Girls Trip to Victoria ~ Day 2 Part 1

Friday August 16th

I'm never too happy when the weather doesn't cooperate with my plans!  We woke up to some serious sea fog this morning.  But we won't let that stop us....we've got places to go and things to do!

We set out for a walking tour this morning....heading up Douglas Street...

If there's one thing that you will see a lot of in Victoria, it's Flowers!!!  They are everywhere and they are beautiful!

Is it too early?

We should probably be here instead....

We need some brekkies and I hear my favourite bakery calling!  Dutch Bakery here we come!

We've been going to the Dutch Bakery since.....oh, the 60s sometime I think.  They've been open since 1956.  The Dutch Bakery   It's not a fancy place and I don't think the decor has changed much in all those years.  And that's what's so great about it....the cakes and pastries haven't changed either.  They are always exactly how I remembered them from the previous visit.  I like when things stay the same yumminess!  It's definitely a Must Do when you're in Victoria!  

Mom gets a cinnamon danish while I get an almond one.....delish as always!

We sit and people watch while enjoying our treats.

We'll be back again later this afternoon to pick up dessert for tonight!  And then back again tomorrow to pick up goodies to take home to the family.

My favourite....Vanilla Slices

So, back to walking to burn off those buns!

We turn down one block to Government Street.....this is as touristy as it gets in Victoria, but a lot of my favourite places are here....lots of great memories!  We took a lot of family trips to Victoria when I was young and then I went to the University of Victoria for 2 years.  One place I went often during UVIC was Munro's Books.  It was in a different location back then and now it's in a historical building that is just beautiful.  There's just something about book stores!  Munro Books

We didn't buy any books but I did buy a card made by a local artist.  It's for our wedding anniversary on August 29th....shhhhhh, don't tell Vince!

Back to our walk.....






























Next to Munro's is another favourite haunt...Murchie's Tea.  When I moved to Victoria, it seemed like you just had to drink tea.  Mostly just to stay warm during the cooler, damp winter months.  I have never been a coffee drinker except for late night exam crunching, but I've always enjoyed a good cuppa!






























I wasn't sure if we should shop here, or bend over!

There are a lot of great places to sit outside and have a drink or meal.....

 On to Bastion Square, which is often an open air artist market

The view from Bastion Square to some of the inner harbour area....my yacht awaits!

I love all the old historical buildings in Victoria....some great scenery....

 I was quite surprised and impressed that Victoria chose to copy the exact same plants that I used for my planters!

 On to Market Square.....

During UVIC days, we used to go to Market Square a lot!  There was a little pizza place called Noose Pizza.  One of the first places that I tried a whole wheat crust.  It was sooo good!  Anyway, back to 2013....

Now it houses a few little specialty shops and a very pretty drink fountain....

Next up is Chinatown....

The impressive entrance....

I really wanted to buy some fancy chopsticks but the packaging was all in Chinese.  Which was great except for one word "Danger".  I couldn't quite figure out what Danger was referring to, so we left those behind and bought lottery tickets instead!

I had downloaded an app on my phone called City Vibe.  It listed all the events taking place, when and where.  One was a Flamenco Festival, nearby at Centennial Square.  Apparently they have a variety of musical and dance performances throughout the summer from 12-1.  This was a real treat and we thoroughly enjoyed the great dancing and music!

Take a look and listen!

At this point, Mom was getting pretty tired from all the walking, so we headed back to the condo for a bit of coffee and a sit down.....

To be Continued!.....