Vancouver is one of the most interesting and diverse cities in Canada. Located in British Columbia, more than 580,000 people call Vancouver home and the metropolitan area of the region has more than 2.1 million people there. More than half of the people in the region don’t speak English as a first language, and nearly one third of the city’s residents share a Chinese background, with large numbers of people from Hong Kong. The city is consistently ranked as one of the most livable cities in the world, and it was even the site of the 2010 Winter Olympics. As a result, it is no surprise that lots of people are interested in making Vancouver home, and that many more become interested in settling down and even raising families here. However, there is no mistaking the fact that Vancouver can sometimes resemble an urban jungle, with its mix of buildings and bustle and concrete and culture. That said, it is more than possible to raise kids in Vancouver’s urban jungle, and this will be the focus of this article.

One of the most important parts of raising children is providing them with somewhere safe to live and play. Fortunately, in Vancouver, there are a number of homes, property, and real estate available, as long as you are willing to do the work. For example, in Mount Pleasant,one of the neighborhoods in Vancouver, there is plenty of west Mount Pleasant real estate and east Mount Pleasant real estate, and potential home owners will be happy to find lots of east Mount Pleasant homes for sale and west Mount Pleasant homes for sale.

Alternatively, if you are interested in living in Coal Harbour or in False Creek, two other residential districts within the city of Vancouver, you will also find plenty of False Creek real estate and Coal Harbour real estate. A Vancouver real estate agent with experience in the city can be a great help in finding suitable False Creek homes for sale or Coal Harbour homes for sale. You will want to have someone with knowledge of the area help you with your search, as he or she will be better able to tell you which parts of the city to go to in order to find homes that meet your budget and other needs.

Another important aspect of raising kids in Vancouver’s urban jungle is providing them with a suitable education to fill their minds with knowledge and the ability to navigate the world independently. Fortunately, there are many educational options available within the city of Vancouver. More than 110,000 students are enrolled within the Vancouver School Board at the elementary, secondary, and post secondary levels. This is the second largest educational district in the British Columbian province. You can chose from around 74 elementary schools if your children are elementary aged, or from around 18 secondary schools, as well as additional schools at different educational levels.

It is important to note that your child will receive a multilingual education in some of these schools; 18 schools are classified as French immersion, while at least one is bilingual between English and Mandarin. If your kids are old enough to go to college, two large public universities are available: Simon Fraser University and the University of British Columbia. Numerous public colleges are also available within the city limits. The diversity of Vancouver’s population is reflected in the composition of the students in its schools; according to the Vancouver School Board, more than half of the students in the school district speak a language besides English when in their homes.

Of course, raising kids involves more than providing them with the proper housing environment and scholastic education; you will also want to expose them to arts and culture. The main library in Vancouver is the Vancouver Public Library; there are twenty two branches scattered around the Vancouver area, with the central branch holding more than 1.5 million volumes and all of the branches containing a total of around 2.3 million volumes. You can also take your children to see films and experience theatre at locations such as the Arts Club Theatre, the Vancouver Playhouse Theatre Company, and the Vogue Theatre.

For two weeks every September, you can take your children to the Vancouver International Film Festival, which is one of the more prominent film festivals in Canada and North America. You can also take them to the Vancity Theatre to expose them to independent and non-commercial films, along with the Pacific Cinematheque and the Rio and Hollywood theatres. You can stimulate their knowledge of art, museums, and similar culture by taking them to the Vancouver Art Gallery, which has a collection just shy of 10,000 items. For music, the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra is located in the city, as is the Vancouver Opera.