Telescope Lessons, a Persian Night, and the Weekly Farmers Market: Markham & Richmond Hill Weekend

The David Dunlap Observatory shows up twice in the same week's calendar, and the second appearance is the more useful one for anyone who owns a telescope and has never actually learned to use it properly. How to Use Your Telescope is a one-on-one instruction session with the observatory's own staff, aimed at people who bought or inherited a telescope and want real guidance rather than a generic tutorial video. It's a rare, specific kind of programming that only exists because Richmond Hill happens to be home to a working national historic observatory.

For nightlife with a specific cultural focus, Luna Lounge runs a Black & White Party this week: a Persian night spanning 60s and 70s classics with DJ Kourosh, dress code implied by the name. It's the kind of culturally-specific nightlife booking that reflects Richmond Hill and Markham's actual demographics more accurately than a generic "top bars" list would.

During the day, the Main Street Markham Farmers' Market runs weekly, free to browse, with fresh produce, local arts and crafts, and independent vendors, a straightforward weekend anchor if the rest of the week's programming skews toward evening events. It's worth noting the market is currently listed twice in Happs' own event feed under slightly different titles, a small aggregation duplicate we're aware of and cleaning up as part of ongoing data quality work, not a sign of two separate markets.

Why this week is worth it: the pairing of a hands-on astronomy lesson with a Persian cultural night captures something true about Markham and Richmond Hill that a single "top things to do" list misses entirely: this is a genuinely diverse, specific calendar, not a smaller version of Toronto's.

Check the live list on the Markham & Richmond Hill events page, see the full GTA weekend on the this weekend page, or read the earlier-week guide at Markham's Lucy Foley and observatory roundup.