RemyScalza.com: Independent Journalism

Paid to Tweet: Profile of a social media specialist

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We’ve all dreamed about it – A lucky few live the dream.  In Vancouver, an increasing number of companies are looking for full-time social media experts.  That’s right – People who get paid (well) to spend all day on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.  Skeptical about the qualifications of these so-called experts?  I was.  So I tracked down a new hire at Nature’s Path Organics, one of the world’s largest organic cereal companies, and spent some time with her on the job. I wrote about about the experience for BC Business Magazine:

What It’s Like to Work in Social Media

Remy Scalza; Special to BC Business

In her second-floor cubicle in an office whose walls are painted pumpkin orange, 28-year-old Christabel Shaler is eating gluten-free cereal with almond milk and checking Facebook. A status update she posted a few hours earlier has already drawn 14 comments and 56 Likes from some 135,991 Facebook fans. She clicks the refresh button and a new comment shows up. “I’m so plugged in I have to make myself take breaks,” Shaler explains, whipping through open windows on her 21.5-inch iMac with a twitch of the mouse. “I’m constantly online checking.”

Facebook addiction is hardly a problem in her position. Shaler was recently hired to fill the new post of social media specialist at Nature’s Path Foods Inc. in Richmond, the giant in organic breakfast foods with more than 400 employees and $200 million in annual sales.

To read the rest of the article, click here.

Signs of Life in Vancouver's Olympic Village

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Photo credit: Brian Howell

I’ve written about Olympic Village a few times in the past year, and it always fascinates me.  The whole neighborhood – something like 25 high-rises comprising eight city blocks – was built from scratch at a cost of more than a billion dollars to house athletes during the 2010 Olympics.  Then, when the games were over, the place sat vacant – or nearly so – for at least a year: a ghost town right on the edge of downtown Vancouver.  Well, things are finally starting to come around.  You can see people on the streets, lights on in the condo towers and even eager recruits lining up for pole dancing classes.  More on that in the article below, written for BC Business Magazine.

It Takes a Village: Signs of life in Vancouver’s newest neighborhood

Remy Scalza; Special to BC Business

On a recent Sunday afternoon, a free tasting of fortified wines has lured the thirsty and curious into Legacy Liquor Store, the cavernous new 8,600-square-foot private store in the heart of Olympic Village, now officially known as the Village on False Creek. Couples with monstrous strollers, the young and bearded of Mount Pleasant, and seniors in track suits and dark glasses crowd the granite-topped bar in back, sipping a mid-priced reserve from Jerez.

“I always think of this one as butter tarts in a glass,” says 31-year-old Legacy general manager Darryl Lamb, uncorking a bottle behind the bar. “With a little crème brûlée, flan, even Fig Newtons, it’s magic.” A line has formed, curling back through elaborate displays of craft beer and a maze of well-stocked wine racks. Between pours, Lamb explains that the healthy turnout today is hardly unusual: “The amount of walk-in traffic since we opened in November has been unbelievable. We’re already months and months ahead of our sales projections.”

In the throes of receivership, against a backdrop of lawsuits from jilted condo buyers and lingering controversies about concessions to developers and taxpayer-shouldered losses, the Olympic Village development and the surrounding Southeast False Creek neighbourhood (stretching from the Cambie Bridge to Main Street, and from False Creek to West Second Avenue) are quietly getting on with the business of business. Proximity to downtown, ample mass transit and an ambitious residential plan all seem to augur well for the area’s commercial future. “Developers are creating a lot of density and a lot of residential activity,” says Tsur Somerville, director of the Centre for Urban Economics and Real Estate at UBC’s Sauder School of Business. “The fact that there are no readily accessible amenities there right now creates an excellent environment for retailers to go into.”

To read the full article, click here.

For Cheaper Medical Care, Try Tijuana

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In a place where you can’t drink the water, is it safe to go under the knife?  I was surprised to learn that growing numbers of people from Texas and California are heading down to notorious Tijuana, Mexico, for medical tourism.  Procedures range from cosmetic surgeries to more advanced stuff including gastric bypasses and even experimental treatments not approved in the U.S.   Obviously price is a big factor.  But is getting medical care in Tijuana – given the drug violence and long history of sleaze – a good idea?  I checked things out while on a trip to Mexico and wrote about the experience for The Washington Post.

For Cheaper Medical Care, Try Tijuana

Remy Scalza: Special to the Washington Post

Adrian doesn’t look like a pharmacist. He’s not wearing a white lab coat and hasn’t shaved in a few days. He pats the breast pocket of his shirt to show me the best spot to stash pills when crossing back over the border.

“They won’t check here, and if they do, just tell them you have a medical condition,” he explains.

