Up early today for showers before catching the 8:15 ferry to Victoria, British Colombia, from Port Angeles, WA. What a beautiful city Victoria was! Between the two of us, we took nearly 1,100 pictures. Trying to cut that down to a manageable number is nearly impossible. We included some of our favorites today, but we may post some more Victoria pictures later when we have a slow day.
We have the first stamp in our passports!
I guess I had not thought about how big the ferry would be, but I should have realized it would have to be big to carry semi-trucks. Our RV could have taken the ride easily - maybe someday!
David is checking out the vehicles parked on the lower deck.
He's thinking "If I can drive a Motorhome, I could drive this..."
It was the perfect day to visit Canada!
Our plan was to get off of the ferry and just walk around for the day. A little research and some maps showed us there was a lot to see in the harbor area. We didn't know there was a festival at the docks and rowing races. We saw a lot of people walking around downtown with padded cases for their paddles.
Race day!
Weeping Giant Sequoia -
Sequoiadendron giganteum 'Pendulum'
This is a single tree that is about
20 feet high at the top of the arch.
This tree starts here... (taken as I walked through the arch)
And ends up on the other side (also taken from inside the arch)
Victoria is the capital of British Columbia, so of course, there were some impressive government buildings. Tours were free and we only had to wait 10 minutes for the next one to start, so we only had time for a few quick pictures. Beautiful and expansive grounds meant we would spend more time after the tour to fully capture our visit here.
The construction of the BC Parliament Buildings in 1883 was led by a 25-year-old architect by the name of Francis Rattenbury.
We finally saw a Roosevelt Elk and a Bighorn Sheep - in one place along with the BC motto Splendor sine occasu (meaning "Beauty without Diminishment" in Latin, we were told).
Looking up from the rotunda.
The formal entryway - dignitaries only!
It seemed strange not to see "House" and "Senate" chambers, but only a Parliamentary chamber. We were told the sides were placed 2 1/2 sword lengths apart to avoid trouble during heated arguments.
The legislative chamber inside the Parliament Building.
The window was designed and created before receiving
approval from the Queen. She was not
pleased that the setting sun was above the Union Jack. "The sun will NEVER set on the British Empire. " Ever since the setting sun has appeared
below the Union Jack on the coat-of-arms.
This woman, dressed in period clothes, provided a bit of living history by telling us about her life in the 1800s. She had plenty of volume, but her accent required close attention or you could miss part of her story.
We learned all about Nellie Chapman, the "Miners Angel".
"Livin' Easy" Orange Floribunda
"Eliza" Pink Hybrid Tea
The back door at the Parliament.
Across the street was the Empress Hotel. Same architect as the Parliament buildings and nearly as impressive.
David is flanked by a pair of Weeping Giant Sequoias.
This amazing bookstore lined its upper walls with some of the most spectacular quilts I have ever seen. One on each side representing each season (8 in all).
This was my favorite, but it was a hard call. I have close-ups of each one, but today is a bit picture heavy as it is.
We had read a lot about Victoria's Chinatown, so we spent some time there. I can't say it felt so different - no ethnic change in the crowds, no foreign languages spoken - just Chinese decorations right down to the streetlamps and street signs (done very nicely!)
Fan Tan Alley was different - 5 feet wide and three stories tall - it was a tight squeeze at times.
This was a beautiful church, but I never crossed the street to capture it. At least I satisfied my love of doors.
They had volleyball on the roof!
When we got hungry, we stopped at a small deli where we had 1/4 pound hot dogs. Mine was covered with bacon, onion straws, cheese and hot sauce. Joani was a bit more traditional with just chili and cheese. Of course, we had to have one of their caramel milkshakes.
Oh, Katie! We were bad, but it was so good after many miles of walking!
We did not buy fudge! (Just a sample)
This joke shop was a hoot!
In front of the Starbucks (across the street from the other Starbucks) were 7 chalk drawings (all masters replicas) that were amazing. (I left my foot in for scale)
Water taxis everywhere!
Time to say goodbye to a beautiful city.
The lights along the shore are Port Angeles welcoming us back to the US. We got home around 10:30 making it a very long day. Sam was sure happy to see us get back! We were worn out, but before bed, we played with Sam a bit to make up for leaving him all day.
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