OK, Friday comes early this week.
Continuing from Part 1:
Next morning, we check-out early, gas-up the Vette and head south several blocks to connect back to Hwy 99 south. We then exit onto Hwy 17, following the newly constructed and somewhat remote 7 mile man-made causeway and island which houses the Tsawwassen Ferry Building; years in planning and constructing. We load the Vette on board the MV Tsawwassen for our 90 minute cruse to Swartz Bay, 20 miles north of Victoria. It’s a perfect day with beautiful clear skies and calm seas.
Once there, we off-load the Vette and follow the Pat (Patricia) Bay Highway leisurely down the coast, turning west on Keatings Cross Road on to Benvenuto Ave. to the incredibly beautiful Butchart Gardens, just past Tod Inlet. In 1904 the concept of the gardens began with an effort to beautify an old worked out limestone quarry on the large estate owned by R.P. Butchart, a pioneer in the manufacture of Portland cement.
His wife is given credit for creating the spectacular 50-acre floral expanse we see today. Plant material for all seasons; manicured lawns, gardens and trees, step-stone paths, stairways up through oceans of color. And then the sunken gardens where standing at the highest point we can see the only remnant of the original cement factory, a tall chimney that stands as a monument to how generosity can create shared beauty such as this …..we spend 2 hours just following a guide map and stopping for a quick lunch.
The Vette takes us out and this time down 17A where we proceed south, winding our way around to Victoria’s Inner Harbour and park at the old Empress Hotel.
The Empress was built in Edwardian style between 1904 and 1908 as a terminus hotel for passengers traveling on the Canadian Pacific steamship line, whose terminal is only a block away. Over the years, it’s had several owners, undergone additions and renovations, but still remains an essential part of the culture and ambiance of Victoria. So much so that there is no outside signage that tells the arriving guest what it is….you are supposed to already know. Today, it’s a bit weather-worn, needing renovation inside and out but still stately and impressive. We have afternoon tea (an ancient tradition here) in the Tea Lobby, with tasty raisin scones and jams.
Afterwards Sara and I walk over to the Tally-Ho and rent a private horse drawn carriage, with a driver so incredibly knowledgeable of the city and surrounds that we could listen and look all day. We actually extend our tour in route much to the pleasure of our guide who has so many special places to take us….such a steady, slow pace we go, on such a tranquil day without a worry in the world.
Later, we’re back at The Empress where we just walk around the grounds and visit the other gardens and shops adjacent to the harbour.
Time to leave comes much too soon. We reclaim the Vette and drive the short distance along the harbour for the ferry to Seattle, the Princess Marguerite II (a side loader), owned by Canadian Pacific. This is actually a small luxury liner, accommodating 2,000 passengers and 60 automobiles with all the amenities you’d expect to have trans-oceanic.
Once under way we go up on deck, where we gaze back at the receding landscape of Victoria, as if somehow it captures the entirety of the fun we’ve had on our two day whirlwind visit to Canada.And there is this silent time when we lean over the railing next to the canvas covered life boats; each looking away at the evening’s red sky and the darkening water below, feeling the ferry shutter as it cuts through the waves, and wondering separately what’s to become of us.
The ferry arrives at Pier 64 near the foot of Lenora Street, an easy drive back to The Edgewater. We unload the luggage, mine taken to the lobby, hers to her car where we stand for a moment.
“You know, Tennyson also wrote The Miller’s Daughter”…. “Ever read it?” I ask.
She says nothing while searching my eyes for the longest time….I smile and she responds….thinking, but still not answering. She doesn’t have to…..she can probably recite it from memory.
It’s getting late so I say thanks and goodnight with a friendly embrace, and a promise to call before I leave in the morning. And as I start to turn away she touches my arm and says, “I’d like to stay and hear more about that poem”.
“Tell me this is not another practical joke” I say, and we both break out with laughter as she puts her arms around my waist and presses in close. The Vette sees the whole thing.
