Becoming one with traffic

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Despite my room being pitch dark and my body oh-so-very-tired, i woke up at 7:45am, after 7 hours of sleep. i showered, realized i thought the hostel would give me a towel, but didn't, and used my T-shirt I slept in.

Turns out i somehow lost my toothbrush...i swear i packed it.

I had breakfast, bought coffee, and started walking. I guess I'm attracted to shops, even though I don't like to look at anything (damn capitalist tendencies must be engrained in me), but I did notice how awesome the shop exteriors are. The colours are so awesome, so funky; one store called Flavour was a rainbow!

I found my way to Market Square, and I remember visiting it from last time! It's a neat area. I feel like I re-discovered it. I took photos, but didn't go in the stores. But at the fountain, I saw baby birds flittering on the tree. Their down looks so fluffy!

I eventually made my way to Cycle BC rentals. At 10:00am, I was off on the road! A nice guy running a bike-taxi service told me to go on the Galloping Goose Trail (obviously knowing I'm a tourist by my myriad of maps). I got a free map of scenic walking trails for Victoria. Turns out bikes aren't allowed on them, despite the wide pathways.
It also turns out that biking on the road is the law. If you bike on the sidewalk, you're subject to a $110 fine (as a nice young woman selling maps told me when I asked her about the road rules). So, I am forced to ride around the city on the road as cars zoom past me.
Gulp.

So, I walked my bike on the sidewalk (the young woman told me that was allowed) to the Johnson St. Bridge, and I rode at the start of the Galloping Goose Trail.

I feel bad for not finding it all that impressive. I mean, the trestle bridge at the beginning is cool. And the rainforest flora is nice (several wildflowers (I think they were wild) I didn't recognize were gorgeous to behold). There's murals painted underneath the bridges. But other than that...well, it was like biking through the Edmonton River Valley.

I ended up at Swan Lake, the first (and maybe only?) feng-shui auspicious spot in Victoria. I biked more after that, and into a residential area. But I turned back, because I was getting bored of trees and wanted to see the ocean. I thought the ride back was more beautiful, weirdly enough. There's a giant rock beside the trestle bridge that looks like a turtle. I saw the ferry tours going underneath the trestle. I saw a kayaking lesson going on.

The walking trail I wanted to go on didn't allow bikes. So, mustering up all my courage, I rode into traffic. I followed another biker dude, and I biked along the Legislature and Inner Harbour, past tour bus stops and the hustle and bustle, and biked through into another residential area. Scary! I tried following a cycling sign that said "Searoute Trail" or something like that, and I think I did pretty good- I ended up in Fisherman's Wharf! Yay!

Oh, what a site to behold! Eclectic houseboats! Regular boats in the dock! Fresh fish for sale that would have rotted in my backpack had I bought some! Whale tours catering to tourists! A place selling CHICKEN AND BEEF dishes WHEN THEY'RE RIGHT BY THE OCEAN.
Argh.
I stopped at an icecream place there and bought a cone with Moose Tracks ice cream- vanilla with chocolate chips and bits of peanut butter. Yum-yum! The ice cream was Island Farms, a local company (I assume).

Walking along the harbour, and I happen upon pacific harbour seals! A day into my trip and I already see the animals I've desperately wanted to glimpse in their natural habitat! They're so much cuter and fatter in person. When they inhale their nostrils close up! There were three altogether (one of them showed up later).

I couldn't help getting mad at some people- they were feeding the seals--no problem with that. However, the people were teasing the seals with it: twirling the fish above their heads, so that the seals turned with it, making them jump. Sometimes I wished some of the tourist's cameras would fall into the ocean.

One white seal floated on its back as if it were dead-- cute, but I wonder if it learned that from the people.
I went into a store to find souvenirs, but it was only trinkety stuff that was made in China (the salesclerk was nice though).

I continued along, and I reached Ogden Point. According to Wikipedia, it's a major destination for cruise ships (although I didn't see any), and a helipoint for trips into the Seattle and Vancouver. I think it's also a port for other international ships, and where carriage horses that take tourists around the city are unharnessed. I was impressed with that.

