Welcome at YVR

I’m at the Vancouver airport today here a bit early to pick up my mum and partner. I know this place like the back of my hand but rarely get a chance to explore. In the domestic bagage claim area there are two places I had never visited before.

One is a little nook beneath the escalators I. The middle of the arrivals level that is a welcome centre from the Musqueam First Nation. Inside is a timeline of Musqueam history and a warm welcome to the territory that also includes an invitation to be a conscious visitor to these lands. I think everyone who visits here should have a little stop off there to ground themselves in this territory.

Next to the welcome display is a social enterprise, the Paper Planes Cafe which gives neurodiverse people a place to work, learn skills and build a career at YVR. They serve excellent coffee.

I’ve been to airports all around the world and YVR remans my favourite for all kinds of reasons, but today cemented those reasons just a little bit more.