Vancouver is a fantastic city to be in during the summer, with farmers markets and fireworks, hikes and kayaks, festivals and fun at local parks and attractions.

car2go is an entire fleet of free-floating, low-emission, self-service smart fortwo cars distributed all over the city. With summer on its way, its convenient and tech-friendly booking makes it a great option for getting out and about to enjoy Vancouver.

Tech Smart

When you become a member, you can use the official car2go app on your smartphone (iOS, Android, Windows Phones, and BlackBerry) to find and book vehicles, start your trip, end your trip (upgraded vehicles only), and alert you when an available vehicle is in your area.

Getting Around Town

Whether it’s a grocery run, a visit with family, lunch with a colleague, or a trip to the beach, car2go vehicles are “on demand”. Round trip or one way, you can park your car2go in an authorized parking spot which includes on-street residential permit spaces, 2 hour parking spaces, and specially marked car2go designated spaces.

You can take any of the car2go vehicles you find distributed around you, or you can reserve an available vehicle 30 minutes before you want to drive. Their attractive “by-the-minute” rates include costs for fuel, insurance, parking and maintenance.

One of the most convenient features is parking: You can park your car2go for free in any Authorized Parking Location within the Home Area. This includes on-street spaces with signs reading “No Parking Except with Permit” or “Resident Only Parking”. Check the app for details.

Independence

car2go allows its members to use the vehicle for as short as they like, without committing to a specific return time or location. They can finish the trip in any authorized parking space within the car2go Home Area.

Keira-Anne, a fellow blogger and Vancouver local, told me that Car2Go has changed the way she gets around the city since she joined last year: “It has given me a sense of control over my limited time in a city where I’m normally 100% reliant on the bus schedule. I feel like I have my independence, which is a great feeling.”

Member Perks

car2go is involved in its community, partnering with local businesses to support their members. Some of the current member perks are listed here. Members can also earn 20 minutes for every friend they refer who becomes a member. You can get your unique promotion code here.

If you’re already a member, and a Miss604 reader, I have an extra perk for you! Spend $100 in drive time (excluding fees and taxes) in the month of May 2016 and receive 20 minutes in drive time. To redeem, email your membership information to [email protected].**

Existing members can earn more minutes every time they refer a friend too. 20 minutes for each friend who becomes a member.

Sign Up Deal!

What better way to start off with a service than with a great deal? car2go is offering up free registration and 15 minutes of drive time* this summer when you sign up here, and use the code C2G15.

Follow car2go on Facebook and Twitter for more information about the service in your area.

*Restrictions and fees may apply. Registration deal/code is valid 5/2/2016- 6/12/2016.
** Offer only valid in Vancouver until June 12th, 2016. One redemption per member. Drive time will be valid in Vancouver for 45 days from the date of issuance. This offer is not redeemable for cash or other credit.

It took marrying an American from the Midwest, who grew up near the Field of Dreams movie site no less, for me to truly start appreciating baseball. As newlyweds, we’d go to C’s games all the time for an affordable, and fun, afternoon out together at the ballpark. It was only a few years ago that I began to look up the history of baseball in Vancouver, and discover it has an amazing story to tell.

For the last 50 years, Nat Bailey Stadium has been our home base for baseball in this town, and the (three time league champion) Vancouver Canadians are excited to start another season.

Vancouver Canadians Early Bird Schedule

The crack of the bat, the roar of the crowd! With 22 sell outs in 2015, you won’t want to miss out on scooping up some tickets when they go on sale May 14th. Plan your summer afternoons and evenings at Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey (“The Nat”) by referencing the Early Bird schedule:

• Scotiabank Bright Futures Nooner June 24, July 22, August 11, August 19, August 24, August 21, September 2
• A&W Family Fun Sunday June 26, July 3, July 10, July 24, July 31, August 21
• Fireworks Night at the Nat June 20, June 21, June 25, July 1, July 2, July 9, July 23, July 30, August 20

Click here to download the PDF

Enter to Win Flight Centre First Class Seats

The Vancouver Canadians and Flight Centre have teamed up to bring C’s fans a First Class baseball experience. Each game, four lucky fans will be treated to a front row view in the Flight Centre First Class Seats and take in all the action from the most comfortable seats Scotiabank Field has to offer. Enter here for your chance to win.

More promotional dates will be announced in May so stay tuned. Follow the Vancouver Canadians on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter for more information about their upcoming season.

