When Team Canada launched its fireworks display Wednesday night to a medley of disco hits, including “Dancing Queen” by Abba, my first thought was this could very well be an homage to Pride Week in Vancouver.
And when the dance hits continued and the fireworks frenzy taking place above us formed the shape of red hearts, I suspected the message was all about “Love is Love.” And I could be wrong, but what really nailed it for me were the multi-coloured effects at one point during the display that turned the water and sky in front of us into liquid rainbows.
Whatever the message Team Canada was trying to convey, it was certainly joyful and the massive crowd packed onto English Bay beach was on its feet from the first dance beat to the last.
This is the 29th anniversary of the Honda Celebration of Light, the longest-running offshore fireworks competition in the world. The festival had been sponsored by cigarette maker Benson and Hedges since 1990, but after restrictions on tobacco advertising came into place the popular event was in peril of being cancelled for good.
And that’s when Honda came to the rescue 29-years ago — in 2017, Honda signed on for another four years.
Honda is also hosting a special event each night at the corner of Denman and Davie, which includes a chance to spin the wheel to win fun prizes, snap a signature photo, pick out an airbrush tattoo inspired by each of the five decades Honda has been in Canada and more.
It was India who lit up the sky July 27, followed by Canada Aug. 29. On Saturday, Aug. 3, Croatia will wow Vancouver with its pyrotechnic prowess.
