Vancouver Defies the Canadian Stereotypes (how much, transfer, neighbourhood)

[f1000]

This is what I make of multiple visits:

- ppl REALLY keep to their own business....to the point that people do not help each other out...I have taken the bus (surprisingly rude bus drivers btw) and they may not release the back door, causing the passengers to miss their stop....in the SF Bay area on the bus, other passengers will yell at the driver to open the back door...in Vancouver ppl just keep quiet! As long as its not them being affected, who cares? is the attitude

- ppl do NOT wait in line for the bus or trains like they do in Seattle or SF Bay area

- ppl do NOT look each other in the eyes and do NOT hold doors for others...I have sat on the sidelines and observed this numerous times

- what's with all the wannabes hanging around the downtown in scrubby Ed Hardy clothes, and ladies in skimpy attire? Definitely on a level of poor taste you really only see in Miami, NYC and Montreal....you don't see this so much in Seattle or the CA big cities

- the smell of pot all over the place, and the litter, and the young ppl swearing very openly

So am I right that ppl in Vancouver defy the Canadian stereotypes?

[BIMBAM]

Originally Posted by f1000

This is what I make of multiple visits:

- ppl REALLY keep to their own business....to the point that people do not help each other out...I have taken the bus (surprisingly rude bus drivers btw) and they may not release the back door, causing the passengers to miss their stop....in the SF Bay area on the bus, other passengers will yell at the driver to open the back door...in Vancouver ppl just keep quiet! As long as its not them being affected, who cares? is the attitude

- ppl do NOT wait in line for the bus or trains like they do in Seattle or SF Bay area

- ppl do NOT look each other in the eyes and do NOT hold doors for others...I have sat on the sidelines and observed this numerous times

- what's with all the wannabes hanging around the downtown in scrubby Ed Hardy clothes, and ladies in skimpy attire? Definitely on a level of poor taste you really only see in Miami, NYC and Montreal....you don't see this so much in Seattle or the CA big cities

- the smell of pot all over the place, and the litter, and the young ppl swearing very openly

So am I right that ppl in Vancouver defy the Canadian stereotypes?

Not really, they seem pretty normal compared to other cities I've spent time in in Canada (Montreal, Ottawa and Toronto). I'm actually surprised you say transit workers and average people are rude, I've found everyone shockingly friendly and willing to engage with strangers since I moved here from a suburb of Montreal. People look me in the eye alot more and transit workers seem alot nicer and everything seems very clean. I guess it's just better where you come from which is SF + Seattle? I don't know, I've never been to those cities. Canadians in general are polite and helpful when engaged with, but we're typically quite reserved and don't get in people's business, especially in the cities.

[Acajack]

Originally Posted by f1000

- what's with all the wannabes hanging around the downtown in scrubby Ed Hardy clothes, and ladies in skimpy attire? Definitely on a level of poor taste you really only see in Miami, NYC and Montreal....you don't see this so much in Seattle or the CA big cities

Hmm... just because people dress less conservatively in these areas does not mean they have less taste. This is just a question of personal preferences.

And I say this as a person who dresses quite conservatively and who does not particularly fancy the "Ed Hardy" look.

[callmemaybe]

Are you talking about downtown or the Downtown Eastside? Because they are pretty damn different in that regard (and just about every other ....)

[Zoisite]

Originally Posted by f1000

This is what I make of multiple visits:

- ppl REALLY keep to their own business....to the point that people do not help each other out...I have taken the bus (surprisingly rude bus drivers btw) and they may not release the back door, causing the passengers to miss their stop....in the SF Bay area on the bus, other passengers will yell at the driver to open the back door...in Vancouver ppl just keep quiet! As long as its not them being affected, who cares? is the attitude

- ppl do NOT wait in line for the bus or trains like they do in Seattle or SF Bay area

- ppl do NOT look each other in the eyes and do NOT hold doors for others...I have sat on the sidelines and observed this numerous times

- what's with all the wannabes hanging around the downtown in scrubby Ed Hardy clothes, and ladies in skimpy attire? Definitely on a level of poor taste you really only see in Miami, NYC and Montreal....you don't see this so much in Seattle or the CA big cities

- the smell of pot all over the place, and the litter, and the young ppl swearing very openly

So am I right that ppl in Vancouver defy the Canadian stereotypes?

