Travelogue

Lolo arrives at the Amethyst InnI have to admit that Victoria was a lot bigger and more urbanized than I expected, so I’m kind of glad we stayed in a cute little Victorian B&B called the Amethyst Inn, away from the hustle and bustle of downtown. When in Rome…be a Victorian.

Oh, and I am so glad we did. The Inn is a fully-restored historic mansion dating back to 1885, and it was absolutely amazing. Our room had 13-foot-ceilings, period furniture and antiques, a cozy fireplace, and a bathroom larger than most people’s living rooms, complete with a giant jacuzzi.

Lolo adjusting to the life of a VictorianWe only had one night here, so we probably should have been out exploring the city, but not before first testing out the jacuzzi. At first we thought it was broken, until we realized we had to flip the outlet switch in the bathroom.

Finally we filled it with water, added bubbles, and turned on the jets. I felt so decadent. It was great.

Craigdarroch CastleEventually we dragged ourselves out of the jacuzzi and set out to explore the town. Rather than drive, we decided to walk down Fort Street to the Inner Harbor (or Harbour as they call it).

Not far from the Amethyst Inn, we made a quick side trip to the Craigdarroch Castle, which unfortunately had already closed for the day. Too bad, because I would have loved to have seen the interior of what was known as a “bonanza castle” - a massive mansion built for entrepreneurs who became wealthy during the industrial age. In this case, the entrepreneur was Robert Dunsmuir, a Scottish immigrant who made his fortune from Vancouver Island coal.

Dinner at Frankie'sWe did, however, enjoy wandering around the exterior.

We continued down Fort Street with the intention of eating at Red Fish Blue Fish, a very popular dockside restaurant right on the harbor, but the line was a mile long.

So, we went back to Government Street, the main drag in terms of restaurants and strolled south towards the Empress Hotel looking for a place to eat. Everything looked pretty crowded.

The iconic Empress HotelWe finally settled on Frankie’s Modern Diner, which turned out to be a good choice - lots of variety, big portions, high quality, quick service, and good value.

After dinner, we continued strolling south to Victoria’s Inner Harbour, the scenic area of the waterfront with Victoria’s main tourist attractions - the Empress Hotel and the British Columbia Parliament Buildings, both extremely impressive structures, especially the Parliament Buildings whose facades were outlined in white lights.

The Crystal GardenThe Empress is the crown jewel on Victoria’s waterfront. Like the U.S. National Park lodges, the idea for the elegant, chateau-styled Empress was conceived by a railroad, in this case the Canadian Pacific Railway, as a way of attracting affluent steam and rail customers.

It was designed by celebrated architect Francis Rattenbury, who also designed the nearby iconic Parliament Building. The Empress Hotel opened in 1908, and it became, and still is, the social and business center of the city.

Glass and mirrors everywhereIt was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1981.

If we weren’t already planning to have afternoon tea at Butchart Gardens, the following day, I would have loved to experience afternoon tea here. It is the number one thing that most people associate with the Empress.

Behind the Empress Hotel, is a greenhouse garden called the Crystal Garden. It too was designed by Francis Rattenbury, as well as Percy L. James. It was inspired by London’s more famous Crystal Palace.

Parliament BuildingsIt began as an indoor saltwater swimming pool and dance hall in 1925, commissioned (like the Empress Hotel) by the Canadian Pacific Railway as a way to attract visitors to the city. It continued as that until it was converted to a conservatory in 1980, and is now a Conference Center with a tropical garden of lush plants, exotic birds and mammals.

Its use of glass and steel was unique in Canada at the time of its construction, and reminiscent of railway architecture and the use of glass-enclosed spaces.

We entered the Crystal Garden by walking through the lobby of The Empress. Surprisingly, we had the whole place to ourselves.

Back home to the Amethyst InnFrancis Rattenbury must have been a very busy man, because he also designed the iconic Parliament Buildings, which are a dominant feature of the Inner Harbour. The buildings are the official residence for the B.C. Parliament to pass laws and the Provincial Legislative Assembly to pass laws gather and discuss the direction of the province. It was too bad that we weren’t in Victoria long enough to take one of the guided tours through the buildings.

It was such a nice night that we decided to walk the 2 miles back to the Amethyst Inn.

Victorian breakfast at the Amethyst InnThe next morning, I was very much looking forward to enjoying the Inn’s highly acclaimed breakfast. We sauntered down the staircase like a Victorians and entered the elegant dining room where the tables were set with old china, silverware, and cut glass on white linen tablecloths - just like at home.

The breakfast was amazing - three courses including a fresh fruit parfait, delicious omelet, and home baked croissants and scones.

Sadly, we only had one night in Victoria and had to check out this morning. However, since our ferry to Port Angeles wasn’t until 7:30 tonight, we had the whole day to explore.

Fisherman' WharfWe planned to spend the entire afternoon at the famous Butchart Gardens, but first we wanted to see Fisherman’s Wharf before leaving Victoria. Although it is close to the Inner Harbour, we didn’t have time to explore here last night.

Plus, it was much better in the daylight to enjoy the colorful floating homes, or houseboats, as I would call them. The Victoria Harbour Authority has set aside 33 berths in the marina for floating residences. All of them are occupied and cannot be rented. Too bad, because they would be great Airbnbs.

What a fun place to live though - right in the middle of the action.

Colorful floating homes at Fisherman's wharfMy favorite thing, however, was a cute little yellow water taxi docked at the wharf. The skipper was nice enough to let me and Herb board it. He even used my phone to take pictures of it.

I so wish that we had more time in Victoria, because I would have loved to take a harbor tour in one of these, or at least gotten to see them perform their synchronized water ballet.

Yes, that’s right, these adorable little taxies perform a water ballet every Sunday morning at 10:45 to demonstrate their amazing maneuverability. They have been doing this for 21 years.

Cute little water taxisWhat they are probably best known for is the little 10 minute “Water Ballet" they have been doing every Sunday morning from May to September for 21 years. The boats line up at 10:45 a.m. and demonstrate their amazing maneuverability for the tourists.

The Harbour Ferry captains who volunteered to become “ballerinas” take it very seriously and even practice their routines on land. Apparently, it’s not uncommon to find five men in Harbour Ferry uniforms practicing their ballet moves on foot around the parking lot. I would have loved to have seen that!

As I mentioned, we had the whole day to enjoy before catching our 7:30 pm ferry, so we drove to the famous Butchart Gardens, a half hour north of Victoria in the town of Brentwood.