From my house on Cape Cod, it’s quicker to get to parts of Europe than it is to Vancouver.

I would make that journey again without a second thought, because Vancouver isn’t a trip you measure in miles or flight time. It’s one you measure in how quickly it resets your expectations.

I was there for City Nation Place, and the irony wasn’t lost on me, a conference theme kept circling back to narrative, identity, and the importance of place. No over-explanation or forced storylines. The content and sessions kept circling back to a harder truth that branding and marketing do not matter if the place itself isn’t clear, distinct, and honest.

Most destinations try to build and create a narrative. Vancouver doesn’t have to. It is one. I was reminded in a session by MMGY and Chicago that “A destination brand is not created, it is revealed.” It’s always been there but sometimes it gets lost when a place tries too hard to be something it’s not. Vancouver is one of the most authentic and real places I’ve ever been, and I enjoyed watching it reveal itself to my colleagues and friends.

The sessions at City Nation Place pushed destinations to think bigger, less about campaigns, more about truth. Vancouver made that point without ever stepping on stage. We found it to be a place where you can have a world-class meal and be in a forest learning about trees 20 minutes later. Vancouver is balanced as a beautiful modern city whose backdrop isn’t decoration, it's a main character of the story.

Ted’s Top 5 Things He Learned:

Stanley Park is 10% bigger than Central Park. It’s surrounded by water on 3 sides and you feel like you’re in an Ewok Village with C3PO.
If you let your local friend pick the restaurants 3 nights in a row, you will consume a small ocean of sushi and you’ll feel kinda weird on the flight home.
Drinking homemade indigenous tea in the forest does not have the trees talking to you 30 min later. (Unfortunately)
Wild Woman of The Woods- Is a famous supernatural being who searches for children who disobey and wander too far in the woods. If your friend buys a Wild Woman mask, I’m sure it’s just a coincidence.
50 Shades of Grey was filmed in Vancouver but I would not recommend watching it on the flight home. (I made it 20 minutes and turned on Tommy Boy)

Vancouver. A place that doesn’t chase attention, it earns it by being what it is. Mountains that don’t move, water that doesn’t rush, and trees that can talk if you’re willing to listen. The best places don’t ask for your attention, they reveal their true self.

Trip Quote:

“This is a Douglas Fir. It’s a massive, fast growing tree, but the truth is,,... it’s not a Fir Tree. David Douglas named it and he was wrong.”- Our woodland guide.

“First Pluto, and now Fir Trees. If you start talking about Santa I’m leaving.”- Guy next to me on the tour.