Exterior of Regional Assembly of Text stationary store

©John Lee/Lonely Planet

Regional Assembly of Text

Top choice in Vancouver


This ironic antidote to the digital age lures ink-stained locals with its journals, handmade pencil boxes and T-shirts printed with typewriter motifs. Check out the tiny under-the-stairs gallery showcasing global zines and don't miss the monthly Letter Writing Club (7pm, first Thursday of every month), where you can hammer on vintage typewriters, crafting erudite missives to far-away loved ones.

If you have time, make your own pin badge or just browse the racks of hyper-cool greeting cards, mostly fashioned by the store's friendly art-school-grad co-owners. One of Vancouver's most original stores, it also sells handmade self-published minibooks near the front window – where else can you read One Shrew Too Few and Secret Thoughts of a Plain Yellow House?