After spending a lot of time in the snow and in the cold, in cities like Edmonton and Calgary, doing fun things on the ski runs in Jasper and Lake Louise, and of course spending a really good time with my friends David, Kelsey, her family and friends, it was time to say goodbye. David left Calgary on the 4th of January, and I took a plane to Victoria on Vancouver Island on the 6th. This goodbye was a goodbye for a long time. I think the next time I will see them again - together - will be somewhere in Europe, sometime in the future.
Anyways, as said, on the 6th I took a plane to Victoria. After I was told this is one of Canada’s most beautiful places I just had to check that out. I arrived early in the morning and found my way to Saanich, a part of Victoria near the University. On CouchSurfing.org I found a place to stay, because hostels here are charging a ridiculous amount of 25 CAD a night. My host was friendly and explained a lot about his city, although he wasn’t from here and I had a hard time understanding him sometimes.
I explored Victoria in two days only, and that was enough. The first day I took a bus to Downtown and walked around in the oldest Chinatown of North America - believe it or not, Victoria’s Chinatown is the oldest in Canada - founded in 1858 - and second oldest in North America after San Francisco - founded 1848. I walked through it but I wasn’t really impressed. There is nothing special to see or to do, nor did it really looked old. I visited the botanic garden in the middle of it, but once again, I wasn’t impressed. But, maybe I didn’t saw what I should have seen there, or maybe I wasn’t on the right day or time.
So I continued towards downtown, made the ’scenic waterfront walk’ along the harbor. Nice views on some old buildings - well, old is here relative of course - and visited the British Columbia Parliament Buildings - 1893 - which is free. There are guided tours available but you can also take a tour on your own. An information book is available in many languages - even in Dutch! - and finding your way through the building is very easy.
After that I crossed the street and visited the Royal British Columbia Museum which is in the same building as the IMAX Theater. That day, the entrée fee was a donation - free! I was impressed by this museum. The expositions were great and the museum was bigger than it looks from the outside. The most impressive part was the natural history gallery, finally something other than Inca’s, Mayas or masks. The popular woolly mammoth - in real size - was amazing! One part of the museum had a classic theme and displayed ‘gadgets’ from the 70’s and 80’s, and even played Charlie Chaplin’s ‘The Gold Rush‘ from 1925. This museum is definitely worth the money and the visit!
The Scenic Beach Drive on foot
The next day, I started early, crossed through the UVIC and headed to the edge of Victoria. From here I followed the Scenic Beach Drive all the way to downtown. Normally you do this by car but it was a nice sunny day and I was up for a walk. It took my nearly 4 hours to walk the whole 20 km but it was more than worth doing it! I stopped at many wonderful view points, saw the Snow Mountains in the distance and even took off my jacket because the sun was nice and warm. 20 km seems far, but there are no mountains to cross, which makes this walk very easy. I entered the walk into Google Maps - http://bit.ly/7yr2WX - for those of you who want to do the same walk. There are two points of interest, and you can find them on these GPS locations:
1. Viewpoint at http://bit.ly/4Yz5hd
2. Blue Chair at http://bit.ly/90irFj
Okay, enough about Victoria - been there, done that - because the same night as my walk I met up with Seb and Natasha from the UK. Seb is Bella’s brother where I traveled with in Colombia. We emailed a few days before I came and they invited me over to their place. So after the dinner we picked up my bags - I quickly said goodbye to my CS host - and we drove off to their place. Seb and Natasha are teachers at the Pearson College in Metchosin. Surrounded by beautiful nature I stayed with them for a few nights. I explored the woods surrounding the college, did some bigger walks, went with Natasha and their dog to China Beach, rented a car and drove all the way to Tofino and Ucluelet, back to Metchosin and up to Port Renfrew. 1000 km in two days.
I love Vancouver Island! There are so many wonderful places, so many incredible hikes you can do. My favorite places are China Beach and the hike along the beach. You can hike as much as you want because a one way is about 60 km. Near Tofino and Ucluelet are many more hikes and the beaches are easily reachable by car. I was there with stormy weather, so I did some storm watching. I also went to Port Renfrew from where the famous West Coast Trail starts. If you love nature, and you like hiking, this island is the place to be! Oh, and of course also if you are into surfing. Great waves are found on several beaches.
I enjoyed staying with Seb, Natasha and their dog Ridley. Thanks for letting me stay guys!!
From Victoria I took the ferry up to Vancouver. It’s a 1,5 hour boat ride and costs only 13,50 CAD. Once here, I took some buses to make it first down to a small place called White Rock where Jordan picked me up. I once again met two wonderful people where I spend some time with in Peru.
22. January 2010 | Canada