There was a cafe where I tried looking for lunch. Too expensive. So I walked along the point, on the rocks, observed the ships sailing by, the burgundy kelp dotting the water, the waves crashing into the rocks, a driftwood pile on the beach, a guy fishing, the graffiti on the walls...

I also came upon a guy removing stickers from oxygen tanks (there's a dive shop at the point too). I asked to take his photo. Turns out he was tired of sitting in the shop all day, so he came out into the sun.
I biked along the road somemore, and realized that another walking trail I wanted to go on was not available to cyclists. So, I led my bike along the trail. The grasses alongside it reminded me of the praries; they were a gorgeous golden hue, nice, and taller than I expected.
There was one particular scene I had to capture- the mountains on the Olympic Peninsula separted by the Juan de Fuca Strait, and a jutting hill. but I forgot to close my bag, so when I carried it over closer to me, my stuff spewed on the pathway. I was picking it up when I saw an officer on a scooter coming toward me.

He asked:

"Are you okay?"
I thought he was going to give me shit about having my bike on the pathway (even though I wasn't riding it, I still felt bad for dragging it along with me).

Turns out he assumed I had crashed when he saw my stuff and my bike splayed out on the ground.

I assured him I was fine, and went along the pathway. "Animal Patrol" was emblazoned on his scooter.
I wish I had taken a photo. Damn, that's wicked! An officer on a scooter.

I made my way to a bench and admired the view. I took out my map to figure out where I was, and a local guy stopped to ask if I knew where I was (Holland Point). He told me that downtown was right nearby, basically straight down a street I was across from. So that was nice!

Gosh, the people are nice here!

Again, made my way down the path. Down toward the beach. The water is so clear; I can see the rocks underneath from the path.

I went back up and rode along the path somemore, and I met a cyclist who doesn't like seniors. "I am traffic!" He told me. He ranted a while about the hard time seniors have given him (as many are strolling by us with their walkers), but I couldn't quite understand him because he spoke so fast. But he gave me great advice: "Give yourself space between the parked cars, otherwise if anybody is pulling out they won't see you."

Also, "Be careful of anybody with grey hair."

I biked along the beach cliffs (I followed behind a couple other cyclists). I started getting comfortable with cycling on the road. With Ross Bay in the distance, the ride was beautifully scenic, although I was more focused on paying attention for cars.

I stopped when I saw a guy paragliding.

At the time I didn't know he was paragliding. I thought he had gone skydiving.

When he landed shortly after I stopped riding to gape in awe, I asked if I could take his picture.

"No problem."

I thought I could get a few poses with his parachute. But no- he launched himself back into the air for me! It was fabulous!
I had a small chat with him, and he told me about paragliding. His parachute is actually called a "wing." What he was doing was "ridge surfing." He mentioned something about wind compression, how the wind coming in from the ocean hits the cliffs, then creates this updrafts which he uses to launch himself into the air.

"It's an addictive sport." He told me.

I continued along, riding pass the Ross Bay Cemetary. Even though it's a recommended visit in Victoria, I still feel funny viewing cemetaries. They're places for the dead. (I'm glad I didn't feel this way when i went to Japan.)

I had to turn around, be cause I wasn't sure where to go after (and I didn't know the time, so I had to go back and return my bike in case they were closing).

I passed Beacon Hill Park and rode into downtown, but my legs felt like they were going to fall off, so I disembarked and walked the rest of the way to the rental place. I passed the Royal BC Museum and a carillon, which is a musical instrument! It's played by striking levers and keyboards. The one I saw is the tallest in Canada; it was given by the Duch community to commemerate Canada's centennial. (At least I think, it was to commemerate something.)

I walked to the Dollar Giant and got myself supper. For $4.48 I got two toothbrushes, a bar of chocolate, two small cans of crab meat, a can of sliced potatoes, and gravy sauce (but it's called something else on the can). I fried the potatoes up and added the other stuff in, plus some alfredo sauce that was on the "Free Stuff" shelf in the Ocean Island fridge, and had a nice hearty bowl of food for dinner, which filled up my empty tummy nicely.

Later on, I had a hummus and veggie half-wrap with a pint of the dark Vancouver Island lager. Good stuff.

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