A One Day Tour of Victoria, British Columbia

A pretty garbage container in Victoria

Beautiful gardens with colorful flowers in bloom; retired people leisurely strolling the streets; old fashioned historic buildings stand proudly in the city....
These are the images I have whenever the city of Victoria is mentioned
 We visited Vancouver thirty years ago but did not have time for Victoria. This time we made time for this beautiful city!

We took a day tour with a travel company and were picked up at around 7 a.m. at a downtown location.

Our tour bus went on Highway 99 - nicknamed the Highway to Heaven

The tour bus drove along Highway 99 - nicknamed Highway to Heaven because of all the different churches, temples and worship places sprung up in the area serving worshipers of various faiths and getting along peacefully with one another.

No matter what one's faith is, one can come here to worship and choose the church/ temple/ mosque one wishes, with the goal of getting to heaven after one passes away from this earth.

We enjoyed the spectacular scenery on board the ferry to Victoria

The ferry ride was about an hour and half from Vancouver to Victoria

B.C. Provincial Legislature Building

One of the first stops was the B.C. Provincial Legislature where politicians table and debates their policies and eventually pass them into laws. 

The B.C. Legislature Building is a magnificent building with arches, stained glass windows and much detail and fine decorative work throughout.

People who are interested in architecture like me would appreciate and enjoy touring this place.

The interior of the B.C. Provincial  Legislature Building

This is where the provincial government debates take place 

Victoria - home to the oldest Chinatown settled in 1858

Victoria is also where the oldest Chinatown is located.

Settled in 1858, it is the oldest and the most intact of its counterpart in Canada representing an important chapter of the heritage of Chinese Canadians in Canada.

Interesting shops in the alley way in Chinatown

It is a distinct self contained district with its commercial, residential and banking institutions.

As we  were there only for a few minutes, we did not have time to visit the shops in the alley way.













I loved the trees in the Victoria Chinatown as each tree lining the street in the area was trimmed in the shape of a Bonsai tree. It was beautiful and unique!

Terry Fox - started the Marathon of Hope 

After lunch, we went to the Beacon Hill Park where a statue was erected in honour of the most famous British Colombian.

Terry Fox was a young man when he was diagnosed with bone cancer and had his right leg amputated. Instead of feeling sorry for himself, Terry started his Marathon of Hope - running across Canada raise money for cancer research.

He dipped his leg in the water of east coast and started running each day on his one good leg and an artificial limb.  Unfortunately, his cancer reoccurred after his ran half way of Canada.  Outside of Thunder Bay, he had to call off the run and shortly afterwards he succumbed to the illness.   Since his death, the Marathon of Hope has continued every year across Canada and his spirit of hope passed on to generations to come!

The beach below Beacon Hill Park, Victoria

Some of the tourists took the time to descend the stairs and went to the beach close by.










It was a nice sunny afternoon, with mild temperature and mild breezes caressing our faces gently.

I could not believe that we were enjoying such mild weather in February in Canada!

Only in Vancouver and Victoria can Canadians enjoy such fine warm weather in the middle of winter!

Milo 0  Monument - the official starting point of Trans Canada Highway 

Another monument we saw in Beacon Hill Park was the Mile 0 Monument - this monument marks the official starting point of the Trans Canada Highway which links Canada from west to east.

It is the longest highway in the world!

Butchant Garden, Victoria

We arrived at the garden at around 2:00p.m. and toured the different themed gardens till 3:45p.m.













The Butchant Garden is a huge park made out of an abandoned limestone quarry by the Butchant family. There were a lot to see!

( I will write about the garden in a separate entry.)

We enjoyed the 1 day tour in Victoria !

We took the 5:00p.m. ferry and got back to Vancouver at around 6:30p.m

Annie, a lady from Vancouver took us to Robson Street and introduced us to this lively vibrant street. We did more walking in this great neighbourhood.

By the time we got back to the hotel, it was well past 9:00p.m.  A long, exhausting day, but we saw a great and learned a lot about Victoria, B.C. .



R.T.
One Day Tour of Victoria
British Columbia

A Ferry Ride on the Coastal Celebration from Vancouver to Victoria, B.C.

Boarding a Ferry to Victoria at the Tsawwaseen Ferry Terminal in Vancouver, British Columbia

Walking towards the ferry terminal

We recently visited Vancouver and took the opportunity to visit its capital, Victoria.

Our one day tour of Victoria started at the Tsawwaseen Ferry Terminal.

We arrived at the terminal shortly after 830 a.m. and boarded the 9 a.m. ferry to Victoria.

Our ferry was called Coastal Celebration

The ferry we took was called Coastal Celebration which was much bigger than we had anticipated.

Cars and trucks entering the car decks of the ferry to Victoria

It has seven decks with the bottom decks for cars, trucks while Deck 5 and 6 for passengers and Deck 7 for open air seating and viewing.

Deck 7 - for passenger to enjoy the view in open air

Vancouver is the warmest city in Canada. The winter weather could be foggy, rainy and grey for days.

We were fortunate as the weather was quite clear for the past few days.

The fine weather gave us the opportunity to be on Deck 7 to enjoy some fresh air and the smell of salty water. Totally loved it!

Spacious  & comfortable seating on the Coastal Celebration Ferry

As  we were travelling during the off peak season, there were ample and spacious seating on Deck 5 and 6 of the ferry.

The entire ferry trip took about an hour and half but it did not seem long at all as there were so much to see and do on the ferry.

Kids Zone

There were a lot of amenities on board of the Coastal Celebration such as:


 A Kids ‘ Zone, an area dedicated to young children with climbers

A Video Zone for teens and adults alike.

