Steam Clock
Whistles and chimes.
Víctor Hugo Jiménez Jiménez — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Abhinaba Basu from Redmond, United States — CC BY 2.0 · GoToVan from Vancouver, Canada — CC BY 2.0 · Dllu — CC BY-SA 4.0
Vancouver's oldest neighbourhood, around which the whole city grew, named after a riverboat captain famous for his talking who settled here in 1867 and was nicknamed Gassy Jack; his statue still stands in the district's square. Cobbled Water Street is lined with red-brick Victorian buildings rebuilt after the fire of 1886 that consumed the young city, now holding design, gift and Indigenous art shops, cafés and restaurants, lit at night by old street lamps. The district's best-known sight is the Steam Clock, a clock on a brass column built in 1977, partly driven by steam from the underground heating network, which whistles a tune every quarter hour while visitors gather to photograph it. The district is open and free, and pairs with a walk along the waterfront to nearby Canada Place. Some streets just to the east feel less safe at night, so it is best to keep to the district's main streets.
Whistles and chimes.
Cobbles and red brick.
In the shops.
Water Street, north of downtown Vancouver
Every quarter hour, with a short tune and puffs of steam.