Admittedly, I am not an Andrew Lloyd Webber fan. However, Vancouver Opera’s production of Evita is worth attending because it offers a very rare opportunity to see Broadway and West End stars perform in Vancouver: Caroline Bowman (Evita), who has spent last year performing in the Broadway Revival tour of Evita, and has also appeared in other hit shows like Wicked; John Cudia (Juan Peron), the first and only singer to have performed as both the Phantom in The Phantom of the Opera and Jean Valjean in Les Miserables on Broadway; and Iranian-Canadian Ramin Karimloo (Che), who also played the Phantom and Jean Valjean and has starred in the longest-running musicals in London’s West End.

Despite some technical difficulties at the beginning of the show (the mic levels on the performers were way too low), the power and grace in Bowman’s voice perfectly captured the iconic Eva Peron and her story of ascent into the political and popular consciousness of Argentina.

I also really enjoyed the slight country twang to Karimloo voice, which I thought was a unique approach to playing the great revolutionary, Che Guevara. But not all the praise is reserved to the out-of-towners — Vancouver’s Shannon Chan-Kent, who plays Peron’s mistress, gave a gorgeous rendition of “Another Suitcase in Another Hall,” which was probably the vocal highlight of the night for me. The chorus rounded this all out by adding some more operatic vocal elements to the evening.

Besides the voices and performances, the production design was very impressive, and probably the most innovative design I’ve seen at the Vancouver Opera. The Perons’ relationship with the masses was captured throughout the production design; the scaffold, used as the base of the set, was similar to concert stages and outdoor music festivals. One of my favourite scenes was the charity concert for victims of the San Juan earthquake where back wall was where the Argentine audience was.

When musician Agustin Magaldi sang, and later, Juan Peron gave a speech, though their backs may have been to us (Vancouver Opera audience), their fronts—how they were engaging with the audience—were being projected on smaller, TV-like screens back to us. This added to the themes of public appeal and perception of Evita and deconstructed them, as well. In addition, images, including archival footage of Evita, were projected onto large screens, and depending on the backlighting, were either clear or translucent to see performers behind them—at one point, tango dancing. Definitely worth the night out.

Vancouver Opera Presents Evita

Evita is onstage at the Queen Elizabeth Theatre for only 4 more performances: Thursday, May 5, 2016 7:30pm; Friday, May 6, 2016 7:30pm; Saturday, May 7, 2016 7:30pm; Sunday, May 8, 2016 2:00pm matinée. Approximate running time: 2 hours and 45 minutes, including 1 intermission.

Tickets are available exclusively through the Vancouver Opera Ticket Centre by calling (604) 683-0222 or booking online. Special pricing for groups of at least 10, and for families, is available by phone.

Follow Vancouver Opera on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram for more information.

The Vancouver Courier has released their annual Stars of Vancouver readers’ choice awards and I’m honoured to have been named #1 Best Local Blogger!

“From bloggers to mascots, cocktails to coffee shops, think of this as a guide to Vancouver, created by those who live here.” I’m in great company, with a fantastic selection of local businesses and services that have earned their way into people’s hearts – and onto the pages of the Vancouver Courier.

Read about all of the winners in the 2016 Stars of Vancouver here.

Vancouver Farmers Markets is kicking off the summer 2016 season starting May 5th. If you’re looking for a farmers market this season, there are plenty to visit throughout the week in your neighbourhood or a new-to-you pocket of the city, each with growers, producers, artisans, and locals bringing the very best from their farm to your table.

Summer Farmers Markets in Vancouver

Vancouver Farmers Markets operate 9 weekly markets and host 425,000 people annually. Visit one of these 6 summer markets:

What: Trout Lake
When: Saturdays 9:00am to 2:00pm, May 7 – October 22, 2016
Where: Lakewood Drive and 13th Avenue, Vancouver

What: West End
When: Saturdays 9:00am to 2:00pm, May 28 – October 22, 2016
Where: West End Farmers Market, Comox Street, Vancouver

What: Kitsilano
When: Sundays 10:00am to 2:00pm, May 8 – October 23, 2016
Where: Kitsilano Community Centre, Larch Street, Vancouver

What: Main Street Station
When: Wednesdays 2:00pm to 6:00pm, June 1 – October 5, 2016
Where: 1100 Station Street, Vancouver

What: Mount Pleasant
When: Sundays 10:00am to 2:00pm, June 12 – October 11, 2016
Where: 2300 Guelph Street, Vancouver

What: Downtown
When: Thursdays 2:00pm – 6:00pm, June 2 – October 27, 2016
Where: Queen Elizabeth Theatre Plaza (Hamilton & W Georgia), Vancouver

Special events this season also include the Berry Festival July 13th (Main Street Station) and July 17th (Mount Pleasant); the Tomato Festival August 20th (Trout Lake) and August 21st (Kitsilano); and the Fall Fair September 4th (Mount Pleasant).

For more information follow Vancouver Farmers Markets on Facebook and Twitter.