'nuff said. 

Too smart for North Americans....

I recently heard a news item about layoff’s and a restructuring of the SmartCar division at DaimlerCrysler. It would seem that, although a novelty in North America and the flavour of the moment for car buyers, the car is not selling as well as expected.

Pity. We can only hope that the company continues to offer this car in North America and doesn’t pull the plug entirely. We need this type of car in Canada because, judging by the price of gas in North Vancouver this week, it could mean something left over at the end of the day for other pursuits.

I was listening to the radio this week as the broadcasters discussed the relative price of gas by the litre in various countries, England…C$1.95 a litre, Australia…C$1.05 a litre for example. But with gas prices hovering at new record highs and the cost of diesel keeping pace, I wonder if businesses will find they can no longer absorb the increased costs. Surely we can expect the cost of everything from the price of a delivered pizza to our children’s school bus passes to rise exponentially, not to mentioned fruits and vegetables at the supermarket!

I for one will consider the SmartCar over the coming weeks. Moving to Bowen Island, with daily ferry commutes my new reality, such a purchase would benefit my pocketbook and surely the environment at the same time.

Sun up from Cowan Point 

Those Dreaded Mondays: A Foray into Life on Bowen Island

Have you ever seen that movie where the hero arrives at a peaceful storybook town, only to discover that something is terribly wrong – all the people have disappeared? For a few friends and I on a recent trip to British Columbia’s Bowen Island, that movie was our reality. The promotional brochures and websites inviting visitors to explore this island hideaway just off the coast of Vancouver fail to mention that Mondays on Bowen behave like Sundays on the mainland used to: nearly all the shops close for a “weekend” break, leaving the adventurous but naive traveller alone to discover all of the secrets of the island.
In Snug Cove, the commercial and cultural centre of the island, my friends and I were fortunate enough to find a few places open for business. The Village Baker Café, located just off of Government Rd., beckons in locals and tourists alike with its warm staff and delicious food. Not just a bakery, The Village Baker Café offers breakfasts, panini sandwiches, and fresh coffee, though my favourites are the cinnamon buns and spanakopita. Also in town is the Ruddy Potato, an organic food store offering local meat and produce, the ideal place to put together a picnic lunch, even on a Monday.
Just a twenty minute walk – uphill, mind you – from Snug Cove is Artisan Square, a cluster of shops, specialty schools, and cafés. Though most of the stores were closed, the Cocoa West Chocolatier offered up its dark treats to our group, parched and in need of a pick-me-up after our ascent from the Cove. Described as the purveyors of “fine artisan chocolate crafted in the French and Belgian traditions,” Cocoa West Chocolatier’s products range from individual morsels of lemon- and thyme-infused white chocolate truffles, and a creation called Hungarian Heat, containing paprika vodka from Hungary in a dark chocolate ganache, to molten cups of Poblano Hot Chocolate that rival Starbucks new Chantico Drinking Chocolate for sinfulness. The Chocolatier itself has a feel very much in line with the movie Chocolat; not only did we enjoy these unique chocolates at the establishment’s eclectic group of tables and chairs, but we were able to watch owners Joanne and Carlos Mogridge’s passion unfold as they worked behind the counter.
Following our Artisan Square excursion, our sugar-filled group drove a quick five minutes to Crippen Regional Park, home of the Killarney Lake Trail, which surrounds the largest lake on Bowen. We burned off numerous calories on a two hour trek around Killarney Lake – which is open daily – and enjoyed the scenery and frequent photo-ops that surround the trail. Another jaunt in the car and we arrived at Cowen Point, located on the southeast corner of Bowen and home to the island’s newest area of development. With views of the West End of Vancouver and the University of British Columbia, Cowan Point contains some of the most glamorous houses on the island, and if local rumours are to be believed, a $13 million waterfront property recently acquired by celebrity couple Harrison Ford and Calista Flockhart. After touring the area, we ate a late lunch at Josephine Lake, not nearly as large as Killarney Lake but even more secluded, and then headed back to Snug Cove for the 4:05 ferry sailing. I have since made my way back to Bowen Island – on a Saturday – and from the depths of Mondays, the laid-back people of this small community had returned. Exploration of the Bowen Island Library, located in the old Union Steamship Company building; lunch at Doc Morgan’s Restaurant and Pub; historical musings at the Bowen Island Museum and Archives; browsing and buying at the many gift and specialty stores of Snug Cove: all were enjoyable and filled the day. But none contained the excitement of discovering for ourselves the little cracks of delight that are scattered over the island, the pleasure of feeling for a day that Bowen was ours. Sailing back to Horseshoe Bay on the Queen of Capilano, I realised that Mondays on Bowen Island lie in the realm of adventure, not horror movies. As local shopkeepers took their Monday break, my friends and I were given the opportunity to discover the island for ourselves and see things that we never would have Tuesday through Sunday.

by Deirdre Booth (April 2005)

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