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Ten Things That You Should Absolutely Do Between Now And Next Week

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by Michelle Sproule | The main objective of this website is to scout out and promote the things that make Vancouver such a sweet place to be. We do this with an emphasis on the city’s independent spirit to foster a sense of connectedness within and between our communities, and to introduce our readers to the people who grow and cook our food, play the raddest tunes in our better venues, create our most interesting art, and design everything from what we wear to the spaces we inhabit. The Scout List is our carefully considered, first rate agenda of super awesome things that we’re either doing, wishing that we could do, or conspiring to do this week. You can also check it out in the Globe & Mail, from our calendar to theirs…and yours!

DELICIOUS | Ever wondered what 54,000 lbs of apples looks like? Head out to the UBC Botanical Gardens for Apple Festival this weekend and find out! Not only will there be apples galore, but you can also expect apple pie, hot apple cider, caramel apples, apple chips, and organic BC apple juice. Master Gardeners will be available to discuss apple-related diseases and pest management with those of you who have trees at home, plus there will be trees to take home and plant in your own garden.
Oct 18 + 19 | 11am to 4pm | UBC Botanical Garden | $4 (kids free) | DETAILS

DRAW | The Stanley Park Ecology Society invites you down to the Pavilion to get creative by using the park’s taxidermy collection for a sketching session. Register in advance for “Drawing From Life and Death” so that organizers can ensure an adequate supply of charcoal, pastels and sketching paper. This event is geared toward a 16+ audience.
Thu, Oct 16 | 6-8pm | Stanley Park Pavilion (610 Pipeline Rd.) | $19 | DETAILS

COSTUME CATWALK | Don’t land yourself in the costume isle at Shopper Drug Mart at 6pm on Halloween night. There are more than enough sexy witches and bloody zombies on the block. Get creative! If you need a little help coming up with a truly impressive Halloween outfit, consider taking Value Village up on their offer to get you sorted out. The massive thrift store on Hastings will be hosting free Costume Catwalk fashion shows every Thursday at 3pm in October (complete with creepy music). These will showcase some of the wackiest outfits on the rack. Although this event is clearly geared toward people who don’t have to work during the day, it might be worth taking a late lunch for as VV also has Costume Consultants (yup, that’s a thing) available to coach you on what wig goes best with which muumuu; how to transform a sequin dress into a space suit; and which isle you can reasonably expect to score some sweet leather cowboy chaps from.
Thu, Oct 16, 23, 30 | 3-3:30 pm | Value Village (1820 E Hastings St) | DETAILS 

ART | The Equinox Gallery, located amidst a cluster of contemporary art galleries in the East Van area known as ‘The Flats’, is using its massive square footage to show off the works of local legend Gordon Smith this week. Smith’s work is impactful anywhere, but here one will be able to stand back and really take it in. It should be noted that Equinox is also a stone’s throw from Beta5 chocolate and pastry shop and there’s nothing like a cream puff to get your art appreciation rolling.
Now-Oct 25 | Tue-Sat 10-5 | Equinox Gallery (525 Great Northern Way) | DETAILS

CLASSICAL | An argument can be made for Brahms and Chopin perfectly capturing the spirit of any season, but there’s just something about autumn that seems to lend itself particularly well to the gentle drama of their music. Embrace the changing season with an evening concert that includes Chopin’s Piano Concerto No. 2 in F Minor, and Brahms’ Symphony No. 4 in E Minor performed by the VSO and conducted by Joshua Weilerstein with pianist Adam Golka.
Oct 17-18 | 8pm | Chan Centre (6265 Crescent Rd., UBC)| $25-40 | DETAILS

SHIPWRECKS | In 1845, two British boats headed to the Canadian Arctic to chart the Northwest Passage never to return. Many search parties were dispatched to learn the fate of Captain Franklin and his crew of 128 men, but it wasn’t until 2014 that a discovery was made. The Vancouver Maritime Museum and the HR MacMillan Space Centre have joined forces to bring Marc-Andre Bernier, chief of the underwater archaeology team for Parks Canada to give a talk about the remains of the Franklin Expedition this Thursday night (this is the dude who found the Franklin Expedition). Lost and Found: Arctic Shipwrecks and the Franklin Expedition takes place at the H.R. MacMillan Space Centre on Thursday evening and promises to be an informative and compelling talk about challenges and triumphs of something as complicated as underwater archaeology in the chilly waters of the Canadian Arctic.
Oct 16, 7-9 pm | H.R. MacMillan Space Centre (1100 Chestnut) | $22 | DETAILS

DUMPLINGS | Cool, damp autumn weather calls for comfort food. Homemade dumplings fit the bill. Not versed in the art of stuffing, folding or cooking the delicate bundles? No matter. The Hua Foundation is a local organization dedicated to strengthening connections with culture, heritage and sustainability and they’re hosting a series of cooking classes on how to prepare traditional Chinese dishes that are locally sourced, healthy, and “approved by Grandma.” This Saturday, they cover dumplings. Get schooled on the whole process. Extra cool bonus: you leave with a bag of dumplings. Space is limited, so don’t wait to grab tickets:  www.huafoundation.org
Oct 18 | 11am–2pm | Hua Foundation (418 East Hastings) | DETAILS
THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CANCELLED

SHOP HOP | The Gastown Fall Shop Hop happens this Thursday night. The one-night-only event offers Vancouverites the opportunity to cruise 54 of Gastown’s best shops, check out all of the new Fall wares, and be treated to great deals, in-store specials and the occasional treat (read: glass of sparkling wine).
Thu, Oct. 16 | 5pm–9pm | Various locations | FREE to browse | DETAILS

CONNECT | The Sustenance Festival is a series of fantastic food-related events held by the Vancouver Parks Board. They’re designed to connect local communities to the concept of food security. During Sustenance 2014, you can learn about wild and edible mushroom identification, take pickling and canning classes, attend gardening talks, sit in on cheese-making and gluten-free baking workshops, dance a Harvest Dance, taste tea – the works. The theme for this year’s festival is “Making Connections and Building Relationships”, so expect to get social.
Now – October 19 | City of Vancouver Community & Recreation Centres | DETAILS

SHROOMS | A modest hike in local forests can yield some delicious results but it should be remembered that going off-trail and eating mushrooms without proper identification are both very dangerous activities. So be sure to arm yourself with intel. This weekend brings two opportunities to hang out with fungi experts. Whistler and The Sunshine Coast are both hosting mushroom festivals. The Fungus Among Us Festival in Whistler happens Friday night and Saturday, while the Sunshine Coast Mushroom Festival spreads itself across the entire weekend. Both festivals will bring you up to speed on how to spot edible mushrooms in the wild, which fungi to avoid and how to best prepare your mushrooms.
WHISTLER | Oct 17 + 18 | DETAILS
SUNSHINE COAST | Fri, Oct 17 – Sun, Oct 19 | DETAILS

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late-may-2009-169Michelle Sproule grew up in Kitsilano and attended University in Australia and the University of Victoria before receiving her graduate degree in Library Sciences from The University of Toronto. She lives in beautiful Strathcona and enjoys wandering aimlessly through the city’s streets with her best friend – a beat up, sticky, grimy (but faithful) camera.

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