•Commxinity KoUel party to celebrate Tu B'Av, the "Jewish Day of Love,"! 7:30 p.m., at the Vancouver Rowing Club, Stanley Park, with a panel discussion on what love is with Andrew Feldmar, MA, psychology, Ellen Shapiro, MA, counselling psychology, and Rabbi Avraham Feigelstock.
0 West Coast Railway Heritage Park
contains Western Canada's largest collection of historic railway equipment, cars and locomotives. From Hwy. 99 in Squamish, turn west on Industrial Way and follow signs to 39645 Gtovemment Rd. Hours: 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Admission: $5-$8. More information: (604) 898-9336 or www.wcra.org.
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M Pools, including a tot pool, rope-swings, slides and toys make for an enjoyable swim at the Minoru Aquatic Centre, 7560 Minoru Gate in Richmond. Call 718-8020 or visit www.city. richmond.bc.ca/pools.
•Teva Club visits the Gorge, a multi-sport U.S. destination with hiking, biking or windsurfing. Alternate is Sasquatch, near Harrison Lake. Fri-Sun. Reserve with Dale, 872-0203, or Geoff, 872-0934.
M Vancouver Symphony Orchestra performs Mozart, Strauss and Mahler, with Bramwell Tovey, conductor, Chan Centre, UBC, 8 p.m. Contact 280-3311 for tickets, www.vancouversymphony.ca or 876-3434 for information.
ISlForest, bog, cranberries, Labrador tea and sundew can be found in the Richmond Nature Park, 11851 Westminster Hwy, at No. 5 Road. Wheelchair access. The Nature House, which has hands-on exhibits and interpretive programs, is open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Call 273-7015 or visit www.city.richmond.ca/services/nature.
El Discover the unspoiled natural beauty and unique heritage home found within Milncr Gardens and Woodland, at 2179 West Island Hwy., in Qualicum Beach, B.C. Stroll through the forest to the woodland garden with its rhododendron-lined glades carpeted with cyclamen, trillium, erythroniums and other indigenous plants. Experience the artists garden surrounding the Milner house. Info: (250) 752-8573.
0 The University Endowment Lands and Pacific Spirit Park has trails for hikers, bikers and horseback riders through 35 kilometres of forest that border the University of British Columbia.
Summer reading options
1
Looking for a good book to take to the beach or the cabin? Here are a few titles, most of them new releases, that might occupy your mind on a long drive or a cool summer evening.
Setting Fires by Kate Wenner (Scrib-ner) tells the story of a mother, wife and filmmaker who unravels the mystery of two fires that have affected the course of her life. Through this process of investigation, she develops a new relationship with her dying father and confi-onts the intergenerational effects of anti-Semitism.
Ethan Canin's Carry Me Across the Water (Random House) is a novel though, in some ways, it is more like a collection of inter-related short stories in which August Kleinman remembers his childhood in Vienna and the intervening years, which have seen him grow into a wealthy old man as the beer Idng of Pittsburgh. Having escaped Europe before the war, then having served in the Pacific theatre, Kleinman's life was altered by an encounter with a Japanese soldier who increasingly dominates the memories of Kleinman's elder years, leading to the climactic confh)ntation of the book.
Paradise Parlu A Nooel (Dial Press) is this year's ofiering bom Allegra Goodman. In it, the protagonist, Sharon Spiegelman, finds herself in dire straits in a Waikiki hotel room, which leads to a life quest that changes her spiritual foundations. Prom Pentecostal Chris-
tianity to Chassidic Judaism, Spiegel-man's quarter-century journey is chronicled with wit, humor and sensitivity.
Bee Season by Myla Goldberg (Dou-bleday) is a first novel about a family upheaval caused when a young daughter shows an unexpected spark of brilliance. Her cantor-father, never expecting such wisdom, introduces her to a kabbalist who imlocks a whole secret life.
On the non-fiction front, a new edition of A Travel Guide to Jewish Europe was issued this spring. Written by Ben Frank and published by Pelican, the book introduces the many Jewish institutions that endure in Europe. Included in the volume are kosher restaurants, synagogues, significant ancient monuments and other historical sites. This new volume reflects recent changes and the greater openness in contemporary Europe, with new chapters on the Czedi Republic, Hungary, Slovakia and Poland.
Catskill Culture: AMountainRafs Memories oftlic Great Jewish Resort Area (Temple University Press) is Phil Brown's paean to the New York state summers of years gone by. Tliough it was published three years ago, it makes particularly good summer fare. Written by a sociologist, this is a poignant tribute to the vacation culture that was killed by easier access to airline holidays and the increasing secularization of Jewish life in America.
Happy summer reading. PJ
|g] Vancouver Symphony Orchestra performs Brahms and Mozart, with Bramwell Tovey, conductor, Chan Centre, UBC, 8 p.m. Contact 280-3311 for tickets, www.vancouversymphony.ca or 876-3434 for information.
El Powell Street Festival celebrates Asian-Canadian arts, history and culture, featuring dance, music, theatre, exhibits, martial arts, crafts and delectable foods. Oppenheimer Park, today and tomorrow. Info: 739-9388 or www.shinnova.com/ powellstfestival.
0 Natural history, hands-on displays and some great scenery are what await you at the Lynn Canyon Ecology Centre, off Peters Road, 3663 Park Rd., in North Vancouver. Wheelchair access. Admission: By donation". Call 981-3103 or visit www.dnv.org/ecology/.
IS If travelling across the border, call Tourism Alberta at (800) 661-8888.
•Jewish Entertainment Network of Seattle, for adults in their 20s and 30s, goes spelunking at Mt. St. Helens, 7:30 a.m. Mostly hiking, minimal climbing. RSVP to Aaron at (425) 373-0371 or mtnbraaron@icqmail.com.
E Catch the laughs as Fred Galloway, playing a Jewish florist, runs Mushnik's Skid Row Florist in the Theatre Under the Stars production of Little Shop of Horrors. Family fun across the board, though there is some swearing. Great singing by Cailin Stadnyk (Audrey), Neil Minor (Seymour), Doug McLeod (tiie plant) and the rest of the cast make this really enjoyable. Little Shop of Horrors runs July 19-Aug.l8 on alternating nights. Phone Ticketmaster, 280-4444.
@ The name says it all. The Bug Zoo in Victoria (1107 Wharf St) has insects fi^m around the world and an entomologist is on hand to answer your questions. Info: (250)384-BUGS.
IT'S THE BEST DAY □F YOUR SUIVIIVIER!
\www.hyak,com
For activities In the Jewish community that are ongoing week to week, please refer to pages 9 and 10.