help needed for documentary

[jaanus83]

hi all.

im a 22 year old from australia and am planning a trip to canada from august through to october (ish). while im doing my travels, im going to make a documentary about travelling with cystic fibrosis as this illness causes a great number of people concern in regards to travelling.

what i was hoping from anyone who can be bothered is if you could tell me some definate places or things to see whilst in canada? i know, i know, that is extremely broad and probably too stupid a question to ask, but it would be great to get some local perspective and not just going where the lonely planet suggests. im planing to start on the west coast and make my way across the country to the east coast, so no matter where you live or where a certain attraction is, my plans are pretty open regarding locations so let me know. and im not that keen on the real touristy stuff either. sure, ill visit some hotspots, but id much rather visit out-of-the-way places and experience some REAL canadian living.

i was even thinking about spending some time with the first nations people. is this possible at all? does anyone know how i can go about organising something like this?

so thats my plan. if anyone has ANY suggestions, no matter where they are or how dull you think it might be to an australian tourist, please let me know. also, if any festivals that are worth checking out (either religious, street parades, etc) are happening between august and october, could you let me know?

sorry for the long post, but any feedback would be greatly appreciated.

jaan

p.s. if anyone would actually want to be involved with this in anyway, id be more than happy.

[mikeman]

Hi Jaanus,

I probably do have some answers to your questions, but as you noted, they bit too general for a simple answer in a paragraph or two.

I've been exploring the BC area for decades and still find exciting new stuff every outing. Just in my little area I can suggest enough material to fill a film library. Where to start?

You asked about "aborigines". The politically correct term these days is "First Nations" or "First Nations People". The terms "indian" and "native indian" are still used, aborigine is never used (sounds rude to Canadian ears).

Yes, it is quite feasible to spend some time visiting and even staying with them. Many of the villages have a hotel or motel for visitors. Although few "other" Canadians normally visit the reserves, my previous job required me to regularly drop in at BC Native communities up and down the Province. I thoroughly enjoyed that privilege, and constantly wonder why more Canadians don't discover the "exotic foreign cultures" right here, next door to their own communities. ( It's a wacky world...)

There are over twenty different tribes just in BC. Each has a totally distinct culture and a language unrelated to their neighbours. Within each tribe are many "Bands", generally one for each village. The Bands have offices in the villages and may be a good point of contact for you.

Here is a map showing the location of the Tribes and Bands:
http://www.gov.bc.ca/tno/negotiation/bc_first_nations.htm

Here is another list of Band contacts (I see several missing..):
http://www.bcfn.org/profiles.htm

I think that you will find that researching which Tribes/Bands you want to visit, and planning the trip to that location will probably lead you to everything else you need to see in this region of the country. I can assure you that once you are in a village, with the people, you will be overwhelmed with opportunities for your film. It's a doorway....

[jaanus83]

hi mike

thanks so much for your advice. and i do apologise about the word 'aboriginies'. its just that here in australia that is the common term, so i assumed it would be the same for every country (very naive of me, i know). perhaps i should have used the term 'indigenous peoples'?

so thanks again, ill make sure to check out those sites. im getting more excited by the day!

jaan

[mikeman]

Hi,

No worries. The word aboriginal is used here all the time. Shouldn't be a difference, but there is.

I was curious to see what would come up these days with a little searching for a Native Indian experience in BC. Here are some sites I was looking at, that might be useful in your planning.

A driving tour that includes most of the more accessable destinations: http://www.travel-british-columbia.com/camp/totem.html.

Examples of private tour providers:
http://www.klemtutourism.com/
http://www.villageisland.com/