In October of 1914, Mewa Singh, an early Sikh settler in Canada, was put on trial for killing Immigration Inspector, William C. Hopkinson. Mr. Singh carried out the killings in retaliation to the infamous Komagata Maru incident and other incidents of discrimination against early Indian immigrants. The organizers of the Mewa Singh Centennial Commemoration will revisit this slice of history this coming Friday, when they launch their play, “The Undocumented Trial of William C. Hopksinson.” Written, directed, and produced by group of local academics, artists, and activists, this play draws on archival transcripts of Bhai Mewa Singh’s trial, and reimagines the trial in a surrealist interpretation, exploring political, socio-cultural, and humanistic themes. The story of Mewa Singh isn’t just Sikh history, it’s also Canadian history, so come out and support this community project! You can find updates on the organization's Facebook page, and you can buy tickets on the organization's website....

Unless you’ve been living under a rock for the last year, you’ve probably heard about Bitcoin. But if you have no idea what it actually is and does, no one would blame you. Let’s take a look and give you the basics of Bitcoin. What the heck is Bitcoin? Bitcoin is a digital currency that does not require the backing of a central bank. It is controlled and regulated through a sophisticated peer-to-peer system. How do I get Bitcoins? There are a few different ways to acquire Bitcoins. First, you can exchange currency for Bitcoin online through an exchange, such as Bitstamp, or you can accept them as payment for goods and services. Another way is to “mine” Bitcoins. Bitcoins are treated like cash but are mined like gold; there is a finite amount of Bitcoins that can be mined. Essentially, mining is the process of verifying Bitcoin transactions for...

For the last few years, Samsung has been developing products that are legitimate contenders to other dominant mobile device manufacturers (cough, cough... Apple). I had the pleasure of testing out the Samsung Galaxy TabPro, and straying away from my usual devices to play with the Tab pleasantly surprised me. The display on the Tab is stunning. It sits in at 8.4 inches with WXGA widescreen resolution. This screen size gives you plenty of space for your everyday use; but skinny-jean wearing hipsters beware, you’ll have a hard time fitting it in your pockets. The screen is made with the infamous Gorilla Glass. It is notoriously durable and you can feel safe using the Tab without babying it. Playing videos and scrolling through pictures is a pleasure on the Tab, the picture quality is impeccable. The Tab runs on a 2.3 GHz processor that can support multiple users running multimedia apps...

The City of Surrey once again held the annual Surrey Regional Economic Summit on February 27. The summit was held at the Guildford Sheraton and security was unsurprisingly tight. Known for inviting high profile entrepreneur and foreign dignitaries, this year certainly did not disappoint. Amongst many local leaders and influential personalities, oil tycoon, T Boone Pickens, was very entertaining as he reminisced on his career beginnings. The morning kicked off with Mayor Dianne Watts welcoming the audience to the summit and detailing the tremendous growth in Surrey over the past decade. Mayor Watts emphasized that our city has been growing in many different aspects. More residents, infrastructure and businesses have all contributed to Surrey becoming the second largest city in our province. BC’s Minister of Finance, Mike De Jong, followed up to the Mayor’s introduction. His segment was short and he really drove the point of BC’s balanced budget to...

A question for you, what do you do when you want to buy a luxury SUV without driving a gas guzzling behemoth? The answer, the Range Rover Evoque. Daman and I once again had the pleasure of testing a new car and we had a blast! The Evoque is Range Rover’s answer to practicality, performance and style. As sales of large SUVs are slowing down, the trend is leaning towards buying compact vehicles that offer the comforts and luxuries of traditionally large vehicles, while still being eco and wallet friendly. This is where the Evoque shines. The version that we are driving for the purpose of this review is the Evoque Coupe (or 3 door). It's meant to provide an SUV alternative to couples or young executives who want the look of a coupe, but the go-everywhere versatility and all-wheel drive security of an SUV. The Evoque’s is powered by...

I must confess, I am not a fan of crossover vehicles. I believe a vehicle should either be a car or a SUV, not in between. Keep things simple! Then again, I’m not exactly the target customer for large family vehicles. They appeal to audiences a tad bit more mature, who have more important things to cargo than cold six-packs. Things like children and groceries. You know, grown folk stuff. Test Driving the 2013 Ford Escape Titanium Enter the all new 2013 Ford Escape Titanium. Daman and I were given the opportunity to test it out for a week and we never say no to driving new cars. Comfort reigns supreme in the Escape world. Sitting in the car is akin to being in a decent sized condo. You have enough room to avoid feeling crowded, but not to the point where it’s overkill. Luxuries like leather heated seats, dual...

