the 20l0 Win-ter Olympics (bcplacestadium.com).Across the water, the globe at ScienceWorld is one of the city's distinctivelandmarks (scienceworld.bc.ca). tl{< The orco code for Yoncouver is 504,

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Street "F"ife, a User's uideThree close-by neighborhoods, each with its own ambience, not to be missed

Granville Street andGranvillelslandGranville Street exudes benigndilapidation, but increasingly its din-ers and dive bars share real estatewith upscale stores. The newestHolt Renfrew department store,set to open in late May, will be aI 37,000-scuare-foot anchor forthe upscale end of the street (737Dunsmuir St.; 68 | -3 | 2l). Lo-cal bands play every night at theRailway Club, a low-key pubwith peanut-vending machines and

, GP.ANVILLEISI-AND

WESTEND

YarietcrwuAn economic boom over the lasttwo years has filled this neighbor-hood-once bustling warehousesand a railway terminus-withsoaring glass apartment buildings,trendy stores, hipster caf6s andlounges, and the city's densestconcentration of fine restaurants.On the edge of the neighbor-hood is the f;lbovr Room,renowned for staff who dish updiner fare along with friendlyabuse: "lf you want more coffee,get yourself a butler" (560 DavieSt.; 685-3628; breakfast, $3-$l 3).

microbrews on tap (579 DunsmuirSu 68l- 1625). With mahoganywalls and leather banquettes,Gotham merits its reDutation asthe city's best steak house (6 | 5Seymour St.; 605-8281 entr6es,$23-$43). Between Robson andDavie, you can get a tactoo or apiercing on Granville. Go thrift-ing at vintage shops such as TrueValue Vintage (710 Robson Sc;685-5403) and newcomer Used(83 | Granville Sc; 694-0322); thencheck out John Fluevog, for theVancouverite's often wacky shoes(837 Granville Sc; 688-2828). TheHollywood North crowd hangsat the long, narrow GranvilleRoom until the wee hours-tiekitchen takes orders till 2 xn. (957Granville St.; 633-0056; entr6es,

$9-$ | 8). Sports funs and dancefanatics mingle at Republic, alate-night bar cum nightclub (958Granville St.; 669-3266). TheTempleton look like a greasyspoon but serves organic eggs and

presenrative-free bacon ( I 087Granville St: 685-46 | 1 entr6es.$6-$ | 3). Sanafir, a bi-levelcocktail lounge, has Moroccan

lanterns and haremlike beds (1026Granville St; 678- 1049). Brightand airy, C Restaurant has sen-sational seafood ( | 600 Howe St.;681-1164: entr6es, $33-$43); itssister restauranc NU, focuses onEuropean-accented cuisine ( | 66 |Granvif f e St-: 6464668; entr6es,$l l-$34). Across the GranvilleBridge, Granville lsland is aformer hctory zone now repletewith galleries, shops, and perfor-mance spaces (granvilleisland.com). At its year-round PublicMarket, vendors stock freshproduce, artisanal cheeses, andhandmade soaps. Locals extolSandbar, which serves fresh fishand is located under the bridge( | 535 Johnston St.; 669-9030;entrees, $9-$25).

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Times sure have changed in thiscobblestone district that oncehad just a saloon and a lumbermill. The nondescript i' i. '-l ' i. 'i lri:rlli has great-value bentoboxes (375 Water St.; 683-7637;bentos, $6-$12). r - r , . " " t i :1 f :1a'has Mon Petit Oiseau tees, leansby Meli Melo, and knits by Ken-zie (354 Water St.; 605-0685).The sculptures and jewelry inthe lrLri{: Galli)r'y are awesomebut pricey (206 Cambie St.; 688-7323); the astonishing pieces atI .j ' i l ':; l,snllr,,r: lt|t, a Vancouverinstitution, cost less ( 165 WaterSt. ; 685-4249). l ra lorrn i : r i r ' r " i .

is a giant contemporan/-designstore (97 Water Sc; 682-3868)..r--ii;iriririi stocks only Canadian de-signers (44 Water St.; 669-9727).For a savory treat, sup at the Sait; h.- i , : . . i { . . , ' ! , . a solumerio/winebar in Blood Alley (633- l9 | 2;entr€es, $8-$ | 3). Pick up uniqueclothes at [ ' l ro:r , 16 { iar t ' , r ' (225Carrall St.; 633-9559). Have aGuinness and Anglo-lrish fare atl : ' : : : l i t { r ' - r . i r ' r r (217 Carral l St . ;688-9779: entrdes, $ | 2-$ | 4).

co CicFpirro 's, which servesdinner only; its Enoteca, nextdoor, offers lunch (l 133 Ham-ifton St.: 688-7466: lunch en-tr€es, $2G-$26; dinner entr€es,$ | 9-$38). In a converted brickwarehouse with exposed beamsand an open kitchen, the tslue\#;rter Cafe has a standoutraw bar ( 1095 Hamilton St.; 688-8078; entr6es, $25-$39). Get askin-care workout from one ofSkoah's "personal trainers": TheFitskin facial-cleansing, exfolia-tion, and toning-takes less thanan hour ( l0 l I Hamil ton St. ;642-0200: skoah.com). tr

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Peruse housewares, antiquefurnishings, and vintage religiousstatues at -l-he Cross, locatedin a l9 l4 br ick bui ld ing (1198Homer St.; 689-2900). A pulsat-ing bar is a feature ofthe ()pus

Flotcl, which also has a hip staffand 96 color-themed roomswith flat-screen TVs (642-6787;opushotel.com; doubles, $300-$420). Southeast of the Opus,

lust off the seawall, t!rbarr Faresells organic produce, importedchocolates, and immense freshmuffins that won't break thebank (177 Davie St-; 975-7550).Mixologists serve up seasonalcocktails made with fresh fruitand herbs at the glowing onyxbar at George (l 137 HamiltonSt.; 628-5555). For fine ltalianfood and wine-and dependableHollywood-star spotting-head

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