Family Far and Near - A Short Stay on the Island

Once I'd finally found a place I decided it was high-time I went to see the family! After all, it'd been about five years. Taking the 1 1/2 hour trip to the ferry was followed by another 1 1/2 on the ferry - a long old trip, but with the sun setting against the blue mountains, I really didn't mind. Eventually we made port at Swartz Bay, Vancouver Island after a calm and chilly crossing.

It was great to see Elaine and David again! And I swiftly came to the conclusion that family are a lot like old friends. You might not see each other in years, but you meet again for five minutes and it's like you never left.

John was at Kelowna 'boarding with friends, Chris working somewhere in the middle of Canada to bring home a pretty sweet pay-packet. So after cheekily using their washing machine, and a relaxing night in front of 28 Days Later, David was roped into entertaining me. Hoping the weather would hold Elaine decided on Victoria, which was a very nice place but pretty quiet. Especially as it was winter.

Elaine got very excited when we saw a sports news-reader outside the Parliment Building though... a lot more interested than at the museum (where I swear she regressed to a petulant 6 year old). We got to the Royal BC Museum a little late and didn't get to finish it, so Elaine complained, and we managed to get in again the next day without paying extra! Yay for polite complaints.

On my last night there John got back from the mountains... having decided that island sea-air wasn't as good as mountain air, and that he wanted to go back and become a hermit. Well, we all went for a walk around Brentwood Bay before I left, and the sun actually came out. It must be glorious in the summer. You can see the jellyfish and starfish at the bottom of the marina, the water's that clear.

Finally we made a quick stop at Sidney, which reminded me a lot of Hunstanton (don't ask me how!), before catching the ferry back. A whistle-stop tour, but one I plan on doing again. Hopefully I can see Mount Washington before the snow goes.

Before I go, I'm afraid that with two jobs and the Olympics I may stop updating this Blog every day. Weekly updates will be my aim from now on, so watch this space!