Westward Ho! at the University Golf Club in Vancouver

It was a smoky summer evening in Metro Vancouver last Sunday. Hot, just passing the thirty degree mark, and forest fires on Vancouver Island, and north of the Lower Mainland, covered the city with a dusty haze and a camp fire smell. It's rare to see this kind of pollution in Vancouver; we usually send our smog into the valley and keep our skies, and the air, clean and fresh. Not so on this night.






We are off to Point Grey, UBC and the University Golf Club, and more specifically to their dining establishment called Westward Ho! Public House and Grill. Long and dumb name. On the positive, its patio overlooks the gazebo garden and, through the smoke, the 10th tee.










The University Golf Club has been around since 1929. It's a traditional course with long, narrow fairways and towering old growth trees. The club house offers the feel of a private club, and it's popular for weddings, gatherings and meetings throughout the year.

We're here because we've heard good things about the quality of  the Westward Ho! Public House. By appearance, it's a typical golf course sort of pub. The menu is casual, with some nice touches, and maybe because of the club's banquet rooms, there are some indulgences too. There's a daily, or more accurately, a weekly fresh sheet and there's the potential to have expectations exceeded; in season halibut or salmon for example.

We had a wonderful shrimp croissant, which was tasty and nicely presented. The fries were crispy and the Caesar salad was better than expected. Available Sunday nights is the prime rib roast dinner, with the usual accompaniments. It proved to be an excellent value and delicious.














The burgers that went by to a table of German tourists, in town for the World Cup, looked fantastic.















Dessert items, not unlike many pubs, included apple pie with ice cream, which was a nice way to end the evening and the ice cream was better than the average. Oddly, no espresso coffees are available here, only the standard drip. In a city obsessed with coffee, it seems odd to find a place like this without an espresso machine. Maybe golfers don't like espresso drinks?

The wine list was adequate  and prices were not unreasonable, though the selection could stand the addition of a few more BC wines.



All in all a wonderful experience. Good food, great views and an excellent value. This is one of those places that seems to be off the radar, perhaps because of its remoteness in relation to the rest of the city. It deserves better.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

The inspiration for the Coke bottle

It was April, 1915 when the Trustees of the Coca-Cola Bottling Association voted to expend up to $500 to develop a distinctive bottle for Coca-Cola. The idea was to create something new, distinctive and timeless. A challenge went out to various bottle makers across the Excited States and in Terre Haute, Indiana, the Root Glass Company went to work.

Up until this time, bottles used in those days were simple straight-sided bottles that were typically brown or clear. While Coca-Cola had a distinctive logo, it was widely copied by competitors and caused confusion among customers. The company proposed that the bottlers across America develop and use a common and distinctive package for their product. As the head of the Coca-Cola Company said at the time, "We are not building Coca-Cola alone for today. We are building Coca-Cola forever, and it is our hope that Coca-Cola will remain the national drink to the end of time."


In Terre Haute the team was composed of C.J and William Root, Alexander Samuelson, Earl Dean and Clyde Edwards. Samuelsson, a Swedish immigrant who was the shop foreman, sent Dean and Edwards to the local library to research design possibilities.




Little known until recently, the inspiration for their design, the winning design as it turned out, came from a an early photograph of this fern, which has the iconic image of Coke in its very DNA.

Interestingly the designers specified "German Green" for the colour of glass to be used in the bottles. The Coca-Cola Company agreed but opted to call the colour: "Georgia Green" in all pronouncements.










The fern is one of many in the fern dell at VanDusen Garden in Vancouver, where these photographs offer proof of a legend now made public.

The fern is actually known as the Tasmanian Tree Fern or Dicksonia antarctica, though it is often referred to as the Coke Bottle Fern.

Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

The transit referendum and Christy Clark's amazing lack of leadership

The results of the Transit Referendum are now available. Finally. That it took six weeks to come up with the results and then to release the numbers on July 2nd, a time when many citizens in Metro Vancouver are beginning vacation or taking an extended Canada Day weekend, says a great deal about our fine government in Victoria.




All things considered the rejection of the 0.5% increase in the sales tax is not all that surprising. That the Yes side went down to such a resounding defeat is disheartening. There are obvious problems with TransLink, the unelected board named by the provincial government. There are local political issues present in the 23 jurisdictions that make up the region. And there is the never ending whine of  "why should I pay for something I will never use?" in response to the question of transit. Or public schools for that matter.

There is also the overriding issue of leadership in the whole matter. Leadership that knows the definition of the very term. Why did our provincial government force the region's mayors to accept the referendum process? Why did our premier ignore repeated pleas to allow more time for the plebiscite to be held? Why in fact, does our premier refuse to offer leadership on an issue so vital to all British Columbians? Shouldn't we have long term planning for transit in this province? Is it up to local mayors to come up with a plan and then to let the people decide as directed by the premier?

Christy Clark didn't have any trouble announcing a replacement to the Massey Tunnel, with nary a mention given to public transit in that proposal. But then again, she didn't make much of an effort to come up with a price tag either. Maybe we should let the people decide. Or maybe not, as might be the whim of the premier on any particular day.

We elect people to represent our interests and make decisions for the common good. Sometimes that means making decisions many of us won't like, because there is a greater good. Leadership was not present in the Transit Referendum. It wasn't present in the mayors, a befuddled group if ever there was one, and it wasn't in evidence from our government in Victoria. The lack of leadership displayed by the premier was unseemly at best. Where is the vision, dedication and courage to do the common good in this Liberal government?

What would W.A.C. Bennett have done I wonder?

Copyright 2015  by Jim Murray.

Early mornings at VanDusen Garden

On Father's Day in June, VanDusen Garden opened early for members only. The shadows were long and the colours brilliant.























Opening from 7:00 to 9:00 offered a great opportunity to see the Garden in a different light, ideal for photographers. We attended of course and enjoyed the quiet of the gardens and the longer shadows of an early morning sun.







The event proved popular enough that VanDusen is planning another early morning opening, again for members only. This time it will be on Sunday, July 19th, with a specific invitation to joggers to come for a morning jog, two hours before any other visitors arrive in the Garden. Normally, during regular hours, jogging would be frowned upon by staff and visitors alike.

Opening early once a month, and appealing to different interests, like jogging, is an interesting experiment for VanDusen. Getting in early, before the crowds appear, is a benefit to members, and hopefully an enticement to others to become members too. Maybe it should happen more often.












Photos by Jeem. Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.

NDP majority government ~ who would have thought it possible?

On the eve before Canada Day, on the CBC and elsewhere, Éric Grenier of ThreeHundredEight.com, is showing the possibility of a New Democratic majority government after our October election.

The Liberals and Conservatives are slipping in virtually every region and Mulcair's NDP has surged in Ontario.

Here in British Columbia the New Democrats have an impressive lead, though that makes it ever more important to produce those vote if we are to defeat the Harper Conservatives.

It's going to be a very hot summer indeed as the Liberals and Conservatives shift their attention to the New Democrats; the lies, distortions and fear mongering will soon begin. Be not led astray.

Change is in the air. We're all in this together.


Full polling information and projections at ThreeHundredEight.com

Copyright 2015 by Jim Murray.