Gay Vancouver

Vancouver is a city well known for its beauty and lush green spaces, gorgeous and cosmopolitan sky line as well as culture. It is quickly becoming known, especially to gay Americans, as ˆtheˆdestination to get married. Coming from a country where gay and lesbian people are in the spot light on broadway, in the fashion run ways and on tv shows at dinner but denied the basic right to get married and have a celebration, more and more gay and lesbian Americans are flocking to Canada and especially Vancouver, BC to tie the knot.

Having lived in the US for many years and studied in the US at private American schools I feel somewhat like an honourary American - even if I still spell honour with an "OUR". US customs and immigration doesn't feel that way. They took my tuition money, handed me my degree and kicked my what is obviously "communist ass" out and back to Canada. No hard feelings. How could I have hard feelings when so many US citizens come to Canada to get married, avoid the war, run from the draft and racial intolerance... My brothers and sisters - you're all welcome here!

I think the thing that surprised me most was that I had forgotten or become complacent with how stinking polite Canadians generally are. The group of friends and famiy that cam up for an old roomates wedding in Stanley Park kept commenting on how friendly everyone was and I guess there is some truth to that. As I sat on the bus one day I noticed that all the passengers but one who got off before I did said a kind "thank you" to the driver from the back of the bus before disembarking. Even restaurant staff were polite. I had to giggle when the Americans seated around the dinner table at "Earls" commented that you knew you were in a good restaurant when other staff came to help when they didn't have tables. You have to realize that "Earls" is much like TGI Fridays to us.

After eating like kings and queens at Stanley Park and wandering about Davies street and taking in all of Kitsilano and Granville Island and acquabus through the harbour and saying good-bye to my American guests I realized just how fortunate I am to be a Canadian. I guess I am a lucky little shit after all.