Out in front of his little shop, under his neon pharmacy sign, a busty mannequin done up in a skimpy nurse’s uniform and holding a heart-shaped sign for Viagra beckons more customers off the street. No prescription? No problem.

Tijuana, Mexico, just across the border from San Diego, has long been a favored destination for Americans in the market for cheap and illicit meds, among other things. The city was a seedy refuge for Hollywood pleasure-seekers during Prohibition, and then came decades as a playground for hard-partying co-eds and service personnel too young to imbibe north of the border.

But times are changing. Discount pharmacies such as Adrian’s are slowly disappearing as Tijuana turns its attention to American medical tourists looking for more than painkillers and sex pills. Savvy comparison shoppers, they stream in from California and beyond for deep discounts on everything from cosmetic and weight-loss surgeries to hip replacements and stem-cell transplants. Some are uninsured in the United States. Others are hoping to save on the high cost of elective procedures back home.

And then there’s me, just here to do a little browsing.

To read the full article on the Washington Post website, click here.

New Healthy Street Food Rules in Vancouver

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Street food is a big part of any city’s culinary scene.  But until last summer, Vancouver’s street fare was limited to hotdogs, popcorn and chestnuts.  City officials recently lifted the ban, setting off a food cart renaissance.  But there’s one catch: New vendors are selected based on whether they offer healthy, fair-trade and organic options, among other criteria.  I blogged about the unusual requirements for In Transit, The New York Times’ travel blog.

New Street Food Rules in Vancouver Emphasize Health and Diversity

By Remy Scalza

In Vancouver, street food is an emerging mini-industry. But new vendors who want to sell hot dogs and cheese steak sandwiches may need to switch to healthier options. A controversial city council decision made last month requires vendors seeking licenses to conform to a range of new rules, which emphasize healthier fare; organic, local and fair-trade foods; and an increased diversity of options.

Click here to see the full post on The New York Times website, as well as a video I shot of one of the food trucks.

Olympic Village in Vancouver is Reborn

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Most city neighborhoods evolve organically over time, the slow accretion of buildings, shops, traditions and quirks.  Not Vancouver’s Olympic Village.  The ready-made ‘hood spanning eight city blocks was built practically overnight to house thousands of athletes for the 2010 Olympic Winter Games.  After the competitors went home, it was transformed into the city’s newest residential district.   Though Olympic Village was slow to fill up, and remains a source of controversy in Vancouver, the neighborhood is beginning to come into its own.  I wrote about Vancouver’s newest destination in a recent article for The New York Times.

An Olympic Village in Vancouver is Reborn

By Remy Scalza; Special to The New York Times

DURING the Olympic Games in Vancouver last February, about 3,000 athletes and officials spent their downtime holed up in the Olympic Village. Filling eight city blocks, with 25 residential high-rises and mixed-use buildings, the $1.1 billion pop-up neighborhood was built on a desolate stretch of industrial land along the city’s waterfront. After the athletes left, the sprawling complex — nearly 1,100 units in total — was reinvented as Vancouver’s newest residential district. That transformation has, in turn, accelerated the emergence of the area around the complex as a destination unto itself.

Click here to read the full article on The New York Times website.

Learning to Build an Igloo in Vancouver

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Vancouver, which is just across the border from Seattle, is hardly what most people think of Canada – It rarely snows in the city and during the summer beaches are packed.  But during winter, the mountains outside Vancouver get walloped with something like 30 feet of snow.  I spent a day last winter on one of those mountains learning to build that most cliched of all Canadian shelters – the igloo.  It was like making a snow fort as a kid but a lot more work.  I wrote about the experience for The Washington Post.

Learning to Build an Igloo in the Mountains outside Vancouver

Remy Scalza; Special to the Washington Post

Chilled from a day in the snow, stiff from hours of shoveling, we worm down the tunnel of the igloo one after the other. The wind’s howl mutes to a low hum. The day’s gray light goes black. I follow the pair of boots in front of me, crawling through cold, clammy air toward the glimmer of light ahead.

The boots belong to Michael Harding, igloo evangelist. An outdoor guide with baby-blue eyes and snow-white hair, Harding has raised untold hundreds of igloos in this corner of western Canada. “They’re warmer than tents. They’re soundproof. They’re practically cozy,” he’d explained that morning, as we climbed into the backcountry of the mountains outside Vancouver in his late-model Nissan Pathfinder. A friend and I have joined him and another guide for a one-day crash course in igloo basics. Not that I’m planning an assault on K2 anytime soon. But even for armchair adventurers, there’s just something about an igloo.

