There is a definite charm and ambiance about Victoria. Reminds us of a mini-Amsterdam or even Copenhagen. When the sun is out, the sky is blue, the area is absolutely breathtaking.
Victoria on Vancouver Island was named after Queen Victoria and is one of the oldest settlements along the Pacific Northwest region beginning in 1843.
Even the legendary Captain James Cook made it here in 1778. There is a monument of him along the harbor.
The magnificent Parliament Building of British Columbia is along the waterfront. Built in 1898, the cost was less than a million dollars.
There are tours inside.
The stain-glass windows are gorgeous.
We love seeing the Parliament Building at night.
At one corner is a soldier’s statue honoring those that fought in WWI & II, and the Korean War.
The harbor is not that large. We did catch the fleet that sails from Victoria to Maui, Hawaii in 2007.
It is at this harbor where one can take a tour to see Orcas that usually are found around the San Juan Islands. We did this tour in 2002 and it was a blast. One Orca was swimming close to the boat. I thought it was going to hit us. I snapped this picture before he (males are known for their huge fins) went under.
The community does let you know that Orca watching is a big time activity in Victoria:
We always enjoy finding paintings from Robert Wyland. He takes obscure wall spaces and paints these most interesting ocean scenes. Robert has over 100 world-wide murals.
We actually met Robert Wyland down in southern Key Largo in 2007.
An elaborate harbor walk will take one around the small bay. In 2010 and 2017, we came across Rich Rico and his drift wood:
Along the way, there is a congregation of “house-boats” that has formed into a community.
I loved Jackson’s ice-cream and his kiosk that served a delicious sausage hoagie.
There are numerous ways to arrive in Victoria. First, you can fly. Victoria has a decent airport. We donated almost a full bottle of Beefeater! We learned that one can’t bring an open bottle on board. Also, float planes take off in the harbor, mostly going to the city of Vancouver. You can’t miss them as they make plenty of noise.
There is a direct car ferry route from Port Angeles, WA that takes 20 minutes.
Even this RV came across on the ship.
From Seattle, there is the famous high speed passenger ferry, Victoria Clipper. One-way travel will take less than three hours. The hope is that you don’t have any rough seas. We were fortunate.
You can easily take a car from the city of Vancouver on a ferry.
Or even take a five-hour bus ride via a ferry over or back from Vancouver Island.
There are plenty of accommodations. In our first visit in 2002, we had a discount to a gorgeous hotel called Hotel Grand Pacific.
We stayed at the Best Western in 2004; the Admiral’s Inn 2010; and a Airbnb in 2017 along the waterfront. Our view from the Airbnb was of all the water-taxies.
Our daughter in 2017 stayed at Helms Inn. It was cheaper than most, but had all the conveniences. We may stay here next time.
People with deep pockets stay at the famous Fairmont Empress Hotel where “High Tea” is served. Built in 1908, it is part of Canada’s grand railway hotels.
Across the street from the Parliament Building is the Royal BC Museum. A superb collection of the Salish and Songhees First Nation Peoples displays. There is also an IMAX theatre. We found the museum to be quite interesting.
Walking downtown, we came across “China Town.” It is the oldest China Town in Canada and one of the largest in North America.
In 2017, we had a car and drove around Victoria’s communities. We found Oak Bay to be quite lovely with beautiful homes. You can also see these places by the Hop-on-Hop-off busses.
By the Oak Bay Marina, we saw this seal and in 2017 this whale.
From the distance, one could actually see Mount Baker
Kathie found a relaxing chair to sit and enjoy the ambiance.
Along the waterfront in a park is a statue of Terrance Stanley Fox.
One of his legs was amputatedsix inches above the knee due to cancer. He decided to run across Canada to raise money for cancer research. Terrance ran for 143 days; 3,339 miles. He was forced to quit near Thunder Bay when his cancer spread. He died at the age of 23. The foundation has raised over 750 million dollars in his name.
One of the places we enjoyed visiting was the Craigdarroch Castle.
Robert Dunsmuir made his monies in coal. He promised his wife that he would build her a “castle” if she moved from Scotland to Vancouver Island. Thirty-six years later, he built her the castle. Unfortunately, right before the castle was completed, Robert died.
There is a beautiful collection of stained-glass windows.
In an upper room, there is an English style pool table. It is much longer than the traditional tables in the USA.
The castle was built in 1890 at the cost of a half million dollars. The estate fell on hard times and eventually sold for $38,000 dollars. The castle later became a hospital, a college, school board offices, a Conservatory of Music and finally a museum in 1979.
A visit to Butchart Gardens is a “must see” while visiting Victoria.
The Gardens are about 12 miles north of downtown Victoria, or about 35 minutes by bus or car.
Built in 1907, the gardens were the inspiration of a woman, Jennie Butchart. The area was originally a limestone quarry. When the limestone ran out, Jennie thought of making a “sunken-garden.”
With the help of a Japanese gardener, Butchart blossomed to 55 acres of floral displays. The gardens receive over a million visitors a year.
We always made it a point to touch the tip of the “Boar’s Head” for good luck and possible returns to this gorgeous place. We have visited and blessed four different times. Butchart Gardens is designated as a National Historic Site of Canada.
We visited Butchart on its One-Hundredth birthday in 2007.
One of my favorite spots is the “Hole to Tod’s Inlet.”
The fountains lend itself to beautiful pictures too.
Along the route, we visited Victoria’s Butterfly Gardens. I thought I snapped a few good butterfly pictures.
Maybe one of the reasons why we like Victoria so much are the good restaurants in the community. One of our favorites for lunch is Terrazzo’s located in the Waddington Alley which was built in 1858. The food is really good here.
I did thoroughly enjoy my NY Steak at Tapa Bar.
Kathie enjoyed the home-style bread.
In 2010, we met the Tapa’s chef.
In 2017, our daughter joined us for a fine meal at “The Sticky Wicket.” The Shrimp Jambalaya was tasty.
The second floor has a volleyball court. You got to love a place that has volleyball.
Around the harbor, we enjoyed “Spinnakers Gastro.”
The Bangers and Mash was excellent.
Kathie enjoyed the soup.
Next to us, the couple enjoyed “Fish and Chips.” They were more than happy for me to take this picture.
You have no idea what you may see walking downtown. In 2010 and 2017, I saw this same guy wearing a “Darth Vader” outfit.
In 2002, we came across this unique car.
And in 2017, we came across this van:
There seems to always be car shows when we come to Victoria. These cars are cool.
We did come across this manikin that looked like one of my school administrators.
There are plenty of pubs. The Irish Times became one of our favorites.
A good number of ice-cream shops. My favorite was Flavors.
In 2018, we were in New Mexico to see the famous Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque. In Santa Fe, New Mexico when we stayed at the Governors Inn, I was swimming in their beautiful pool. Someone asked me what college I had graduated from. I said, “Ohio Wesleyan University,” in Delaware, OH. Sure enough, there was this woman who over-heard me. She said, “I graduated from there too!”
Today Dr. Rose Stewart teaches Spanish at the University of Victoria. We had some of the same teachers, like Dr. Anna Macias. Ironically, I never met her in school, but we did graduate in the same year, 1977. It is indeed “A Small World.”
Victoria is known to have a “Mediterranean Climate.” In the summer, the mornings are cool and the days are pleasant. A bit different than the Greek Mediterranean where summers can be quite warm. The area does attract old and young alike. A popular saying is that Victoria attracts “the newly wed and nearly dead.” It is easy to see why.