I went to the island. The one off the coast of BC. The big one that you can fit 3 England's into. We left on Friday and made the 6:00 ferry and sat on the windy but sunny sun deck and I took pictures of people close up but from far away. Sneaky me. We drove to Metchosin and dropped off 2 water barrels and trailer, ate and apple and drank some wine and headed in search of our hiding spot for the night. We were staying "in our vehicle". Which isn't as bad as it sounds when it's a Delica with a mattress and 4 pillows and a huge feather duvet. Just as long as you're parked on flat ground- you're good.
Up and around a snaky road called Kangaroo Road and over a bend and through a thicket we found Sooke and the Whiffin Spit. We parked where we shouldn't have and fell asleep listening to the water rush up on the rocks. When the dawn broke through the windows, we got up and walked the Whiffin Spit I once walked with my mom and grandmother. The town of Sooke isn't much, but we found a funny little place for coffee and a recommendation for breakfast- The Alternative Cafe. Very good ham & eggs, by the way. We wandered into a house masquerading as a gallery and the following exchange..
"Are you an artist?"
"Well, no, I take photographs though."
"They don't sell. Get into something else."
pause...
"Where are you staying?"
"In our vehicle." I said with a odd sense of "so there."
She recommended the drive to French Beach, gave me her card and I walked away saying thanks.. "Maybe you'll sell my photos one day." She laughed.
So we went to French Beach and if you look at the link and see the picture with the giant upturned tree.. it's still there.
We drove back to Victoria and pottered around. We were unimpressed with our lunch at Rebar, especially as we happened to come in when they were changing menus and were rather ceremoniously told of our inconvenient timing. They did have some lovely salads that supported my newly acquired wheat, dairy and sugar free diet so we stayed. The cookbook looks better though.
We talked to the locals, with a craving for beef, we got recommendations from a vegetarian for a lovely restaurant named Spinnakers that required a 20 minute walk along the water front. The food could have been better but they did use locally grown, produced and raised ingredients. It made up for the fact that they overcooked the greens and veggies that the menu said was steamed and tossed in butter. We saw the veg-head on our way back which was odd since he seemed so vague about the place. Maybe he secretly grows their herbs.
Saturday night and the hunt was one for a superior or equal hiding spot to the one we found in Sooke. We ended up on a tiny strip of land crossing a tiny bit of the outer Victoria harbour called Ocean Blvd. A beautiful view of the harbour and Fisgard Lighthouse was there like warm croissants and coffee in the morning. Except I'm still on my cleanse, so no croissants for me.
We ended up at some cafe on Cook St called Rosie's Diner. When we were greeted at the door with a sign that said "no Chinese Food today" I had grave misgivings about Rosie, but we ventured forward. In hopes of recreating the ham steak at the breakfast in Sooke, I ordered the same again. But, let this be a lesson to you- you can not recreate the same meal with a different menu. The ham steak was reconstituted ham "bologna"- fried. While Michael slathered his buttery rye toast with peanut butter, I began to feel foul and then the waitress came and took our paper off our table without warning. Cook St Rosie Diner- I won't be back.
But while sitting there I saw an add for a shoe company with a rather dapper pair of sandals that enamored me so, and our next adventure was set. Later, with sandals on my feet we ventured further into dietary restrictions..
"Can I have the burger without the bun, mayo, or cheese please?" That was somewhat painful.
"Could I have the salad bare, with no dressing, but could you bring me a small amount of oil and some lemon?" The waitress looked confused.
"Is it possible to buy 1/2 and avocado?"
"Do you have any desserts that do not have sugar, wheat or dairy?" just as a joke.
Later, before we had to go, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to Fisgard Lighthouse and came nearly face to face with a deer in exchange.
So and there it goes, our excellent adventure of dietary restrictions, finding places to peacefully pee and sleep, retail therapy, and a historical rendezvous or two..
Up and around a snaky road called Kangaroo Road and over a bend and through a thicket we found Sooke and the Whiffin Spit. We parked where we shouldn't have and fell asleep listening to the water rush up on the rocks. When the dawn broke through the windows, we got up and walked the Whiffin Spit I once walked with my mom and grandmother. The town of Sooke isn't much, but we found a funny little place for coffee and a recommendation for breakfast- The Alternative Cafe. Very good ham & eggs, by the way. We wandered into a house masquerading as a gallery and the following exchange..
"Are you an artist?"
"Well, no, I take photographs though."
"They don't sell. Get into something else."
pause...
"Where are you staying?"
"In our vehicle." I said with a odd sense of "so there."
She recommended the drive to French Beach, gave me her card and I walked away saying thanks.. "Maybe you'll sell my photos one day." She laughed.
So we went to French Beach and if you look at the link and see the picture with the giant upturned tree.. it's still there.
We drove back to Victoria and pottered around. We were unimpressed with our lunch at Rebar, especially as we happened to come in when they were changing menus and were rather ceremoniously told of our inconvenient timing. They did have some lovely salads that supported my newly acquired wheat, dairy and sugar free diet so we stayed. The cookbook looks better though.
We talked to the locals, with a craving for beef, we got recommendations from a vegetarian for a lovely restaurant named Spinnakers that required a 20 minute walk along the water front. The food could have been better but they did use locally grown, produced and raised ingredients. It made up for the fact that they overcooked the greens and veggies that the menu said was steamed and tossed in butter. We saw the veg-head on our way back which was odd since he seemed so vague about the place. Maybe he secretly grows their herbs.
Saturday night and the hunt was one for a superior or equal hiding spot to the one we found in Sooke. We ended up on a tiny strip of land crossing a tiny bit of the outer Victoria harbour called Ocean Blvd. A beautiful view of the harbour and Fisgard Lighthouse was there like warm croissants and coffee in the morning. Except I'm still on my cleanse, so no croissants for me.
We ended up at some cafe on Cook St called Rosie's Diner. When we were greeted at the door with a sign that said "no Chinese Food today" I had grave misgivings about Rosie, but we ventured forward. In hopes of recreating the ham steak at the breakfast in Sooke, I ordered the same again. But, let this be a lesson to you- you can not recreate the same meal with a different menu. The ham steak was reconstituted ham "bologna"- fried. While Michael slathered his buttery rye toast with peanut butter, I began to feel foul and then the waitress came and took our paper off our table without warning. Cook St Rosie Diner- I won't be back.
But while sitting there I saw an add for a shoe company with a rather dapper pair of sandals that enamored me so, and our next adventure was set. Later, with sandals on my feet we ventured further into dietary restrictions..
"Can I have the burger without the bun, mayo, or cheese please?" That was somewhat painful.
"Could I have the salad bare, with no dressing, but could you bring me a small amount of oil and some lemon?" The waitress looked confused.
"Is it possible to buy 1/2 and avocado?"
"Do you have any desserts that do not have sugar, wheat or dairy?" just as a joke.
Later, before we had to go, we rewarded ourselves with a trip to Fisgard Lighthouse and came nearly face to face with a deer in exchange.
So and there it goes, our excellent adventure of dietary restrictions, finding places to peacefully pee and sleep, retail therapy, and a historical rendezvous or two..
1 comment:
Sounds like a lovely weekend -
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