[1]Shake the raindrops off your umbrella, escape into a restaurant in this Pacific Coast city, and be prepared to sample food from around the world.

[2]With half its population foreign born, Vancouver is one of the most ethnically mixed cities in North America, and it shows in the local restaurant scene. Small family eateries and cafes owned by immigrants are plentiful, and it's hard to come up with an international dish that’s not on a menu somewhere.

[3]Depending on which local tourist official you ask, the city has the continent's largest Chinatown, or its second-or third-largest after San Francisco and New York. Cheap, delicious meals can be had at noodle houses crammed with college students. Asian, especially Korean and Vietnamese grocery stores are common.

[4]But food from other parts of the world is also easy to find, like the shrimp sandwiches at Halso Konditori, a Swedish bakery that serves lunch on Arbutus Street downtown.

[5]There’s surprisingly cheap Singaporean and Malaysian food to be had at the well-known Hawker’s Delight — where you can get a filling meal for a little over $5. Then there’s the Tomahawk, an 80-year-old family business that serves up diner-type meals like eggs and hamburgers in log cabin surroundings, decorated by American Indian artifacts.

Entrepreneurs of All Flavors

[6]On the other end of the spectrum is Le Crocodile, a popular French restaurant where diners can enjoy braised rabbit leg. Urban Fare, a classy grocery store in the Yaletown district, offers decorated loaves of artisanal bread flown in twice a week from the famous Poilane bakery in Paris, for a whopping $85 apiece.

[7]Three-quarters of Vancouver's restaurants are independently owned and operated, according to Geoffrey Howes, who just stepped down as chairman of the British Columbia Restaurant and Food Services Association.

[8]But while opening a restaurant is an achievable dream for many locals, all that competition from like-minded entrepreneurs can just as quickly drive them out of business if they don't measure up.

[9]“We also have some of the highest number of failures in Canada — 80 percent either don't make money or actually fail in the first two years,” Howes said.

Hop On a Water Taxi, Tour the City

[10]The lively restaurant scene isn't the only reason to come to Vancouver — there are plenty of other attractions. True, it rains a lot — about 45 inches a year — but it rarely pours. Rather it mists, it dribbles, it hangs overhead, bathing the harbor in a clear gray light, running off umbrellas in tiny little droplets. The temperature doesn’t usually dip below freezing, and that mild weather, combined with all the precipitation, keeps the city green year-round.

[11]Every once in a while a weather phenomenon that locals call the "Pineapple Express1" wafts into town, carrying breezes so balmy that you can walk the waterfront without a coat in the coldest months. Restaurants have their outside tables set up in every season, and they’re usually occupied.

[12]Even in the rain, visitors can ride a covered “boat taxi” between downtown and the Granville Island Public Market, where you'll find vendors selling fresh farm produce and baked goods, ethnic food and crafts. The little water taxi, known as the Aquabus, seats perhaps a dozen people and delivers passengers to several destinations for a little over $5. Riders get a close view of False Creek, part of the harbor that extends well into the city, passing the barges, yachts and houseboats that float along the waterfront.

[13]Some of the houseboats are offices, with large windows facing the water: some are little houses covered in clapboard, with window boxes. A few of the boats moored in the middle of the harbor look like they’ve been lived in for years. Sometimes a seal swims lazily past through the urban water landscape. Much of the waterfront is open to visitors, including a long walkway along the bay.

[14]Stanley Park is another must-see. Established in 1888, the verdant 1,000-acre natural reserve is situated at the tip of the city and surrounded on three sides by water. Just a short drive from downtown, the park is at its most fragrant in spring, when the cherry trees, plum trees, azaleas and other ornamentals are blooming. But any time of year, the park has plenty to offer, with enormous cedar, hemlock and fir trees; a six -mile seawall; several monuments, including a mermaid on a rock; a large totem pole display; and a children’s railway.

[15]The park is also home to the Vancouver Aquarium, which features a popular beluga whale show and a good cafeteria with coffee for footsore parents.

[16]Vancouver is a friendly place, and that may be due in part to its diversity. “People have had to learn to find ways to live together,” said Baldwin Wong, who works for the city as a multicultural social planner.

[17]But Vancouver would be very different had a proposal succeeded 40 years ago to extend what is now the trans-Canada highway through the city to the sea.

[18]“They were going to ram it through the east side of Vancouver, through historic Chinatown, and do a big sort of typical American city thing,” said Bob McGilvray, an architect who worked for the city planning office for many years. Conservationists, planners, and Chinatown residents protested, and the plan was scrapped.

[19]“The result: We don't have these huge highways downtown which are just loud and a no-man’s-land,” said McGilvray.

[20]Chinatown is now one of three designated historical districts in the city, and downtown Vancouver remains highway-free. It's a place that’s fun to wander on foot — as long as you carry an umbrella.
 
