We are on the Ferry headed back to Vancouver from Victoria. Have some time so I will try to catch you up if I can take my eyes off the breathtaking scenery for a few moments. First, it is worth mentioning how efficient the system is here. It takes about 5 minutes to get everyone and their cars onboard. The water, the trees, the sail boats and kayaks, the big fat, seagulls, ohh there’s a huge buffet and a lounge,,,, okay I’m back.
Highlights: The center of downtown, the Inner Harbour, Empress Hotel… We walked that area the first day when we arrived. For dinner we made a reservation at Il Terrazzo, a local restaurant, on a great tip from a fellow blackjack player we met at a table in Vegas. We heard the portions were quite large and since we wanted to try it all we shared several courses. Delicious antipasti with portabella mushroom in a focaccia crumb and herb crust, oven baked with garlic butter, prosciutto, sun-dried tomatoes and pine nuts, sliced and tossed with baby spinach, crispy capers and balsamic vinegar (unique and very good) then a RISOTTO VERDURA with roasted shallots, peas,
artichoke hearts, char-grilled radicchio and crumbled goat cheese(need to recreate that one), and for dessert, Dijon crusted rack of premium Australian lamb with roasted shallots, rosemary and demi-glace served with roasted potatoes and seasonal vegetables ooh la la.
Next day headed to Butchart Gardens, one of the most beautiful gardens in the world. It has a variety of wonders such as a rose garden, sunken garden, Japanese moss garden and an Italian garden. We really could have spent the whole day here but still so much to do. --- What a gem. Our original plan was to have afternoon tea at the Empress but we sort of got caught up with a friendly seal. We were headed downtown and stopped for these incredible noodles at the Noodle Box, ingenious concept that would do very well in Miami. Next stopped for fish and chips at a floating restaurant on the docks. That’s when the cutest seal popped his head out of the water and we just couldn’t bear to leave. Come to think of it, we couldn’t bear putting one more thing in our stomachs either. Guess we just need to keep walking…
Finished with the scenic drive, which we sort of did by accident. Discovered many beautiful neighborhoods that we could live in.
