Checked into the Magnolia hotel in Victoria. Valet parking, natch. Free coffee and gourmet ginger cookies too. Very swank.Had some... meat and cheese... and then went to check out the Parliament buildings which were quite spectacularly lit up for Christmas. In fact the downtown core was stellar. It was a beautiful, clear night and all the trees were wrapped with white lights and people were out carolling and there were horse drawn carriages trotting past and it just a really low key, festive kind of vibe.
We went for tapas in Trounce Alley and then we ended up at the Bard and Banker like usual. Guinness was on special (which Michael loves) and they had a great guitar duo - Ben Parker - showcasing some indie music alongside some Neil Young and (I'm guessing) some of their own stuff and it was just really serendipitous. We stayed quite a while and the band didn't appear to be taking tips or selling CDs so we bought them each a beer and then Michael waved at them when they acknowledged us so they probably thought we were swingers or something but, given my bird's eye view vantage of the action happening around the bar, most things slide in Victoria.Insofar as my belated birthday weekend was concerned, this was the epitome. I love trying different foods and I love stumbling upon great music and basically just having fate open up all sorts of opportunities for me, which it always has throughout my horsehoe-esque existence.
It was one of the most fun weekends I've ever had and we still had another day to go.
Wow, I missed all these posts, and your hair is really long all of a sudden. Looks like you had a great time.
ReplyDeleteIt was really nice! You should come out and visit this side of the world. :)
ReplyDeleteI would like to, but it would have to be in the summer because I can't take the cold and it looks kind of cold there.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's 8 degrees celsius (46 F) here right now so come in July or August. I would show you around! Vancouver is a very pretty place.
ReplyDeleteAnd it's pretty cheap compared to, say, NYC.
I like places where you get more for your buck. NYC is way down on my list of places to go. I don't really like crowds and NYC seems kind of crowed.
ReplyDeleteYeah, I try to travel cheaply too, but I think NYC is a city that one ought to experience. Michael went there in university and says I absolutely must go. Same with Europe, but I think we will go in the off season for that one.
ReplyDeleteWhoa. I'm getting way ahead of myself here. ;)
Yeah, did you get hair extensions? Next thing will be buttock implants. ;)
ReplyDeleteHa ha, no hair extensions. I just am not wearing a hat like I normally do and I managed to comb my hair that morning. Success!
ReplyDelete