Packed Weekend!

This weekend is packed!  There's not even room to breathe in this city!  Well, actually, everything that this weekend is packed with is relaxing, so you'll definitely have room to breathe and relax.  And shop, and go out, and...  you get the point.

Tomorrow, Friday the 17th, will see a variety of activities going on in Yaletown.  I guess everyone there got together and decided to get their name around.  First of all, it's Hot Friday, which means there will be a DJ, performances and retail promos (from noon to 7pm).  Second, and perhaps more importantly, there's a Shopathon!  Discounts, specials, prizes, cocktails and free swag!  Can you turn that down?  Me neither!

Want to do something more cultural?  It's also the Vancouver Folk Music Festival down at Jericho Beach!  Go see Fire and Wine, the Weakerthans, Dan Mangan and a variety of others (those are just the bands I know from the radio!).

This weekend also sees the arrival of the BC Renaissance Festival, if that's more your speed.  You can make the trek to Langley (!) to go to the Renaissance marketplace, see their performances, and wear your chain mail (because, seriously, how often do you pull that one out of the closet?).

And if you don't want to go all the way to Langley, you can go see the Comedy of Errors in Queens Park!  This one is even free!  Shakespeare?  Outdoors?  Free?  Count me in!

Still haven't found what you want?  No Doubt will be in town Saturday night, GM Place, packed with screaming fans while Gwen and her buddies put on a phenomenal show (just guessin').

For more info about any of these items, check out my calendar at the bottom of my blog.

Have a great weekend!!

On Your Feet Take II

This is a continuation of my first posting, giving some local hikes...

Belcarra Regional Park is home to the Sasamat Loop Trail.  Sound tough?  It's totally not - you could do it in flip-flops, with a hibachi tucked under your arm!  Have a leisurely stroll around the lake, then roast some weenies on the beach and take a dip in the lake!

If you're coming from Vancouver, this one may be a little out of the way, and I wouldn't recommend taking the bus (who wants to get back on a bus after a day at the beach?  You're sweaty and sticky from sunscreen, and they run the OOOOOLD buses out there, where the windows only open one or two centimetres...  bad bad badness...).  But if you're in the 'burbs and you've got a car, go check it out!

And if you're in the area, why not check out Buntzen Lake as well?  This lake has a variety of hikes: there's a nice easy one that just goes around the lake (keep in mind this lake is MUCH larger than Sasamat!), or there are difficult trails like the Diez Vistas, which will reward you with a view that stretches right to Deep Cove.  The trail that goes around the lake will lead you to the walk-in beach at roughly the half-way point, so you can stop for lunch and a quick dip before going the rest of the way.

One word of warning: know where you're going!  Every summer, a couple of tired, cold hikers need to be rescued from these trails after getting lost.  Sounds scary!  I'd rather not be that hiker, myself, so I always go prepared.

Happy hiking!

Car-Free Vancouver

Sunday is Car-Free Vancouver day and there are a variety of events around the city (Downtown, Kitsilano and Main St).

You can check out carfreevancouver.org for more information.

This day is for having fun, and celebrating the future of our city.  There will be a variety of activities, music and other such fun in each of the areas I mentioned above.  Go enjoy your car-free self (and take transit!).

Getting Organized

As you can see, I've added a lovely calendar to my blog!  I'll be combing a variety of resources that I use regularly anyways and adding to it over time, so you can check out what's going on in Vancouver on a given day.  Of course, I won't be putting ALL the events I find on there - just the ones that are relevant to my blog.

If you know of something that I missed, please e-mail me: ms.michelle.mara@gmail.com, or you can comment.

Enjoy!

Awesome Tunage for the Summer

I don't know how behind I am, but apparently we have a new radio station here in Vancouver!

100.5 The Peak plays aaaawesome rock - Sam Roberts, Modest Mouse, Arcade Fire, Metric, and all sorts of fun and indie rock. I pretty much have this station on all the time at home, and all the time at work - which I can do because you can listen online!

