Tag: Victoria B.C.

Architecture, ART, Attractions, Decorative Arts, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Museums, Road Trips, TRAVEL

More Victoria Sightseeing

Jane Sadek

MEMORY KEEPING: Castles, Culture and Canadian Charm

There was still a lot of day left after we left Butchart Gardens and grabbed a late lunch. I had a long list of things I wanted to see, so we started knocking them off the list. Come along and enjoy the afternoon with us.

The Art Gallery of Greater Victoria

Thursday evenings are free at the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria, so since it was a Thursday, this venue was high on my wish list. Only we got there before the free started, so Bill wanted to go back to the hotel for his afternoon coffee break. This was not on my list, but after his fussy morning at the garden, I thought maybe some coffee and a quick nap would help his attitude.

It did and when we went back to the Gallery, we found it quite interesting. Its galleries are a mixed bag of art for sale, permanent collection, special exhibitions and classes. The backyard is some kind of temple. It’s a really mixed bag, but who can argue with free, right?

Government House Gardens

Government House is the Official Victoria Residence of the Governor of British Columbia. You don’t actually visit the interior of the Residence without some kind of official invitation, but the Garden is open for viewing by the general public pretty much all the time.

Huge gates with the official seal were wide open for our visit. It was a lovely experience. The house itself, though stately, wasn’t my cup of tea, but the gardens around it are spectacular.

We first wandered off to the right where there was sort of a natural garden. It was certainly well tended, but instead of the trimmed boxwoods and fountains you might think of with an official residence, the gardens were more like what you might find behind a garden gate in the Cotswold.

Behind the Residence the ground fell away to a valley and great rock walled terraces filled with greenery took up the back side of the house. That’s where we ran into a really nice lady who was out walking her very large cat. In fact, it was the largest domestic cat I think we’d ever seen. It was a long haired tabby, like Bill’s Mesh Mesh had been, and when she let him hold the feline, I wondered if he was actually going to give it back to the nice lady or would cut and run. He did finally return the beloved pet, but remembers holding it as one of the highlights of the trip.

As we came around the other side of the house, we found row after row of irises. Irises are one of my favorite flowers, but no one loves irises as much as my best friend, so I had to take lots of photos for her. I texted them to her to let her know she was on my mind.

In front of the Residence was a large water feature with many unique rock formations. It’s amazing they allow the general public to just come hang out, but it was a marvelous experience.

Craigdarroch Castle

Thrilled we’d seen both the Gallery and the Residence, I was quite satisfied, but then I realized Craigdarroch Castle was nearby. It was so late we couldn’t get a tour, but we were able to wander around outside. On the front lawn folks were gathering for the performance of a Shakespeare play and we stayed for the opening speeches.

There’s a mistake on the photo book page above. We did enjoy a meal at Wind Cries Mary, but it was the next day, not this one. I worked on my photo album during an online crop and was so intent on earning badges and completing challenges that I didn’t do any fact checking. I keep a detailed journal of all my trips, but I’d taken the trip just a couple of months before and thought I remembered everything the way it happened. Obviously, I didn’t! In reality, my fast food loving husband had gone to Wendy’s for breakfast. Then we’d had a late lunch at Red Robin. After the castle he stopped back by Wendy’s for a light supper.

So, next week, we’ll be visiting the Parliament Building, going to Fisherman’s Wharf and having dinner at Wind Cries Mary. Come back and go with us.

ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Beautiful Butchart Gardens

Jane Sadek

MAKING MEMORIES: A DAY IN THE GARDEN

Welcome! I’m glad you’re here! Today we’re going to visit one of my mom’s favorite gardens. She always wanted me to see it, but I never got there while she was alive. Still she seemed to be there and share every step I took. Come see what Mom loved.

Starting the Day at Hotel Grand Pacific

By 6:30 AM I was at the gym and unlike many hotel gyms I was not alone. The spa at Hotel Grand Pacific has members from the community and the gym was hopping. They had two rowing machines and both of them had little old men on them, working away. I got on a stationary bike instead and watched like a hawk. In 10 minutes they were gone and I put my time in.

