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boats, mermaids and more: five reasons to check out the richmond maritime festival
now in its 21st year, the free two-day event features live music, art installations, puppet shows, art exhibits, interactive shows and performances
aug 20 2024
2 minute read
major draws of the festival, the restored heritage boats never fail to stoke the imaginations of young and old alike.
jon benjamin photography
richmond maritime festival
when:
aug. 24 and 25, 11 a.m.-6 p.m.
where:
britannia shipyards national historic site, richmond
info: richmondmaritimefestival.ca
every year steveston celebrates its nautical and multicultural history with the richmond maritime festival. now in its 21st year, the free two-day event features live music, art installations, puppet shows, art exhibits, interactive shows and performances and more. here are five reasons to check it out.
rikki the rat, a.k.a. zach wolfman and seen here performing at last year’s richmond maritime festival, returns for this year’s free two-day event aug. 24 & 25. richmond maritime festival photo
new boats
major draws of the festival, the restored heritage boats never fail to stoke the imaginations of young and old alike. among this year’s vessels are the 102-year-old ss master tugboat, the oldest working wooden-hulled, steam-powered tug in the world. returning favourites include the mv gikumi, which has 70 years of almost continuous service on the west coast. new to the festival this year are midnight sun, a herring and salmon seiner; saffron, a 34-foot motor cruiser; and sandra jean ii, a reconditioned fishing troller.
mermaids
no maritime festival is complete without at least a couple of mermaids, and this year’s has four at last count. mara the musical mermaid, a.k.a. singer-actor erin palm, hosts a storytime for the kiddies. lulu the mermaid, presented by puppeteer jesse stanley, also performs for the younger set. and don’t miss the cannery mermaids, a duo who will swim and sing their way through the afternoon crowds.
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medieval folk rock and japanese city pop
unfamiliar with these music styles? well, you still will be after seeing rainy night troubles. although these “true richmondite musicians” who “love performing in the richmond community” count both of those genres among their repertoire, according to the festival. instead they’ll be performing a maritime-themed set of folk rock for the festival. c’est la vie.
tornado truck
it was difficult to choose just one from the more than 10 food trucks scheduled for the festival, but in the end we had to showcase the mobile eatery that serves spiralled and spiced potatoes on a stick. we’re only human.
hiroyuki koyanagi
from 1928-1949, hiroyuki koyanagi took about 1,000 photos depicting life in and around richmond, fishing along b.c.’s coast, patients recovering from tuberculosis in the tranquille sanatorium in kelowna, and the internment of japanese canadians. kevin takahide lee has created an installation of printed imagery and documents from koyanagi that will provide a window into some of the changes in the province over the past 100 years.
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