A Work Station for the hardworking people

A Work Station for those who need to work while on board

A nice gift shop with lots of reading material from which to choose on the ferry

A Gift Shop with good selections of clothing items, magazines and books, snacks and souvenirs.

Coastal Cafe - a real restaurant serving delicious and healthy food!

A real restaurant, Coastal Cafe, serving pretty good food!

Enjoying breakfast and beautiful scenery on board!

In the morning on our way to Victoria, we had oatmeal for breakfast. For dinner, on the way back we ordered  Salmon sandwich with Caesar salad.

A spacious and comfortable seating in the dining area

It was surprisingly delicious! The fish sandwich was made with B.C. salmon and fully load with all sorts of fresh vegetable. We could not get enough of it!


The unexpected delicious and healthy food was one of the highlights of this ferry ride!

It was an enjoyable hour and half ferry ride from Vancouver to Victoria

The view of the mountain scenery was spectacular!   We enjoyed the scenery in the comfort of the restaurant seating area with clear blue sky above and calm aqua water below us.

On board from Vancouver to Victoria

Not very often can we find views like this with the majestic mountains in the background and calm fresh salty crystal blue water .

The ride from Vancouver to Victoria was absolutely fantastic, one of the most enjoyable experiences we had on our west coast trip. Highly recommended it!!

Victoria, British Columbia, Canada

R.T.

Vancouver, British Columbia

A Visit to Gastown, Vancouver Brought Back Great Memories of Family Time!

City of Vancouver, British Columbia

Expo '86 was a great event! It put Vancouver on the map and the world fell in love with the city, the majestic mountains and the spectacular waterfront.!




We were in Vancouver for Expo'86 thirty years ago. Besides visiting the exhibits, we also visited a few famous Vancouver attractions.





Gastown was one of the places we visited back in 1986. On our trip to Vancouver this time, we revisited this beautiful place again.














I was a young parent at the time with two young children. My attention was taken up with chasing after them making sure they did not get lost.

Somehow I could not remember much of Gastown except for one restaurant where we had a very special dinner.

Our children were nine and five  respectively at the time and very curious and active.

The waiter who served us was very attentive and gave us exceptional service. He was patient with our children, explaining and answering every question they asked.

It was an elegant Chinese food restaurant with a Chinese garden designed inside the dining area - a small bridge over a water feature and numerous good size gold fish swimming leisurely back and forth.

Our waiter took the time and explained to us that the gold fish were fed at certain hours on the hour. When it was feeding time, one of the staff members would hit the gong to inform diners to come and watch.

Gastown - a trendy Vancouver neighbourhood with great eateries and interesting shops

It was wonderful to watch our children being delighted by the experience watching the gold fish making a run for the fed when the gong was struck.

Later, we learned that we were served by the Waiter of the Year in Vancouver!  That was the best dining experience we ever had!












We looked for the same Chinese restaurant during our visit to Gastown. Unfortunately, it was nowhere to be found.

Some of the interesting items sold in stores in Gastown

Gastown has become more upscale and trendy than when we first visited it in 1986.

Upscale stores and artsy shops line the streets in Gastown  

Gastown, Vancouver, British Columbia

Gastown is a unique neighbourhood with historic buildings, old fashion gas lamps, cobble stone streets and numerous colourful and interesting shops.

Visiting this beautiful neighbourhood brought back a lot of fond memories of our children when we were a young family!

R.T.
Gastown Area
Vancouver, B.C.

Caveman Restaurant - Keeping Us Healthy on Our Travel in Vancouver!

Caveman is located in the International Village Plaza, Downtown Vancouver

We are staying at the downtown Sandman Hotel which is only a stone throw away from many attractions in Vancouver.

We could walk to many places and love the opportunity to exercise our bodies.

Caveman serves Paleo, Vegetarian and Vegan food to its customers

On our first day in Vancouver, we walked from our hotel to Cambie Street and West Pander.

We came across the International Village Building with a food court and some interesting stores.

The furniture pieces are comfortable and inviting at Caveman

We discovered a great restaurant / store  called Caveman furnished with some interesting and inviting furniture pieces.

Delicious healthy food at very reasonable prices!

Caveman serves a number of Paleo food items  such as Paleo Pasta, Paleo Pizza and  Paleo Eggplant Lasagna  to its customers who can also shop for natural and organic groceries in the store.

We were delighted to discover that Caveman serves fresh mixed vegetable and fruit juices at a very reasonable price!

At $3.95, we could get a good size juice made freshly from carrots, celery and other assorted vegetables.

Customers can enjoy Paleo dishes and shop  for natural and organic items at Caveman restaurant

Staff at Caveman was very friendly indeed! I mentioned to Elisa – one of the staff members that we had some special dietary requirement and asked if she could incorporate a couple of the food items in the juice for our order.
She responded cheerfully saying she would get the ingredients and make us the special fruit drink that we need!

We enjoyed the Paleo food and  used the wi-fi at the Caveman 

Wow! What special service was that!  While we were in Vancouver, we started our day by walking down to the Caveman, drank our special fruit juice and continued our day of sightseeing.

As we age,  our bodies require special attention. Travelling outside our home town can disrupt our routines and sometimes it can be a barrier to our travel. Knowing that we can still eat healthy food at a reasonable price eases that worry making our travel more enjoyable.

Thank you, Caveman for your special Paleo menu with fresh fruit and vegetable juice selection and salad bar.

We did not need to eat junk food or break our bank while we were visiting Vancouver!

Love your Paleo Eggplant Lasagna and your Bulletproof Burrito! They rock!!!

R.T.
Caveman Restaurant
Downtown Vancouver
British Columbia