The music you listen to in the summer is so important. It's the soundtrack, right? So if you're listening to crap music all summer, your summer probably won't be so good. I urge you to go turn this station on right now. I would like to guarantee that it will make your summer better, but... I don't have that kind of power.

You can find The Peak online at www.thepeak.fm. And no, they have no affiliation with The Peak, SFU's student newspaper.

Beach-Ready Skin

Want to get your skin nice and clean and ready for the beach? Or maybe you already went to the beach and now you want to wash off all that makeup, sand and sunscreen? I've got the product for you!
Alba Naturals (www.albabotanica.com) makes a fantastic pineapple enzyme facial cleanser. I was skeptical at first, thinking that pineapple enzymes wouldn't be enough to wash off my makeup and clean my oily skin. But it works! This amazing cleanser foams right up and leaves your skin feeling clean and refreshed.
As a bonus, it smells like pineapple, which will remind you of pina coladas, the beach, and summer evenings all year long. Even in the snow.

I bought mine at London Drugs for around $10, but I'm sure you can get it at most local drugstores (Shoppers Drug Mart, etc).

Long time no see!

Well, I feel like a bit of a loser for not posting anything for over two months. I didn't mean to do it!
Thankfully, Sunday was the day for the Portobello West Fashion and Art Market, so I have some stuff to post - because I got some awesome stuff!
Portobello West takes place the last Sunday of every month, so the next one will be June 28th, and of course I'll be there; I still need a belt! Besides, I got a sweater that I can't wear until it cools off here so I think I might get some more summery clothes.
This past week or so it's been super hot here. I'm pretty sure we've been over 25 degrees every day for awhile (celsius)!! I've just been melting in my condo, but I'll deal with that in order to have the gorgeous weather.
Enjoy the sun and I'll see you at the next Portobello West on June 28th. Check out www.portobellowest.com for more info plus links to most of the vendor's web pages.

What's a Lazy Girl To Do This Summer?

We seem to have determined that I will not be spending my time this summer at any concerts. (Although it should be noted that if you would like to sponsor me to go to the Pemberton Festival I am still accepting offers at ms.michelle.mara@gmail.com).

So what should I do instead? I’m sure I can find some great things to do! The Lazy Girl’s Guide to Vancouver is here to help you if you’re in the same boat as me. Or if you just don’t like any of the bands that I listed in my last blog entry.

Where on earth should you turn to find some fun activities in Vancouver? I have a few favourites:

First, check the Georgia Straight newspaper. It comes out weekly, on Thursdays, and seems to cover the city’s events pretty thoroughly. You can get a Georgia Straight on a street corner downtown, at Skytrain stations, and at most music stores. You can also check out their website at www.straight.com. Enjoy!

In Vancouver seems to have a fairly comprehensive list, as well, but it’s not quite as easy to read as some others: http://www.vancouver-bc.com/Events/.

Tourism Vancouver has an interactive event calendar on their website: http://www.tourismvancouver.com/visitors/events.php. This would probably be a good one to check out if you live here, too, because sometimes it’s nice to pretend to be a tourist in your own town. Often there are things to see that you’ve never seen (unless you had relatives in from out-of-town and took them to see). For example, I’ve never been to the Capilano Suspension Bridge. Could be fun!

If you’re into wine and wine-related events, you can check out LocalWineEvents.com: http://www.localwineevents.com/Greater-Vancouver--BC-Wine/.

Another one for wine fans is Wine and Dine BC News: http://www.wineanddinebcnews.ca/index.php?fid=eventcalendar. Do enjoy!

If you’ve got little ones, you can check out this website that will find you some fun family events. I won’t be at these, ever, because screaming brats terrify me, but if that’s your kind of thing you should embrace it: http://www.findfamilyfun.com/eventthismonth.htm.

If you can’t find something to do on the above sites, then you should either go to the beach or go have a drink on a patio. Otherwise, I really can’t help you. You even have to google those yourselves, I’m not here to help.