Livin' it up in Victoria!

It has been a wonderful week! After leaving Seattle, we spent several relaxing days at Deception Pass State Park in the Northwest corner of Washington before taking the Ferry across from Anacortes to Sidney. Since then, we have enjoyed four amazing days in Victoria at a beautiful Provincial Park called Goldstream, where we are surrounded by old growth forest and the deer are as friendly and plentiful as squirrels in our Ontario parks. I am also pleased to report that after more than four weeks of colds and coughs, both boys and I are finally starting to feel like ourselves again. The only unfortunate event occurred on Tuesday when we decided to have Braedon’s chest checked out at a local walk-in clinic. Although he has been feeling much better, he has continued to sound somewhat dreadful and the wonderful doctor on-call was forced to give us the bad news that with a return of asthma symptoms, he cannot scuba dive and as a result we cannot complete our certification in Vancouver as expected. As you can imagine, both he and I were kind of disappointed, but with so many other great things to look forward to, we are both enthusiastic about our other adventures!

On Monday, we spent our day looking around Inner Harbour and returned Tuesday morning for a visit to the Aquarium where only local fish and animals are contained in several huge naturalized tanks 15 feet below the surface of the ocean. It was really neat and included a narrated presentation where a diver caught and showed-off some of the bigger animals, while explaining their role in the ecosystem. Later that afternoon, I was able to finally cross something off my list that I have wanted to do since Shawn and I first came West in 1991 (but was too poor as a student to afford!) and was excited to accompany my three handsome escorts to afternoon tea at the Empress. It was wonderful! The kids thoroughly enjoyed the experience and received several compliments on their behaviour and manners from the staff and other patrons. Shawn and I were pleased to find that it was every bit as enjoyable an experience as we had hoped and was worth a 19 year wait. Riley enjoyed his time so much that he decided to purchase a small porcelain tea set at the Empress Gift shop and served us all his version of afternoon tea the next day.

On Wednesday, we decided to stay out of the city and spent the day enjoying the Visitor Centre and the park. After so much time in the dessert, the lushness of Vancouver Island is breathtaking. It has been a cool and rainy spring, which has meant the return to our warmer clothes, but has also resulted in a forest literally dripping with vines and moss. As we travelled the path to the Visitor Centre, we were amazed to find Maple leaves the size of dinner plates, and a forest so alive with birds, you actually had to raise your voice above the chatter. We spent the afternoon completing a most amazing hike to the summit of Mount Finlayson – probably the best summit hike that Shawn and I have ever done! The terrain was very steep and rocky and the ascent from sea level to 419 metres was completed in only 1.5 km. The top section of the trail required us to climb straight up the rock face using hands and feet to get up, over and around the rocks. It was very tiring and required a lot of effort, but was such a different kind of trail that we loved every minute and the view from the top was well worth the effort.

Today, we spent some more time in the City. At Riley’s request, and with a heavy dose of nostalgia, we decided to return to the same Old Fashioned picture place that Shawn and I went to when we were 17 and 20 and to have a family portrait done. The photo turned out beautifully and we intend to hang the two pictures side by side when we get home. Since Riley is keen to have a Western theme in his bedroom, he also had an individual shot done in costume and makes a very adorable gunslinger! After our adventure in costumes, we had intended to have lunch at Don Mee’s, my all-time favourite Dim Sum location. Unfortunately, we arrived at the wrong time and dim-sum was not available, so made a quick decision to have Italian instead. Lunch was yummy, and thankfully we were able to find some honey buns for dessert (the reason I go to Don Mee’s in the first place!).

Tomorrow morning, we plan to rise early for our four hour drive Tofino. Long Beach is another of our favourite places and we are looking forward to surfing lessons on Saturday and a relaxing whale watching tour for Father’s Day on Sunday. This adventure just keeps getting better and better!

Tammy