A Cold and Quiet Easter in Victoria

Well, so far I have to say that the April weather in Victoria has been less than impressive.

It keeps spitting out these little showers that always threaten to get serious but then never do. There's a weak sun out, which is deceptive, as it much colder out than it looks... Here's a few photos I took of the neighbourhood, to help put things in context.

After spending a month or so in Edmonton nursing a serious case of ship-sickness I hoped a midnight greyhound bus from Edmonton to Victoria - 25 hours by bus. It was great - the bus driver was in a bitter mood having just returned from vacation and kept using that sarcastic and subtle tone of humour where you have to struggle not to laugh or risk being ridiculed. I snuggled into my seat and read about Zen Buddhism without any worries of having to go places or talk to people.

And then the Rocky Mountains. Wow, I timed the trip just right, reaching the mountains at 3 in the afternoon, giving me a good 7 hours of mountain-watching delight. We're talking mountain tops surrounded in fog, huge gi-normous ranges on both sides of you, all bathed in a soothing blue-greyish light. A bus gives you a better view too - you're higher up than in a car, so you can see above the trees, and you don't have to worry about driving.

So after arriving in Victoria I stayed a few nights with my very generous friends Carrie & Mark. For the first few days here they were my guides - putting a roof over my head, helping me sort out street names and bus schedules... I owe them big time, and when I own a fancy hotel in Ecuador I'm going to let them use the penthouse suite for free.

I've also been to see a few gigs here and on a ghost walk where we learned about a bank haunted by Robert Service and saw a well in the middle of an office lobby.

A few days of searching yeilded a bedroom in the top-level suite of a character home half a block away with a roomate. Just up the road from Cook Street Village - 5 blocks from the ocean in one direction, 5 blocks to downtown in the other.

Now, time to focus on the income factor... I've spent the last few days boxed up in my room on the top floor of 1116 Collinson street working on resumes. It's been nice, taking it slow as I have no money to go out with anyways.

Meanwhile, I'm hoping this weather improves... and when it does I'll see if I can borrow a digital camera from someone around here and show off Victoria like it was meant to be shown!

Happy Easter Y'all - may you reap much chocolate!

Adam