Vonkouver

Vonkouver, officially the City of Vonkouver, is the largest city on the Shopper mainland by population, and is also the capital city of Southern Shops. It's the second largest city in the country, surpassed only by Sunset City. It was founded in 2011, and has been a booming city ever since. Most of Shops Island's domestically-used imports come through the Vonkouver docks, which were founded in 2012. Since Shops' rise to fame in 2013, Vonkouver has received notable attention from a large portion of Antarctica, and has become renowned for its beauty and popularity as a tourist destination. Many have also been drawn to the city to attend one of Shops' most prestigious schools, LordMaster96 University.

History
Vonkouver was founded in 2011 by the founder of Shops Island, Ben 100022 as a waterfront/resort city for rich penguins who wanted waterfront homes. That's why almost the entire city was artificially built, so that more waterfront homes could be constructed. However, Ben had left the city somewhat incomplete with his various travels from the island and inability to focus on his work as the leader of Shops Island at the time. But, over time, between 2011 and 2013, the city served its original purpose by attracting numerous immigrants from foreign lands, specifically Caladians, who built the city up and gave it a rich sense of Caladian culture and architecture.

Since Ben named himself as the first mayor, the people pretty much had to govern themselves until early 2012, when the citizens of Vonkouver set up an election for a new mayor. Caladian-born immigrant LordMaster96 won a majority of votes and became the second mayor of the city. He brought on major expansion and reforms to the small city, making it prosperous and bringing it nation-wide attention, which at the time was vastly spread out among each side of the island. The Vonkouver docks and marina were founded in mid-2012, and has since grown to become Shops Island's leading area for imports, with the Western Shops Industrial Division leading the nation in exports. After the founding of the docks, Vonkouver became Southern Shops' first official capital city. Prior to the announcement, the town of Cropsville was the unofficial capital due to it being in the heart of the farmlands, which had been very prominent in 2011-era Shops. Around September 2012, the actual island just South of Vonkouver was opened to the public, and was named "LordMaster Island" by the citizens. In January 2013, LordMaster declared that he would not run for mayoral reelection, to many citizens' dismay, and numerous citizens still wish for him to run for mayor again. After Vonkouver's second mayoral election in February 2013, fellow Caladian Marion Lancel won the position. He has been reelected every year since, becoming a popular Mayor for his post-Frosian War policies to grow and protect the city. Since elected, Lancel has seen the steady growth of Vonkouver, both in politics and population, as it became the most populated city on Shops Island in mid-2013. With the addition of gaining thousands of permanent residents, Vonkouver is now also renowned as a popular Shopper vacation spot, along with Bro Town and Penguin City. Lancel is currently working hard to make sure Vonkouver is one of the cleanest cities in Shops Island, and all of Antarctica. Vonkouver placed a late bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics in 2014, but was defeated in the early stages of voting.

Government
Vonkouver became the first official capital of Southern Shops in June 2012, replacing the unofficial capital of Cropsville. In 2013, political talks were underway by incumbent governor Dps04 to change Southern Shops' state capital again from Vonkouver to a new city that was more "centralized" in the state. However, after Penquino took office yet again in late 2013, these plans were scrapped.

Most of the city's government offices are located in Greater Vonkouver, including City Hall, and the police and fire headquarters of the city. Southern Shops' state offices are also located in the city since it's the capital, but these offices as well as the governor's mansion are located in Fort Robson.

The city itself works like any other city, it has an elected mayor (currently Marion Lancel) who is elected every February, as well as a city cabinet and commission. Due to gracious state funding, the taxes in Vonkouver are relatively low.

Abbotsville
Abbotsville is home to numerous waterfront properties, as well as numerous stores in the Huntsford neighborhood, and a few hotels and public attractions. But, not nearly as many attractions as South Vonkouver. Vonkouver International Airport can be found in the North part of Abbotsville, while one of the two bridges to LordMaster Island can also be found the Southeast corner of the suburb.

Fort Robson
Fort Robson is the home to Southern Shops' government buildings, such as the Vonkouver postal hub (which routes mail to most of the state), and the governor's mansion/office. It is also home to the Denzel Naval Base, which houses the SIA Museum. Near to the naval base is the Gottfried Army Depot. Although those two military installments are on the West side of Fort Robson, York Harbor is on the East side, and also houses a Coast Guard station.

Greater Vonkouver
Greater Vonkouver consists of the areas Boundary and Downtown, and the neighborhoods of East End, Lowlands, International Village and Nelson.

All of the major city government buildings, such as City Hall, and the police and fire headquarters for the city, are located in "Downtown" Vonkouver, located in this suburb. Many other businesses can also be found downtown, such as a mall. "East End" is a mostly residential neighborhood, while "Lowlands" houses Penguin Telecom Arena (home of the Vonkouver Aves) and a few other entertainment venues and residential neighborhoods. International Village is an area that focuses on and encourages all different creatures and cultures.

Lordmaster Island
The main campus of LordMaster96 University is on Lordmaster Island, with dorms and other facilities being located in the city.

South Vonkouver
South Vonkouver is home to a lot of the city's entertainment. From Vonkouver Beach to the sports arenas and more, South Vonkouver truly is the "life of the city". Most of the city's upscale restaurants and hotels are located here.