I read this post last night and thought it was a great coincidence. I drive, don't take the transit systems but knowing that today I had to drive a car out to Maple Ridge and leave it there then take 2 buses and the skytrain to return to Vancouver, I thought I'd put your observations to the test and then report back. I took a bus from Haney to Braid station in New Westminster, caught skytrain there then got off skytrain at Metrotown in Burnaby and then caught the UBC bus.

The bus driver was friendly and patient as I asked her questions about how much it cost and where to put the money, and what stops I was supposed to get off at to make transfers. I didn't have to ask the 2nd bus driver any questions but he was efficient and friendly with passengers, no problems with not opening doors for people exiting.

I didn't have any trouble making eye contact or striking up conversations with other passengers who were waiting for the buses and skytrain. People of all ages were quite open and friendly. People got in line to get onto the buses and skytrain, there was no pushing and shoving and they were courteous at handing off seats to elderly, handicapped and ladies with strollers. Something that did surprise me was that many people, when they were getting off at their stops, would call out "thank you" to the bus drivers. I wasn't expecting that and thought that was a nice custom so I did it too when I got off at my last stop.

I didn't notice anybody wearing anything out of the ordinary. Everyone was dressed for the baking hot weather we're having today, all totally casual and trying to stay cool. Nothing an old gal like me would consider scandalous or too skimpy, or grungy and scrubby. Also, I saw no garbage except in garbage cans and I smelled no pot. Of course nobody would be smoking anything at the bus and skytrain bays anyway.

I don't know what your so-called "Canadian stereotypes" are but I think what I observed and experienced today was probably the norm for the lower mainland and metro Vancouver. People are friendly if you're friendly with them and none of them are fashion snobs, that's for sure. I don't believe Vancouverites could care less about what other people in other places think about the way they dress or what they wear. They wear whatever they feel comfortable in and aren't trying to impress anyone else with their appearance. I think that's the way it should be.

.

[Atticman]

I always thought smelling pot everywhere was the Canadian sterotype.

[Jesse44]

Originally Posted by f1000

This is what I make of multiple visits:

- ppl REALLY keep to their own business....to the point that people do not help each other out...I have taken the bus (surprisingly rude bus drivers btw) and they may not release the back door, causing the passengers to miss their stop....in the SF Bay area on the bus, other passengers will yell at the driver to open the back door...in Vancouver ppl just keep quiet! As long as its not them being affected, who cares? is the attitude

- ppl do NOT wait in line for the bus or trains like they do in Seattle or SF Bay area

- ppl do NOT look each other in the eyes and do NOT hold doors for others...I have sat on the sidelines and observed this numerous times

- what's with all the wannabes hanging around the downtown in scrubby Ed Hardy clothes, and ladies in skimpy attire? Definitely on a level of poor taste you really only see in Miami, NYC and Montreal....you don't see this so much in Seattle or the CA big cities

- the smell of pot all over the place, and the litter, and the young ppl swearing very openly

So am I right that ppl in Vancouver defy the Canadian stereotypes?

I find it sooooo weird when people report it like this.

1) when I was in Van, I found people and strangers to be very talkative and polite in public. Very smiley and yadda yadda. It was also a week of straight sunshine and high temps in the middle-end of October, though...so maybe that made everyone happy.

2) didn't notice this.

3) likewise.

4) I don't know what ed hardy is. i thought people were pretty well dressed in general, but even if they weren't, I don't really care. It's none of my business. I also don't understand why people are so begrudging against women who dress "skimpy". It doesn't matter. It's just a human body, and it's just clothes. If they're trying too hard to get laid or whatever, let them. It's part of human needs.

5) i like the smell of pot, but don't really smoke it. I thought Van was pretty clean, and even found E. Hastings to be a neighbourhood with a neat personality. I know not everybody will agree with that, though.

Also, it sounds more like the Canadian stereotypes are spot on. You described shy, meek, passive pot smokers living in a city filled with mountains and wilderness.