Dave and I had the pleasure and privilege of attending the Seattle wedding of a dear friend of mine from high school. We visited Seattle for a few days, then took ferries up to Victoria and Vancouver, British Columbia. We had thought we would enjoy this area of Canada, and we were right! This blog post is about Victoria, and I'll do another about Vancouver.
We took the ferry from Victoria on Sunday; the views from the boat were lovely, and they gave me free motion sickness meds! We got up on deck for a few windy minutes.
Victoria feels like a little mini Britain in the pacific northwest. It definitely feels more maritime than Chicago, which has its sailboats and shipping but doesn't feel very port-like.
We walked around the first night, had beers at our hotel, Swans (which is also a brewery, with a very lager-forward draft list), and enjoyed dinner at Little Jumbo, which boasted fantastic cocktails and was the best dinner we ate in Victoria.
We based our visits to Victoria (and Vancouver) on the NYT 36 hours articles, and the NYT recommended most of the restaurants we visited.
The next morning, I had a spectacular breakfast at Fol Epi that consisted of yogurt & house-made granola, as well as splitting a maple walnut butter tart with Dave. We made our way up Government Street, stopping at Munro's Books, a stunningly beautiful book shop in an old bank (I think) and buying some postcards to send home.
We walked down to the coast and up Dallas Road, from which we enjoyed several miles of hiking the coast.
We got to see the world's largest free-standing totem pole in Beacon Hill Park, then walked up to Abhkazi Garden, an adorable little garden with an interesting story. This was where we really began to understand how much Victorians love their gardens. Walking back through the neighborhoods and visiting the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria on our way back downtown, you can see the beautifully curated lawns and gardens - really more garden than lawn.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed tea & snacks at the Empress - a very touristy but fun thing to do. (And delicious, I might add.) I could drink tea all day, and who needs crusts on sandwich bread anyway?
I should mention at this point that we accidentally tagged along on my friend's mini-moon. They booked a few days in Victoria after the wedding to chill out, and we ended up on the same ferry AND the same 2 p.m. tea time. We gave them space and decided to have dinner together Tuesday night.
After our tea, we visited three breweries outside of the downtown: Driftwood, Hoyne, and Spinnakers. We got to meet some Canadians traveling through and sampling beers, as well, and after several flights, we felt like we could solve all the world's problems together. I think our favorite was Driftwood.
In the evening, we dined at OLO, which served great seasonal fish, meat, and veggie dishes. I thought the selections were a little meat-heavy, but my mini-mooning friends (both vegetarian) also visited the restaurant on the trip and they were fine.
The next morning, Tuesday, we took a local's recommendation of Jam Café for breakfast, and we were not disappointed. Victoria seems obsessed with eggs benedict, and there were at least six or seven variations on the dish. We chose a simple one with candied bacon to split, and a banana bread French toast special to split. OH MAN. The granola at Fol Epi was fantastic, but the French toast was something else. Get there right when it opens to avoid the line.
We stopped by for some library tourism at the central branch downtown, where I learned about a fun seed library project, then spent a couple of hours at the Royal BC Museum. This museum has a ton of wonderful history and cultural exhibits on the First Nations, and it makes me realize that America could do better in this area.
We took the bus up to Butchart Gardens, 'cause you kinda have to. It was seriously cool! The main draws are the Japanese garden (all kinds of zen little nooks and crannies), the rose garden, and the Sunken Garden (a former quarry filled with flower-lined paths).
I enjoyed my visit to Butchart, although I have to say it was insanely crowded even for a random Tuesday afternoon. I would really hate to see it on a Saturday.
We met up with my mini-mooning friends for a quick drink at their hotel and then to a nice veggie-filled dinner at a local vegetarian Chinese restaurant. At this point, after eating out so much, we were really desperate for some vegetables and fruit.
The next morning, we grabbed some quiche and pain au chocolat at Fol Epi again and hit the road for the ferry over to Vancouver! We enjoyed our stop in Victoria, and actually Victoria ended up being Dave's favorite of the three Canadian cities we've visited (Montreal, Victoria, and Vancouver). I think he likes the British side, and that it's quieter than either of the other two. Definitely worth a trip on the ferry!
We based our visits to Victoria (and Vancouver) on the NYT 36 hours articles, and the NYT recommended most of the restaurants we visited.
The next morning, I had a spectacular breakfast at Fol Epi that consisted of yogurt & house-made granola, as well as splitting a maple walnut butter tart with Dave. We made our way up Government Street, stopping at Munro's Books, a stunningly beautiful book shop in an old bank (I think) and buying some postcards to send home.
We walked down to the coast and up Dallas Road, from which we enjoyed several miles of hiking the coast.
We got to see the world's largest free-standing totem pole in Beacon Hill Park, then walked up to Abhkazi Garden, an adorable little garden with an interesting story. This was where we really began to understand how much Victorians love their gardens. Walking back through the neighborhoods and visiting the Art Gallery of Greater Victoria on our way back downtown, you can see the beautifully curated lawns and gardens - really more garden than lawn.
In the afternoon, we enjoyed tea & snacks at the Empress - a very touristy but fun thing to do. (And delicious, I might add.) I could drink tea all day, and who needs crusts on sandwich bread anyway?
I should mention at this point that we accidentally tagged along on my friend's mini-moon. They booked a few days in Victoria after the wedding to chill out, and we ended up on the same ferry AND the same 2 p.m. tea time. We gave them space and decided to have dinner together Tuesday night.
After our tea, we visited three breweries outside of the downtown: Driftwood, Hoyne, and Spinnakers. We got to meet some Canadians traveling through and sampling beers, as well, and after several flights, we felt like we could solve all the world's problems together. I think our favorite was Driftwood.
In the evening, we dined at OLO, which served great seasonal fish, meat, and veggie dishes. I thought the selections were a little meat-heavy, but my mini-mooning friends (both vegetarian) also visited the restaurant on the trip and they were fine.
The next morning, Tuesday, we took a local's recommendation of Jam Café for breakfast, and we were not disappointed. Victoria seems obsessed with eggs benedict, and there were at least six or seven variations on the dish. We chose a simple one with candied bacon to split, and a banana bread French toast special to split. OH MAN. The granola at Fol Epi was fantastic, but the French toast was something else. Get there right when it opens to avoid the line.
We stopped by for some library tourism at the central branch downtown, where I learned about a fun seed library project, then spent a couple of hours at the Royal BC Museum. This museum has a ton of wonderful history and cultural exhibits on the First Nations, and it makes me realize that America could do better in this area.
We took the bus up to Butchart Gardens, 'cause you kinda have to. It was seriously cool! The main draws are the Japanese garden (all kinds of zen little nooks and crannies), the rose garden, and the Sunken Garden (a former quarry filled with flower-lined paths).
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| Rose Garden at Butchart |
We met up with my mini-mooning friends for a quick drink at their hotel and then to a nice veggie-filled dinner at a local vegetarian Chinese restaurant. At this point, after eating out so much, we were really desperate for some vegetables and fruit.
The next morning, we grabbed some quiche and pain au chocolat at Fol Epi again and hit the road for the ferry over to Vancouver! We enjoyed our stop in Victoria, and actually Victoria ended up being Dave's favorite of the three Canadian cities we've visited (Montreal, Victoria, and Vancouver). I think he likes the British side, and that it's quieter than either of the other two. Definitely worth a trip on the ferry!
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