Continuing from Part 1:
Next morning, we check-out early, gas-up the Vette and head south several blocks to connect back to Hwy 99 south. We then exit onto Hwy 17, following the newly constructed and somewhat remote 7 mile man-made causeway and island which houses the Tsawwassen Ferry Building; years in planning and constructing. We load the Vette on board the MV Tsawwassen for our 90 minute cruse to Swartz Bay, 20 miles north of Victoria. It’s a perfect day with beautiful clear skies and calm seas.
Once there, we off-load the Vette and follow the Pat (Patricia) Bay Highway leisurely down the coast, turning west on Keatings Cross Road on to Benvenuto Ave. to the incredibly beautiful Butchart Gardens, just past Tod Inlet. In 1904 the concept of the gardens began with an effort to beautify an old worked out limestone quarry on the large estate owned by R.P. Butchart, a pioneer in the manufacture of Portland cement.
His wife is given credit for creating the spectacular 50-acre floral expanse we see today. Plant material for all seasons; manicured lawns, gardens and trees, step-stone paths, stairways up through oceans of color. And then the sunken gardens where standing at the highest point we can see the only remnant of the original cement factory, a tall chimney that stands as a monument to how generosity can create shared beauty such as this …..we spend 2 hours just following a guide map and stopping for a quick lunch.
The Vette takes us out and this time down 17A where we proceed south, winding our way around to Victoria’s Inner Harbour and park at the old Empress Hotel.
The Empress was built in Edwardian style between 1904 and 1908 as a terminus hotel for passengers traveling on the Canadian Pacific steamship line, whose terminal is only a block away. Over the years, it’s had several owners, undergone additions and renovations, but still remains an essential part of the culture and ambiance of Victoria. So much so that there is no outside signage that tells the arriving guest what it is….you are supposed to already know. Today, it’s a bit weather-worn, needing renovation inside and out but still stately and impressive. We have afternoon tea (an ancient tradition here) in the Tea Lobby, with tasty raisin scones and jams.
Afterwards Sara and I walk over to the Tally-Ho and rent a private horse drawn carriage, with a driver so incredibly knowledgeable of the city and surrounds that we could listen and look all day. We actually extend our tour in route much to the pleasure of our guide who has so many special places to take us….such a steady, slow pace we go, on such a tranquil day without a worry in the world.
Later, we’re back at The Empress where we just walk around the grounds and visit the other gardens and shops adjacent to the harbour.
Time to leave comes much too soon. We reclaim the Vette and drive the short distance along the harbour for the ferry to Seattle, the Princess Marguerite II (a side loader), owned by Canadian Pacific. This is actually a small luxury liner, accommodating 2,000 passengers and 60 automobiles with all the amenities you’d expect to have trans-oceanic.
Once under way we go up on deck, where we gaze back at the receding landscape of Victoria, as if somehow it captures the entirety of the fun we’ve had on our two day whirlwind visit to Canada.And there is this silent time when we lean over the railing next to the canvas covered life boats; each looking away at the evening’s red sky and the darkening water below, feeling the ferry shutter as it cuts through the waves, and wondering separately what’s to become of us.
The ferry arrives at Pier 64 near the foot of Lenora Street, an easy drive back to The Edgewater. We unload the luggage, mine taken to the lobby, hers to her car where we stand for a moment.
“You know, Tennyson also wrote The Miller’s Daughter”…. “Ever read it?” I ask.
She says nothing while searching my eyes for the longest time….I smile and she responds….thinking, but still not answering. She doesn’t have to…..she can probably recite it from memory.
It’s getting late so I say thanks and goodnight with a friendly embrace, and a promise to call before I leave in the morning. And as I start to turn away she touches my arm and says, “I’d like to stay and hear more about that poem”.
“Tell me this is not another practical joke” I say, and we both break out with laughter as she puts her arms around my waist and presses in close. The Vette sees the whole thing.
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