Our proving ground today is a plateau high atop Cypress Mountain, whose 4,700-foot peaks rise dizzyingly just beyond the city limits. Perhaps best known as the host to some 2010 Olympic ski events, Cypress is stubbornly wild. More than 30 feet of snow falls here in an average winter, and the endless, craggy backcountry provides a popular training ground for hard-core hikers gearing up for expeditions to Washington state’s Mount Baker, Alaska’s Mount McKinley and other high peaks of the North American West. Never mind the tots in ski boots in the parking lot and the legions of Lululemon-wearing hikers: Cypress still feels extreme.

To read the rest of the article on the Washington Post website, click here.

Flickr Inventor Talks about Online Gaming Project

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Photo: Stewart Butterfield


One little-known quirk about Vancouver is that it’s home to a small but thriving tech scene.  In fact, I was surprised to discover that the guy who invented Flickr, Stewart Butterfield, lives right across the street from me.  Unlike Facebook founder Mark Zuckerburg, Stewart sold out years ago, netting a measly $35 million for Flickr.  But he’s hard at work on his latest project, an Internet-based game called Glitch.  I interviewed him for Vancouver’s leading business magazine, BC Business.

Stewart Butterfield, Philosopher Game King

By Remy Scalza

Stewart Butterfield takes play very seriously. Born in tiny Lund, B.C., and currently a resident of Yaletown, the former Cambridge philosophy student is best known for co-founding the photo-sharing website Flickr, which sold to Yahoo Inc. for an estimated $35 million in 2005. Now, pursuing a calling closer to his philosophical roots, the 37-year-old Butterfield is preparing to launch an Internet-based game called Glitch, which he believes will shake up online gaming much as Flickr did photo sharing.

“There aren’t any other big-budget, high-production-value, massively multiplayer games out there that aren’t about killing other people,” Butterfield says of Glitch, due to be released early this year. “Hopefully, people will just come and play.”

Click here to read the full article on the BC Business website.

Dining in the Canadian Rockies: Jasper, Alberta

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Editor’s Note: I originally wrote this post for FoodNetwork.ca.

There’s no doubt that Jasper – a resort town in Western Canada set amidst glacial lakes and snow-capped peaks – has some of the prettiest scenery anywhere in the Canadian Rockies.  But for visitors who demand as much from their plates as from their landscapes, Jasper has long been overshadowed by its big sister a few hundred kilometers to the south, the glitzy alpine capital of Banff.

But after a recent trip, I have good news to report: Jasper’s restaurant and bar scene is finally coming into its own.  My culinary adventure started at the Jasper Brewing Company, a brew pub opened in 2005 just across the street from the rail depot.  Inside, the décor aspires toward mountain chic: stone accents and exposed rafters with low, conspiratorial lighting and a big bar.

The beer, crafted with passion by 33-year-old bremaster Dave Mozel, has always been great, with the Honey Bear Ale (Okanagan clover honey plus a hint of coriander) a real must-drink.  But the big news is that the food has finally risen to the level of the beer.  The menu leans towards standard pub classics – wings, burgers, as well as some chops and fish dishes – but what stands out is the freshness and sourcing of the ingredients: Alberta beef and, whenever possible, local produce.

The next day, eager to hit some of the incredible hiking trails around Jasper, I went out in search of a picnic lunch.  A good tip from the concierge at Whistlers Inn led me to the Patricia Street Deli, an easy-to-miss, bare-bones sandwich shop behind Jasper’s main drag.  The guy behind the counter – in classic Seinfeld soup Nazi fashion – barely gave me the time of day, ignoring me as I waited to order.  But in the end I didn’t mind – The rotisserie chicken sandwich on a fresh baked panini with cranberry mayo was astoundingly good.

After a day spent hiking around the sites in Jasper – the Old Fort Point trail with its panoramic views, the emerald waters of Lac Beauvert – I had worked up a healthy appetite for dinner.   But I resisted the temptation to duck into the first restaurant I saw.  More than a few overpriced tourist traps line Jasper’s main street.  The real secret to finding a good meal, as usual, is to follow the crowds.

And on this night, the crowds led to Earl’s, the casual restaurant with locations all over Western Canada.  I know what you’re thinking:  How could I go to a chain restaurant?  To be honest, Earl’s wouldn’t normally have been my first choice, but I’m glad I gave it a try.  Prices are lower than just about anywhere else in Jasper and the simple dishes on the menu are well prepared, flavourful and satisfying.  I opted for an Earl’s classic – the roasted chicken quesadilla, served with warm tortillas and a smoky, house-roasted salsa.

Final verdict: Don’t expect any Araxis showing up in Jasper anytime soon, but there are a wealth of new, adventurous restaurants in town emphasizing local ingredients, freshness and value.  True to Jasper’s rustic roots, the atmosphere is unfailingly welcoming and informal, with an optimistic, young vibe.  Other great choices include Evil Dave’s, an inventive bistro with a tongue-in-cheek evil-themed menu, and La Fiesta, the always-crowded tapas bar.

