Hatley Castle

Hatley Castle is part of Royal Roads University (http://www.royalroads.ca) in Victoria. The castle was built for the son of Dunsmuir, who built Craigdarroch Castle. Yes, the family loved the lavish life. Hatley Castle (http://www.hatleycastle.com) is much more spectacular than Craigdarroch (http://www.craigdarrochcastle.com), and the gardens are magnificent! I tested out the time-delay on my Canon EOS camera, and actually took some self-portraits. As you all know, photos of me are few and far between...and I'm posting these for the world to see...I think I may be softening...

French Beach Provincial Park

From the parking lot, I walked through a playground area, then through some brush whoch opened up to the ocean.
It was the middle of the week. Eventhough it was a very hot day, the beach was extremely quiet. A few people were there with there dogs, a couple of campers, and me.

The beach is on the western coast of Vancouver Island. The ocean breeze is crisp and chilly. The waters are deep and cold. The area is known for the wildlife: cougars, bears, seals, orcas, etc. I was not fortunate enough to view any wildlife, but came across driftwood....

and pebbles...



After strolling along the beach, throwing some pebbles back to the sea, playing with the pups, it was time to head back. There were different paths that headed towards the parking area, so I decided to be adventurous. To my amazement, I realized I was in part of the glorious rain forest of the area...

Trees jutting meters into the sky, ferns as high as my shoulder, berries, moses, fungi, mosquitoes, and the strange sort of spiders I'd rather not come across again. The path was very well groomed, and easily navigated.

And at the end, a winding roadway that circled the campsites, and led the way back to the parking lot.

More pics from Butchart

Butchart Gardens

So the other day, I decided to do a very touristy thing...I went to Butchart Gardens. For those of you who do not know about this place, it is a plot of land that some old rich mine-owners wife turned into a garden. There are paths and gardens with themes like traditional English rose gardens, Japanese, and Sunken
Garden (there are paths that circle above this garden and others that take you right through it).Armed with music, a book and my camera, I went on my
merry way. There were tons of people!.

Somehow I managed to get the
Karen-took-a-postcard pics
that I always somehow manage to get when I travel. Yes, I took these by myself,
I did not cheat by purchasing them at the gift shop. Please note: there are no
"Butchart Gardens" written on any of these, and yes I can provide the negatives
to prove I really did take the photos.

Living in Victoria, BC

Okay, I know I've been here for over three months now. But forgive me for only getting to this now.
Work is definitely work. Not the most glamourous, and not what I was expecting. I've decided I'll pay my dues and put the time in while "gaining experience" until I find a more attractive position.

I really enjoy BC living. Nothing beats being minutes away from the beach!! Who knew I would turn into a beach-bum!? I try to get to Willow's Beach (my favourite so far) at least once a week, I was there yesterday and today. Just lying around, reading, napping on the gorgeous white sand...AMAZING! It gets pretty busy with families, couples, groups, solos (like me), but you can always find a spot. There are driftwood logs around that are perfect to use as benches if you didn't bring a beach blanket, but also work as headrests and back support when reading. Sometimes there are long branches that can be used as location markers, like the one in the pic. So, hopefully everyone is enjoying the wonderful, Canadian summer weather as much as I am! I know it's been kinda crazy in some areas...but that's the glory of being in this country, ya never know what it'll be like...