Vancouver 22.11.2024 #SpringsteenTour2024

This post is long overdue. It has been almost three months since we came home from our trip to Canada and in another three months the Bruce Springsteen 2025 European leg starts. Anyway, here is the last part of the story of our Canadian adventure. The first two parts can be found here.

Vancouver turned out to be quite the contrast to Edmonton. Not only was it about 20° warmer, we also noticed already upon the arrival that it was much more tourist friendly, starting with the ride in a comfortable SkyTrain, which transported us from the airport to the city centre in only 20 minutes. We also found it more walkable than Edmonton, which had appeared very car dependent.

For urban explorers like Oliver and I, looking for cosmopolitan vibes, Vancouver had much to offer. One of the first attractions we visited was the ”Vancouver Lookout”, which is a 168.8 meters tall tower and an iconic landmark in Vancouver’s skyline. To access the deck you had to ride a glass elevator, which ascended to the top on the outside of the building 😱. We spent more than an hour studying the panoramic perspective of Vancouver.

Gastown is a historic neighbourhood with charming cobblestone streets just a few minutes from the tower. In Gastown there were lots of tourists, souvenir shops and ”trendy” (expensive) restaurants. A key highlight of Gastown was the Steam Clock. Tourists gathered there to see the steam driven clock whistle and chime every quarter-hour.

The hotel we stayed in didn’t have any breakfast service, so each day we walked to different breakfast places. My favourite was a diner-like brunch restaurant called the Templeton located on Granville Street. Another ”establishment” I can recommend is the Ox Pub. We went there for beer and one evening they even had a music quiz. Our friend Andreas was overjoyed when he won.

What I really liked about the city was how it was ”guarded” by mountains. I also liked the vibe and that it was small enough to walk back and forth.

However, what also struck us when we were looking for something to eat before the Zach Bryan concert, was the high number of homeless people and drug addicts along the streets, especially in Chinatown and Downtown Eastside. We saw people standing frozen in awkward zombie-like trance position, with hunched backs almost touching their toes. I did some research and I know now that it’s called the ”zombie effect” and that it is a characteristic sign of fentanyl addiction- it was very unsettling to see.

As you might have seen in my previous post, the first concert in Vancouver was Zach Bryan. The main attraction, however, was Bruce Springsteen. We had got hold of quite bad seats. Oliver’s was worse than mine. We sat behind the stage. My seat was in level with the horns. Oliver unfortunately had a restricted view. There was a column of cables preventing him to see Springsteen’s main microphone.

Vancouver, which was the final show of 2024, brought several surprises in the 31-song set. I’m sure you’ve read about it already. The show kicked off with Spirit in the Night, just like in Edmonton. During the song Bruce kneeled down to the girls in the front of the pit extension and as they grabbed him he said: “The things these folks are saying! I can’t repeat them!”

The fourth song was Ramrod and it was followed by Human Touch and Atlantic City.

Other highlights of the show for me was: I’m On Fire and of course Racing in the Street would come when Oliver and I weren’t standing together. That’s two out of three times now. 😖 Springsteen said: “This is one of my favorite songs. Hope you like it too.”

Meeting Across the River into Jungleland was a magical sequence. Where I stood I could see the teleprompter and I couldn’t believe my eyes when I saw the songs being prompted.

One of the last songs was Santa Claus is Coming to Town and you could see how Santa hats were handed out in the pit and finally it looked like everyone in the pit had one. Springsteen seemed a bit taken: “I am impressed! I am very impressed! Santa is here too! Oh my God! What a way to finish tonight! Oh, you look good. You look God Damn Merry Christmas good!

Before the final song Springsteen thanked the audience and dedicated the last song to his oldest fan (101 years old)

The show was over at 10:59 p.m. local time for a 3:20 hours show, one of the longest of the tour. This was the first “regular” show that Racing in the Street, Backstreets” and Jungleland were all played since the Aug. 28, 1981 (the Los Angeles Sports Arena). It was a good show and a fantastic setlist but the shite seats made the experience less wonderful to be honest. First world problems, I know, but nevertheless my conclusion. If I could choose, next time I would be with my guy and not sit behind the stage.

After the show I discovered that I had received a message that my flight the next day had been cancelled. Luckily, the next morning, I could rebook for a later (much later) flight and, since Oliver’s flight was already around noon and mine closer to midnight, I went on my own for a long walk to see more of Vancouver. I ended up walking almost the whole 9 km long scenic path (the Seawall) in Stanley Park, which is an urban park in the outskirts of Vancouver. I saw the famous totem poles at Brockton Point and got a lot of fresh air and sore feet.