For the love of dog

Well, I'm home now, but I had to post one last salute to Vancouver.  It became obvious during my stay that dogs play an important role in Vancouver culture.  To say that the people of Vancouver merely love their dogs would be an understatement in the extreme.  There is an abundance of dog friendly parks, walking paths, hotels, cafes, and little shops all over town.  I was tickled by a display at the Westin showing a very posh dog bed available for guests.

"Heavenly Dog Bed" available at the Westin

This adorable little shop was just up the street from the Westin

They had an interesting selection of gourmet dog treats

And other foods, toys, and clothes.

Really a uniquely Vancouver place.

Most imported part of meetings.

The last few days attending sessions and socializing with other weed scientists at IWSC I've been wondering what will end up being the most important thing I do while I'm here.  

Perhaps a connection I make with a scientist will prove to be beneficial to my career in the future.  

It's possible that some of the bites of information out of my normal realm will give me new perspective on my own research, possibly even direct me down a new path.

The overall theme of shared problems and weed concerns has certainly open my eyes to the possibility of research in other parts of the world.  (Although, Antarctica is still top of my list and unfortunately no one is here representing those weed issues.)

And lastly, if I have any more amazingly fun days in Vancouver I may have to immigrate, but I'm not sure I could afford it.

Botanical Garden and other stops

Today (day three of the International Weed Science Congress) was field trip day.  We started at the botanical garden on the UBC campus, it was by far the best stop.  Though, the final stop at a cranberry winery was interesting.  Some of the highlights...

Cardiocrinum giganteum - Giant Himalayan Lily

Grows to 15 feet high!

Minotaur and a hare.  Statue made of chicken wire and bed springs on loan to the garden.

The final stop.  Tried cranberry and strawberry wine, and blackberry port.  The wine was okay, but it all had a "fortified" flavor from the large amount of white sugar added for fermentation.

A rose by any other name......

Some more images from the UBC rose garden. I don't know the variety names but they all smelled delightful!

Beautiful UBC

Spend the evening after day two wandering around the UBC campus.  It is lovely.  Very sophisticated and well designed.  Some of the nicest images.....

The rose garden in bloom

The totem poles in front of the museum

Pacific spirit regional park

The 5th International Weed Science Congress

Day One

More than 500 people

From 48 Countries

Presenting more than 250 posters

and 21 different oral sessions,

with I don't know how many individual presentations.

In other words: AWESOME!

Vancouver has many nice water features.

Some other (less than scientific) things I observed today

• 75 words on a slide is too many
• It's greatly appreciated when the speaker before lunch ends on time
• Charismatic farmers give the best talks
• I need to practice my professional banter (and reduce the excessive nodding and idiotic smiling)

New word: "transformer" - a weed that drastically changes an environment it invades by adding extra layers to the environment.

How to know you're in a foreign land

Vancouver has such a lovely Pacific Northwest Culture it's easy to forget I'm not back home. But I did notice distinct signs that I wasn't in Kansas anymore....

Traffic signals sometimes inexplicably flash green.

Cuban Cigars are readily available.

Taxicabs are hybrid fuel vehicles, more often than not.

Bathrooms have been transformed to washrooms.

The emperors new clothes

Well I'm all packed and leaving for Vancouver in an hour. Attending the International Weed Science Congress this week. I'm looking forward to staying in Vancouver again, this time I'll be sharing dorms at UBC with a dozen other grad-students from our lab. The conference is at the Westin over near Stanley park.

The really amazing part of getting ready for this trip was locating a weeks worth of business clothes in my disaster of a closet. Being presentable and business like for a day or every two day's in a row has always been do-able. But a full weeks worth of "dressing-my-best" is, I'm embarrassed to say, something I've never had to do. Regardless, I'm attempting to present myself as a real science profession instead of a sarcastic grad-student who laughs too loudly. Never know how important each new acquaintance can be, and saying that first impressions are the most important would be redundant.

Anthropology Museum - University of BC

Absolutely amazing museum. This picture is a close up of the face of a carved speaker pole.

Thai tea

Wonderful pot of tea at lunch.  Green tea with jasmine blossoms and rose buds, as optional golden raisins added to your cup.  (the Curries weren't half bad either.)

Stanley Park

Look what I found walking in Stanley Park this morning, a healthy little gorse bush.  I didn't think it had invaded this far north, but apparently I was wrong.

Greetings from Vancouver (BC)

A good start - Beer sampler at the Steamworks brewery