Monday 28 May 2012

Thank You, Thank You, Thank You!

Hello again!
We are so excited about all of the new experiences and opportunities this project has brought us. Never before have Ashley and I thought of the world of Tourism around us, now it’s everywhere we look. It’s the dairy that supplies the milk we drink, it’s the flowers in the garden outside our houses, it’s the candles we burn in our rooms. Tourism is everywhere.
 
Ashley and I were lucky enough to have the opportunity to go into our community and talk to the everyday people who keep our tourism industry going. We had the chance to find out what was working for the consumer, what they wanted to see changed and how tourism affected their day to day lives. Opportunities like this started to change our view on tourism, from the limited perspective of accommodations, transportation and recreational attractions, to the little flower shop down the street and the mom and pop diner.
The customers weren’t the only people we’ve had the pleasure to meet mind you; we’ve talked to sales and marketing managers, event planners, and store owners alike. They too have shared with us their opinions on what works and what doesn’t and how it affects their lively hood. We appreciate their honesty and owe them many, many thanks for giving us the opportunity to interact with their customers in a familiar setting.
Ashley and I have visited a variety of sites listed on the Handpicked in the Valley website and would like to thank all of them for their support and consideration in our efforts to complete this project:
  • Bakerview Eco Dairy
  • Cannor Nursery
  • Castle Fun Park
  • Fort Langley
  • Minter Gardens
We’d also like to thank those businesses who’ve shared their stories with us via e-mail:
  • Fantasy Farms
  • Frosting Cupcakery
  • Inspired Arts and Gifts Inc.
We only had time for a quick update at the moment, but we promise to write a post about all of our adventure’s out in the community ASAP! (We promise there will be pictures too!)  
Until then, Do svidaniya!
-Megan

Wednesday 18 April 2012

Step One: Learning From Our Past

Hello again!

Ashley and I have been busy working away on our project for the last three weeks, planning and preparing every step we're going to take from now until November. Can you imagine, working around our school work and not one but two part time job schedules? It's not an easy feat. But, finally we're ready to share with you the first step of our journey - learning from our past.

How else can we learn what true innovation really is? Without knowing the ways of those who came before us, what drove them to do what they did, and how those actions created the world as we know it, how can we tell if something is actually making a change?

We started with Canadian History as a whole and thanks to The Canadian Encyclopedia's list of the "100 Greatest Events in Canadian History" we were able to narrow our list from 100 to 12 events that not only effected Canada as a nation, but tourism as an industry.

1. John Cabot Claims Atlantic Coast 
Date: June 24, 1497   John Cabot landed on the Atlantic coast of North America, claiming it for England. Cabot's discovery led to England's interest in what is now Atlantic Canada, especially the fishery. 

2. Hudson's Bay Company Founded  
Date: May 2, 1670   King Charles II of England granted a charter to Prince Rupert and his "Company of Adventurers of England trading into Hudson's Bay." The charter granted the company a monopoly of trade in the Bay and ownership of all lands drained by rivers flowing into the Bay. The HBC established an English presence in the Northwest and a competitive route to the fur trade centred on MontrĂ©al. 

3. Mackenzie Reaches the Pacific 
Date: July 20, 1793  
Alexander Mackenzie's party reached the Pacific via the Bella Coola River, the first explorer to complete the journey overland. Though a physical triumph, Mackenzie's achievement failed to provide the fur traders with a viable route. In 1789 the explorer travelled down the Mackenzie River and reached the Arctic Delta. 
 

4. First Railway Opens in Canada 
Date: July 21, 1836  
Canada's first railway, the Champlain and St Lawrence Railroad, officially opened. It began operations on July 25. The railway heralded the most important change in transportation in Canadian history, making the creation of a transcontinental nation possible. 

5. Oregon Boundary Treaty 
Date: June 15, 1846  
The Oregon Boundary Treaty was signed, establishing the boundary between British North America and the US at 49° north latitude, leaving Vancouver Island in British hands, and creating a settlement with which Canada and the US could live in harmony. 

6. Fraser River Gold Rush 
Date: April 25, 1858  
The first wave of miners from California arrived at Victoria, en route to the Fraser River Gold Rush. Some 30 000 gold seekers flooded the banks of the Fraser River. The Gold Rush led to the creation of the new colony of British Columbia and caused a precipitous decline in the Native population.

7. British North America Act Passed 
Date: March 8, 1867  
The British North America Act was passed by the British Parliament and given royal assent by Queen Victoria on March 29. It came into effect on July 1. The Act joined the colonies of Canada, Nova Scotia and New Brunswick in one federal union. 

