Victoria 13-16 July 2016 BC Canada

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Canada Trip 13 July – 7 September 2016



Pam & Tom Usher with Sheryl Shanahan



Victoria 13-16 July 2016



After a 13.5hr flight with Air Canada from Brisbane, we arrived at 7.30am in Vancouver then caught a 12 minute flight across to Victoria. Everything went well and other than being tired we arrived at the Fairmont Empress Hotel on the waterfront.



It was a beautiful spot and beautiful hotel. We were upgraded so that we had a harbour view, which was lovely. We looked out, watching the boats and sea-planes come and go. We were close to the Parliamentary buildings which housed the Legislative Assembly and the story of the parliamentary system in British Columbia.



Victoria is the capital of the province of British Columbia. It is located near the southern tip of Vancouver Island. It is a medium sized (approx. 350,000 in Greater Victoria, including the Saanich Peninsula) and beautiful city. Nicknamed the Garden City for Butchart Gardens and much green space. It is also said to lie within the world's most northern Mediterranean climate at a latitude of 48.5 North.



After checking in, we had a couple of hours sleep and then went for a walk to check out the lay of the land. It was a beautiful day. We walked around the immediate area along the waterfront.



We walked along the Inner Harbour. In the summertime the Inner Harbour was full of artists, buskers and other entertainers as well as markets. There was a Busker’s and Folk Festival on while we were there which was an added bonus. It was fascinating to watch the float planes taking off and landing also. The stretch of water (the runway for the planes) was the only runway in the world that was shut down for a whale which was swimming through the area!!!!



The Legislative Buildings, at the Inner Harbour, where stunning and particularly at night as the outlines of all the buildings were lit up with 13,000 lights. We walked through the buildings, seeing the Legislative Assembly chamber as well as the story on the building of the complex which took only 4 years.



It was very pleasant walking along the waterfront then wandering through the suburbs, meandering our way back to a bar at the top of the Tourist Office, on the water front for a crisp white wine to celebrate our 1^st day.



The next 2 days in Victoria were spent seeing as many sites in the area, using the Hop-on-Hop-off Bus as transport.



Beacon Hill Park, bounded by Dallas Rd on the south, and Douglas St. on the west was beautiful to wander through with its 100++ year old trees and many ponds and water features. The south end is on the waterfront, with walking path and a view of the Olympic Mountains across the strait. Beacon Hill Children's Farm, which features a goat petting area, was located within Beacon Hill Park. We even saw the biggest watering can in the world which children were enjoying, running under the water spraying out of the watering can.



Everyone who visits Victoria, visits Butchart Garden, in Brentwood and when we got there, we learnt very quickly why. It is a large garden planted in what was formerly a limestone quarry. Quite remarkable. During the summer they have fireworks set to music. We caught a bus out there in the afternoon so that we could stay for the night time display of the stunning lights. There was also a fantastic Irish band performing in the Sound Shell stage. The colours of the flowers were very different at night. Just beautiful.



We visited the British Columbia Aviation Museum, which was a 5-minute walk from our hotel. We saw the most amazing film in 3D at the Imax Theatre inside the museum called the Beautiful Planet. It was shot by astronauts from space and showed the parts of the world and our galaxy, its storms, cities, its changing landscapes and the impact of clearing forests and the impact of climate change.



There was also a display on the story of woolly mammoths. The most incredible part of the display was the showing of Lydal, the baby woolly mammoth which was found in Siberia and is dated 42,000 years old….yes, 42,000 year ago she was living. Fascinating.



There are three permanent galleries at the Museum: Modern History, story of the European settlement; First Peoples, pre-contact and post-contact; and Natural History, mainly oceans, large animals, and climate. All were explained with phenomenal immersive exhibits. This is one of two museums in Canada holding the 'Royal' designation.



During our visit, we also walked through Chinatown streets which were decorated with Chinese ornaments including The Gates of Harmonious Interest. There are some great Chinese restaurants, Chinese fruit and vegetable stores, bubble tea and coffee shops and Canada's smallest 'road', Fan Tan Alley!



Craigdarroch Castle Historical Museum was also interesting. This castle was built in 1890 by a wealthy and powerful Scottish family who at that time owned a quarter of Vancouver Island. Great architecture. It has also been a military hospital, a college, head office for education and now a museum.



Tom & I also enjoyed our trip up to Sidney which is an hours bus trip north of Victoria. We felt it was a mini-Glenelg. It used to be a rail and fishing centre. The fishing industry continues in the town and they had an active fish market there also. We had a lovely coffee not far from the waterfront.



We enjoyed the friendliness of the local people, the tasty food, and the wonderful climate before catching a ferry across to Vancouver.

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Photos

Beacon Hill Park Victoria BC
Kids Petting Zoo