My husband and I decided we were going to spend three weeks of summer in British Columbia for our then-six-year-old boy to see my family again. Our son met my aunt and uncle when they visited Ottawa when he was two, so he probably did not remember them much. He had seen his two second cousins a couple of times when they visited the East Coast and we met in Montreal, but again, he did not remember much. It was about time we reconnected in person once more. We stayed at my cous

My first visit to Canada as a tourist was in the West Coast, mainly Vancouver and surroundings and Victoria Island (the actual first visit was in Ontario, but I was a student on a theatre tour back then). Vancouver made such an impression on me - the majestic and rugged peaks of its mountain ranges and the stunning landscape dotted with glistening lakes, cascading waterfalls, shimmering glaciers, vast alpine meadows, fertile river valleys, limestone caves, and dense forests!

We had a couple of hours to spare before our bus ride to the ferry terminal that would take us back to Vancouver, so we headed to Chinatown. Victoria’s Chinatown is the oldest in Canada, and the second oldest in North America after San Francisco. The reason for this is its strategic location. The city was once the major entry port for Asian immigration to British North America, and then later, Canada.   In the mid-19th century, there was an influx of miners from California, m

My husband and I went to see the Craigdarroch Castle. Yes, there is a castle in Victoria. I had always known about it. I had seen it in so many postcards, but somehow, in all my visits to the island, I had never gone there. I guess it’s because it’s not exactly located in the downtown core. And though it’s only a short drive or a leisurely walk away (around half an hour), somehow, it had never been a part of our usual Victoria itinerary. Craigdarroch Castle was built by coal

Our third day in Victoria was the most exciting for me because we would be doing an activity that I had never done before but had always wanted to do – whale-watching! Victoria is one of the best places for whale-watching. Majestic mammals and marine wildlife abound in the waters surrounding Vancouver Island, including the orca (or killer whale), gray, humpback, and minke whales, as well as sea lions, seals, porpoises, and marine birds. Whales love the Pacific Northwest (and

The Butchart Gardens is inarguably the gem of Vancouver Island. Everyone who goes to Victoria also has Butchart Gardens on the top of the list of “must-sees.” The garden complex is located at Brentwood Bay, not far from Victoria. When I first mentioned it to my husband, he could not understand why I had to take him to this garden. He thought that this tour was more suitable for garden enthusiasts and landscapers, not rock and volcano enthusiasts like himself. He will choose r

We decided to play Gulliver and visit Lilliput…or you could picture us falling down the rabbit hole with Alice.   In Victoria, located on the north side of the Empress Hotel, you will find Miniature World, dubbed as “The Greatest Little Show on Earth.” It has over 85 little models, including the world’s smallest operation sawmill, one of the world’s longest miniature railways, and one of the world’s largest dollhouses circa 1880 with rooms beautifully furnished in exquisite d

In the vicinity of the Royal BC Museum are several cultural attractions. Collectively called the Cultural Precinct, it consists of the Thunderbird Park and the historic sites built on it, such as the Wawadit’la  (Mungo Martin House), the Helmcken House, St. Anne’s Schoolhouse, and the Netherlands Centennial Carillon. Thunderbird Park, just next to the museum and established in 1940, takes its name from the mythological Thunderbird of Indigenous North American cultures, which

Aside from its permanent galleries, the Royal BC Museum in Victoria also hosts temporary exhibitions, which are always very interesting. On my last visit there, they had the “Dragon Bones: When Dinosaurs Ruled China.” On this visit, they had “ Titanic : The Artifact Exhibition.” I had been fascinated with the story of the Titanic  sinking, even before the Leonardo di Caprio-Kate Winslet movie became a blockbuster. I read about it when I was a child and what stayed in my memor

One thing that my husband and I enjoy doing together is visiting museums. While he prefers science exhibits and I prefer cultural and artistic ones, we voluntarily go with each other, no matter what and no matter where, and Victoria was no exception. On our second day in Victoria, we headed to the Royal British Columbia Museum right after breakfast, in time for its opening. We wanted to avoid line-ups and crowds, especially on a holiday weekend. Founded in 1886, the Royal Bri

