Through the ages, the Aboriginal peoples of the West Coast have shared knowledge by gathering together and telling stories. Direct communication is such an important tradition in Aboriginal culture that many elders eschew e-mail and telephones altogether.
When First Nations people need advice, a favour or traditional knowledge, they go in person to the house of an elder, where they sit down, ask and listen.
Anyone interested in a deeper understanding of Aboriginal culture would do well to use a similarly direct approach: visit historically significant places, reach out and touch intricately carved totem poles and take advantage of the deep knowledge of the on-site caretakers of these cultural treasures.
To experience Aboriginal culture in the open air, visit Thunderbird Park. You'll love the colourful immediacy of strolling through thickets of totem poles and around traditional longhouses still in regular use. For a comprehensive account of human activity on Vancouver Island over thousands of years, visit the Royal British Columbia Museum.
Thunderbird Park
The totem poles of Thunderbird Park have been a popular attraction in Victoria for more than 60 years.
Poles of varying sizes populate the lawn around Mungo Martin House, a traditional longhouse. They represent the Haida, Tsimshian, Nuu-chah-nulth, Coast Salish, Kwakwaka'wakw and Nuxalk peoples.
Chinatown
During Gold Rush days, half the population of Victoria was Chinese. Today, a small but vibrant community still exists in Victoria's Chinatown. It contains architectural oddities and attractions such as the narrowest street in Canada as well as the ornate and colourful Gate of Harmonious Interest.