Culture
When Vonkouver was founded by Ben100022 in 2011, he only expected it to be a moneymaker from people who wanted waterfront homes; he never expected it to be as large as it is now, and left it somewhat incomplete. However, many Caladians that immigrated to Shops Island moved here and built the city up, adding a rich sense of Caladian architecture and style along with it. In addition, a majority of Vonkouver's mayors have been Caladian.

Sports
Sports are a very popular topic in Vonkouver, due to the city being home to two official sports teams, the Vonkouver Aves (Ice Hockey), and the Vonkouver Mariners (Baseball).

Like a majority of the USA and its Free Republics, a favorite sport of Vonkouverites is ice hockey. The Aves were founded by Caladian immigrants to the city in early 2012 (spearheaded by LordMaster96), but by the end of the year they had become one of Shops Island's official hockey teams. Their home arena is Penguin Telecom Arena in Greater Vonkouver (formerly known as Aves Arena), and was built entirely with city money and donations.

Vonkouver also has their own baseball team, the Vonkouver Mariners. Similar to the Aves, the project for a city baseball team was spearheaded by LordMaster96, and he was aided by the Shopper Baseball Association. The team was going to be named the Vonkouver Pirates due to a contest that was opened, but after much deliberation LordMaster and the baseball committee decided they didn't want such a rash and unprofessional name. So, they chose another submission, that suggested the name Mariners. It is one of the best-performing baseball teams in Shops Island and its territories, and multiple members of this team are also a part of the Shops Island Sluggers All-Star national team.

Celebrations
Many holidays and celebrations are also held in Vonkouver. In addition to all of the Shops Island national holidays, Vonkouver also celebrates a few celebrations of their own.
 * July 30th is known as Vonkouver day, due to it being former mayor LordMaster96's birthday. On this day every year citizens celebrate Vonkouver's size, prowess, and success, and how far the city has become since it was founded in 2011. It is a regionally celebrated holiday, where chicks don't have to attend school and adults don't have to work. Former Southern Shops governor Dps, backed by president Lavender, tried to abolish this holiday by retracting the school and work off-day, claiming it to be "an excuse to have a free day", but he was highly opposed by citizens and soon reverted his actions.

Transportation
Residents of Vonkouver have many methods of transportation around the city, or to leave it. Transportation by car isn't very popular among residents due to heavy traffic, but is a desirable way to get into or out of Vonkouver for those that aren't riding the Shops Island Subway. Two Interstate Highways run through Vonkouver, those being the Chillway (Interstate 1) that starts in Vonkouver and runs North, and Innovation Route (Highway 4) that comes through the city from CK Town and continues on to Tomville. Vonkouver International Airport can also be found in Abbotsville and offers national and international flights.

Other methods of transportation are heavily used in the city. The main method used by residents is riding the Vonkouver Subway System, which has 112 stops and is overseen by the Shops Island Subway. Riders have to pay a small admission fee or purchase a subway card. Waddling and Hoverboards are also very popular, though the latter are called "Houver Boards" by Caladian immigrants. Though a somewhat unusual method, Jetpacking is also used by some residents. The city has set up regulations for Jetpack pilots, that require eco-friendly Jetpacks be used, and that pilots don't fly higher than Vonkouver's highest buildings (to prevent incidents between Jetpackers and airplanes). In addition, a Jet Pack landing pad is also required to be on at least one rooftop per city block.

Sister Cities
Being the most populated city on Shops Island, Vonkouver has accumulated a number of international sister cities, thanks to the national and state governments as well as mayors of the city. Some of Vonkover's sister cities are listed below.
 * Flag of Calada.png Vancooler, Calada (Since 2013)
 * Moon_Island_Flag.png Moon Island City, Moon Island (Since 2013)
 * Culldromeislesflag.png Seacast, Culldrome Isles (Since January 23, 2014)
 * Munijoch.jpg Port de Finipines, Munijoch (Since January 25, 2014)
 * NewUnitedProvincesFlag.png Dolphinas, United Provinces (Since July 2014)
 * Tropicalis Flag.png Barhamados, Tropicalis (Since 2016)
 * FelipenasFlag.png Sugbu, Finipines (Since August 2016)
 * Amataria Flag.png Amaport City, Amataria (Since 2019)

Notable Residents

 * LordMaster96 (Former Mayor)
 * Marion Lancel (Mayor)
 * Penquino (Southern Shops Governor)

Trivia

 * Almost the entire landmass of Vonkouver is completely man-made. LordMaster Island is an exception, and is an actual island that was there before Vonkouver was built. However, it wasn't utilized as part of Vonkouver until it was established by LordMaster96 in 2012.
 * The name Vonkouver is parodied from Canadian city Vancouver (and is thus, similar to the fanon parody of Vancooler). However, the name has stayed due to the city actually being founded on the Shops wiki prior to it being incorporated into Fanon. That is also why LordMaster96 is mentioned so much, since he created the city on the Shops wiki.
 * The name Vonkouver Aves is a parody of the Vancouver Canucks, since Canucks is another word for Canadians whereas Aves is the word for the scientific class of birds.
 * South Vonkouver has parody elements from Miami and South Beach as well.