is the largest film production center in North-America after Los Angeles and New York City.
attracts 15 million tourists every year and that is one of the biggest tourist attractions in British Columbia.
is only 125 years old.
is one of the few cities where you can ski and swim on the same day.
residents are called Vancouverities.
has more than 200 parks and that Stanley Park is the city’s first park.
is ranked the number 1 most livable cities in the world. (2009)
is ranked as one of the 10 cleanest cities in the world.
is the largest port in Canada.
hosts a fireworks competition every year.
is the largest metropolitan area in Western Canada.
hosts one of the country's largest annual gay pride parades.
Showing posts with label Fact. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Fact. Show all posts
Saturday, December 29, 2012
Posted with Blogsy
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
Fact of the Day
Wednesday, November 28, 2012
Fact of the Day
Women now attend college at rates higher than the male population and are the primary breadwinners for 60% of all families.
Friday, November 23, 2012
Fact of the Day
I love teaching Poe. One of my great joys as a HS english teacher was introducing my students to him. One of the first things we would read was "The Masque of Red Death."
Here's where the inspiration came from:
Here's where the inspiration came from:
It’s fairly well known that Poe married his cousin Virginia and that her subsequent illness inspired much of his work, but perhaps one of the most direct correlations to his work came with the first signs of her tuberculosis. While singing for the family, Virginia’s lungs hemorrhaged and she began bleeding from the mouth. Soon after, in a deep denial about the severity of her illness, Poe wrote the tale of decadent Prince Prospero, locked in his castle and trying, in vain, to keep the specter of pestilence, disease and injury from his doorstep.
Monday, November 19, 2012
Fact of the Day
The United States gained control of Puerto Rico in 1898, following the Spanish-American War. Puerto Rico set up its own government in 1952, and its residents do not pay federal income taxes to Washington on their local earnings. Nonetheless, it is still effectively a colony: boricuas are subject to American law even though they cannot vote for president or Congress.
Monday, November 12, 2012
Fact of the Day
Puerto Rico has been a territory for 114 years and its people have been US citizens since 1917. Residents of the island cannot vote in the US presidential election, have no representation in the Senate and only limited representation in the House of Representatives.
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Pre-Christian influences in Halloween
The Halloween holiday is commonly thought to have pagan roots, even though the etymology of the word is Christian. Historian Nicholas Rogers, exploring the origins of Halloween, notes that while "some folklorists have detected its origins in the Roman feast of Pomona, the goddess of fruits and seeds, or in the festival of the dead called Parentalia, it is more typically linked to the Celtic festival of Samhain, derived from the Old Irish Samuin meaning "summer's end". Samhain was the first and the most important of the four quarter days in the medieval Irish and Scottish calendar and, falling on the last day of autumn, it was a time for stock-taking and preparation for the cold winter months ahead. There was also a sense that this was the time of year when the physical and supernatural worlds were closest and magical things could happen. The souls of the dead were supposed to revisit their homes on Samhain eve. To ward off these spirits, the Gaels built huge, symbolically regenerative bonfires and invoked the help of the gods through animal and perhaps even human sacrifice. In the Western Isles of Scotland the Sluagh, or fairy host was regarded as composed of the souls of the dead flying through the air, and the feast of the dead at Hallowe'en was likewise the festival of the fairies.
Friday, October 26, 2012
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Halloween Fact #2
The earliest known use in print of the term "trick or treat" appears in 1927, from Blackie, Alberta, Canada:
Hallowe'en provided an opportunity for real strenuous fun. No real damage was done except to the temper of some who had to hunt for wagon wheels, gates, wagons, barrels, etc., much of which decorated the front street. The youthful tormentors were at back door and front demanding edible plunder by the word “trick or treat” to which the inmates gladly responded and sent the robbers away rejoicing.
Halloween History
In Britain the rituals of Hallowtide and Halloween came under attack during the Reformation as Protestants denounced purgatory as a "popish" doctrine incompatible with the notion of predestination. In addition the increasing popularity of Guy Fawkes Night (5 November) from 1605 on saw Halloween become eclipsed in Britain with the notable exception of Scotland. There and in Ireland, they had been celebrating Samhain and Halloween since the early Middle Ages, and the kirk took a more pragmatic approach towards Halloween, viewing it as important to the life cycle and rites of passage of local communities and thus ensuring its survival in the country.
North American almanacs of the late 18th and early 19th century give no indication that Halloween was recognized as a holiday. The Puritans of New England, for example, maintained strong opposition to the holiday and it was not until the mass Irish and Scottish immigration during the 19th century that the holiday was introduced to the continent in earnest. Initially confined to the immigrant communities during the mid-19th century, it was gradually assimilated into mainstream society and by the first decade of the 20th century it was being celebrated coast to coast by people of all social, racial and religious backgrounds.
North American almanacs of the late 18th and early 19th century give no indication that Halloween was recognized as a holiday. The Puritans of New England, for example, maintained strong opposition to the holiday and it was not until the mass Irish and Scottish immigration during the 19th century that the holiday was introduced to the continent in earnest. Initially confined to the immigrant communities during the mid-19th century, it was gradually assimilated into mainstream society and by the first decade of the 20th century it was being celebrated coast to coast by people of all social, racial and religious backgrounds.
Halloween Fact
Etymology
The word "Halloween" was first used in the 16th century and represents a Scottish variant of the fuller All-Hallows'-Even ("evening"), that is, the night before All Hallows' Day. Although the phrase All Hallows' is found in Old English (ealra hālgena mæssedæg, mass-day of all saints), All-Hallows-Even is itself not seen until 1556.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
Subscribe To
Posts
All Comments