8. Last Spike Driven for CPR 
Date: November 7, 1885  
The last spike was driven by Donald Smith at Craigellachie, BC, at the western entrance to Eagle Pass, in a ceremony marking the completion of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The CPR provided a transportation link from Atlantic to Pacific. 

9. Klondike Gold Rush Begins 
Date: August 17, 1896  
George Washington Carmack, Skookum Jim and Tagish Charlie discovered gold on Bonanza Creek, a tributary of the Klondike River. From 1897 to 1899, during the Klondike Gold Rush at least 100 000 fortune seekers stampeded to the gold fields. 

10. Statute of Westminster Passes 
Date: December 11, 1931  
The Statute of Westminster received royal assent after being passed by the British Parliament. By establishing complete legislative equality between the parliaments of Britain and Canada, it is the closest Canada has come to a declaration of independence. 
 

11. Canada Act Passed
Date: March 8, 1982  
The British House of Commons passed the Canada Act of 1982. It was adopted by the House of Lords on March 25. The Act ended the last vestiges of British legislative jurisdiction over Canada and brought home the constitution. Queen Elizabeth II signed the proclamation in Ottawa on April 17. 

12. The 2010 Winter Olympics
Date: February 12, 2010
Approximately 2,600 athletes from 82 nations participated in over 80 events over two weeks.The games marked the third time the Olympics were hosted by Canada and the first by the province of British Columbia. Previously, Canada hosted the 1976 Summer Olympics in Montreal, Quebec and the 1988 Winter Olympics in Calgary, Alberta. That year, Canada broke the record for the most gold medals won at a single Winter Olympics, they also became the first host country since Norway, who held the games in 1962, to lead the gold medal count.

Now we're moving on to Canadian Geography, and after that we'll revisit history to learn more about our home province of British Columbia and the beautiful Fraser Valley.

We're also pretty excited about visiting out first businesses next week! We've created our own little "hand picked" itenerary of the city of Abbotsford and will spending a day playing tourist! We promise to take plenty of pictures (maybe even some video) and write  post about how our day went once we've recovered from the excitement of it all.

Until then, Au Revoir!

-Megan

Monday 26 March 2012

Let's Bring You Up To Speed...

Hi!

For those of you have simply stumbled across this blog and my not know us personally, I bet you have a few questions. Who are Megan and Ashley? Why are they writing this blog? What does it have to do with Monaco?

To answer you're questions, we are writing an...online diary if you will, of our process of putting together a case study for the Global Travel and Tourism Partnership conference this November in Monte Carlo, Monaco. Confused? Let's just go back to the beginning of the story, I'll bring you up to speed.

My name is Megan MacDonald, I'm high school senior from British Columbia, Canada. Two months ago, my Lodging Management teacher, Mrs. Tourand, approached my class with a challenge. The Canadian Academy of Travel and Tourism was looking for a pair of students to represent Canada in the Global Travel and Tourism Partnership annual Research Competition. All you had to do was pair up and put together a case study proposal. How hard could that be, right?

My partner, Ashley Fisher and I soon found out, it was much harder than we thought. For nearly 3 weeks, we worked on our case study in every spare moment we had. We used every free block, lunch break and even stayed hours after school to get much needed help from our amazingly brilliant teacher advisor. I can honestly say, I have never checked my e-mail as often as I did in those 3 weeks.

Our topic? Innovation in Tourism; specifically Innovation in British Columbian Tourism. The innovation we chose to focus on was a local initiative known as Hand Picked in the Valley. The initiative brings together three communities from the Fraser Valley - Abbotsford, Chilliwack and Langely - to offer a unique tourism experience.

The initiative offers both "hand picked" trip itineraries for every demographic - from a day with the kids to a night with the girls - and a create your own itinerary feature for those who feel a little more creative. This one of a kind program seems to be a true innovation in tourism, bringing together three communities to set aside municipal boundaries and work for a common good, but is it really that effective?

Well, seeing as Ashley and I finally received the news today (after nearly a month of slowly going mad with anticipation) that we were chosen to represent Canada and the Canadian Academy of Travel & Tourism at the Global Travel & Tourism Partnership Research Competition in Monte Carlo, Monaco in November, it seems like we're not the only ones who want to know.

From now until November, that's exactly what we'll strive to find out. If you're interested to, why not keep reading. But for now, I'm going to go celebrate, so you'll just have to hit that follow button and wait to see where this adventure takes us...well other than Monaco.

Ciao for now!
-Megan