Afterwards I found quiet things to do in the room, but at 8:30 I was hungry and opened a nut bar to break my fast. The rattling cellophane also woke up Mr. Bill, who got out of bed on the wrong foot. He never quite managed get back to his best self. He went to one of the most beautiful gardens in the world and managed to be grumpy the whole time, because the crowds were too large for him to get good photos.

Frustrations in the Garden

So far on this vacation we’d seemed to live charmed lives. Everything had fallen into place like magic, but on the day I wanted to have the most magic, it seemed to abandon us. Many things went well. We found the garden easily and had no trouble parking. Our Black Ball vouchers got us in without a hassle and I will never forget the moment I snapped the photo of the big sign in the entry area. I wanted to shout, “Hey Mom! I’m here!”

Like cattle in a herd, we made our way past the statue of the boar and turned right into the Sunken Garden. What a gorgeous, gorgeous place. Yes, we weren’t exactly alone, but as you can see in the photo above, we also weren’t exactly marching shoulder to shoulder either – which is entirely possible later in the summer. So, I was surprised when, on the way to another garden area Bill shared his displeasure at having people in his photos. I confess, I was not very sympathetic and to tell the truth, I resented him inserting his displeasure into my enjoyment of the garden.

But that wasn’t the worst of it. I’ve shared before how critical the possession of a map is to my happiness when traveling. Strolling with the crowd past the boar I had somehow missed the kiosk with the maps. Exiting the the Sunken Garden area there was a signpost with a map and I decided to take a picture of it in lieu of a paper map, but there was a pretty good sized crowd around it. I patiently waited for my turn and stepped up to take the picture, but behind me, someone else wasn’t quite as patient. I was given a pretty rough shove.

From there we obediently followed the crowd to the Carousel and Totem Poles. About this time Bill shares his displeasure with the gardens. As I tried to shrug off his negativity I realized I didn’t have everything with me that I came in with. What was missing was my cape. My very favorite black cape that I wear constantly during the winter and goes with me on almost all of my vacations. This was not a minor distraction. This was enough to ruin any day. I told Bill what was up and ran off to back track my steps.

By the time I made it to the Sunken Garden I was frantic. I was fighting back tears. I wondered how a day I had looked forward to for so long could go so wrong. Then finally, I saw it, not far from the signpost. Someone had kindly laid it across one of the chains protecting a grassy area. I remember the rough shove at the sign post and cursed the impatient tourist who had almost permanently separated me from one of my favorite possessions.

Recovering My Resilience

I was on an emotional roller coaster. Keeping Mr. Bill happy is job one with me, so I was dismayed at his consternation. “Guess what my least favorite attraction has been so far?” he’d asked. How could he be unhappy in such a gorgeous place? And now, here I was adrenalin and anger pumping through my veins. I took a deep breath and took a moment to pray. I wasn’t having my joy stolen by a few frustrations. Mr. Bill was is a big boy. While few things bring me as much pleasure as pleasing him, I am not solely responsible for his attitude. And while I’d been very upset to lose my cape, I now had it back in my possession. So, took another deep breath. I thanked God for how wonderful the vacation had been up to that point and asked Him to help me enjoy the rest of the garden.

With my personal photographer pouting over the people in his photos, I pulled out my camera and took over as primary shooter. Capturing pretty flowers and lovely landscapes are my strengths in photography, so most of the photos from this day came from my DSLR, not Bill’s phone.

And then I saw a kiosk with maps! My day was complete and I was able to confirm I was successfully viewing all the beauty the garden had to offer. I also picked up some other brochures, later incorporating them into my photo book.

Bill Gets Back on Board

With a little help from God, I’d gotten my day back on track, but my surly companion was not doing quite as well. His bottom lip was not exactly dragging the ground. He wasn’t exactly rushing me, but he also wasn’t joyfully lingering over every vista.

