Vancouver in Forbes Top Ten Places to live - 4th Place

10. Sydney, Australia
Quality of Life Index: 106.3
Eco-City Index: 125
9. Bern, Switzerland
Quality of Life Index: 106.5
Eco-City Index: 133.6
7. (tie) Frankfurt, Germany
Quality of Life Index: 107
Eco-City Index: 123.1
7. (tie) Munich, Germany
Quality of Life Index: 107
Eco-City Index: 130.7
6. Dusseldorf, Germany
Quality of Life Index: 107.2
Eco-City Index: 130.7
4. (tie) Vancouver, Canada
Quality of Life Index: 107.4
Eco-City Index: 133.6
4. (tie) Auckland, New Zealand
Quality of Life Index: 107.4
Eco-City Index: 133.6
3. Geneva, Switzerland
Quality of Life Index: 107.9
Eco-City Index: 131.5
2. Zurich, Switzerland
Quality of Life Index: 108
Eco-City Index: 133.5
1. Vienna, Austria
Quality of Life Index: 108.6
Eco-City Index: 126.2

http://www.forbes.com/2010/05/25/worlds-best-cities-lifestyle-real-estate-mercer-vienna-geneva_slide_11.html

Associated Press
Riots overshadow Canucks fans' Game 7 heartbreak
By GREG BEACHAM , 06.16.11, 08:23 PM EDT

VANCOUVER, British Columbia -- The plywood sheets filling in for shattered windows on the historic Hudson's Bay Co. department store Thursday were turned into a canvas for expressing a city's embarrassment.

On a spectacularly sunny day after a dreary, disturbing night in Vancouver, hundreds inscribed messages and drew pictures on the wood. It was a form of group therapy for a city recovering from extensive rioting after the Canucks' blowout loss in Game 7 of the Stanley (SXE - news - people ) Cup finals.

Some messages were hockey-centric: "So Proud of Our Boys." "Real Fans Don't Riot." "We'll Get 'Em Next Year."

Overturned cars, raging bonfires, hospitalized fans and hooliganism are likely to be the lingering memory of the Canucks' agonizing failure on the precipice of their first Stanley Cup title.

And that's a shame. Vancouver's citywide pain after the Canucks' 4-0 loss to the Boston Bruins already was heartbreaking enough without the ugliness that followed.

Chu called those who incited the riot "criminals and anarchists" and officers identified some in the crowd as the same people who smashed windows and caused trouble through the same streets the day after the 2010 Winter Olympics opened.

"These were people who came equipped with masks, goggles and gasoline," Chu said. "They had a plan."

Vancouver Mayor Gregor Robertson said "organized hoodlums bent on creating chaos incited the riot" in his city, while city councilor Suzanne Anton said the rioting has shaken Vancouver and overshadowed the hockey team's playoff run.

"I would never have believed that Vancouver would be a city where there would be looting," she said. "I just feel such a profound sense of disappointment. We like to think we live in paradise here in Vancouver. It's hard to imagine here."

Anton said there was no loss of life or police brutality. She also said dozens of volunteers patrolled the city's entertainment strip on Thursday, picking up debris and garbage.

One of the volunteers, Al Cyrenne, carried his broom downtown to clean up the damage.

"I'm all choked up," he said, as he surveyed broken windows. "I can't believe the scene. Just talking about it brings me to tears. I can't believe the people of Vancouver would do this. It's just a few idiots."

While police said it was mostly young people responsible for the mayhem, an equally young crew turned up in jeans and rubber gloves, some with Canucks jerseys, ready to help clean up.

Dozens of remorseful and dismayed commuters crowded around the smashed display windows at the flagship Hudson Bay store, a historical building that was the first focus of rampaging looters Wednesday night. Someone had tacked a rough, hand-painted sign that read: "On behalf of my team and my city, I am sorry." People waited in line to sign it.