While I was enthusiastic about the cultural activities in Victoria, my husband was more interested in its culinary offerings. He found out that Victoria had, at that time, an iconic German restaurant, so he wanted to go there for dinner. The restaurant was called Rathskeller Schnitzel House, which had become a Victoria institution after more than half a century of existence. Rathskeller  means "a restaurant or beer hall in the basement" in German, which was how this restauran

In Victoria, one could not and should not miss the Victoria Fairmont Empress Hotel. This Beaux-Arts masterpiece designed by Francis Rattenbury (who also designed Victoria’s Parliament Buildings), was built between 1904 and 1908, and soon became one of the world’s most famous hotels. Formidably looking over the harbour, the grand hotel became a byword in Edwardian luxury. Incorporating elements of French Renaissance architecture, the design features an enormous entrance hall a

My husband was initially not interested to go to Victoria’s Royal London Wax Museum, but because it was just a stone’s throw away from the harbour and we had some time to kill before dinner time, we decided to check it out. It was not very big, so we figured, we would spend around 40 minutes inside. Opened in 1961 with just 50 wax figures, this attraction established North America’s first exhibition of Tussaud wax figures from England and became the flagship Madame Tussaud es

Victoria’s Inner Harbour is a bustling walkway that hosts vendors, buskers, musicians, artists, food trucks, and small shops (and we later found out there’s a night market at the main dock every summer). It is where the fashionable part of Government Street begins and where you can find the Royal BC Museum and Tourist Information Centre. It is also where the Harbour Air seaplanes take off and land, and where the Coho Ferry and Victoria Clipper passenger boats arrive and depar

Since Victoria is the capital of the province of British Columbia, the first attraction I showed my husband was the British Columbia Parliament Buildings. This is the seat of power in this province and it houses the BC Legislative Assembly. Standing on five hectares of lush property and with an imposing neo-Baroque architecture, it is one of the most dominant features of the Victoria downtown core.  The buildings face north on Belleville Street overlooking the Inner Harbour a

When I was still a resident of Vancouver, it was a common practice for our family to take out-of-town visitors to Victoria, if their time and schedule permitted it. It is a must-see place to visit when in British Columbia. In fact, this was the first place I visited when I came to Vancouver as a tourist. And when I became a resident, I had since played tourist guide to various guests. Victoria is the capital of the province of British Columbia. Most people assume it is Vancou

The next morning, we packed our bags, took our eggs and some muffins and cookies along, and put our luggage and lunch containers in the car. The first order of the day was our big breakfast at the Wickaninnish Inn as planned. We saw the same friendly server, and he once more gave us a nice table by the window. All three of us ordered Eggs Benedict again, but we switched it around. I tried the shaved ham and cheddar this time. The next stop was our other B&B where we were to s

An easy early afternoon hike meant a short and flat trail, literally a “walk in the park.” And it’s a bonus if it is also beautiful. Thus, my housemate took us to Shorepine Bog Trail, a less-than-one-kilometre hiking loop that consists entirely of boardwalks. It sounded perfect. The trail is a simple loop on a rickety boardwalk that offers a unique, open-landscape contrast to the nearby dense rainforests. The main attraction is the bog itself, which is a unique ecosystem beca

After our hearty breakfast, we decided to visit Tofino’s downtown area, which was so small, that it’s more like a village core. We heard that despite the influx of tourists, the local folks prefer to leave the town as is, without the invasion of franchised establishments. I am glad they stood on their ground against commercialism. The town has retained its village charm and it actively promotes local shops and Indigenous artists, since it has an vibrant artisan community with

We reached Tofino a little after lunch. Our bed-and-breakfast house was a cozy Cape Cod-style house close to the beach. The owners did not normally stay there, and we were the only guests, so we had the entire house to ourselves. My housemate and her friend shared one big bedroom with two double-beds and I had the smaller bedroom with a double-bed. As soon as we unpacked and got settled, we ate cold-cut sandwiches for lunch then wasted no time. The beaches were waiting. We fi