With my map in hand I realized we’d seen most of what there was of the garden to see, but I also saw that up ahead was a Gelateria. My sweetheart loves gelato. “Come,” I said, ” I think you’re going to like this!” And here he is, happily standing in line for his gelato.

Up next was the gift shop where he himself found a wonderful birthday present for his sister-in-law. I reveled in that, because gift shopping is usually my responsibility. So, in the end, my visit to Mom’s garden hadn’t been perfect, but it was lovely and I felt a little relief that I’d finally marked it off my list. Having visited the Grand Hotel a few years before, I didn’t owe her anymore vacation days.

Come back next week and let’s see what we find in the rest of Victoria!

Accommodations, Architecture, ART, Attractions, DESTINATIONS, Gardens, International, Restaurants & Bars, Road Trips, TRAVEL

Hotel Grand Pacific – The Way to Stay

Jane Sadek

MAKING MEMORIES: WELCOME TO VICTORIA B.C.

If you’re as close as a ferry ride from Victoria B.C. then get on that ferry and spend some wonderful days at the Hotel Grand Pacific. These were some of Bill’s favorite days of the trip. See what you think about our arrival.

Well, Excuse Me!

We drove off the ferry, across the street and parked under Hotel Grand Pacific. I made my way to the reception area and began my transaction with the nice guy behind the desk. Suddenly, there was a woman standing so close to me that she was almost touching me. Wild hair, loud voice and a sort of bright floral house dress. Here I was checking into my room with my billfold, vouchers and notebook wide open and she’s so close to me she could put her hand in my pocket. I was afraid that was her goal and it rattled me.

I think she was merely rude and boundary-less, but I had to complete my entire transaction with her standing right next to me, chatting up both myself and the reception clerk. I must have checked to be sure I had all of my belongings a dozen times, but I couldn’t get away from her fast enough. Bill was outside taking photos.

To say we loved this everything about this hotel would be an understatement. The room was a little tight, but well appointed with a great view. The hotel had bicycles for guests and so our first order of business once we’d dumped our luggage and parked our car properly was to grab a pair of cycles and take off.

Remember that not listening to me stuff. I tried really hard to let Bill know the route he should take on our bike ride, but before I could even get started he was already down the street zooming through the traffic. I thought I was going to get killed. Eventually, he did ask me where he should go, but by that time I was so shook by near death experiences I had no idea where we were or where we should go.

Somehow, probably luck more than anything else, we were at the entrance to a park I wanted to visit. I followed Bill to a bench, got off my bike and spent my time praising God for being alive. Once I was in the park, I’d studied the map of Victoria so much, that I was able to guide us back to the hotel.

Back at the Hotel

Once we returned to our room, it was time for coffee and snacks. Then Bill took his nap. This gave me the opportunity to arrange the room for three blissful days of not packing up and moving EVERY DAY. Then, I caught up in my travel journal and did crossword puzzles, while sitting next to our picture window, drinking a glass of wine.

Come dinner time, Bill decides we’re going to drive somewhere. I usually just go along to get along, but I’m the one who had done the research and I knew everything we wanted was within three blocks of us. We were not going to drive anywhere and try to park in Victoria. And that was that.

Our Evening Stroll

I think Bill cooperated so he could prove me wrong, but we were out of the hotel and on the sidewalk, so I didn’t care. We came to a restaurant called Mosaic Grille & Bar. Bill then decides there are actually restaurants within walking distance and he’s ready to go check out the rest. I really wasn’t up for that. I was afraid I’d end up with fast food and I wanted a meal. I didn’t exactly put my foot down, I’d already done that once within the same hour, but I made a strong case for taking advantage of what was right in front of us.

Once we had dinner, we strolled around the area, taking a closer look at the Fairmont Empress. Then back at the hotel, we went to the spa where the exercise facilities were. I knew then what I’d be doing first thing on the next morning!

The next day started at the gym, but then we went to Butchart Gardens. You don’t want to miss that!