Victoria, BC

Thursday, July 11

Last day, even if we do have the evening in Victoria!

Here is something that still makes me laugh out loud:

From the daily bulletin the day we were in Ketchikan:

"It is hard to imagine how the town got the Tlingit name, Ketchikan - "Thundering Wings of an Eagle". For the rugged sole that climbs the 3,000 foot Deer Mountain that overlooks the town, the mystery is quickly solved."

Did you catch the homonymic error?

What next, halibut and salmon mountain climbers in flannel shirts!!! Ha ha!

A lazy day, except for packing which is basically tossing everything in the suitcase....who cares about wrinkles at this point! Breakfast at Café al Bacio, glassblowing demonstration at the "Hot Glass Show", a complete glassblowing venue up on deck 15 by the real lawns. Amazing insallation....and a much better demonstration than in Murano. Lunch in the main dining room, Grand Épernay...our first time there! Excellent lunch of smoked salmon, tuna melt paninis and pear tarte tatin. Very attractive two level dining room - all pale colors...white, grey, crystal, white metal.

We arrived in Victoria BC at 6pm and, at 7, I set off on my excursion to Butchart Gardens and high tea at the grand old Empress Hotel. The gardens were stunning, but I could only manage to walk a small area. Tea was excellent...very English...and the hotel was old-world and charming. But it was 9pm by the time we got to the Empress. And our tour of the city was in the dark and viewed through tinted windows. All I got was the impression of a beautiful city that must be seen by day. I would love to come back.

And so, at 11:30, I am back in my cabin and hoping for about 6 hours sleep. I am self-disembarking with Paul and Amy's help so that Jonathan can pick us up for breakfast, get Paul and Amy back to the ship and then we can have an early start to our trip. If I don't do this, I would be among the last off the ship. Fortunately, I did not pack a lot...for the first time ever!

I hope to continue the blog over the next four days, but that depends on how easily we find Internet cafes....something tells me we won't in the places we are going!