Travelsmartplanet

The swooping architecture of the building and jaw-dropping 17 metre-high domed ceiling of Canada Hall are visions you will not easily forget after you have visited the newly named Canadian Museum of History (was Canadian Museum of Civilization), which covers Canadian life from AD 1000 to 2000.

From now until Sept 28, 2014,  you can enjoy the informative exhibit about Snow and the ingenious ways in which  Canadians have adapted to difficult winter conditions, from sleighs to snow removal. You can participate in a fun quiz at the end.

The museum is a playground for all, as the Children’s Museum takes the kids on travels around the world – including a passport to stamp in each country. All kinds of imaginative play from driving a bus, motorcycle, ship or camel to running a shop, putting on a puppet show, living in a pyramid, moving heavy boxes using a winch, or booking a trip can all be tried out.

In the main galleries, visitors see a Viking family arriving in Newfoundland around AD 1000,  discover New France through a farmhouse, inn, hospital, shoemaker’s shop and visit a voyageur camp, a lumber camp, a Métis campsite, British military living quarters and a Maritime shipyard. There’s a stroll past shops  along the main street of a small town in late 19th-century Ontario.

Learn about life in a turn-of-the-century prairie railway station and yard, a Saskatchewan grain elevator, an authentic Ukrainian church, a Chinese hand laundry and a 1920s Alberta oil derrick. You can even sit in Yellowknife’s Wildcat Cafe, the town’s first restaurant and a popular gathering spot for prospectors, bush pilots, miners and trappers.

If you love animals, leave time for the up close and personal movie, Kenya 3-D about a safari through Africa.

Location: 100 Laurier St., Gatineau, Quebec K1A 0M8
Phone: 819-776-7000 or 800-555-5621
www.civilization.ca

In Richmond, BC, Canada,  mounds of swirly hurricane fries, Japanese takoyaki, and sweetly flavoured mini donuts are ready to hit the fryers. Grills are heating up in anticipation of skewered seaweed, squid pancakes, roasted yams and fresh duck wraps. Sweet treats, from mountains of sweet mango and cream to fresh dragon’s beard candy, are being scooped and spun for the hot summer months ahead. Meanwhile, vendors are ready to sell their unique wares to shoppers, as performers line up to entertain you.

Richmond is home to 2 Asian night markets, bringing the Far East to the Canadian West Coast. The Richmond Night Market and the International Summer Night Market combine to bring nearly 150 food stalls and over 400 retail vendors to their sites.

With a population that is 65 per cent Asian, Richmond’s two Asian night markets bring together cuisines from Vietnam, Thailand, Korea, the Philippines, Indonesia, Singapore, China, Taiwan, Japan, Germany, France, Kenya and Canadian First Nations. Snaking through the dining stalls is like being transported around the world, and offers a chance to sample some finger-licking good bites.

And, even with so much diversity, there is one element that unites all foods – the humble skewer. Look for tasty and swirly skewered potatoes dipped in flavoured salts – these night market skewers are just one of the “on-a-stick” options carried around the markets. Other stalls can be found skewering everything from spears of asparagus wrapped with bacon, to fried garlic prawns and juicy Thai chicken satay.

Vendors at both night markets bring together some of the hottest and most unique accessories – including jewelry, clothing, and everything you didn’t know you needed – at street-side prices (cheap). The most popular items visitors head there for are – socks and cell phone covers. For the fanciest of footwear, look out for superheroes, animals galore and, Mr. Gangnam himself, Psy. To keep electronics safe or give them some sparkle Richmond’s night markets have got it covered.

www.richmond.ca