Click here to read the original post at FoodNetwork.ca.

Dining Aboard Canada's Rocky Mountaineer Train

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Editor’s Note: I originally wrote this post for foodnetwork.ca.

Preparing a three-course meal for several hundred guests is a test of any chef’s mettle.  Add to that the challenge of prepping, cooking and plating aboard a moving train and you’ll get an idea of Frederic Couton’s job as executive chef on the Rocky Mountaineer.

British Columbia’s luxury rail line, the Rocky Mountaineer runs its glass-domed, double-decker trains from Vancouver up and over the Canadian Rockies and into Alberta.  I recently had a chance to experience the Journey Through the Clouds, a two-day trip  up the Fraser Canyon, through Kamloops and over the Rockies at Yellowhead Pass.

For the train aficionados aboard, it was the trip of a lifetime – a ride through stunning alpine scenery on Canada’s equivalent of the Orient Express.  But, as I was surprised to find out, the trip has a lot to offer foodies as well, especially if you opt for the top-tier Gold Leaf Service.

Breakfast, for starters, is no casual affair.  As the train entered the mouth of the Fraser Canyon, we were led from the upstairs viewing car to the dining car on the lower level.  The narrow space holds an intimate dining room: banquettes with window views laid out with white linen tablecloths and gleaming silver.

I opted for the Sir Sanford Fleming breakfast, a variation on eggs Benedict named after one of Canada’s rail pioneers.  The poached egg was served over Montreal smoked meat on top of a fluffy crumpet and topped with creamy tarragon Hollandaise.  While the scenery blurred by outside, I got to know a few fellow passengers dining at my table, travelers from Los Angeles visiting Canada for the first time.

After breakfast, I took a peek inside the car’s galley, a space no wider than a shipping container where 144 gourmet meals are prepared every day.  A crew of seven white-aproned cooks were already hard at work slicing and grilling for lunch.  Overseeing the controlled chaos was executive chef Couton.

French-born and trained – with a thick accent to prove it – Couton worked at Vancouver’s famous Cannery Restaurant before coming to the Rocky Mountaineer.  “It’s not like other kitchens.  There are a few tricks you have to learn,” he said over the rumble of the rails.  “When you open the fridge, you open it very slowly.”

When we crest the Fraser Canyon and enter the arid BC interior, it’s time for lunch.  Locally sourced and organic ingredients – including BC Salmon and Alberta beef – feature prominently on the menu, as does wine from the nearby Okanagan Valley.  I opt for the Alberta pork tenderloin, which comes with a confit of sweet onions, as well as market veggies and whipped garlic potatoes.  How the food was plated so artfully on a moving train – each carrot in its place –  remains a mystery to me.

By the time we finally reached the Rockies on our second day, talk focused almost as much on food as on the stunning peaks outside. Over the duration of the trip, we were treated to black tiger prawns and Alberta sirloin, Fraser Valley chicken and honey-glazed salmon.  The highlight for many, however, was a much simpler pairing: local cheeses and B.C. wine, served each afternoon as the province’s mountains and canyons rolled by.

Click here to see the post on FoodNetwork.ca.

Whistler’s Best Kept Secret: Summer fun and bargains on hotels

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Photo: Remy Scalza

Editor’s Note: This post was originally written for HGTV.ca.

Word is officially out on Whistler.  In 2009, for the 13th year in a row, the BC resort town was voted North America’s premier ski destination – and that was before the Olympic spotlight blazed down for two whole weeks during February.

But amazingly – despite all the publicity – Whistler has managed to keep one of its biggest charms a secret.  I’m talking about summer.  When the snow finally melts, Whistler turns into an alpine wonderland of aquamarine glacial lakes, churning rivers and brilliant green mountains.  Ski bums ship out, crowds thin down and the village is left to grateful locals and in-the-know travelers.

I checked out Whistler over the weekend, when streets were filled with a procession of girls in bikini tops headed for a dip in the village lake, mountain bikers drawn to Whistler’s gnarly slopes and even guys with snowboards and ski goggles taking advantage of late season snow packs on the peaks.

Photo: Remy Scalza

On top of postcard scenery and an abundance of outdoor activities, I should mention another virtue of Whistler’s summer season: bargain hotel prices. During summer hotels slash their rates, and even Whistler’s fabled five-star properties – the domain of celebs and tycoons during ski season – become accessible and, in some cases, affordable.

I started my weekend at the crème de la crème: Whistler’s Four Seasons, the only hotel in all of Canada to earn the AAA’s coveted Five Diamond rating.

Click here to read the full post on HGTV.ca.

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