Nine Days Later

You mean I've had a life and haven't posted anything on my blog?!

Quelle strange!

Or rather - Go Liz go!

I'm about to upload some photos of Victoria, which was extremely hot! Not kidding. At least 96 degrees on the cool side. And humid as all get out! But gorgeous and it was actually really great to spend time with my father. The ferry ride over, we saw some whales. Just their top fins, but it was tres cool and very inspiring. Whales are cool like that. Even if you're not interested in them as animals, you can't help but look at them. Not in a train wreck kind of way. More like that moment when you glance at someone and they actually look back at you to grin or nod their head in greeting.

Yeah, those moments are cool. And so are whales. I'm going on about it b/c I don't have a photo. Figures.

But we went out to eat once we got to Victoria. I drove! Everywhere! Dad said: Well, how old are you now? Old enough to drive in a foreign country? Yeah right, foreign. OK Dad, sure, whatever. And we had dinner and walked and people watched on Government St. on the Inner Harbor (which is spelled Harbour over there - darn those foreign Canadians). Very pretty downtown area. And then we went back to our hotel room, which did not have AC. Suck.

But I got a really good last minute deal - $90 and I booked it the day before checking in and it was a Saturday night. And it was pretty much downtown, where every other hotel is like at least 150. I'm so good.

Anyway, we went to the BC History Museum, which has an exhibit on the First Peoples of British Columbia and Vancouver Island in particular. Super cool totem poles, masks, artwork, clothing, canoes, baskets, tools, jewlery, and photos taken from the turn of the century. They divide it up into Pre-Westerners and Post-Westerners essentially. So, it makes an impact on how Europeans coming to BC truly effected these people and how selfish the government was in regards to land.

And they have an IMAX film to go along. Which was nice for Dad, to take a breather and sit down. And then we went shopping. Crazy amounts of money were spent. Dad went to this market by the water off in an alley - walking only. And got Mom and I camping soap, which smells a little like coconuts, but really like a super strong soap. Like take your everyday Dove soap bar and ratch it up ten notches. :) But it was a nice gesture.

I bought some LUSH facial moisturizer for myself. So yummy-smelling. Amulets for everyone at the office. So, they're little touchstones which give you "power" depending on what syumbol is carved on the front of the stone. A T-shirt and canvas bag for Mom and a T-shirt for myself. It's very subtle - bright red with a huge maple leaf on the front and block letters spelling CANADA on the back.

But tax there was like 13%!!!! Ouch!

But it was money well spent. And on the way back to the ferry, we stopped at Butchart Gardens, which is a beautiful place. And it was at peak hotness while we were there on Sunday, but worth it to walk through the Rose Garden. The heat just makes the fragrance even more intense. And in July, come on, roses are blooming and at their peak as well. It was absolutely beautiful. They also have a Japanese Garden and a Bog, where everything is peet moss and long grasses and I took a picture of some deer sculptures made from the moss. Cute. And just lots of other stuff, but we were both sweating like crazy, so we left with plenty of time to make the ferry and go through customs.

And while we were waiting, they always have a little shop for food and souvenirs, etc. Well, they had a shelf with used books at half price. I bought two. Ten bucks very well spent. One is Mary Higgins Clark "Daddy's Little Girl" which is similar to the Martha Moxley case that involved a Kennedy relative who killed her. Interesting. And the other is Barbara Michaels "Stitches in Time", which I've started first. Excellent read. I'm nearly done and I only bought it on Sunday. It's about as close to knitting/sewing/whatever as I'll ever get.

So just wait for the pictures, which I'll post tomorrow maybe. I'm starting to get tired. I can't wake up in the mornings anymore. Makes me worry that I'm getting depressed or sick or something else.