The Polar Express at the CN IMAX Theatre

Watching a Christmas classic like Chris Van Allsburg's The Polar Express in a theatre is okay. Watching it in 3-D on a screen eight storeys high with 12,000 watts of digital surround sound is awesome!

It was the last day of the movie's limited holiday screening when the family watched this Tom Hanks-voiced film at the CN IMAX Theatre in Canada Place. They almost missed the 4 p.m screening if not for their neighbours who bought advanced tickets for them. Otherwise, they could have ended up waiting for the next screening, which was at 7 p.m.

The bus ride to Canada Place normally took them a half hour. But it was the last Sunday before Christmas and thousands of people were out doing their shopping. Plus, embarking passengers with baby strollers and in wheelchairs and tourists looking for directions prolonged the trip.

There was already a long lineup at the box office when the three got there. On the P.A., someone was announcing that the 4 p.m. showing was already sold out. The family was really thankful that they already have reserved tickets on hand. Unfortunately, they didn't get the best seats in the house as they were seated at the far-left side of the screen. But with the gigantic screen, they didn't mind it and enjoyed the first full-length movie ever converted into IMAX 3D.

The 96-minute-long feature was about a skeptical boy who takes an amazing train ride to the North Pole and to eventual self-discovery, revealing to him that the magic of Christmas never fails for those who continue to believe. For Roger Ebert of the Ebert & Roeper fame, "... the best 3-D viewing experience I've ever had. If there's a choice, try the IMAX version. Or go twice. This is a movie that doesn't wear out."

Or just buy the DVD, which Lyn is planning to next Christmas. •

Festival of Lights at the VanDusen Botanical Garden

It has been almost three months since the Fuenteses had done anything worth blogging about. Finally, they did something! On the last weekend (of shopping) before Christmas, Ronnie, Lyn and Raf went to the Festival of Lights held at the VanDusen Botanical Garden.

The 22-hectare garden is located in Vancouver and very popular with locals and tourists from around the world. Opened in Aug. 30, 1975, the VanDusen Botanical Garden has more than 7,500 different varieties of flora gathered from all continents (except Antarctica). Unfortunately, the family didn't see much of these plants because they went there at night.

That evening, everyone in the city seemed to have the same idea of taking in the sights of a million Christmas lights in the garden. Traffic was already building on Oak St. when they took the bus heading to VanDusen. And there was already a long lineup at the entrance when they got there.

While the family was finding their way to buy tickets, a volunteer asked them if they were choir members who were scheduled to sing Christmas carols for tonight. Ronnie said no and they were redirected politely to the box office. Apparently, they were heading straight to the performers' entrance. "We almost have gotten inside for free and saved us money," Ronnie remarked. "Yeah, and it could have been like an episode from Mr. Bean," Raf added, referring to the scene where Rowan Atkinson was mistakenly handed a conductor's baton and mischievously played around with a musical quartet.

Finally, the three got in. Being surrounded by myriads of Christmas lights, they felt disoriented at first. Plus, maps weren't available and the lights themselves obscured the directions to certain routes. So, they just followed the crowd wherever it was going. The atmosphere was festive with carollers singing live in the background. Because the temperature was chilly (-3 C), the paths were frozen and some still had snow from a week ago.

The shivering multitude lead them to a path where at the end was a kiosk selling kettle corn (corn popped in a bucket) and hot beverages. For Raf, the nippy weather condition was ideal for noshing fresh popcorn and sipping a steaming cup of hot chocolate. However, his parents told him not to because they're having dinner after.

But the three simply couldn't resist the sweet smell of chestnuts roasting on an open fire (yes, just like the song). On their way to Santa's Living Room, they spotted a cart hawking this edible nut. The aroma brought back memories of the Christmas tiangge (flea market) at the Greenhills Shopping Center in San Juan back home.

Santa's Living Room was packed with kids and their parents. Since Raf was too big to sit on Mr. Kringle's lap, Lyn just snapped some pictures of him talking with the little guys. After a picture or two, she decided to call it a night, which was okay for her boys because they were cold, tired and hungry. •