Seymour Schulich speaking to students at University of Western Ontario. Becoming a success in the business world is an intricate tango that is difficult to master. No one knows this better than I. As a business student at Simon Fraser University and a hopeful entrepreneur, the process of becoming successful seems utterly overwhelming at times. Luckily, there are those that have mastered this tango and are willing to pass on some wisdom to the rest of us. One of those masters is Seymour Schulich. Mr. Schulich is an esteemed Canadian born and bred billionaire, yes billionaire with a “b.” We are excited to share an exclusive on Mr. Schulich via Michael Zipursky, on valuable lessons that will come in handy for business and life. Michael is the founder of the wildly popular FreshGigs.ca. FreshGigs.ca is a Canadian talent recruitment website (hooray for local businesses!) that connects talent in the marketing,...

Discover the Fraser River River: Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours This past summer, the Surrey604 team explored something we all generally overlook, sometimes even take for granted, the Fraser River. There is more to the mighty river than just tugboats and driftwood. (Helga Leaney, Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours) The Fraser has been an integral part of the Lower Mainland’s growth from the very beginning and Surrey604 took a crash course in history thanks to Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours "Gateway to British Columbia's History". (Captain Doug Leaney, Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tours) The Paddlewheeler Riverboat Tour company, which is based across the river in New Westminster, is owned and operated by Doug and Helga Leaney. Captain Doug and his crew welcomed us aboard and gave us exclusive access to the bridge. They run year round and offer various tours and events. We chose "Discover the Fraser" which includes a buffet lunch. (Tour guide Mark kept us informed...

There is an infamous character in Surrey’s food community. A man known for his vulgarity, flamboyancy and outrageous sandwiches. They call him the Sandwich Nazi. Kevin Chua and I talked about visiting the Sandwich Nazi and since we had some time off from school, we decided to make the trip out to North Surrey. We took Kevin Basanti along as well (you may remember him from the Lincoln MKS review), just for the awkwardness he is known to bring to any event. With a little help from Google Maps, we soon pulled up to a small deli named La Charcuterie Delicatessen. There was a sign on the door that warned anyone considering entering that they may be exposed to foul language and nudity. This is our forte, so the sign only intrigued us. We walked in and to our surprise, there was a lineup. We didn't expect a line up...

Two years ago, I found myself facing a new challenge. I was applying to Simon Fraser University’s Business program; to say that it was competitive to receive admission would have been an understatement. One thing I realized was that I was lacking extra curricular activities. I have never been much of an athlete, so the obvious route to take was volunteering.  If I were to dedicate my time and energy, I wanted to put it towards a good cause that would  make a difference in peoples’ lives. The light bulb moment hit me and I decided the good cause would be the Surrey Food Bank. After filling out my application and going through the volunteer registration process, I worked my first shift and it was quite the eye-opening experience. I was stationed on the food hamper distribution table and I was astonished by the sheer number of people that were...

Surrey604 had the pleasure of attending an event put together by All Star Wrestling and we were pleasantly surprised. (Sukh Basra, Daman Beatty and Kevin Chua of Surrey604 pose with The Great Kasaki) To start, the venue was out in Cloverdale. It felt great to get out of the hustle and fast pace of the city. As soon as we stepped in, I felt nostalgic childhood memories coming back. As a kid I remember how amped I would get when watching wrestling on TV. It would be an event, all the children in the family would get together and watch amazed as giant men performed incredible stunts. All those memories put me right back in that zone. The event was small and intimate. To our surprise, it was quite family friendly. You could tell that this was something that the community was proud of. It isn’t glamorous, but it’s their...

Lincoln has always had a hard time shaking off its “old man car” image. The 2013 Lincoln MKS is without a doubt a step in the right direction. I had the pleasure of driving this car for a week and I was pleasantly surprised by this luxurious beast. The most outstanding feature of this car is its performance. The model I drove was the MKS Ecoboost; it allowed me the privilege of having 365 horses at my disposal. The MKS in Sport Mode overtook hills and highways effortlessly. However, this performance comes at a price. The engine is a 3.5L V6, so if you’re looking for fuel efficiency, you’re better off looking elsewhere. Another noteworthy aspect of the car is the design and style. The grill of the car is brilliant and it complimented the deep chocolate brown exterior paint beautifully. Dual exhaust and 20 inch polished aluminum wheels are...