Canada is rated the world's second most liberal nation, behind only the Dutch and British Columbia's "LA of the North", Vancouver is officially the fourth best city in the world to inhabit. It's also a capital of the gay and cannabis worlds and I had the opportunity to live there for a year, although I'd visited previously. Vancovouver's downtown is one of the real melting pots of the world. There are gay clubs that are so "metrosexual" you'd hardly even know they were gay clubs anymore. As a Transexual, I've been approached umpteen times by straight men...

Canadian TGirls rock! OK, so I'm British but I can still play a mean bootleg rendition of Kurt Cobain's unreleased Nirvana classic, Marijuana that I call Loose Vagina...

Despite the obvious heartbreaks of such situations, Vancouver deserves to be lauded for it's meritable mix of people - the average club here accomodates a large gay population, a number of lesbians, a transgender and fetish minority, plus a lot of heterosexuals. In Vancouver, it's not what you are, it's how you look and act that counts most. I'm not suggesting that North America is superficial or anything, but being eye candy is everything...

Some have said to me that Canadians are more open minded than their southern neighbours; others have said to me that Canadians are simply better at keeping their true opinions to thmselves. Whatever the case, Canadians do shine through for their endearing friendliness, the ease with which it is possible to make new connections and for their general fun loving outlook. Canada has very liberal laws and same sex marriage became legal in 2004. For anyone planning a holiday, Vancouver in the Summertime, especially around Pride week (late July, early August) really is hard to beat. And for those of you resident there, just remember how good you got it on the West Coast!

I love Vancouver and give thanks to the many cool people trying to find their place in life I met while out there. Unlike Europe where things are so well developed, Canada gives you a feeling of empowerment to create your own world and I wish the very best to those who have that precious opportunity to take an active role in the creation of a state's future. I'd also recommend visiting Canada to anyone; this is one beautiful country.

There are tons of places in Vancouver to go, though mostly these are downtown and much is centred on Davie Street, Vancouver's gay village. Here are a few:

Nightclubs:

• Celebrities Nightclub
• Odyssey Nightclub
• Sonar Nightclub

Restaurants:

• Hamburger Mary's
• Denny's on Davie
• Characters Taverna

Other places:

• Vancouver's Nudist Beach