[1]抖掉你雨伞上的雨点，躲进这座太平洋沿岸城市的一家饭店，准备品尝一下来自世界各地的菜肴吧！

[2]温哥华有一半的人口来自国外，是北美地区民族最为混杂的城市之一，当地的饭店景象也展现了这一点。到处都是外来移民开设的家庭小餐馆和咖啡馆，从菜单上看，世界各地的菜肴几乎应有尽有。

[3]当地旅游官员们众说不一：这座城市拥有这块大陆上最大的唐人街，抑或是仅次于旧金山和纽约的第二大或第三大唐人街。在挤满了大学生的面馆里，你可以品尝到既便宜又可口的饭菜。在温哥华，亚洲人，尤其是韩国人和越南人开的食品杂货店随处可见。

[4]当然，你也可以很容易地找到世界其他地方的饭菜，比如在霍尔索烘焙坊，你就可以吃到虾肉三明治。这是一家瑞典面包店，位于市区的阿布特斯街，专为客人提供午餐服务。

[5]在有名的“小贩乐翻天”饭店，你会发现，新加坡和马来西亚的饭菜便宜的惊人， 花上5美元多一点，就可以填饱肚子。还有“印第安战斧”，这是一家拥有80年历史的家族饭店，在四周装饰着美国印第安人手工艺品的小木屋里，你可以吃到诸如鸡蛋和汉堡包之类的经济型饭菜。

风味齐全的饭店企业

[6]与之形成鲜明对比的是，这座城市也有一些高档饭店，比如“鳄鱼先生”和“都市食府”等。前者是一家著名的法国饭店，食客们可以在这里享受到清蒸兔腿；后者则是一家位于耶鲁镇区的高档食品店，供应装饰精美的手工艺品面包，面包从巴黎著名的保兰面包店空运而来，一周两次，每块售价高达85美元。

[7]据杰弗里?豪斯说，温哥华市四分之三的饭店都是独立拥有和经营的。杰弗里?豪斯刚刚从不列颠哥伦比亚饭店与食品服务业协会主席的职位上退下来。

[8]虽然对许多当地人来说，开家饭馆是个容易实现的梦想，但有同样想法的企业主很多，竞争由此而来。假如你的饭店不合乎规范，就会很快被排挤出这个行业。

[9]豪斯说：“这里还保持着加拿大饭店倒闭数量的最高记录——— 80%的饭店不是不赚钱就是实际上在开业的头两年里就倒闭了。”

搭上水上巴士，饱览城市风光

[10]繁华的饭店景象并不是你来温哥华的唯一原因，还有许许多多其他吸引人的地方。是的，这儿的降水很多，一年大约45英寸，但很少下倾盆大雨。这儿不是起雾，而是“滴雾”，雾气在你的头顶上悬浮着，使整座海港都沐浴在一片灰蒙蒙的光线中，“雾滴”以细小水滴的形式从雨伞上滑落下来。这儿的温度很少降到零度以下，温和的气候再加上其全部的降水量，使这座城市终年保持着一片郁郁葱葱的绿色。

[11]偶尔会出现一种气候现象，当地人把它称作“菠萝快车”，“菠萝快车”进入城市后，带来温暖和煦的微风，在这样的天气里，即使是在最冷的月份，你也可以沿着海滨散步而无需穿外套。无论什么季节，饭店都会在外面支起他们的饭桌，并且常常是座无虚席。

[12]即便是在下雨天，游客们也可以乘坐一种遮篷式的出租船往返于市区和格兰维尔岛公共市场之间。在格兰维尔岛公共市场，你会发现有许多小贩兜售新鲜的农产品、烤制食品、民族风味食品和各种手工艺品。这种以“水上巴士”著称的小型水上出租船大概只能乘坐12个人，每人花上5美元多一点便能被送往不同的景点。乘客们可以近距离地一睹“假溪”的美丽风光，“假溪”是港口的一部分。 港口一直延伸到城市里。游艇穿过驳船、游艇和漂浮在滨海区的住家船。

[13]一些住家船本身就是办公室，有朝向水面的大窗户；还有一些则是用檐板盖起来的小屋子，带有窗栏花箱。几只小船停泊在港口中央，看起来有人已经在那里居住了多年。有时一只海豹慵懒地游过这城市水景。滨海区的许多地方都对游客开放，包括沿着海湾的一条长长的人行道。

[14]斯坦利公园是另一个必看的地方。这片建于1888年的翠绿的自然保护区占地1000公顷，位于城市的边缘，三面环水。从市内到该公园，驱车只需很短时间。此时正值芳香四溢的春天，公园内樱桃树、梅树、杜鹃花和其他的观赏类植物都开花了。但一年中的任何时候公园都有许多值得一看的地方，比如巨大的雪松、铁杉和冷杉，一条6英里长的海堤，几座纪念碑，包括一条雕刻在岩石上的美人鱼，一根巨大的图腾展示柱以及一条供儿童游玩的铁路等。

[15]斯坦利公园还是温哥华水族馆的所在地，其特色是一条很受欢迎的白鲸表演和一家不错的咖啡馆，后者为那些走痛了脚的父母们提供上好的咖啡。

[16]温哥华是一个友好的地方，部分原因可能是由于它的多元性。作为该市一名多元文化社会规划者，鲍德温•王说：“人们必须学会如何在一起生活。”

[17]但假如40年前的一项提案成功通过，温哥华就会与现在有很大的不同。40年前的那项提案要求延长现在这条跨加拿大的公路，穿过温哥华的市区直至海边。

[18]在(温哥华)市城市规划办公室工作多年的建筑师鲍勃?麦吉尔夫雷说：“他们当时计划将这条干线公路穿过温哥华的东侧，穿过具有历史意义的唐人街，建成一条颇具美国特色的城市公路。”但这一提案遭到了自然保护主义者、城市规划者以及唐人街居民们的反对。最终，该提案泡汤了。

[19]“其结果是：我们没有在闹市区修建这样一条规模庞大的干线公路，有了它只不过是带来噪音、没有了人的立足之地而已，”麦吉尔夫雷如是说。

[20]唐人街现在是温哥华市划定的三个历史区之一，温哥华市中心目前仍然没有任何干线公路通过。在这里徒步溜达令人愉快 ——— 只要你带上一把伞。